It has been said many many ways before: You don’t really need something until you don’t have it – and in this world of ultra-connectedness, this could not be more true than the absence of a simple radio during a crisis.
And in this drama filled planet, where we depend on our cell phones, personal planner brains and other assorted cloud based/cell tower dependent gadgets, the battery powered radio has never been more important.
But the average person does not get this concept – for one reason or another – like they have never been in the middle of an earthquake zone, or a country with some unexpected civil unrest or the unpleasant aftermath of some conflagration or another.
And it is during moments like that where panic and bewilderment can set in extra quick when one is 100% in the dark.
Solution: Stay connected. Be connected. Be prepared.
How? With a radio.
And XHDATA was kind enough to send me a radio to play with and evaluate for our technical/non-technical audience.
Let’s dig in: The XHDATA D-221 weighs in at 171g with a standard 9V battery.
It measures 12cm long, by 7cm wide by 3cm thick – meaning it sits in the palm of your (girl or boy) hands just fine.
Usage: If, like me, you grew up in the 60’s, 70’s or 80’s, you know the look and feel of the standard transistor radio – whether it be a handheld portable, discretely pocketable, or something larger for the kitchen counter – or something even larger that you might balance on your shoulders… radios and their usage comes pretty much naturally.
The XHDATA D-221 is no different. It is the model of simplicity: Volume control (with integrated power switch) and tuning control on the right (as it faces you) and band selection switch on the left. Nothing more. Nothing less.
Step by step: Power on. Extend antenna. Select band of interest. Adjust volume and tuning dials.
If you were expecting more bells or whistles, worry not. There are no bells. There are no whistles.
The XHDATA D-221 works very well on AM and FM. During the day, the AM dial picks up all the familiar stations you expect to hear and at night the XHDATA D-221 comes alive with long distance signals from 700 to 1000 km away or more. Not surprising. Any decent AM portable is going to hear distant stations. Our local FM dial is chock-a-block with signals – and all of those signals were present on the D-221 with perfect clarity via the internal speaker or through headphones via the stereo headphone jack.
The Weather-band network of marine stations were all crystal clear at my location near the Southern tip of Vancouver Island.
If I have one criticism, it was, for me, the Shortwave portion of the dial. While I live in something of a shortwave fringe area up here in the Northwest, I am also not really in a high intensity AM zone – but I do have a lot of powerful FM transmitters not too far away. Consequently, the SW dial of the D-221 was a wash of images (or birdies as they are often called) and no evidence of shortwave reception. This could be a bug of this particular sample or a byproduct of my listening environment. Either way, it was not an issue that would stop me from having one in my travel or emergency kit.
The XHDATA D-221 comes in at around $20 – via Amazon, or XHDATA direct or where ever you get your gizmo’s.
Pick one up. Better yet. Buy three and have one in your car, your home tote and send one to a friend. You never know, it might save their life or yours.