So I’ve finally gotten some time to unbox some of the trinkets and stuff I’ve gotten from Japan. Most of them are Apple accessories but this AM/FM pocket radio from Sony looked nifty.
There were actually 2 variants when I first saw this — one is just an AM Tuner and this other one which is an AM/FM Tuner.
The AM Radio Card costs about 3,000 yen while the AM/FM Radio Card like this one is 5,500 yen. I got the latter with a painting of Mt. Fuji on the cover. Other designs cost a bit more (6,000 yen).
The radio card is sized similar to a credit card and is just a couple of millimeters thin. The controls are placed on the side and the back. Tuning is done manually via a serrated dial, much like your regular analog radio.
It also comes with a pull-out earphone that’s tucked on the side. I was actually expecting a 3.5mm audio jack but there’s none so you’re stuck with the built-in earphone.
Another shortcoming (depending on how your look at it) is that the battery used by the unit is the disposable type. It would have been nice if they included a rechargeable Li-Ion instead but I guess that would take up more space again.
Bets thing about this card radio is the thin and light form factor and the very long battery life — 55 hours on FM and 120 hours on AM. Best for when you’re on long trips or traveling to places with limited or no electricity. IMO, it’s also a nice item for gifting this Christmas.
My Mum would like to buy this radio but can’t seem to find it anywhere. Any idea where I can buy one? It’s a very old product!
Thanks,
Nicky
disposable batts? what kind? coin type? button type? AAA?
@jdm
Yuga probably only listens to station frequencies no higher than Magic’s 89.9 MHz other wise he wouldn’t have much use for the FM band, am I right old man Yuga?
pass!!
by the way Sony is merging PSP into their phone…
http://www.engadget.com/2010/12/03/playstation-phone-zeus-z1-caught-on-video-again-this-time-you?icid=sphere_blogsmith_inpage_engadget
HOLY COW…
that’s what I want for Christmas. Seriously.
i have something similar, Aiwa brand
its smaller than this and thickness is about the human finger, has a headset jack. buhay pa sya and works on 1 AAA battery. its good to have it especially when ur ipod doesn’t have that radio attachment.
its working well and owned it for 16 yrs na.
very cool
i have a similar Sony radio, but it uses triple A batteries, i hope 5th avenue sells something like this again, my fellow officemates want it too.
this is what im talking about:
[IMG]http://t2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSZMj3sAt24z_OBlG7EFnaU16vLhjZ2SqwKWAIlgACjy2jgTYdd[IMG]
Wow this would be a perfect gift for my 88 yrs. old grandmother
available po ba locally?
and to agree with sir jdm, yung radio galing japan, 3 fm stations lang yung nasasagap eh.
pano frequency? japan diba uses lower frequency channel ranges?
ganun kasi headunits (car audio) di compatible. only selected stations lang.
I had this wy back in the 80’s a cool gadget used it in EDSA 1.
It looks cute! :)
@Zoi
55 hours for FM seems like a long time for me. I don’t think phones will last that long when playing FM (and phones don’t have AM). This conclusion is completely justified:
“Best for when you’re on long trips or traveling to places with limited or no electricity”
Plus it’s just around 1,500-2,500Php. Might be a good gift if you have friends in the research field (specially biologists or energy or envt’l engineers).
The batteries last for 2 days and some change. Pathetic. Lol.
Cool gadget!!