Good Things Come In Small Packages

Author's Rating:

Pros: Very good shortwave reception, small, simple, long battery life, great value

Cons: Weak AM (medium wave) reception

The Bottom Line: 
With the Mini 100 PE, you can keep up with what the world is saying while working outside, relaxing on the porch, or traveling the globe.

Author's Review
You can spend a lot of money on a very small shortwave radio. If you want to do that, check out the Sony ICF-SW100 or ICF-SW07. Those excellent radios will cost you $350 to $500, and they do offer a whole host of features and "toys." They're also fragile and complex.

But if what you want is a small shortwave radio that works very well, receives all the major international broadcasts, and is inexpensive enough that you're not afraid to take it along with you, you want the Grundig Mini 100 PE. Not only is the 100 PE's price attractive, it's also simple and easy to use -- and sturdy enough to carry around the yard or to pack with your luggage when you go on a trip. It even comes with a soft, vinyl carrying case to protect it when you're not listening to it. It's powered by 2 AA batteries which last many hours before running down. (Playing time varies depending on how loud you play the radio.)

The Mini 100 PE offers eight radio bands: AM (540-1700 KHz), FM (88-108 MHz), and six bands of shortwave (5.8-6.4 MHz, 6.9-7.5 Mhz, 9.4-10 MHz, 11.65-12.15 MHz, 15.0-15.65 MHz, and 17.5-18.4 MHz). This provides the ability to listen to regular local and national broadcast stations, as well as monitor the most active portions of the shortwave spectrum.

Surprisingly full sound comes from the radio's small internal speaker, although obviously this radio cannot play loudly enough to provide room-filling bass or high fidelity audio for serious music listening. The radio's provided earbuds provide very pleasing sound, and allow you to also take advantage of the radio's FM stereo capability.

If you ever used a small transistor radio like those popular 30 or so years ago, the controls of the 100 PE will be very familiar to you. They are simplicity itself, consisting of a thumbwheel volume control that also functions as the on/off switch, a thumbwheel tuning control, and a sliding band selector on the other side of the radio. For a radio this size, the tuning dial is fairly easy to read, but there are a lot of numbers packed into a pretty small space, so you might need your glasses if, for instance, you need them to read the classified section of the newspaper.

As with any small, mechanically-tuned radio, you need a fairly steady hand to tune a station in to the point where you get its best signal. One thing that helps, though, is that the shortwave spectrum is divided into the six sections, each one covering less than one megahertz, so the signals are normally spread out enough that you don't have to be a brain surgeon to tune one in.

AM and FM stations are even easier to tune since they are normally not so close on the dial, and their signals are stronger and easier to locate. The 100 PE receives FM stereo broadcasts, indicated by a red "stereo" light right below the tuning scale. The "earbuds" allow you to listen to FM in stereo, or of course to listen to any other broadcast the radio is capable of receiving.

I have used the provided earbuds extensively while mowing my lawn, and they provide decent enough sound, and they don't fall out of my ears. Of course, if for any reason you don't like the earbuds provided with the radio, you can plug in any set of headphones that will fit the 100 PE's 1/8" stereo headset jack.

One thing that the size of this radio does do is limit reception ability on AM (540-1700 KHz). Because AM stations are received not on the radio's pull-up "whip" type antenna, but on an internal "ferrite bar" antenna, the size of the radio limits the size of the antenna. If listening to far away AM stations is your objective, this is not the radio to use, but it is fine to receive local AM broadcast or those originating in nearby cities.

AM reception is, in fact, the only area of this radio's performance that is noticeably weakened by its small size. Reception on the other bands is remarkably good. The shortwave reception is sensitive, and allows you to hear all of the major international broadcasters with ease. Of course, the radio lacks the ability to receive "single-sideband" transmissions (such as Ham operators), but you wouldn't buy a small, simple radio like this to hear those types of broadcasts.

No, the purpose of the Grundig Mini 100 PE is to bring the BBC, Radio Netherlands, Radio Australia, Deutsche Welle, Voice of America, Radio Canada, and the other major broadcasters to your yard, front porch, or wherever you may travel. Why listen to the sound of your lawnmower when you cut your grass? Instead, attach your little 100 PE to yourself using the provided belt clip, put the earbuds in your ear, and keep up with what the rest of the world is saying.