I raise this issue not because I'm disgusted by my new digital radio, but because a friend who happens to be a sound engineer planted a doubt in my mind.

I'm an avid listener to Classic FM as I'm sure many of you are. They are advertising digital radio as if it's something we can't live without and as if it is the answer to poor reception problems. The adverts are hilarious and make out that analogue sellers are losers and desperate to sell their wares despite nobody wanting to buy them anymore. I have to confess there are a few new stations on digital which are not available on analogue, but since I'm basically a Radio 4 / Classic FM man, that doesn't advantage me one iota. Digital is billed as having "twice as many stations." As regards the reception thing, I don't find much of an improvement. Admittedly there is not quite as much hissing on digital arguably, but my friend tells me that there needs to be a good signal regardless of what type of radio one listens to. Certainly, if the signal is ropey, the digital is just as hard to listen to. As regards the "pause plus" button, well, my digital radio doesn't have one, but then again, am I missing much? If you miss something is there any real advantage in being able to "rewind live radio"? You might miss something else equally scintillating!

I'd be intrigued to hear anyone's views.

LR

I like DAB because of the additional range of radio stations that are offered Radio 7 to me is worth the price of a new radio alone

I got a digital radio basically because my stereo died. The new one I have is just cheap and cheerful, the DAB is probably the most high tech thing about it I listen to radio a lot more now - the signal tends to be variable to dreadful round here and DAB is a lot easier both to find the stations and to be able to hear them properly.

Our signal sometimes cuts out to our DAB radio

The only reason I'm considering getting one at all is that the analogue radio signal is going to be switched off within the next few years in the UK. I couldn't manage without any radio at all, so I'll have to get a DAB machine.

Otherwise I wouldn't bother.

Is it ? I thought it was only analogue TV that was about to be switched off ?

Just spoken to my in-house expert about this. There are currently no plans to switch off analogue radio (people are still scarred by the experience of trying to switch off long wave radio, so daren't contemplate trying to switch off the analogue radio signal).

Television is another matter altogether, with the first regions going totally digital in 2008; the final region waves goodbye to their analogue system in 2012.