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(More customer reviews)Built in a factory in China famous for its radio electronics, the Kaito 1102 has become a beloved radio among techies and radiophiles alike for many reasons. Open it out of the box and you'll notice it's tiny, smaller than a thin-sliced sandwich. Its silver, modern exterior looks as updated as any new Sony or Sangean or Grundig. Then place it against its competition, the Sangean 505 (about 20 dollars more), the Sony ICF SW35 (about the same price) and you'll notice that the Kaito beats the other two for different reasons. First, the Kaito and the Sony 35 have similar, strong reception, on both AM and FM, but the Kaito wins because it has a vastly far superior speaker, crystal clear and capable of good sound for this type of radio. The Kaito and the Sangean 505 have similar good speakers but the Kaito has better reception, especially on AM. My only complaint about the Kaito is the owner's manual which has five different ways of showing you how to use the presets and the "pages," and only one of those instructions (I found out two hours and much trial and error later) is accurate. You must press the M/Lock key to activate your preset option and for some reason the manual only makes this vaguely clear in one of its instructions. But if you don't mind fiddling with the controls and scouring the manual with a patient eye, you'll find yourself in possession of a gem and discover why so many techies consider the Kaito 1102 a real buried treasure that stands up to the far more expensive Sony 7600 and Sangean 909.
Post Script: In the ensuing months I've bought the lesser priced Kaito 1101, almost identical to the Kaito 1102, and have found that the 1101 gets even better FM sensitivity. Many have expressed the same experience with the Kaito 1101. Thus I must conclude that for a PLL synthesized portable radio with presets, the Kaito 1101, which cost me thirty dollars less than the Kaito 1102, is the king of digital portable radios.
Update: In spite of its awkward ergonomics, which include two-step preset choice and strange push-button volume control, the Kaito 1103 amazingly gets even better reception than the 1101. The 1102 is last of the three but has the best ergonomics.
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Kaito KA1102 - Portable radio
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