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Orange LiveRadio
Price: £99.99

Features
Performance
Ease of use
Value for money
Overall

Reviewed By: Ben Camm-Jones

This review updated: 26/07/2008
Featured in magazine:
Issue 190
Manufacturer Contacts:
Supplier: Orange
Tel: 0844 412 0992
Web Address: www.orange.co.uk/liveradio


Digital radio sets have been on sale in the UK for several years, yet DAB still hasn't totally captured the public's imagination. This is largely because of uncertainty over when analogue radio broadcasts will finally cease – the date has been pushed back several times now – and continued satisfaction with traditional broadcasts on the FM and MW channels.

DAB isn't the only way of listening to digital radio stations, though. Anything broadcasting on the web can also be picked up via your PC. And you don't even need to use a computer if you have a set capable of connecting to your wireless network and streaming the broadcasts directly, such as the Orange Liveradio.

Features:
Orange isn't a name you'd normally associate with manufacturing its own hardware, and the first thing that should be pointed out is that you don't need to be an Orange customer to use the Liveradio – all you need is a wireless broadband connection.

The device can easily be moved around the house so you can position it wherever you want and therefore aren't tied to your PC if you want to listen to online broadcasts. There are only a few stations pre-set into the Liveradio so you'll have to trawl through lengthy menus to find the more obscure channels. However, it's easier than tuning an analogue radio because once you've found the station you're after, it's easy to save the information so you don't have to perform the same process again. Lookswise, the design is modern and functional, but it's not going to win any awards.

Performance:
One major problem with the Liveradio is that it doesn't have an on/off switch. There is a standby mode, but this can't be operated manually. This means you need to unplug it and remove the batteries to turn it off completely, which is a major nuisance. The sound quality, though no match for a posh stereo system, is perfectly adequate for a device of this size.

Ease of use:
Setting up the Liveradio is a simple case of selecting the correct wireless network and connecting to it. The Liveradio should automatically detect the type of encryption used on the network, however if you use WPA2 encryption, you'll need to downgrade to WPA1 or WEP as the Liveradio doesn't currently support it. Orange has promised that this will be fixed in a future firmware upgrade but it's a bit of an oversight that the device doesn't currently support the most secure level of encryption.

Value for money:
The Liveradio is priced at the low end of the Wi-Fi radio price spectrum and therefore offers good value for money. However, with many more such devices hitting the market, you may find that prices in this category start dropping in the coming months. We predict that Wi-Fi radios will be big sellers this Christmas, so it might be worth waiting to see if prices plummet further.

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