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The Groov-e GVPS713RD Boombox is a budget-priced portable CD player with an AM/FM radio. It’s available in a choice of colours: Black, Pink, Red, Blue and Purple.
In addition to the basic model with radio and a CD player, you can also buy the GVPS713RD Boombox with Bluetooth or a cassette player.
Given its features and price the Groov-e GVPS713RD Boombox appears to offer great value for money, but is there a catch? Find out how this portable radio CD player performs in this review…
Features
- CD player that plays regular CDs and CD-RWs
- Programmable CD player (up to 20 tracks)
- Repeat function on CD player
- AM/FM radio
- 3.5 mm headphone socket
- 3.5 mm aux-in port
- 2 x 1.2W speakers
- LED display
- Can be used with mains power or 6 x C batteries
- User manual (also available online here)
- Telescopic aerial
Weight: 1.6 kg (boxed)
Dimensions: Roughly 25 cm wide x 12.5 cm deep x 15 cm high
Model number: GVPS713RD
Performance and use
Unfortunately, the Groov-e GVPS713RD Boombox is quite an unreliable radio CD player. Many buyers have found that this product stopped working after only a few months.
While the GVPS713RD Boombox might work fine for a few weeks, there’s a good chance it will pack up within less than 3 months. Compared to other portable radio CD players, the GVPS713RD has very poor build quality and isn’t built to last.
On paper this radio has some decent features. The top-loading CD player can play regular CDs as well as CD-Rs and CD-RWs containing MP3 files, and you can program a playlist of up to 20 tracks. You can also use the aux-in socket to connect a smartphone, MP3 player or tablet and use the Groov-e Boombox as a speaker.
Pros
- Cheap
- Colourful
Cons
- Tinny sound
- No DAB radio
- Seems to be unreliable—lots of buyers have found that their radio stopped working after a few weeks or months
Verdict
The Groov-e GVPS713RD Boombox is cheap, both in terms of its price tag and its construction. If you are lucky you might get a unit that works well and is reliable, but judging by other reviews, it appears to be generally unreliable as many users have found that the CD player stopped working after a short period of time. To summarise, it’s worth spending an extra £10 to get a higher quality CD player/radio.
If you do decide to buy this radio, make sure you keep the box and receipt so you can return it if necessary.
Alternative CD player/radios
One portable CD player with a better construction quality is the Philips AZ105R/05. It has almost identical features to the Groov-e GVPS713RD Boombox, minus AM radio.
Another popular alternative is the Duronic RCD008, which has good sound quality for a small CD player.
If you’d like a boombox with digital radio and a CD player, you should consider the Roberts Zoombox 3, which is very well made, especially when compared to the Groov-e GVPS713RD Boombox.
Will not play a cd when plugged into the mains. Just over a year old. Receipt shows out of guarantee by 11 days.