A Bevy of Modern Pocket Portables – Zenith Royal 50 (Circa 1960 in Red) Left Rear

It’s hard to believe that it has been two years since I last updated the Pocket Portables Review, but here it is. Several new models have been added while some are discontinued. Recently discontinued models may still be found here and there but sometimes at grossly inflated prices so buyer beware. And one apparent clone of it’s well-known predecessor actually gives that discontinued radio a run for its money.

The biggest overall changes for this latest crop of pocket radios are that most currently-made radios are digitally tuned even though they have analog-like tuning knobs and dials. This means they tune in increments, popping from one frequency to the next rather than gliding  continuously as in older, true-analog designs. This can make tuning a bit finicky if not well-designed but some radios tune more easily than others.

Another change is that all of the newly-introduced models feature stereo earphone jacks, so even though they only produce mono FM audio you will hear it through both sides of stereo earbuds…a decided convenience.

I suspect that the Radio Shack radios are no longer available which is a shame because their Model 1200586 had the best AM reception in last year’s review. Checking radioshack.com they all show as Out Of Stock and the ones I found at other online sites were at grossly inflated third party prices. (Radio Shack does still have a few larger portable radios on their site however so maybe there is still some hope that their pocket portables might reappear).

There are many other models available but the seven here represent the best performance and value of all the pocket portable radios I’ve seen which are designed primarily to be used with their speakers rather than with earbuds. Earbud portables such as the CC Pocket and Sangean DT-160 are more expensive and are generally in a higher class overall with digital tuning and its associated features along with Stereo FM and enhanced overall performance.

One of my most prized possessions as a kid was my first portable transistor radio…a Constant 6T-200. I thought it was beautiful just to look at and indeed the Japanese reverse-painted radios on the late 50’s/early 60’s were very eye-catching. It wasn’t long though until I realized there were better radios to be had and as I’ve written in my bio this started a lifelong passion for high performing radios… mainly portable radios.

My First Radio – Constant 6T-220

Many of today’s inexpensive AM/FM pocket-sized portables offer good enough performance to be truly enjoyable companions in situations where you would not want to lug a larger radio. The best of them are decent on AM and some are very good on FM.  Interestingly, modern portables have improved in FM performance more than AM – many early FM portables, especially less expensive models suffered from poor FM selectivity which is much more of a problem today than it was in the 70’s and 80’s because the FM band has become so much more crowded. Many newer portables feature razor-sharp FM selectivity, letting you easily separate signals which are closely spaced on the dial.

A Bit Of Perspective On Size!

Dwarfed by my 1958 Zenith Royal A600L Trans-oceanic are this year’s 13 pocket portables along with Zenith’s first pocket portable from 1960, a red and white AM only Royal 50 (Left Rear. For Zenith fans that Royal 50, Zenith’s least expensive radio of its day, is among the best performing radios of its size and era – it is at least as good as the best of today’s pocket portables on AM).

When I first compared AM/FM Pocket Portable Radios a few years ago I found 5 relatively popular units, all of which are still available today. However a little internet searching revealed many new models, two with digital readouts (one is digitally tuned, the other is analog tuned with a digital display), at “pocket” prices. Clearly it was time for an update with more AM/FM portables.

To be included in this review the radio must be self-contained which means built-in antennas for AM and FM and speaker. I did not include pocket portables meant primarily for earbud use, even if they contain a built-in speaker (such as the excellent Sangean DT-400W, DT-210  and CC Pocket), because they are not only more expensive and generally a higher quality level, but they rely on the earphone cable or a dummy wire as their FM antenna and so are not really convenient for FM portable use with the speaker. Pocket portables are for convenience above all else

In addition a pocket portable should obviously be small enough to fit into a pocket but some of these are half the size of the others. It should be inexpensive enough that if it is lost or dropped the loss is minimal, and it should be good enough that your local and most semi-local suburban-grade signals will come in well enough to be listened to enjoyably. Some are of course better than this minimum requirement. Finally one doesn’t expect Hi-Fi sound from any tiny device but it should be pleasant enough that you can enjoy the program you are listening to. Most of these are OK in that regard but some are not so great.

Luckily many of the radios in this report deliver on all those points and you can’t go too far wrong with any of the recommended models. However some are definitely better in one area of performance (such as AM versus FM reception or sound quality) so your preferences may dictate or rule out a particular model.

And unfortunately there are a few I cannot recommend – they are just so cheaply made that they don’t function properly, or they work so poorly they can’t be regarded as anything more than toys. One unit (the MFine L-938B) was both quirky and defective so I did not rate it.

General Notes:

1. Several of these are just plain miserable on AM, barely receiving even local and semi-local signals, but surprisingly, all were at least acceptable on FM, so if your needs are not too fancy almost any will do for FM only use.
2. Only one of these radios provides FM stereo reception with earbuds, the digital Radio Shack 1201475, but most of the others, except as noted, have stereo earphone jacks so you can hear their mono sound through stereo earbuds. Units with mono jacks will play only through the left channel unless you use a mono to stereo adapter.
3. The average size of the larger pocket portables is approximately 4 ½ x 3 x 1 1/4. The smaller units are approximately 3 x 2 by 1 – see the group picture to see visually how they compare.

• Some models are noted as “tuning in steps”- a result of the increasing digitalization of their design. They actually increment up and down rather than progressing smoothly as in fully analog designs. However these steps are fine enough that in this class of equipment it is of little concern and many users won’t even notice it.

Best For AM & FM:

Radio Shack – Cat No. 1200586 (Formerly Cat No 12-586) $14.99 http://www.radioshack.com  or in-store

Best AM Sensitivity – Mono earphone jack – Average FM Performance – Good Sound for a small portable – Tuning feel slightly stiff but manageable – a good bargain

Sangean SR-35 lists at $40 but currently $18.75 at Amazon http://amzn.to/2bmXqBN

Very Good FM – Best Audio In This Article with Best Tonal Balance among all of these radios but at the sacrifice of maximum volume – Good AM almost as good as the model above – Seems to tune in steps – Tune LED

Sony ICF-S10 MK2 currently $15.93 at Amazon http://amzn.to/2b0qw6n  also sometimes found at discount & drugstores for even

less – I found mine for $9.99

AM just slightly noisier than the above radios but still respectable  – Good FM – Mono earphone jack – no expanded AM band –  Tune LED.

Radio Shack Cat No 1201475 $29.99 http://www.radioshack.com

Only True Digital Tuner In This Report – Stereo FM through earbuds but no mono switch – Adequate AM – Scan Tuning – 20 Presets – Key Lock – Good Sound

Sony ICF-P26 $19.99 http://amzn.to/2biruvn

Total re-design of ICF-S10 MK2 above but overall a slight step backwards in performance with slightly weaker reception and audio. However it adds the Expanded AM band and stereo earphone jack.

Kaito KA-200 – $12.99 At Amazon http://amzn.to/2binElF  or $ 19.99 from  http://www.kaitousa.com/

Smaller than the radios above (see group  picture) but solidly made – decent reception and sound for the size. No Expanded AM Band

Best For FM Only (AM Is considerably weaker than the models above)

Kchibo – KK-523  $16.99 At Amazon  http://amzn.to/2bmC3BO

Sensitive AM is unfortunately hampered by loud digital noise – FM Fair – Analog-tuning is somewhat touchy but digital readout is a plus – Very small

Philips – AE1500(37) $12.99 Black http://amzn.to/2bmYMN4  $14.79 Silver http://amzn.to/2bmCrjZ

Seems to tune in steps – FM OK – AM Weak – Very thin audio – tall but very slim

Panasonic – RF-P50 $16.95 Amazon  http://amzn.to/2bmBc4c

Adequate FM – Very weak AM – Mono earphone jack

Jaras – JJ-216 $10.99 At Amazon http://amzn.to/2b0rn7a

Adequate FM for the price – Very weak AM – small – seems to tune in steps – very small

Jensen – MR-75 $9.99 At Target

Fair FM – Worst AM Of Group – actually makes electronic game-like beeps while tuning on AM – medium size

Indin – BC-R20  $10.99 At Amazon  http://amzn.to/2bmBM1V

Adequate FM for the price – small – very tiny hard to read dial scale – minimal AM reception – fairly small

Defective Sample: MFIne L-938B  $13.99 At Amazon  http://amzn.to/2aV9jiX

Not rated

Unacceptable AM: These were very insensitive or had interference or noise issues making anything but the strongest of local AM signals unlistenable: Listed alphabetically:

Indin – BC-R20

Jaras JJ-216

Jensen MR-75

Panasonic RF-P50

Conclusion:  As a group there were more good FM performers than AM. In fact none of these were really poor on FM…even the worst were acceptable, at least for local signals, whereas on AM there were some that barely worked at all and had a tough time tuning in even locals.

If you’re more into FM you have more choices. The Sangean SR-35 has great overall FM performance and is also by far the nicest sounding of all of these units. It might not play as loudly as the other top AM radios on weaker AM signals, but on FM its tuner is excellent and its sound seems almost Hi-Fi by pocket standards…you really have to hear the SR-35 on FM compared with any of the others to appreciate the difference. The two Radio Shack models on the other hand were very close on FM and the 12-586 was slightly better on AM while the digital 1201475 has digital tuning and Stereo FM with earbuds. The smaller Kaito KA-200 was the best performing radio in its size group…half the size of the radios above it in the Top AM Group.

Originally Posted Fall 2016.

Jay Allen