ICF38 Portable AM/FM Radio (Black)

I want to start by saying I'm not really a radio person but I'll throw in my "2 cents" anyway. As a matter of fact the only reason I purchased the radio was so I could listen to it at night, 102.7 Fresh FM (I'm in New York City), has some rather relaxing songs and is my current favorite radio station. I bought this radio to replace an extremely cheap clock radio which I bought a couple of years back just to have something to listen to at a security post. The clock radio had very poor sound and a not so great tuner to say the least. I wanted to replace it and at first I looked into buying another clock/radio,but the "clock part" really didn't interest me because I just want to listen to the radio and having that bright red light in my face from the "clock part" wasn't exactly what I wanted. Any way so I came across this little radio,it was affordable and it's nothing fancy,it's simply a nice little radio,I mean more can you ask for right? I think it functions above average in my opinion,first of all it's made by Sony and Sony has a well known and very good reputation when it comes to making good radios,stereos etc. The sound is really what will blow you away,you may be thinking to yourself how could such a big sound come out of something so small. I was totally AMAZED at just how LOUD this thing can get. I mean you just have to hear it for yourself. Now for me sound is not too much of an issue but it may be for you,but unless you're very far away from the radio,you won't have a problem in the sound department. The sound on this radio is very good to say the least,at least in my opinion. The tuner is very good as well it actually says "Tune" in the upper right hand corner and it has a red light that goes on when you have the station tuned pretty much just right,likewise the light will get dull or just go out all together when you have static,so you really have to just turn the knob until you get it just right. I get 102.7 Fresh FM just fine now and I didn't even have to raise the antenna. Like I said I'm not really a radio person so I don't know how well the other stations will come in,but I'm sure they should be just fine. Also it's FM/AM so if Am is your thing then you have that as well. The radio comes with a power cord and it can used as a portable radio as well,it takes 4 double A batteries. I really don't have any complaints,I mean I just got it and opened it up barely 2 hours ago so if something goes wrong maybe I'll update this review if that's possible. I was going to give it 4 1/2 stars because the numbers that represent the radio stations that are printed on the radio seem to be maybe slightly off,again I'm not a radio person so I'm not exacty sure how this is supposed to work. As I said, I have it tuned to 102.7 fresh FM but the dial is pointing to about 104. I actually had to check on the internet and find the station there first and then tune the radio to it,just an idea I had which worked very well. I mean that's kind of nitpicking to me,but it may become an issue if you listen to multiple stations,you may have a hard time going back and forth because the numbers are a bit misleading,or so it seems. Overall though I'm very pleased so far,I just want to say one more thing and that is, this is just a simple radio. There is nothing fancy here,you won't find any tape or CD or anything like that,no way to program any stations into the radio or any other "extras". The only thing you're getting here is a radio with a band to change from FM to AM and 2 dials,one for the tuner and one for the volume and that's pretty much it. I'm saying all of this because I want people to know what they are getting before they make the purchase. Thanks for reading and I hope you have a great day.

Recently the little radio we have used for years at our remote Alaskan camp gave up the ghost. No big surprise I suppose as it was a very cheap unit in every respect. It had gizmos 'til it didn't end but it was the AM radio we kept it for. And it ran forever on the 3 C cells it required. Generally we changed them once a year. I liked that aspect a lot: batteries which lasted and lasted. So, finding another AM radio to replace it was a tall order. I have used the smaller "transister sized" Sonys for many years and have used them not only in camp, but also dropped them from airplanes, when needed, to weather-stranded travelers. I know the name has meant a decent product when it comes to radios. But I wanted a somewhat better radio for our cabin base camp, so I decided to give the Sony ICF38 Portable AM/FM Radio a try. I couldn't be happier. This radio is better in quality- significantly- than the old unit we had. The reception is excellent and clear. The tuner is very accommodating, something I appreciate since the three stations we can get here are 40-125 miles away. Each station comes in loud and clear and the position of the radio, unlike the old one, is not critical (although you can make some fine, if unnecessary, tuning adjustments by turning the radio if you like.) We use a small electric generator, but the battery power is what we depend on for the radio since our electrical uses vary quite a bit. Additionally, we also like to "secure" our fish rack (from the bears) by installing a bucket-protected radio when we are away for a time to resupply. So the battery source feature is important to us. One of the first things I wanted to know was whether the AA battery life in this radio would match the battery life we were accustomed to with the C-cell radio. To test this, I left the radio on when we left camp for a week. I tuned the radio just so the red LED tuning indicator went off. (The reception was still nearly the same.) When we returned 6 1/2 days later, I wasn't even thinking about the radio until I approached the cabin and was greeted by voices inside. What a pleasant welcome. The original set of batteries now have approximately 10 24-hour days of use on them with this radio. Obviously, I don't yet know if they'll go a year with intermittent use, but that's not critical. I am satisfied that the radio works as well as it does, and does so without eating batteries. KNOM, KICY, and KNSA can be assured that they have ready ears thanks to a good radio at a reasonable price.

(UPDATED 08/15/2016: This radio is still working great 18 months later on the original four AA batteries! I use it 15 to 30 minutes a day about 5 days per week to listen to a local AM station and have not had to replace batteries in it yet! Also the Sony ICF-S10Mk2 pocket radio referenced in the following review after decades of being a top value pocket radio has been discontinued and may no longer be available by the time you read this review. The pocket Sony been replaced by the Sony ICF-P26, which I am evaluating at this time and will review shortly. This ICF-38 is completely reliable so far and recommended for general use. Original review follows) A simple AM/FM portable radio that picks up clearly on both AM & FM and sounds decent is not an easy thing to find anymore. I recently bought another Sony model, the tiny pocket AM/FM ICF-S10Mk2 and since I liked how many stations it picked up I thought I'd try this Sony ICF-38 because it has a way bigger speaker making it better for listening to music and it also will run on AC. Both are made in China. They both seem sturdy and well made. Sony quality control seems fine in China. While the ICF-38 does sound great for FM music radio it is not as remarkable in long distance reception on either AM or FM as the little shirt pocket Sony ICF-S10Mk2. Since the ICF-38 is so much bigger I expected better reception but it is about the same or just a tad less sensitive as the Sony pocket model. Also this mid-sized Sony ICF-38 seems more susceptible to interference from my laptop computer and other sources of electronic noise when listening to AM than the little ICF-S10MK2 does. My laptop, or to a lesser extent Wi-Fi, causes both of these Sony radios to go bonkers on AM, but the ICF-38 seems worse. If you are seeking a radio to use around a bunch of other electronics to listen to AM, such as in an office environment, you might be better off with another radio or sticking to FM on the ICF-38. On a FM music station this ICF-38 yields better fuller sound than I expected for it's size! I'm very pleased with the tone on FM music stations. AM music sounds better on this radio than most others I have but not as good as the FM of course. I'm going to keep the ICF-38 because of the clean sound on FM music, not because it has better reception. For the price it is a very decent and uncomplicated basic radio that somehow sounds bigger than it is. It is sort of a "Plain Jane" in the looks department being stark and utilitarian compared even to other Sony models, but underneath the plain exterior the ICF-38 is a good sounding portable radio on FM. By good sound on FM I mean low distortion, bass you can hear without being boomy or overpowering and clear upper mids. No it isn't Bose but it has a well balanced tonal spectrum for casual music listening. Even on AM music sounds better than it does when listening to FM on other radios. It runs on 4 AA Alkaline batteries or you can use the built-in AC cord which many people will find a huge benefit. Since Alkalines are stated to last 80 hours and probably will last way longer with brief daily use of 30 minutes to an hour, I'm going to try it on batteries for a while to see. There is lettering on the battery door stating to remove the batteries if you are going to use it mainly on AC power however there is nothing about that in the manual. The AC cable stores under the large battery door and the power cable is permanently attached. In the box is the radio and a brief manual. That is all. The warranty is one year and you can register it online at the link in the warranty section. Since it can plug into AC you probably should register it in the event of any safety recall down the road. This radio has a separate on/off slider switch on the top right which is a very convenient "set-it-and-forget-it" feature meaning if you listen to the same station a lot you only need to hit this one switch and the last station plays at the last volume setting. I first liked this feature in the GE Superadio and glad it is also in this Sony. Also on top is the FM antenna which swivels in all directions and works well. On the right side from top to bottom is a thumb-wheel for tuning, a micro slide switch for Hi/Lo tone, a thumb-wheel for volume and a 3.5mm MONAURAL EARPHONE jack. Above and to the right of the slide rule tuning display is a red tuning LED which is sort of a waste if you know how to tune a radio. There is a big AM/FM slide switch on front under the slide rule tuning dial.. This radio has a handy carrying handle that folds down and clicks into a recess for table top use. It is very important for anyone buying this radio to know upfront that the earphone jack is for a mono earphone, not a stereo headset or stereo earbuds. If you plug any stereo ear gear into this radio only the left side is going to work. It is not a malfunction, it is the way it is made. Many people want sound in both ears of their stereo ear gear when using a mono radio and Sony should consider changing this, yet they probably won't. I don't wear things in my ears or over them if I don't have to, so this isn't an issue at all for me but for many people it seems to be a very big deal. You can buy a 3.5mm male mono to female stereo adapter and that will send audio to both earpieces. Mono headsets or even earphones are almost impossible to find these days. You can also just buy a set of earbuds at the DOLLAR store, plug them in and find out which one is working and then cut the other one off with scissors. PRESTO, monaural earphone! Sony even uses this same mono earphone setup on much higher end radios that are made and sold in Japan only. It is a carryover from the 1960's and you should not expect this feature to change on any current Sony model that has it. As someone who was in commercial radio broadcasting for 34 years and has bought at least 75 radios and currently has about 15, I can recommend the Sony ICF-38 as a top radio value. It is not the best AM/FM portable radio on the planet, but it is without a doubt the best sounding one for the money right now. Plus there is a full year warranty where most others are 90 days or less. Several reviewers wish it had digital tuning. I prefer analog tuning to digital for 3 reasons. 1 - Every digital radio I've ever had fails sooner than analog ones and usually it is the digital tuning section that goes haywire. Only 1 out of about 15 digital radios I've bought are still working and the rest are at the landfill. 2 - Digital radios are drawing power from the battery whether it is turned on or not for clock or memory preset functions resulting in shorter battery life making a digital tuning radio the worst possible choice for an "emergency kit" radio. In general analog radios also give much longer battery life when in regular use. 3 - It is a little known fact that radio stations DRIFT from their assigned frequency by a few cycles/Hertz through the course of a day. With a digital radio you can't FINE TUNE the station to compensate for frequency drift because you are locked into their assigned frequency. Only an analog radio can compensate for this reality. There isn't anything technically superior about digital tuning for an average radio user other than the convenience of station preset buttons. The reality is that a radio is like a car in that the more computerized it gets, the more there is to go wrong. I like both of the Sony radios I've bought in the last month and would buy both again so I can recommend them to you. I like each for different reasons. They are not the best radios made but both represent value for your money trouncing anything in the price class in one regard or another. The pocket ICF-S10Mk2 has powerful reception but sounds strident. This ICF-38 sounds almost as good as a GE Superadio at moderate volume which is amazing for the size, but the ICF-38 is no more powerful in reception. You can spend more and do a lot worse than this ICF-38. It is an ideal multi-purpose midsize radio that is handy to carry around at a very reasonable price relative to anything else that sounds as good. Closing on a funny note. Amazon's current Sony ICF-38 item description says, "Pocket Size for Portable Use...The ultra-compact design slips easily into shirt or jacket pocket or handbag for convenience and portability." Folks if you have a pocket this thing will fit in then have at it, but I have no such pockets. The Amazon item description dimensions are accurate though, I just checked them with a tape measure. I'm not even sure Captain Kangaroo's pockets were big enough for this radio. That part must have been intended for the Sony ICF-S10Mk2 pocket radio description and is misplaced. I assure you the Sony ICF-38 is NOT a pocket radio! If you want top value in a pocket radio go for the Sony ICF-S10Mk2 instead, but it doesn't sound anywhere near as pleasant as this ICF-38. The extra size and weight of the ICF-38 is a worthwhile burden for a more pleasing tone, especially for music whether FM or AM.

This radio is exactly what I was looking for, in wanting to listen to AM broadcasts - a good receiver, and good sound. This radio, for the money, cannot be beat. AM and FM reception is great. It's an old school analog tuner, so you have to dial it in - but it has a reception indicator light to let you know when you've reached max reception. Antenna is perfect - telescoping, so you extend it when you need it. I've not used it yet as a portable (with batteries), but it has that option. The sound is impressive for such a small form factor - I test sound for a living, so I have an idea of what good sound quality is. This is great sound for the price and size. It surprisingly does NOT have that overly midrange, telephone-like small sound to it, like radio/alarm clocks do. Somehow they got a nice, round sound out of this - a touch of low end to sound warm, good enough high end for definition, and scooped out mids so that it doesn't sound cheap. I'm really impressed with how pleasing it is on the ears. There is only one speaker, so don't buy this expecting to get awesome stereo out of it - it's mono only. But this will work just fine for FM if you're not directly in front of the speaker anyway (meaning, you can't really detect stereo imaging when you're not close to the radio). But FM (music) does sound very good on this unit - not a lot of really high end in the frequency spectrum, but high enough to sound good. I cannot believe how warm AM radio (sports, talk, etc.) sounds. Giants games have never sounded so good... It's amazing how hard it is to find a good radio these days. There's the high end ($60+), and the low end - alarm clock/radios for $8. The low end is all going to sound like junk, and the reception will likely be terrible. The high end - probably not worth it. But $25 for a great mono am/fm radio is very much worth it in my opinion.

This radio sits atop the bookshelf in my office and plays ETV radio while I work. It's a great little radio, and here are a few fine points to consider before buying: ◘ Reception is great once you have a station finely-tuned. Luckily, the dials don't roll around haphazardly...they are solidly connected and allow for tweaking to a very small degree. One caveat to this...in my office, I had to place the radio up high to pick up a clear signal, and I also had to angle the antenna away from the wall (EM interference from electrical/data cabling behind the drywall). Note: I've only utilized this radio for FM stations, as there aren't many worthwhile AM stations in my area...AM listeners take note, and check others' reviews for AM performance commentary. ◘ The sound is solid, so far as mid-level tones go. I do appreciate the Tone switch, as it allows me to take the sharp edge (High setting) off of musical broadcasts with a louder sound (Rock, Jazz) and restore it for talk radio. I can't comment on using this radio in a loud or open area...I'm sure it would work fine in a garage if only for background noise, but for clarity over a larger square footage and good bass-level tones, I'd recommend the Sangean LB-100 Compact AM/FM Ultra Rugged Radio Receiver instead...it's a bit more pricey, but rugged and able to produce a consistently full sound. ◘ The option to use wall power, as well as batteries, make this a very versatile radio. The power cord only stretches to about 6 feet, so keep that in mind if you wish to run continuous power in a larger space. Bottom Line: If you wish to have a radio with solid mid-level tones that can be sharpened or dulled, and this radio must be a no-frills AM/FM radio with the ability to fine-tune and use two power methods, this radio will certainly fit the bill...and at this price point, it's a steal. **Update 9/24/2013**: I had to move this down to a corner of my desk in the center of the room in order to cut down on interference to the signal, which means I had to begin using four AA batteries instead of the provided power cord. I have since begun using Eneloop rechargeable AA batteries, and love the portability of this little marvel! Sound quality and reception are still excellent! **Update 1/30/2015**: I'm not sure if other owners have had this issue, but the speaker cone seems to be damaged in some way. I've never played the radio at top volume or stored it in extreme conditions. It's been relegated to the radio pile for now in my third bedroom (pile of radios with no batteries in them...so sue me, I'm a collector!) and am using a Sony ICF-304 for my desk at work.

Remarkable if you look at the date this Sony ICF38 first became available at Amazon (October 2, 2001), the first customer review shown was posted 7 years afterward. It is labeled as a Best Seller, so that means that after 14 years it remains very popular, and is obviously appreciated by the very many purchasers who have plopped down their $25 (or thereabouts) for this very basic but dependable portable radio. The number of reviews in just seven years is noteworthy too, and with so many reviews before me, what can I possibly say now that hasn't been said a dozen times before? Well, I'll try. Personally I consider myself fortunate to still have this radio available to me considering the fickle nature of companies to discontinue just about anything that might show a slight dip in sales. Its purpose then is in fact to be the perfect placeholder for Sony's basic AM/FM radio entry. There is no advantage in designing something else that doesn't offer anything better, which in this case is to tune into and play all the local radio stations in the area, and this one does so much better than other brands I have used. The radio itself looks a little different than what the pictures on this page depict. It is actually a little larger because it is more rectangular than what is being shown, and thicker, so don't have the idea it is small enough to fit into your shirt pocket (like the itty bitty radios we carried in the 1950s) because it ain't gonna' fit. Most importantly my radio does not stink at all! So either that little defect has been fixed over the years or this innocent little radio is knocking out buyers left and right with toxic fumes. Some reviews are classic! Fortunately I have other things to do that keep me from reading the many comments about this radio while listening to my favorite station on it. The Sony ICF38 does demonstrate the sound of a bigger radio, and it has a switch for more bass, but then the volume needs to be turned up a little to compensate. If you have a central place where you can place the radio, then this radio can be a real improvement over anything else you might have used before it. I prefer connecting my Bluetooth transmitter and listening using Bluetooth earphones while staying within a 25 foot radius of the radio. Doing so also cleans up the signal while boosting it. There is the option to connect the radio to AC power or use 4 AA batteries for portability. Either way I can put it on my workbench and walk into the house and get perfect reception because Bluetooth signals notoriously transmit through walls without distortion. Just remember that this radio doesn't have stereo FM so it will need a mono to stereo 3.5mm headphone adapter if you happen to use a stereo set of earphones and want reception in both ears.

There's no bass frequency response to speak of but the radio sounds pretty good otherwise. Talk radio sounds pretty clear and FM music sounds mediocre but underwhelming. I haven't had trouble tuning in stations and they isolate well with no bleed over. I will say that AM reception is disappointing. In my kitchen, I pick up the 2 AM powerhouses in my area with lots of static; however, just moving the radio 6 feet to the dinner table remedies the problem. I think that even considering the size and materials of this radio, it's only fair that I mention that this cannot get very loud. You can turn it up approximately half way then it distorts. The strange thing is that when you crank it up past half way, it doesn't seem to get any louder but it simply distorts into a lot of crackling fuzziness. Compared to my Sangean radios, this sounds thin and distorts easily. What I do like is that it's AC/DC and the cord is attached and can be stored inside the battery compartment with batteries in it. I bought it 6 years ago on Amazon for about $25 when that was all I could afford. Six years later, today, these things are nearly $100 but the design and materials have not changed. **UPDATE 2019: The price today is about $190!! What?! No!**I don't understand that. Seems like a bit of price gouging by Sony who is taking advantage of the great reviews. No one has any business buying this radio for $200–period! No one has any business buying this radio for over $100! Panasonic has a competing model available for approx $32 at the time if this writing (RF-2400D, which I've tried and I'm unimpressed with). In my experience, Sangean makes better radios than Sony and Panasonic in recent years. Radios are like electric guitars in that each brand has its own kind of “signature sound” due to the proprietary circuit design each employs. Sangean radios are known to be a bit warmer, deeper, and fuller than some others. Listeners who aren't expecting that sometimes complain that they are “too bass heavy”. I like the sound of my Sangean and would recommend that brand over Sony or Panasonic in many cases. That said, this Sony does have a High/Low tone switch to give you some control over the sound. This radio is not trash. It’s durable and has a better tuner than the Panasonic RF-2400D (DSP tuning) or the RF-2400 (analog tuning). It was worth every penny of the $25 I paid for it, but it’s not worth $200. You can still find them for $20 to $30 on the used market.

When I was a kid, a table radio made by Realistic that my parents got from Radio Shack was my constant companion. This Sony is very reminiscent of that rather remarkable radio. This thing is reasonably priced, and I give it highest recommendation: if you need a table radio, this is definitely the one to get. DIALS AND SWITCHES There is an on/off switch, AM/FM switch, Hi/Lo tone switch (which I always leave in LO), a volume dial, and a tuning dial. There is also a telescoping antenna, tuning LED, and integral carrying handle. The solid, smooth action of the moving parts gives me confidence that this radio will last many years. GREAT SOUND Despite being a cheapie plastic thing, the sound is quite amazing, even with music. You will not be disappointed by how it sounds. MANY RADIO STATIONS Surfing the dial, I got many, many stations, just as many as the tuner in my stereo system. This applies to both AM and FM. I was so happy with the tuner sensitivity, I did not bother to do a rigorous comparison to my audiophile tuner. GE `SUPER-RADIO' REDUX? YUP The sound quality and tuner sensitivity brings up the old `GE Super Radio' controversy. To clue you in, this was reputedly the best portable radio ever made: great sound and many, many radio stations, and hi quality whose lifetime you could measure in decades. Sadly, it was discontinued many moons ago. People have been searching for a worthy successor ever since. Many companies have tried to fill the breach, such as CCrane and RCA, but these are, at best, pale imitations of the original. Well, it has been a long time since I used one, but this item is, by my rather fallible memory, pretty darn close. ELECTRICITY This is the best part. Unlike other table radios that use a bag full of huge batteries, this one uses only 4 AA batteries, easily found around the house in an emergency. According to the instructions, you get 70+ hours on a fresh set of alkalines. For AC, it has an integral cord that folds up, rather clumsily, into the battery compartment. It is not a separate cord that you can lose. This is also the only complaint I have: the cord is unnecessarily thick and chunky, so it takes you 2 or 3 tries to get that beastie wound up into its little compartment. HINT Here is an old trick. If you are trying to listen to a weak, AM signal bounce at night from faraway lands, try this: set up a cheapie SW antenna, solder an alligator clip to the lead, and clip it to the antenna. I should also warn those who are not regular AM radio listeners, that it is exquisitely sensitive to Radio Frequency Interference (RFI): computers, CFL bulbs, and so forth.

Nice one You have to buy adaptor plug Noise filtering very good Delivery took lot of time

Sony ICF38 Radio portable Noir Reçu avec prise deux plots plats japonais et voltage 110V heureusement que j'ai vu le voltage sur la boîte avant de mettre mon adaptateur Japon, une semaine après avoir j'avais reçu mon établi Bosch avec les graduation en pouces au lieu des centimètres, j'ai pas de chance sur Ama ou quoi? Bon, je l'utilise avec des piles, ça consomme pas tant que ça. Cette radio est telle qu'on les construisait dans les années soixante, pas de cadran ou de recherche de stations électronique, c'est du solide. !!NOTE BIEN!! la réception en AM est impec, jamais aussi bien reçu l'Italie par rapport à toutes les radios électroniques à 100€ et plus que j'ai eues.

THIS RADIO IS MADE TO WORK ON 120V AC ONLY AND HAS A WARRANTY FOR USA ONLY I FEEL THAT THIS RADIO SHOULD NOT BE SOLD IN UK VERY DISAPPOINTED AND FEEL CHEATED !!!!

After computing AC vs DC power consumption, I returned my ICF-F10 for this model. Running AC saves more as it just consumes 4watts of power. Besides when power goes out I can usually use AA batteries for emergency. Pros: -Sensitive -LED Tuning -Cheap -Economical -Tone Control -AC or DC -Good Sound Cons: They are just minor... -No option for 220 volt switch -Can run only 110 volts -Power cord is too tight inside battery compartment (So I left it tied outside when not in use) -Headphone output is just MONO (it isn't a deal-breaker). Overall I am satisfied with this radio and I might be buying another one in the future. Conclusion: If you want a basic AC or DC powered radio, analog, cheap and has good reception without spending time to learn a lot, this is for you. I am satisfied! BUY it, and enjoy it for years with minimal energy consumption (Around $3 a year when used 12 hours per day on AC).

received in good condition and working condition is alao good