Resco Radio Review

[Tim]

So you just got your Pocket PC and you loaded an SD card with MP3s to play while you are out and about. Good for you. But not good enough. If you ever wanted to listen to something new on your Pocket PC without having to go back to your computer to add new songs you’re out of luck. Until now. Resco, a PDA software developer that makes quality programs like Resco Explorer and Resco Photo Viewer has blessed us with yet another quality product--something that I have never seen before. Enter Resco Pocket Radio, a program for the Pocket PC that allows you to stream live online radio feeds in real time! Why pay XM or Sirius Radio for music when you can get it for free (minus software purchase price)?

Installing Resco was a breeze, loading it up was even better. When you open the program you get a nice default skin (you can add other skins later on) with a set of “memory” buttons for your favorite internet stations and the regular volume control, mute and play buttons. But what’s this? A RECORD button? That’s right, Resco Radio allows you to record live streams directly to your Pocket PC for later listening. That’s awesome! I didn’t think it could be better than that but Resco does it again by allowing me to schedule recordings for radio programs in the future! How cool is that! That feature in itself should get you downloading. You can also use Resco Radio to fall asleep to your tunes with the sleep feature that shuts off your Pocket PC after 30 to 120 minutes.

The settings menu is very simple as it allows you to set your internet connection speed (i.e. GPRS or EDGE/WiFi), select a location for your recordings, display and skin settings and setting the hardware buttons to you liking--very customizable.

Resco Radio also comes included with a vast directory of internet radio stations ready to listen to. Can’t find your favorite radio stream in the directory? No problem. Resco Radio not only lets you add categories and radio stations but it also lets you import M3U or PLS files that you downloaded from your radio station websites.

The quality of the sound depends on what quality the radio stations are streaming at. Usually it ranges from 20- 128 kbps. Stations streaming at 64 kbps sound crisp on the Pocket PC. I also recorded a song at 128 kbps and it plays back nicely on the Pocket PC on either the built in speaker or headphones, and because it records in MP3 format I am also able to take my SD card out and play it on my PC if I wanted to. Playback on a PC isn’t as great as you don’t get much bass, but if you are recording talk shows or something that doesn’t require much bass then it’s a great feature.

I don’t know what more to say then if you have a Pocket PC with WiFi or a data subscription getting Resco Radio is a must. I have no gripes other than the quality when playing on something other than the Pocket PC itself. But the ability to record as an MP3 and schedule recordings? I can’t get enough of that. It definitely is a great program that I wouldn’t leave my Pocket PC without.


Pros: Streaming radio on my Pocket PC! Recording and scheduled recording feature, included radio directory, cheap, easy to use!
Cons: Music doesn't sound that great on a PC.
Price: $19.95 (plus any data usage)
Rating: 4.5/5 stars
Download now [Resco Pocket Radio]...

[Brad Isaac]

I like Resco Radio alot too. It seems to connect to the stations almost instantly. I don't fiddle too much with the record feature - because I haven't really found anything to record. (any suggestions? :? )
I only wish you could record from either asf streams or from your device when windows media player was playing.
Otherwise, I use it alot.