Sangean now tells RW it will not produce this model. Details here.
Amazon is accepting pre-orders for the Sangean DT-600 HD, which would be the first HD Radio portable to include analog AM. To be clear, the plan is for this unit to include analog AM/FM, plus FM IBOC, with the intention of including digital AM at some point in the future.
I wrote about this unit earlier this year.
(This little unit is an important milestone if, in fact, it does include AM in any form. Plenty of folks in radio have debated the future of AM; and regardless of whether you think AM is a band with a future, I think it’s telling to see consumer devices built with FM and not AM, as often seems to be the case now.
Folks like Jeff Smulyan, who has been pushing electronics companies on behalf of the NAB to include radio in their gizmos, have said their effort is focused on getting CE manufacturers to include FM first, because AM is a much harder sell for technical — and cost — reasons. Baby steps.)
This unit features a built-in speaker, a lithium-ion rechargeable battery, 20 presets (10 each for FM and AM) and a sleep timer. The radio is multicast-capable and supports program-associated data services. HD Radio options include emergency alert and iTunes tagging via a USB port. The unit includes a built-in rechargeable battery.
Expected shipping sates slip all the time, and this unit is no exception; in January, Sangean was projecting a June shipping date for this unit.
