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Surf Global Internet Radio Stations With This Brand New Hybrid Radio From Philips

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Most of us use radios that offer FM or digital broadcasts but very few of us bother to use a radio to access the thousands of broadcasts available around the world via the Internet. That’s because, if you’re working away in the kitchen, it’s easier just to turn on a conventional FM radio instead of trying to stream international radio programmes from a smartphone. Wouldn’t it be nice to turn on the conventional radio, press a preset and enjoy radio from the other side of the world? Especially handy for expats with severe home sickness.

Well, Philips, the Dutch electronics giant, has launched its AE8000 radio in a new stylish package that offers reception of FM, DAB and Internet broadcasts. It’s about the size of a conventional kitchen radio and features two antennae at the rear: one for radio and the other for Wi-Fi. It comes with a remote control and a backlit display so you can see which station you're tuned to as well as signal strength and time.

Setting up this hybrid isn’t difficult as like most other Wi-Fi devices you can use the WPS set-up method by pressing the WPS button on your home router and choosing WPS on the radio’s menu. After a while of thinking about things the radio will log on to your broadband router without the hassle of entering passwords etc. That’s a good thing as the menu system on this radio is a bit fiddly.

So, once you've logged on to your router you can select the Internet radio function and start browsing. With a choice of FM, DAB and Internet sources this radio is aimed fairly and squarely at the UK market but it’s also compatible with other parts of Europe using DAB digital radio broadcasts.

Finding interesting Internet stations to listen to is fairly simple; you can browse by geographical region or music genre and then store your choice in up to 20 presets. It will even connect to podcasts. And for British listeners there’s a quick menu to access the full range of BBC radio stations online. Within each genre of station there’s some highlighted broadcasters, which are usually the most popular stations within a genre or country. In no time at all I was enjoying the breakfast show from a radio station in Vancouver despite it being teatime in the UK. I well remember listening to shortwave radio from around the world when I was a boy and I have to say that the thrill of receiving radio programmes from the other side of the world never fades.

So far so good, but I do have a few gripes with this radio. The audio quality is a little weak and it does lack bass due to the small speaker. Also, there’s no Bluetooth streaming function either to the radio from your smartphone, or from the radio to a pair of Bluetooth headphones. However there is a conventional 3.5mm auxiliary input should you want to connect an MP3 player but sadly there’s no line-out function so you can’t connect the AE8000 to a hi-fi system and enjoy the Internet radio at louder volumes.

Verdict

If you want a conventional FM/DAB radio as well as an Internet receiver that just involves pushing a button to access up to 20 stored stations then this device is for you. It’s definitely a niche product that fits a narrow sector of the market but if you do need such a hybrid radio then take a look at the Philips AE8000.

Price: £119.99 (from UK retailer Argos) or €139.99 from various European retailers.

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