Roberts Dreamtime 2 Clock Radio Review

Summary: The Roberts Dreamtime 2 has some nice qualities but the alarm itself is too fiddly for this clock radio to be satisfactory.

Buy it online: See on Amazon.co.uk

The Roberts Dreamtime 2 is an FM/DAB/DAB+ alarm clock radio with an interesting half-moon design. As you’ve probably guessed, the Dreamtime 2 is an updated version of the earlier Roberts Dreamtime clock radio. Find out how the Dreamtime 2 performs in this review…

Features

Dimensions: 16.5 cm wide x 13.8 cm deep x 6.7 cm high
Weight: 435 g

Performance and use

The Roberts Dreamtime 2 lets you wake up to either the radio or an alarm buzzer sound. Setting the alarm is reasonably easy, though you need to have the radio on to do it, which isn’t ideal if your partner is sleeping. You can choose to wake up to an alarm sound or the radio, and you can also set two separate alarms, for example one for weekdays and another for weekends.

One irritating thing about this clock radio is that if you wake up before the alarm goes off, it’s quite complicated and time-consuming to turn it off before it sounds as there isn’t a single button for cancelling the alarm.

The alarm starts quietly and then gradually increases in volume, but you can’t set the maximum volume yourself so it might go too loud.

The Dreamtime 2 has a large clock display on the front of the radio, with all of the controls positioned on the top of the radio. The positioning of the controls on top makes them a bit harder to reach and see when you’re in bed. The controls are also right next to each other and have similar shapes and sizes, so it’s hard to feel for the right control when it’s dark.

The orange text used on the display can make it hard to read compared to other radios that use blue, but one advantage is that it doesn’t illuminate the room so much at night.

You can also adjust the display brightness to one of the four different brightness levels including a ‘night-time’ option which is very dim and should prevent the display from disturbing you at night.

When it comes to build quality, the Dreamtime 2 doesn’t feel quite as well made and sturdy as you’d expect a Roberts product to be. It has a nice and compact design though, and should fit easily on a bedside table.

The Dreamtime 2 has good sound quality though like most small radios it doesn’t have much bass.

Verdict

The Roberts Dreamtime2 has some nice qualities such as its compact half-moon design and its use of a dimmable display with orange text. However, the alarm itself is simply too fiddly to use to make this product satisfactory as a clock radio. We advise looking elsewhere for a more intuitively designed clock radio.

Similar radios

One popular alternative clock radio from Roberts is the CHRONODAB, which looks quite similar to the Dreamtime 2 but is easier to use and feels very well made.

Another good alternative from Roberts is the Roberts DreamDock2 which features a docking station for Apple products such as the iPhone and iPod.

One of the best DAB clock radios is undoubtedly the Pure Siesta Rise, which has a sophisticated and intuitive design.

For some more options to consider, see this article: Best Clock Radios.