Installation, Testing and Comparison
As I mentioned there is nothing really to install, just plug the USB Retro Radio from Brando WorkShop into any free USB port and away you go; It truly is plug and play compatible.
When powered on the ‘On The Air’ sign lights up a bright red, here are two pictures, the first is with the lights on, the second is with the lights off.
Yeah it looks great, but I bet you are wondering how it works and sounds. I can’t be a real judge on the reception of the USB Retro Radio, but from my past experiences with stereos and radios this one does work just as good as the others. The reason I say I can’t be a real judge on the reception is that there is a radio station in the next town from me, I would say less than five miles and having that station there really messes with reception of radio stations that are not as powerful as it is, I’ve had that station come in on several frequencies, sometimes over it and sometimes I can hear it as the same time as the other station. As I said though the USB Retro Radio performs as well as other radios and stereos I own int hat respect so I can say that it works very well.
Tuning is very easy, the knob on the right is for tuning, it is separated for AM and FM so the frequencies can easily be differentiated from each other when tuning. The switch for changing AM to FM is also easy to use, as is the volume/power knob.
The only complaint I could have is that the speaker is not that great, it is a single speaker, so don’t expect stereo sound, and it sounds ok, not quite a high end sound system here. The volume actually does not get that loud either, but if you were to use this in an office, I don’t think a loud volume is what you would want anyway.
Although for the price, for what it is and for the ease of use it is well worth it. If you are stuck in a cubicle with nothing then you would be quite happy to have this radio.
On a side note: My uncle saw this radio and actually thought it was very unique and wanted to get one for his computer so he could listen to talk radio sports while he was on the computer doing his fantasy football and browsing the internet, he thought it would be perfect for that, and even to take to work with him to use at his desk.