DAB radio question

[Wowbagger]

Does anyone know of a small DAB radio powered by AA batteries? Or, better still, recommend one from personal experience?

[Greenbank]

I've got a PURE PocketDAB sitting unused for ages in a drawer. £25 inc P&P? I'll even post it to you for a trial and you can pay me or return it once you've made up your mind.

DAB does eat batteries quite quickly though.

(Without headphones as the original ones have been used.)

[EDIT] PocketDAB 1000. Takes 3 AA batteries. Also has DC in but I'm pretty sure I haven't got the powersupply any more.

[rafletcher]

Pure Eco 1 does.

[Butterfly]

We have a little Sony that comes camping with us. It's marvelous .

[epa611]

We have a Roberts solar DAB radio which has been good so far. You can also use with the built in rechargeable battery

[teethgrinder]

I bought a Warfedale from Argos in 2007.
I think it's fantastic!
It's about the size of a packet of 10 cigarettes and weighs very little.
It has been submerged under water or about half an hour. Unlike the MP3 player I had in the same pocket, it dried out and is still carrying on as if nothing ever happened.
It cost me about £80.

The batteries don't last very long. You get some rechargables and a charger with it, which I've never used. A few hours battery life isn't much good to me when I listen to it for days at a time.
I use lithium batteries with mine. Maplins sell lithiums quite cheaply, also try 7 day shop (online) and also Tesco when they sell them half price. I bought my last batch from Maplins when they were flogging them cheap.

I don't know if you can still get one though.

[Morrisette]

I have a Sony something-or-other. It was about 50 quid. Like others have said it does eat batteries, but I have two sets of rechargeable ones and alternate between charging them and having them in the radio. It takes 4 AAs.

[toontra]

It's the power requirements of these things that I find a problem  We should be reducing our use of disposable batteries (in the portable ones) or mains electricity (in the plug-in type).  Rather it appears we are to be forced to use far more power-hungry technology.  That is crazy.

[teethgrinder]

It's the power requirements of these things that I find a problem  We should be reducing our use of disposable batteries (in the portable ones) or mains electricity (in the plug-in type).  Rather it appears we are to be forced to use far more power-hungry technology.  That is crazy.

They don't use that much electricity. TVs and computers are much worse.
It's only the disposable batteries that are the bad guys. I'd use rechargeables if they lasted more than a few hours, but instead I buy very expensive electricity via batteries.
When battery technology gets better and I can charge up some batteries that will run as long as disposables and that are powered by solar panels, I reckon we'll have got somewhere.
Nobody forces me to use my DAB. I often chose the MP3 player because it only uses one AAA battery and lasts longer before it needs a new one. It's a noticeable money saving with the amount of use I get from them.

[toontra]

They don't use that much electricity.

If I use the same batteries (AA ordinary or rechargeables) in my portable DAB and my similar-sized portable conventional radio, they last at least 10 times longer in my old radio.  This suggests to me the DAB uses a LOT more power than the conventional.  Presumably that equates to power drawn from the mains when plugged in.

EDIT:  Checking Wiki it backs my perception up pretty accurately:

As an indicator of this increased power consumption, dual FM/DAB radios quote the length of time they can play on a single charge. For DAB, this is often between one-sixth and one-twelfth of the time they can play when in FM mode.

[teethgrinder]

They don't use that much electricity.

If I use the same batteries (AA ordinary or rechargeables) in my portable DAB and my similar-sized portable conventional radio, they last at least 10 times longer in my old radio.  This suggests to me the DAB uses a LOT more power than the conventional.  Presumably that equates to power drawn from the mains when plugged in.

EDIT:  Checking Wiki it backs my perception up pretty accurately:

As an indicator of this increased power consumption, dual FM/DAB radios quote the length of time they can play on a single charge. For DAB, this is often between one-sixth and one-twelfth of the time they can play when in FM mode.

It's a LOT more than not very much, but it's still not a lot.
My front light uses the same batteries and drains them much faster. AA batteries don't hold a great deal of electricity. Probably less than a penny's worth out of the mains from a battery that cost £1. They're a very expensive way of buying electricity compared to plugging in at the mains.
The biggest power drain on my home DAB compared to FM would be the sound coming out of the speakers. The radio itself will still use more than FM, but I still think it's a relatively negligable amount.

Besides which, when I used to use FM I often ended up riding for miles with no signal. If FM was as good as DAB then I'd use it and save my money on the batteries. At least with my DAB my electricity is used productively.

[toontra]

Yes, point taken.  10 x not very much is still not very much.  For me it's as much the inconvenience as much as the ecology/finance though.  I really don't want to be changing the batteries in my portable radios every couple of days instead of every month - and yes, the difference is that great.