Sony ICF-S10MK2 Pocket AM/FM Radio, Silver

I was looking for a highly portable am/fm radio for disaster readiness and there are not too many out there I would consider. They are either cheap-crappy non-working junk or super high end units in para-rescue yellow with NOAA/weather/shortwave etc. which is great if you have $200 to spend on something you MIGHT use. This radio is $10 takes two AA's [I put rechargeables in] and the reception is outstanding, the antenna is flimsy [they all are] but if you are carefull it should not be a problem. It fits nicely in the smaller upper pocket of my LC-1 bug-out-bag I keep ready for emergencies and weekend hikes. I'd say this thing is good enough to be able to rely on [to get stations] in an emergency but cost effective enough that if it got destroyed it would not be the end of the world. I'm not knocking radios w/weather, noaa, SW but think about it for most folks if an emergency did happen regular radio would still be on the air...right...? I think so. For about the price of an MRE, you can have a great unit with many uses. As you can tell I am very impressed with it. We compared the recepton of the FM to a few of our MP3 players that claim to have FM tuners, these are all good players [sony, sansa] but the FM reception is a joke. Definitely not something I would want to rely on for news etc.UPDATE: 11/2011 I've used it a half dozen times already, still with the original rechargables [2200Mah] in it. I keep looking at target, meijer, wally mart etc. but no retail stores carry this radio or anything like it. I guess they feel there is no market for a model like this. I am seriously thinking about making this my "gift of choice" for X-mas 2011. Sony should consider making this same unit with a more durable plastic case or rubber/silicone sleeve with a flex-antenna. I would definitely pay $40 for something with that level of durability. I still feel the antenna is the weak link but livable. As I read some of the folks who slammed it in their reviews [not many] I am convinced that they should have read the spec's/description better. This is not a "Walkman" or a Hi-Fi unit. It is minimalist utility at its finest. If you are looking for something to listen to "while you are doing house chores" spend another $12 and buy a MP3 player. For light weight back packing this is the thing to have to get news/weather. I have a small Mp3 for music entertainment on campouts. It is about the size of a digital camera and a bit over a half pound! Thanks Sony.

This radio has amazing reception for its size and price point. The reciever, particularly in AM, is as good as any I have ever owned. Granted, I never bought one of those $200 'professional' radios, but for under $15, it delivers far better reception than I could have hoped for. FM reception is also excellent, as good as any portable radio I can remember using, but in the case of the one I bought, the AM tuning is exceptional. We have a strong local AM station 15 miles away that plays what I consider noise, and another, 200 miles away, only 50 Mhz away, I sometimes have difficulty in my car, catching the weak station, without noise bleeding in from the closer station, even with a digital tuner. This radio can not only separate the two stations, but receive the weaker station as clearly as my car radio does on the open road, while being inside the walls of my house! A+ on that one, Sony.I wanted an analog tuner because 90% of the time, for my personal uses, it will be left on my favorite station, and I don't have to re-tune it every time I change batteries, plus an analog tuner will not drain batteries when turned off, like a digital one does, to retain the station 'memory'. Originally, I got one of these radios for one of my kids (and a Kaito for the other, more on the differences between them later) and love the ability of this Sony to pull in weak stations, I think I will get one for myself. For less than $15, it will be easier than fighting one of the kids for use of a radio. I like to have a battery powered radio for severe weather instances, and this one has much superior reception compared to the old one we have in the basement now, I almost view it as an investment in potential greater safety in an emergency situation. If something happens that we lose our local station, I can still tune into many more other stations than I would be able to with our old basement radio. Other features I like, include the headphone jack (sends sound to both ears, but not in stereo) and a little signal indicator LED that is dark when there is no signal (static) and glows when the radio is receiving a signal, which glows brighter, the stronger the signal is. This is one feature I like on a child's radio especially, because it makes it easier for them to find stations as they search the dial, and also helps them tune stations in better.While this is an excellent radio for the price, a real bargain, it is not perfect. For one thing, the FM antenna does not pull out of the radio, it stows on the outside of the radio, and swings out from the side for use. This would be fine, except that it does not swivel, it only hinges out and up. I prefer an antenna that either pulls straight out (better protection when not extended), or if it does hinge as this one does, I feel it should also swivel (less likely to get bent, and easier to orient where you want it). Also, the volume control is not very precise, especially at lower volume settings. These are minor quibbles, that do not detract from the 5 star rating, but are areas that could be easily improved, in my opinion.Now to the differences between this, and the Kaito.Size: This one is about the size of those old AM only transistor radios that used a single 9V battery. Height and width are very similar, but I think this Sony is a little thinner. The Kaito is downright tiny, about the size of a deck of cards. Also, the antenna retracts into the case of the Kaito, with the top of it only sticking up enough to just be easy to grab to extend, making it well protected with the radio in a pocket. To farther describe just how small the Kaito is, compared to a pack of cigarettes, it is not as tall, roughly the same width, and notably thinner. Get the Kaito if small size is of the upmost importance, get the Sony for better tuning, and more sound.Sound: They sound about the same with headphones, sending sound to both ears, but not in stereo. There is a difference in what you get out of the built in speaker, though. The Kaito has a more precise volume control, able to go from a whisper, to full volume very smoothly and with great control. The Sony has a larger speaker, so it puts out notably more volume, at the expense of a little less precision on the control, especially at lower volume settings. If you don't have headphones, and want the volume low enough to not disturb anyone else, it is doable with the Sony, with a bit of fiddling, but a breeze with the Kaito.Tuners: The Sony, hands down, has the better tuner. Not that the Kaito is a slouch, by any means. For a radio so tiny, it works very well, especially considering it has a built-in speaker. In fact, I received the Kaito in the mail first, and was impressed with how well the tuner worked. It caught any station my old radio could, both in AM and FM. However, it wasn't until I put batteries in the Sony, that I realized just how many stations are out there. I was not at all disappointed with the Kaito, but I was very impressed with the Sony, especially considering it was under $15 (and I think the Kaito was $12)Batteries: The Sony uses AA, the Kaito uses AAA (even though the specs say AAAA) Both are easy to find, and seem to give decent life. One advantage to the Kaito is the battery compartment cover is captive. When you change the batteries, the cover hinges out of the way, but does not detach from the radio. There is no way to remove/lose it without braking it off the hinge. The Sony has a battery cover that you remove completely when you change the batteries. I can see the potential of someday using Duct or Masking tape to hold the batteries in place for the radio I got my daughter.Intangibles: There are little differences, that really don't make me sway one way or the other, but probably bear noting between the two radios. For example, they both have the tuning indicator lights mentioned above.The Kaito has a better protected, but shorter antenna.Controls: They both have pretty good tuner controls, stiff enough to stay on station, easy enough to turn for precise tuning. The volume control on the Kaito is more precise, but takes very little effort to turn, making it more likely to move if bumped. The Sony's volume control is less precise, but a little harder to move accidentally.The Sony has a switch where you select OFF/AM/FM. The Kaito has a switch where you select AM/FM, and it is turned on and off by rotating the volume control past a spring-loaded detent, like the transistor radios of old. Neither one 'better' but they are different.Anyway, to sum up my thoughts, buy a Kaito if you want what is the smallest radio I have found, that still has a good tuner, and can put out decent sound through a built-in speaker.Buy the Sony, if you can live with a somewhat bigger radio. For about $2 more, and a little bigger size, you gain a somewhat stronger speaker, and an excellent tuner (amazing, actually, considering I gave under $15 for the radio, and as I type this, the price dropped to under $13)