Roberts Play 10 DAB+/FM Portable Radio

A pocketable DAB, DAB+ and FM RDS radio, 180 mm across, running from the supplied mains adaptor at home or four AA cells anywhere else.

At a Glance

• Digital and analogue: DAB+ / FM RDS
• Station presets: 6
• Genuinely pocketable: 180 mm wide
• Power options: Mains or AA

The Play 10 is a small digital radio for people who want DAB and FM without a menu system to negotiate. It measures 180 x 100 x 55 mm, has a rubberised carry strip moulded into the case, and covers DAB, DAB+ and FM with RDS. Six presets hold the stations you return to.

Finding stations takes one press. Auto-scan builds the DAB station list for you, and FM can be tuned manually if you already know where a station sits. RDS names the FM station on the backlit starburst dot-matrix display, which stays readable in a bright kitchen or a dim shed. The 3.5 mm headphone socket is on board for private listening.

The Play 10 makes an honest trade: no Bluetooth and no aux, but a digital tuner, six presets and a shape that fits a coat pocket.

Ideal For

• Around the house: Light enough to carry from kitchen to bedroom to spare room, and small enough that it does not claim a worktop. The carry strip gives you something to hold.
• Sheds and allotments: Four AA cells free it from the mains, and the moulded case with its rubberised strip is built to be picked up with working hands rather than admired on a shelf.
• First digital radio: For a listener moving from analogue, the Play 10 keeps the change small: a scan, a station list and six presets, with FM still there if a station is not on DAB.

Key Features

• DAB, DAB+ and FM RDS: Digital multiplexes and analogue FM in one tuner, with RDS supplying station names and text on the FM band, so you are not left reading a frequency.
• 6 station presets: Enough for the handful of stations most people actually use. Each is recalled directly, without scrolling back through a list every time you switch the radio on.
• 180 mm wide: Small in the hand at 180 x 100 x 55 mm, with a rubberised carry strip in the moulded case so it can be lifted one-handed.
• Backlit dot-matrix display: A high-contrast starburst dot-matrix LCD with a backlight, so station names and scrolling text stay legible in low light as well as bright daylight.
• Mains adaptor included: The AC adaptor comes in the box, so the Play 10 can live plugged in on a shelf and only take batteries when you move it.
• 4 x AA power: Four AA cells make it portable for a walk, a garden or a workshop with no socket nearby. The cells themselves are not supplied in the box.

• What six presets are actually for: Presets are only useful if you can reach them quickly. Six is a small number, and deliberately so: the Play 10 assumes you have a few stations you listen to and the rest you can find by scan. Store them once and each one comes back with a single action, rather than being buried in a list that grows every time the radio rescans the band.
• DAB and FM, both worth having: DAB and DAB+ carry the digital multiplexes, with station names on the display rather than a frequency. FM with RDS remains useful where digital coverage is patchy, in a valley, on the coast or inside a thick-walled building, and it names the station too. Tuning covers both approaches: auto-scan builds the DAB list, while FM can be tuned manually if you know the frequency you want.
• A radio that goes where you go: At 180 x 100 x 55 mm the Play 10 travels in a bag easily, and the rubberised strip moulded into the case gives your hand something to grip when it is carried across a garden or set down on a workbench. Power works both ways. The AC adaptor is supplied for a fixed spot at home, and four AA cells take over anywhere without a socket, though you will need to buy those separately. Headphones plug into the 3.5 mm socket when the room needs quiet.

How It Compares

The Verdict

Strengths

• DAB, DAB+ and FM RDS in one tuner
• Six presets, each recalled directly
• Backlit high-contrast dot-matrix display, readable in low light
• Mains adaptor included in the box
• Runs on 4 x AA cells for portability
• 180 x 100 x 55 mm, genuinely pocketable
• Rubberised carry strip in a moulded case

Considerations

• There is no Bluetooth, so music held on a phone cannot be played through the Play 10. It is a radio only.
• There is no 3.5 mm aux input either, so wired sources such as a CD player cannot be connected to it.
• The four AA batteries needed for portable use are not included, although the mains adaptor is supplied in the box.

What's in the Box

• Play 10 radio x1
• AC adaptor x1
• User guide x1