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.
The Madingley Hall DAB Bedside Radio
Find out what the Madingley Hall can do and how it performs in this review…
Features
- FM/DAB radio
- Two USB charging ports for recharging your phone or other device
- Dimmable LCD screen
- Aux input for playing music from your phone using a 3.5mm cable
- Mains-powered (not portable)
- Saves 20 preset radio stations (10 on FM and 10 on DAB)
- Dual alarms
Dimensions: 13 cm wide x 13 cm deep x 9 cm high
Weight: 550 g
Performance and use
The Madingley Hall radio is straightforward and easy to set up. As soon as you turn it on for the first time, it will automatically set itself to the correct time. It also resets to the right time if there’s a power cut.
This radio has a dual alarm which means you can set two separate alarms. Unfortunately, you can only set the alarms to different times, not different days. This means you’d need to remember to turn one alarm off and the other on if you wanted to have one alarm for weekdays and one for weekends. You can choose to wake up to either an alarm sound or the radio.
Setting the alarm is a bit fiddly, which might be an issue if you need to change the alarm frequently.
[perfectpullquote align=”right” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]The Madingley Hall is a useful gadget to have on your bedside table.[/perfectpullquote]The Madingley Hall has two USB ports which you can use to charge phones, Kindles and other devices. The USB ports are very handy as you can charge your phone while you’re in bed. The USB ports are only for charging; you can’t use them to play MP3 files.
With the combination of radio, an alarm clock and USB charging, the Madingley Hall is a useful gadget to have on your bedside table. Its LCD display can’t be switched off completely, but it can be dimmed. The lowest level is very dim so it shouldn’t disturb you at night. The LCD display is hard to read from many angles—LED screens are easier to read.
The sound from this radio isn’t mind-blowing, but it’s decent for a radio of its size. Unfortunately there isn’t a headphone jack, so you can’t listen privately.
Pros
- Very good value for money
- No effort required to set it up
- Alarm sound isn’t too aggressive
- Features 2 USB charging points so it doubles as a phone charger
- Decent sound for a bedside radio
- Small and inconspicuous
Cons
- You can’t set alarms for particular days
- Alarm is fiddly to set
- No headphone jack
Verdict
The Madingley Hall DAB Bedside Radio
However, the alarm can be fiddly to set and you can’t save alarms for particular days, so it’s not ideal if you need a different alarm on different days.
Similar radios
A newer bedside radio from Majority is the Fulbourn DAB Alarm Clock
Another alternative from Majority is the Majority Abbey DAB Radio. Like the Madingley Hall radio, the Abbey comes with FM and DAB radio, as well as two USB charging points. It’s slightly larger than the Madingley Hall at 15 cm rather than 13 cm across.
If you’re happy with just AM/FM radio, you should consider the Roberts Radio CR9971. It’s slightly cheaper than the Madingley Hall radio (at the time of writing), and is made by the more established brand Roberts Radio. It’s currently one of the most popular alarm clock radios in the UK.
If you’re still undecided, you should consider one of these top alarm clock radios.