- Digital AM/FM/SW radio with signal strength indicator
- 248 station memory storage
- 5 tuning methods: jog tuning, manual, auto tuning, ATS (Auto Tuning Storage)
- MP3 and WMA decode and recording, E-Book TXT support
OH how I wanted this radio to work. As with all Grundig radios (that I've owned and I have a few), it comes in that nice nifty black slide box, everything all wrapped up with that new aroma.
First I do is quickly look over everything and I see there is no AC charger! NO just a Mini-USB jack (they call it high speed)! This I consider to be a real downfall. To charge the radio you must connect it to your computer. However you can purchase the AC part to plug the USB wire into.
If you have a smartphone, it's most likely you have this part already. Just make sure it's 5V output. Just remove the wire from it and put the radio USB wire into it. I didn't think of this, so I purchased one at a local electronics store for five dollars. It's a small black square the USB wire goes into. It took just under three hours charging AC on the initial charge upon receiving it.
The battery, as the directions say make sure you fully charge it before using. Then FULLY drain it and fully charge, then fully drain THREE times before you start charging it 3/4 empty or "preventative" or such.
The radio itself has a "boxy" sound to it. This is surprising as there are two speakers, and from another Grundig radio that's a single speaker, the sound is much better.
It's very compact, and comes with a black drawstring bag to carry it in.
What's maddening is each time you preset a channel it auto starts at 25. So you must scroll all the way back down, and if you are not careful you may go over a channel you already have set. Other radios start at the first free number and it blinks or such if you attempt to set on a channel that's already set.
I've had no problems with the record feature. This is something that I really like as you can record anything you are tuned to. Record in either 129k BPS or 40k BPS.
The screen lights up nicely.
As the directions say it's AM/FM/SW. Also has Japan and school bands. Can play MP3 (comes with line in cable).
Digital tuning. Shows signal strength and battery level. 3.5 mm headphone output, line-in, MIC.
Alarm clock.
Lanyard cord to attach to the upper left corner (prevent those of us who are clumsy from dropping it when carrying with full hands). Isn't it always the radio or expensive things that slip from our hands when we are too lazy to make an extra trip?
Upgradable firmware....this I have not used nor is much detail given on it.
Tuning far away 50,000 AM watt channels at night is moderate. I must admit my little Grundig G8 Traveler gets better reception from far away.
FYI for you fellow radio AM radio night geeks out there, I've found THEE best radio for reception is the Sangean DT-400W AM/FM Digital Pocket Weather Alert Radio. Whatever the reason that pulls in channels from far away.
Various ways to show the time (12/24 format). Also 3 ways to show the date.
A lot of "geeky" things for us geeks to doodle with when having extra time.
It's rather lightweight, so it makes a handy travel radio.
In ending I think Grundig could make this a real good radio. I realize it would add to the cost to include the AC adapter part, but to me that's so important to include. As for the sound, I'm not sure why it has that "boxy" sound to it, especially with two speakers. I have four other Grundig radios and none sound like this, and they do not cost as much and two have only one speaker.
If you are looking for a recordable AM/FM/SW radio, MP3, then this one is for you.
EDIT:
After using this radio longer, here a few observations:
-On charging it via electric (AC) when the battery is completely "dead" it takes a good six hours to fully charge (the bars stop moving).
-The radio could use a single button to light up the display. That is to see the station or reception, time left on a MP3, etc. As it is now, for the screen light, you have to push any of the function buttons and the screen only lights up after it goes through the function of the button. Even the volume (which is a button) shows the specific set of the volume before it shows the main screen.
-The speakers have power to them and I notice the "boxy" sound goes away if the volume is set high. And it plays high, but that puts a strain on the battery.
-IMHO the radio would of been much better had it been made to take regular alkaline batteries. Or even have the option to use regular or charge batteries.
-The Antenna is built of a thick metal and has a long extension. You can still accidentally bend it, however it's much better than an average metal antenna.
-The Record function really puts a harsh use on the batteries. To test, I recorded an hour of the radio, and from a full charge (all bars full), one bar was gone with the second bar blinking.
Buy Grundig G2 AM/FM/Shortwave Radio, Recorder, Black - (NG2B) Now
My very first shortwave radio is the ETON Traveler II Digital G8 AM/FM/LW/Shortwave Radio with Auto Tuning Storage I bought here at Amazon on July 20, 2011. As an avid Scanner fan with assorted Uniden (and other brand) scanners, I always lusted after a dedicated short wave radio. But one I could figure out how to use without needing to go back to school. I loved my Eton Traveler II so when I saw this I jumped all over it. There are things I love about this and a thing or two I am not crazy about as well.
Novel feature I stumble onto is not all that easy but you can set up the alarm to wake you to a chosen MP3. Have fun setting it up however. The fact I have that option is fun to me anyway. The FM band is simply amazing in it's ability to find stations clearly in my fringe area. The sound is just "OK" however with no ability to adjust bass etc on radio broadcasts. It does however have "sound fields" available on any recording playbacks. Seems counter intuitive to me anyway as I would prefer to adjust sound on LISTENING and have that automatically carried over to the recording?
The manual is somewhat vague to me in most areas but is good enough to get me through most everything I need to do without additional help. But I am still learning. Some quick facts on this radio are:
BL 5C lithium ion battery= 1050 mah capacity-Charge from you computer or YOU buy an external direct charger (BOO!)-Reset button inside there too
-micro SD card slot
-Text reader for simple .txt files
-Has a line input jack but NO external antennae jack (again a big BOO!)
-Has an external Mic jack
-Micro SD card slot included (nice)
-Handy "prop up" stand in the back to hold the radio upright at about a 90 degree angle
So far the good is:
-FM is amazing as always (for me)
(oh darn, that's IT!)
So far the bad is:
-ALL recorded media media skips during playback. It is virtually a useless GIMMICK you can't use. Maybe I have a defective product? Voice, music, you name it, useless.....
HATE the proprietary battery. My older unit takes my rechargeable AA so if I run out I just slip a couple from in my pocket into the radio and I am good to go. With this I have to buy extra BL 5C batteries that can only be used with this? NOT good....and make SURE you 100% completely charge & then 100% drain that battery for the first 3 or 4 times or good luck expecting ANY sort of battery life form it.
-Typical mediocre Manual
-To "scan" stations (now this really BUGS me!), you press the scan ahead or backwards button for over 2 seconds. What happens? NOTHING. You now have to remember to RELEASE that button after that 2 seconds and THEN it begins the scan. Counter intuitive to the max. (Just irritates me to no end)
-I am unsure as to why, but so far the SW on this unit is not as sensitive as on my older unit?
-Another irritating thing (to ME) is this. When you scan & finally find a station you want to "set" into memory it always defaults to #25. You have to dial up or down to a different "save" number or you will overwrite your settings. Seems a minor thing UNTIL you get to where you have over a dozen stations already saved and try to remember what the last number you programmed was! I mean 248 memories and it doesn't keep track? Sorry but at age 63 I sure as heck can't...
So I am so far anyway, kind of disappointed in this unit. IF the recording feature worked as described, that would be a really nice option. When it does NOT, it is just a useless, overpriced waste. If it took standard & rechargeable COMMON batteries, it would serve me well when taking it out in the field. With this proprietary battery I will be taking my trusty OLD radio thank you. Sorry to say this will just be a novelty radio for around the hot tub until Grundig/Eton HOPEFULLY gets a firmware fix or some kind of fix for the recording option. Even then, there's that darn battery issue....
In closing I posted some pictures that hopefully give you a better idea of some of the features in this radio. (NOT that they all work mind you) :-)
Read Best Reviews of Grundig G2 AM/FM/Shortwave Radio, Recorder, Black - (NG2B) Here
Being an Amateur Radio Operator and a long time world band listener I was excited to test out the new Grundig G2 Reporter radio. Unfortunately, the radio turned out to be a disappointment. Unboxing, you'll find the radio comes with a good assortment of accessories. Carry strap, USB cable, soft carry case, earphone, etc. The included manual is quite poor. Since the G2's controls and functions are quirky, this doesn't help matters. The radio is very lightweight, and feels a little cheap. The built in stand is very thin plastic and seems like it won't last long if used regularly. After charging up the built-in proprietary battery, I put the radio to the test. Results were very mixed. FM band worked well, but the stereo sound from the small built in speakers wasn't very good. This wasn't entirely unexpected considering their size. The AM/MW worked well too, but sensitivity was just average at best. If you plan on doing any MW Dxing, this isn't the radio for that. Scanning the entire AM band at night, there wasn't a hint of a distant station. My old GE SuperRadio, and Grundig 350 were picking up several stations 100's of miles away. On the SW bands, I found the radio worked quite well. Sensitivity and selectivity were good. I had no problem picking up broadcasts from around the world with the telescopic antenna. The G2 does not have an input for an external antenna, so you're limited to the telescopic antenna unless you use an alligator clip to clip on a wire antenna. There is another major con with the G2 as a shortwave receiver. You can only tune in 5KHz steps, so fine tuning is impossible. The final feature is what is supposed to make the G2 stand apart from other world band receivers. The ability to record broadcasts and play MP3/WAV files using the built-in 4GB of storage space, or an external micro SD card (not included). This is where the G2 gets a failing grade. The feature just does not work well. Whether if be playing back recorded files recorded directly from the radio, or MP3's stored on the mico SD card, the audio continuously pauses and skips. This is enough to drive you crazy and not want to use the feature at all. Since the radio's firmware is upgradeable, the only hope is that this is a software issue and can be fixed. At the end of the day, the Grundig G2's performance and current price tag make it hard to recommend. It's one main feature that makes it stand out just does not work well. If the issues can be addressed with a software update, the radio would be a solid 4 stars. Until then, I'd look elsewhere.
Want Grundig G2 AM/FM/Shortwave Radio, Recorder, Black - (NG2B) Discount?
What we have here is basically an MP3 player/recorder with radio and stereo speakers. There are plenty of MP3 player/recorders with FM radio (but without speakers) at a much lower price, so what do you get for the extra money?
Not much.
The speakers are small and sound even smaller. I've had 12-dollar radios that sounded much, much better. In fact, if you want to know what an utter failure this radio's speakers are, get these speakers: Fidelity Mist Plus Portable Speaker for all MP3 players-Orange and plug them into the earphone jack. That's right, 6-dollar speakers sound 400% better than what's in this radio.
Battery: I haven't actually timed it, but I would call the battery life on this thing pathetic--much shorter than any other portable radio I own, and leave the radio sit for a few days and it goes dead on its own. The radio uses an oddball rechargeable battery, so you can't just pop in a new battery when it's discharged, and the short time between recharging suggests that it is way undersized for use in this radio--a poor design decision, presumably to keep the radio extra thin. But really, a properly-sized battery would not have added that much thickness. There is no provision for a regular AC adapter. I thought at first you couldn't listen to the radio while it was charging, but you can; while it's charging you don't press the power button to turn it on, you press the menu button.
FM radio: Pretty good. Picked up all the stations I expected it to, except one. Did not overload on the 50kW FM station signal coming from less than a mile away from my house--and VERY few portable radios can boast the same achievement. However, when in stereo mode, the radio will switch to mono when it decides the signal might be too noisy for stereo, and there is nothing you can do to override this. I like to decide for myself whether a signal is too noisy to listen to in stereo, thank you very much. Also, the RDS function displays mostly gibberish on every station I tried.
(Missing feature: HD radio. If Insignia can offer a portable HD radio at a MUCH lower price, why is that feature missing from this expensive radio?)
AM radio: Poor for this price point. Picks up strong local stations only. I cannot listen to either of the two stations I normally listen to, using a CCrane portable radio that costs about the same as this one.
SW radio: Worthless. I could not even pick up WWV or CHU at all. Scanning the dial manually is a very slow chore since the radio mutes momentarily whenever you change the frequency. Direct entry of a frequency is possible, although you enter in kHz and the radio displays in MHz. Using the automatic scan function, the radio found one station in the entire shortwave band.
Two recording modes: "40kbps MP3" and "129kbps WAV". The 40kbps mode is utterly unusable. It should give a frequency response up to 4kHz, which would be adequate for voice, but instead it cuts off completely at 1.5kHz, making all recordings in this mode unintelligible. Nothing else in the world of consumer audio has such a poor frequency response, and there is absolutely no reason why this fault should have made it into the final product.
The 129kbps mode gives a frequency response up to 8kHz, which is adequate for voice or music--not hi-fi, but adequate for casual listening and certainly adequate for these speakers.
E-book reader: A very poor joke. You get 4 lines of about 22 characters per line, and the words are broken randomly at the end of each line; scrolling is done 4 lines at a time. Very difficult to read.
For example, the previous paragraph would be displayed as:
_____________________
E-book reader: A ver
y poor joke. You get
4 lines of about 22 ch
aracters per line, and
_____________________
the words are broken
randomly at the end o
f each line; scrolling i
s done 4 lines at a tim
_____________________
e. Very difficult to rea
d.
MP3/WMA player: OK, name ANY other MP3 player that CANNOT play files from its own RAM without pausing at random intervals or stuttering, like this one does. This is an amazing flaw that is inexcusable in any product that made it to market.
One feature of the MP3/WMA player that I wish others had is that you can alter the speed of playback (this is called "Tempo" in the menu, but it is a simple speed control--pitch changes along with the speed of playback). Since so many OTR programs have been re-recorded at the wrong speed, this could be very handy. If you only listen to current podcasts or music, you may not care about this feature.
MP3/WMA playback is the only function in which you can try to compensate for the speakers' poor sound with a few pre-defined equalizer settings. The equalizer settings do not apply to the radio or recorded files. But get this: sometimes while listening to files, this radio loses the ability to change equalizer settings!
There are just too many things wrong with this radio; I had to take the star rating down to the lowest possible.
If this radio cost a quarter of what it does, you could consider it a cute toy. At this price point, it wants to be taken seriously, and there is no way that can happen. Basically, the only thing that works well is FM, and then only if you can excuse the lack of fidelity through the speakers. AM isn't much different from a very cheap portable radio, and SW might as well not be included. The 40kbps MP3 recorder is useless, as is the "e-book reader", and the MP3/WMA player is inexcusably flawed.
Overall, I'd call this radio an insult to the memory of what Grundig used to be.
(Speaking of toys--if you want to see your friends' jaws drop, show them the "bye bye pony" screen that appears when you turn off the radio. I'm tellin' ya--knock the price down to 30 bucks, slap a MLP sticker on it, it could sell as a toy.)
(P.S.-To those reviewers hoping for a firmware update: The company's web site gives no indication that they ever offer updates for any of their products.)
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I won't bother repeating what the other reviewer said sadly, this product even gets the basics wrong.
So, lets start with the good;
On paper, a lot of great features it takes the best of a decent am/fm/sw radio, and adds recording, mp3 playback, ebook support and more. It has plenty of presets, a numerical frequency input, scan dial and backlit display.
Sadly, "on paper" is where the good ends. The controls are dreadful on any other radio, you press scan, and it starts scanning. For some reason, this thing needs you to press and release to scan. Recordings barely play back you'll record a good show (to its 4GB or flash memory or a MicroSD card), but playbbbaaaccckbbback stutters all the time. I only managed to make one decent recording.
You can transfer recordings or MP3 files to the radio using a MiniUSB cable, and no software is required.
Sadly, the big one is that only the AM and FM portions work well shortwave is downright useless. There also does not appear to be a way to add a better shortwave antenna. Even the more powerful stations barely register on this, and using the scan for SW almost never worked.
Grundig Reporter radios used to be the cream of the crop built to last, and used by thousands to pick up things like the BBC World Service. This ETON made Grundig radio is just a slim relic of those days.
Also, the radio uses a rechargeable battery pack which appears to be the same as one of the more popular Nokia battery packs. This means you can't just pick up a pack of AAA's. If you need a portable shortwave radio, chances are you'll run into times where finding AC to charge your battery pack just isn't that easy.
Could have been so much more :(
I buy from amazon a lot so I don't have to hassle with the feedback of that other place, but every now and then a purchase really needs a critique, this one does.
