Would of-Could of-Should of, the story of a big ALMOST.
Straight to the point. I like:
*The sleek design with decent to touch materials; nice to see the real wood and aluminium combination, gives it presence&prestige.
*Clicky buttons make it tactile-friendly and the turning knobs add to the "easy to use" list of aptitudes.
*The understated quality from an often overlooked brand; this product gives you much of the same features and for almost half the money you'd pay for the posh brands.
*Easy to use and the connectivity options are plentiful, the dab radio signal seems consistently reliable and the CD is a nice, if a dying, feature. Bluetooth & USB connection are a must nowadays and you can find both on this product, together with Aux in jack and separate port for headphones.
I don't like:
*The finish could be better. Yes, it's well enough made, but the refinement left me wanting for more. It looks great in the photos, but you can tell this is a mid-shelf, not top shelf product when you get close.
* The sound,which is average at best, although powerful. Yes, it's clear enough and louder than your average radio unit, but the base tends to drown and overpower the audio scene. Listening to it for a longer time makes you want to turn the volume down, rather than up. Plus you get little choice from the 5 preset adjustments, they barely make a difference. The result is a borderline unpleasant listening experience at times, which is a real shame. A pair of tweeters and a manual equaliser would have made this sound unbeatable in this price range and then some.
*Headphones connection instead of that of an SD card; I know people tend to never use either of those options anyway, so nevermind.
Conclusion: This could be a hitter above it's price category, but it's a bit of a miss; loveable and charismatic, strong and subtle, but unrefined and unsophisticated. Notice I didn't mention the size, which is a tad on the bulky side, especially for something that tends to spend it's life in the kitchen, but it's perfect for me. It could have been one of the best products in this segment, if not for the things I've listed in the latter part of my review. I'm a fan of the brand and ultimately have choosen this product over more premium names simply because of the enormous value for money it offers. Yes, it could be better and I have criticized it relatively harshly, but only because, in my opinion, they got tantalisingly close to perfection, but never quite reached it. That's why only 4 stars.
Thanks for reading.
Verified purchase: YesCondition: Pre-owned