Verdict
The Lenco PDR-046GY is a solid radio that sounds decent, offers a large number of presets, and dual-alarm functionality. Less good is its inconsistent reception, below average battery life and flat bass performance in its Bluetooth mode.
Pros
- Dual-alarm functionality
- Good clarity and detail
- Plenty of preset storage
- Good build quality
Cons
- Only seven hours battery
- Inconsistent reception
- Flat bass in Bluetooth mode
-
TunerDAB, DAB+ and FM stations -
Eco friendly designMade from Bamboo, Recycled plastic, and Wheat fiber -
Wireless connectivityBluetooth 5.0 support
Introduction
Some seem to think that the radio has had its day but it refuses to go gently into the night. Not everyone wants fancy smart speakers they can talk to, they just want a simple experience.
The Lenco PDR-046GY, to spell out its unexciting name, is such a device. A portable DAB+ radio with Bluetooth 5.0 support that allows it to be turned into a personal speaker system.
It’s not as if the market is short of options around the £100 price point, especially with the likes of Pure and Roberts milling about, but what can the Lenco do to ensure it’s your next radio instead of them?
Design
- USB-C charging
- 2.4-inch display
- Recycled plastics
There’s a natural aesthetic about the Lenco PDR-04GY with its smooth wood panel and grilled fascia that gives the radio a modern appearance. From a sustainable perspective, its made from “high-quality ABS” (recycled plastic) with wheat fibre and natural bamboo materials.
There are black and white versions of the radio, though really the majority of the radio is coloured in an arsenic green flavour.
There’s an abundance of buttons on its top surface that cover presets, alarm/snooze function, menu and mode settings, channel selection and volume control. Most of them are shallow presses aside from the snooze button, which requires more of a push. They’re all satisfyingly clicky too, that audible feedback lets you know they’ve been pressed.
The power button requires a tap to turn the radio on, and a longer press to turn it off in its battery mode. When charging, the radio goes into standby instead.
The 2.4-inch display is visible from a distance though viewing angles are just ok. Black levels fall off, which makes reading text at a distance harder. You can adjust the brightness in the settings and change the metadata on screen with the Menu Info button.
Around the rear is the power input (it charges via USB-C) and an aux input for adding an analogue source. There’s also a telescopic antennae for radio reception.
Features
- 30 presets
- Seven-hour battery
- Bluetooth support
The Lenco can hold a seven hour charge, which is not much. For instance, the Roberts Revival Petite 2 is 20 hours in total.
Playing it loud reduces the battery life quite quickly, but I found it doesn’t take too long to charge the unit (if it does, you may want to find a quicker charging outlet).
There’s DAB, DAB+ and FM tuning, as well as Bluetooth 5 that turns the Lenco into a portable speaker. The reception of radio signals is not one I found to be the strongest. It falters when I get close and moving it about the house saw the reception drop with the antennae in use. Without it, it makes me wonder how spotty the connection could have been.
There are 30 presets for both DAB and FM (which makes it a generous 60 in total), though there are only five preset buttons on the PDR-04DY itself. What that suggests is allocating your five most favourite presets in the top five slots, and for the rest you’ll need to press the Preset Memory button that brings up the list of all 30 presets.
The alarm function is not usable in the Lenco’s battery mode, but plugged in and there’s dual alarm functionality which you can program to wake you up with radio or a buzzer; as well as program them for a day, the week or the work week if you’re not a morning person.
Dig into the menus and there’s Normal, Classic, Jazz, Pop, Speech and Rock EQ settings to choose from to change the tone of the sound and its loudness.
Sound Quality
- 6W speakers
- Crisp, clear sound
There’s a 6W stereo speaker in the Lenco, which doesn’t sound like much but surprisingly the PDR-04GY puts in a solid performance. It presents radio programmes with good clarity and detail, and like with any radio, there’s a focus on dialogue but not at the expense of what’s in the background. You can pick up on details less expensive headphones would miss out on.
I find it can go loud without distortion, it holds together rather than crumbling at higher volumes. Tonally it’s crisper compared to the Revival Petite 2’s richness – with the Roberts voices sound more natural than on the Lenco. Listening to Bloomberg Radio and there’s a hardness to the Lenco that’s not present on the Roberts.
So while it’s not as rich-sounding as the Roberts, it does sound bigger and louder thanks to its bigger size; and that also lends it more of a bass response, though you’re not likely to be listening to your favourite drum and bass tracks with this radio.
The Bluetooth performance sounds warm, isn’t too loud, and also doesn’t strike me as too detailed. Bass seems diminished, though the treble remains clear as do singers’ vocals. It’s really the bass that sounds flat over Bluetooth.
The Pop EQ is the one setting doesn’t sound particularly great, but overall if you’re listening to it in the background, the Lenco PDR-046GY puts in a perfectly fine performance.
Latest deals
Should you buy it?
If you listen to a lot of radio stations
30 presets is plenty enough to store all your favourite radio stations
The reception in your home isn’t great
Even with the antennae the Lenco’s reception can be a little flaky
Final Thoughts
The Lenco PDR-046GY is a solid radio, though at its RRP it’s a little expensive for the feature set it offers.
It sounds fine, not as natural or as rich as the Roberts Revival Petite 2, but in its favour is that it can go louder and it offers a bigger bass response (at least for a radio). It’s got plenty of presets to store your favourite stations as well as dual-alarm functionality.
The Bluetooth performance is a little weak, the battery life is not as long as I’d have expected and the reception is not as strong as other similarly priced options. It’s a solid enough contender, though a more appealing choice if you can find it for less than £100.
How we test
We test every radio we review thoroughly over an extended period of time. We use industry standard tests to compare features properly. We’ll always tell you what we find. We never, ever, accept money to review a product.
Find out more about how we test in our ethics policy.
Tested with real world use
FAQs
You get around seven hours on a single charge, although this can fall if the radio is played at loud volumes.
Verdict
The Lenco PDR-046GY is a solid radio that sounds decent, offers a large number of presets, and dual-alarm functionality. Less good is its inconsistent reception, below average battery life and flat bass performance in its Bluetooth mode.
Pros
- Dual-alarm functionality
- Good clarity and detail
- Plenty of preset storage
- Good build quality
Cons
- Only seven hours battery
- Inconsistent reception
- Flat bass in Bluetooth mode
-
TunerDAB, DAB+ and FM stations -
Eco friendly designMade from Bamboo, Recycled plastic, and Wheat fiber -
Wireless connectivityBluetooth 5.0 support
Introduction
Some seem to think that the radio has had its day but it refuses to go gently into the night. Not everyone wants fancy smart speakers they can talk to, they just want a simple experience.
The Lenco PDR-046GY, to spell out its unexciting name, is such a device. A portable DAB+ radio with Bluetooth 5.0 support that allows it to be turned into a personal speaker system.
It’s not as if the market is short of options around the £100 price point, especially with the likes of Pure and Roberts milling about, but what can the Lenco do to ensure it’s your next radio instead of them?
Design
- USB-C charging
- 2.4-inch display
- Recycled plastics
There’s a natural aesthetic about the Lenco PDR-04GY with its smooth wood panel and grilled fascia that gives the radio a modern appearance. From a sustainable perspective, its made from “high-quality ABS” (recycled plastic) with wheat fibre and natural bamboo materials.
There are black and white versions of the radio, though really the majority of the radio is coloured in an arsenic green flavour.
There’s an abundance of buttons on its top surface that cover presets, alarm/snooze function, menu and mode settings, channel selection and volume control. Most of them are shallow presses aside from the snooze button, which requires more of a push. They’re all satisfyingly clicky too, that audible feedback lets you know they’ve been pressed.
The power button requires a tap to turn the radio on, and a longer press to turn it off in its battery mode. When charging, the radio goes into standby instead.
The 2.4-inch display is visible from a distance though viewing angles are just ok. Black levels fall off, which makes reading text at a distance harder. You can adjust the brightness in the settings and change the metadata on screen with the Menu Info button.
Around the rear is the power input (it charges via USB-C) and an aux input for adding an analogue source. There’s also a telescopic antennae for radio reception.
Features
- 30 presets
- Seven-hour battery
- Bluetooth support
The Lenco can hold a seven hour charge, which is not much. For instance, the Roberts Revival Petite 2 is 20 hours in total.
Playing it loud reduces the battery life quite quickly, but I found it doesn’t take too long to charge the unit (if it does, you may want to find a quicker charging outlet).
There’s DAB, DAB+ and FM tuning, as well as Bluetooth 5 that turns the Lenco into a portable speaker. The reception of radio signals is not one I found to be the strongest. It falters when I get close and moving it about the house saw the reception drop with the antennae in use. Without it, it makes me wonder how spotty the connection could have been.
There are 30 presets for both DAB and FM (which makes it a generous 60 in total), though there are only five preset buttons on the PDR-04DY itself. What that suggests is allocating your five most favourite presets in the top five slots, and for the rest you’ll need to press the Preset Memory button that brings up the list of all 30 presets.
The alarm function is not usable in the Lenco’s battery mode, but plugged in and there’s dual alarm functionality which you can program to wake you up with radio or a buzzer; as well as program them for a day, the week or the work week if you’re not a morning person.
Dig into the menus and there’s Normal, Classic, Jazz, Pop, Speech and Rock EQ settings to choose from to change the tone of the sound and its loudness.
Sound Quality
- 6W speakers
- Crisp, clear sound
There’s a 6W stereo speaker in the Lenco, which doesn’t sound like much but surprisingly the PDR-04GY puts in a solid performance. It presents radio programmes with good clarity and detail, and like with any radio, there’s a focus on dialogue but not at the expense of what’s in the background. You can pick up on details less expensive headphones would miss out on.
I find it can go loud without distortion, it holds together rather than crumbling at higher volumes. Tonally it’s crisper compared to the Revival Petite 2’s richness – with the Roberts voices sound more natural than on the Lenco. Listening to Bloomberg Radio and there’s a hardness to the Lenco that’s not present on the Roberts.
So while it’s not as rich-sounding as the Roberts, it does sound bigger and louder thanks to its bigger size; and that also lends it more of a bass response, though you’re not likely to be listening to your favourite drum and bass tracks with this radio.
The Bluetooth performance sounds warm, isn’t too loud, and also doesn’t strike me as too detailed. Bass seems diminished, though the treble remains clear as do singers’ vocals. It’s really the bass that sounds flat over Bluetooth.
The Pop EQ is the one setting doesn’t sound particularly great, but overall if you’re listening to it in the background, the Lenco PDR-046GY puts in a perfectly fine performance.
Latest deals
Should you buy it?
If you listen to a lot of radio stations
30 presets is plenty enough to store all your favourite radio stations
The reception in your home isn’t great
Even with the antennae the Lenco’s reception can be a little flaky
Final Thoughts
The Lenco PDR-046GY is a solid radio, though at its RRP it’s a little expensive for the feature set it offers.
It sounds fine, not as natural or as rich as the Roberts Revival Petite 2, but in its favour is that it can go louder and it offers a bigger bass response (at least for a radio). It’s got plenty of presets to store your favourite stations as well as dual-alarm functionality.
The Bluetooth performance is a little weak, the battery life is not as long as I’d have expected and the reception is not as strong as other similarly priced options. It’s a solid enough contender, though a more appealing choice if you can find it for less than £100.
How we test
We test every radio we review thoroughly over an extended period of time. We use industry standard tests to compare features properly. We’ll always tell you what we find. We never, ever, accept money to review a product.
Find out more about how we test in our ethics policy.
Tested with real world use
FAQs
You get around seven hours on a single charge, although this can fall if the radio is played at loud volumes.
