Disclaimer: Best Radios UK is audience supported. If you buy via links on here we may get a small commission. This doesn’t impact the price you pay & lets us keep the site free.
Summary: |
Buy it online: |
The RD-D70 Wireless Traditional Hi-Fi System is a compact and elegantly designed hi-fi system from Japanese brand JVC. It looks great and offers a good range of features including DAB radio, Bluetooth and a CD player. But how does the JVC RD-D70 perform? Find out in this review…
Features
- FM/DAB/DAB+ radio
- CD player
- USB port
- Bluetooth
- 10 watts of output power
- Stereo sound
- Aux-in port
- Saves 60 preset stations (30 on FM and 30 on DAB/DAB+)
- Telescopic aerial
- Remote control
Dimensions: 35 cm wide x 12 cm high x 21 cm deep
Weight: 2.6 kg
Performance and use
This hi-fi is easy to set up and has good sound quality given its small size and reasonable price. The sound is crisp and clear, and there’s a decent amount of volume thought the speakers don’t go very loud. It looks smart, and is a good size for a kitchen or bedside table.
The JVC RD-D70 is quite versatile with a CD player, Bluetooth and a USB port for playing MP3 files. It also has FM and DAB radio, which you can receive with good reception if you adjust the telescopic aerial. You can save 30 preset stations on both FM and DAB/DAB+, though this is quite fiddly so you might end up scrolling through stations instead.
This hi-fi has a small remote control which is useful, but the text next to the buttons is small and quite hard to read. This means it’s not ideal for older people and those with impaired eyesight. Once you learn where the buttons are it’s ok, but a larger remote with more clearly labelled buttons might have been better.
The biggest drawback with the JVC RD-D70 is that it doesn’t have a headphone jack, so you can’t use it with headphones. You can’t use it with Bluetooth headphones either as the hi-fi only has a Bluetooth receiver, not a transmitter.
Pros
- Compact size
- Looks stylish and smart
- Clear sound
- Available with a 1-year manufacturer’s guarantee
- Versatile (radio, CD, USB, Bluetooth)
Cons
- No headphone jack
- Button labels on remote are small and hard to read
- Saving and accessing preset stations is fiddly
Verdict
Overall, the JVC RD-D70 is an excellent hi-fi for the price, though the lack of a headphone jack is a serious drawback. The radio sounds good for the price and is versatile with a good range of features. Be aware that the small button labels on the remote mean it’s not ideal if your eyesight is poor.
Similar products
One popular alternative to the JVC RD-D70 is the Panasonic SC-HC297EB-K micro hi-fi, which has almost exactly the same features as the JVC RD-D70 and a similar price tag. Unfortunately, the Panasonic SC-HC297EB-K also doesn’t have a headphone jack.
One alternative that does have a headphone jack is the Majority Oakington. The Oakington is a very versatile hi-fi system with Bluetooth, a CD player and a USB port for both playing MP3s and charging your devices. It also has a remote control, which is easier to use than the JVC RD-D70’s remote.
For some more options, see our roundup of the best radio CD players.
I have one of these and am delighted with much of it. Really the review sums most of it up. The text on both the remote and front of unit is very difficult to read. Tiny and grey on black. With buttons all the same size and shape in no particular order. Certainly I can’t use them without my glasses on. The remote was thrown in a drawer as unusable.
The sound is more than loud enough for my purposes and I had never noticed the lack of headphone output. I’ve placed mine in an alcove and the rear bass ports really come into their own with the reverb from the walls round it.