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REVIEWS THE LORD OF MORTAL ; THE RINGS: THE KOMBAT METRO“) pRIME THIRD AGE DECEPTION 2: ECHOES (Electronic Arts) (Midway) 000 (Nintendo) .00. ... f " ' . t it .it lat" t' at; t r ' i ' ' . . sir-arr, nut-.z'w- ti ' R d litrililldit‘tflw ll; 2 a I lJrsrtzttfioffw f‘till‘lliI/itlit'il. ‘r"r w": ' : ' Tim Abrahams lends his ears to the latest trends in W -**'~«*"- t t" N " -,‘...,.,, MW... 1 ,. fr digital radio and discovers a world of opportunities. :l’t‘ll‘,".’d’;:figs/1f“ here is an apparent irony inherent in the design of many of the new It rt; a lt:‘;t;ort it; h tn..- ~ lr' : ' DAB radios. llurnankind has achieved an evolutionary benchmark tooling, illt’: arrrltrtnw. ' when it no longer has to dial between radio stations or fumble the rritltrill‘atlrlt: x faittvt .t'. -: t T: around with presets. And what does humankind do'.’ It makes this new of a ttlassrv swim «‘ar‘ " It : fangled piece of modern technology look retro. Take the Acoustic Solutions rt2rr~arn lllit’tt’ii thrt )llgli’l .. r DAB/FM Stereo Radio. which you can get for £59.99 from Argos. It looks grrh, araphrt: :ltxit‘tto: r H l . ' : like the kind of thing your grandfather listened to news of the Sudetenland oytérllzttrl ot (itill‘trl‘rltl‘, :; r . tr ' invasion on. These days. it's part of a sinister plot to make the British public lltXIilétltlt‘ 'r' Ztrti .t r r

listen to better quality radio.

Take the {loll Roberts Rdll) (iemini. It looks like a prop from Porn)! but it’s ideal for wealthy mums to llick between crystal clear receptions of (‘lassic FM and Radio 4 while making a souffle. And yet the ploy is working. As Mandy (ireen of the Digital Radio Development Bureau says: ‘We‘re expecting (‘hristmas figures to confirm that lrn digital radios have been sold heref Btit it's more than fancy radios bringing this about.

The BB(‘ has been very cunning in establishing three stations to attract the 25-34-year-old male. perennially those who spend the most on kit. l"ive

(losrtintrrs (Zillt‘: iflltilillil. Not that I (Wows; rt; l)(:l‘i(:(‘,i. Thou: art: sorr‘t: ovor'lr,’ lotlt} traitlos. sorr‘o nrtitilrnt; lt:‘.t‘:l (losrtin and for ill<)f;(' who are lzirrzrlra' '.‘.'rtir tlrt: lrrst (EC Prime trtio illtr rnarorrty ol Fri/rows ‘.'.':;r‘.'t

Live Sports lixtra gives you more commentary on busy match days. (i be that much -’>t' a that : v: r r Music gives you the kind of tunes you‘d have heard at an indie disco l5 surprise. lhortz if; a ,r '

years ago and although lXtra is supposed to be for the kids. it still contains hoautrtul concert at a .t w r 2

DJ lidu‘s African Beats. And where the BBC has led others follow. Planet Emoos' heart lllt: full“ <t l" ' o '

Rock is a decent rock-only channel which broadcasts on DAB and the between dark and rrtilrt . a, .' .

internet but unlike the Beeb. it doesn‘t broadcast on digital TV. Although that rs (:X(3lt‘l)llilo’cfi lll l'lé: . r t ;

one assumes that listening to radio on the telly is the least popular form of txreaponry; use; ttr»: .a‘nt ' ' '

digital consumption. it's hard to know what‘s really popular. It won‘t be l>t:;irrr anti :ts dam ti. u "

until 2007 before RAJAR. the body which provides radio listening ligtll‘c‘s. counterpart giarns arrérr‘r x ' l. l-’ r,

starts differentiating between different forms of broadcast for its ratings. and ‘.It:(;- .<:-rsa_ But at? that r '

It‘s likely though that DAB radios will continue as the best means for the (itzptii anti stun- .5; PM ' r : digital listening until then. Although 5m ['K individuals browse the net via :srn‘pl‘, not t:r‘rtitrt}t‘ to m t w : broadband. the majority of them do so with a reception nowhere near as rarseErxnoos about; :ts: »’:/~" . good as DAB. Cable broadband will ultimately make the internet the ideal status as a fRTtllf’lll‘rg/ilt, : r x.

platform because you can listen to archived shows when you want. Their improved quality and their gradually decreasing prices means that DAB radios will be the preferred choice for desperate housewives.

lxxrutrtul tif/(liéillfélffll for the original Prom llarn Dét‘.rti53.’)ti

SLANG

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THE LIST 103