Ruark Audio R1 Mkiii Portable Stereo (Digital Audio Broadcast (DAB), MP3, Bluetooth Pairing)

£200 is not an insubstantial amount of money for a mono desk radio. However, quality costs and that £200 is apparent when you hold the Ruark R1 in your hand. Real wood casing, downfiring bass port, high quality antennae and a lovely quality display, the control dial on the top of the radio is easy to use and very easy on the eye. And that's before you even get to the sound quality - which is incredibly fulsome and musical. DAB does of course provide a better quality sound than FM and AM, but not all DABs are equal - the Ruark sounds fantastic and it's often hard to believe that the sound you are hearing is coming from a small, single speaker. Even in a large room, this small radio can fill the space with hi-fi quality sound.Aesthetics are a personal thing, but I really dislike the "retro" styling of many DAB radios. Why should a modern technology always be presented as a pre-War design? To my eyes, the Ruark is stylish - I am happy to have the Ruark in my home. It fits my needs from a sonic and aesthetic perspective.As well as DAB, the Ruark R1 mkIII also has bluetooth connection so you can connect your smartphone or tablet to the radio and stream whatever content you can access through it - Spotify, Amazon, Google, iTunes, NAS mp3s... You get the picture. The Ruark also has some optional accessories you can add to the unit, such as a leather carry case and an attachable battery pack if you want to take the radio out with you.£200 is not cheap, but the Ruark is worth every penny - when you hold it, you can see that it's been built to really high standards. Looks great, sounds better. Very highly recommended.

This is an amazing radio. Looks and finish are outstanding. Most importantly the sound is above and beyond any other DAB radio I have ever owned. Really solid and bass-ey sound is the best way to describe it. There's a roto-dial on top for all the controls and volume. Lots of features including alarms so it would make an excellent bedside clock. We use it in the dinning room, and it throws out enough sound to fill x3 inter-linked rooms. Available in different colours and finishes. White matt finish is simply stunning + Highly recommend paying a bit more for Ruark quality. Ruark are a proudly British company who deserves their success. Well done guys.

I got it out of the box, connected the aerial, plugged it in, switched it on and immediately it knew what time it was and what stations were available. This is ease of use in a box! Alarms are easy to set with both midweek and weekend times available to set. Bluetooth connectivity to my Iphone was a doddle and there's a USB output for charging up your phone too.Display was rather bright at night though.Some people reckon this box delivers big sound - believe me it doesn't! Sound quality is much better than the outgoing clock radio, but it wasn't a jot on a similarly priced 5.1 speaker set that I have for my PC, let alone the £5k system in my living room. However the sound it does produce has a nice warm tone to it, and it's fine for a bedroom. One improvement that Ruark could make is to have a slave speaker paired with this device that you could have on the other side of your bed. If they could do that then that could significantly improve the sound stage in your bedroom.

Simply the best DAB radio available. Expensive but worth it in every respect. Incredible sound and intuitive controls.Looks fabulous and Bluetooth works effortlessly. You will not be disappointed

Amazing sound from a small box, easy to set up, good display, Bluetooth as well adds all the music on my phone. Pricey but worth every penny.

Excellent product, excellent service. Arrived within a few days of orderl, wrapping Ok but could be better. The R1 is quality using it as a bedside alarm, the sound is amazing for the size warm deep base and crystal clear at high volume. Very happy 😃

Very good sound.

Brilliant little radio, attractive, easy to use, perfect in the kitchen. Very pleased with it.