Review: Terratec Noxon 2 Radio for iPod peripheral

It’s hard to describe Terratec’s Noxon 2 Radio for iPod in a snappy sentence. Clock radio, internet radio, podcast player, FM radio, wireless Lan audio player, iPod docking station, iPod audio player and 2.1 speaker system covers a lot of bases.

The Noxon’s styling is reminiscent of a Mac Mini and the device comprises two units ­ the radio and associated electronics sit in a detachable box atop a speaker cabinet, with volume and tone controls at the rear.

Pop an iPod into the universal dock and its content can be accessed, showing up on the brightness-adjustable LCD screen, and played while the iPod charges. An FM antenna is supplied for terrestrial radio, while another antenna picks up Wifi. All available networks show up on screen, so it’s a case of entering the appropriate security key to log on and browse the thousands of internet radio stations available.

An Ethernet connector enables wired connection to a network and there’s a USB port at the side for attaching a plug-and-play hard drive or other storage device. And, should you want to access audio on a local networked computer, UPnP software for Mac OSX, Windows and Linux is bundled.

In use, the Noxon is easy to set up and sound quality is superb. The 2.1 speaker system really pumps it out with clarity and depth ­ provided you’re using iPod content or another high-quality audio source. The limited bandwidth of internet radio means lower quality audio, but it still gets a good airing.

On the downside, the LCD is low-res and if you misplace the supplied remote, you’ll have your work cut out accessing certain functions from the main unit’s controls. Nevertheless, the Noxon is a great-sounding, versatile system ­if a little pricey.