Choice of two SW portable radios

[videokilledradiostar]

I have a choice of two potential SW radios to purchase. Both are Tecsun, largely because they have USB charging. The first is a PL-390 and the other a PL-210...

The 210 only takes two AA's and is very portable. Not to mention, it has an actual tuning knob. The 390 on the other hand, has 2 speakers (and sounds pretty great, for it's size) and the very useful ETM feature.

Given the choice (the difference in price is only 10$), which would you choose? Assuming that portability, battery life, sound quality and reception are the most important factors. Thanks for any suggestions, as I am far from a radio expert. Thanks!

 

[ka3jjz]

Well it depends on what you want to hear. Likely they will hear the stronger HF broadcast stations, but that's about it. Neither of them have any capability to hear sideband, so you'd miss out on things like hams and military comms.

I don't see anything on the 390 page at Universal, but it does say that the 210 is dual conversion - an important point, since dual conversion tends to reduce the number of false signals (caused by various mixing within the receiver) you might hear.

Mike