Any reviews of the JINSERTA Mini portable radio?

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Marc Thomas, who writes:

I was wondering if anyone has tried this $40 receiver that seems to have an exceptionally broad frequency coverage:

SW: 2-30MHZ, 5KHZ STEP
AM: 520-1720, 9K/10K STEP SEL
FM: 87.5-108MHZ, 0.1MHZ STEP
AIR: 118-138MHZ, 5K/50K STEP SEL
VHF: 30-223MHZ, FM-N/FM-W
CB: 25-28MHZ, 5KHZ STEP

Links to several sellers:

Link to the manual on this page:
http://www.beliteaircraftstore.com/radiant-pocket-radio-receiver/

Not sure I like the proprietary looking battery.

Thanks.

I am not familiar with this radio, Marc, other than I can see the physical similarities with the Eton Mini. The Eton Mini, however, does not have the VHF coverage of this radio.

Post readers: Is anyone familiar with the JINSERTA Mini? If so, please comment!

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8 thoughts on “Any reviews of the JINSERTA Mini portable radio?

  1. Igor

    Air range. The sensitivity of the receiver is good, considering the length of the antenna, only 300 mm (taking into account the part inside the case). Both the boards and ATIS are heard, but the issue of distance is important. I have it only 5 km. I do not know how the signal level drops with distance, but in the absence of direct visibility and an insufficient antenna height, there will be problems. Earlier, DVB-T USB receiver helped me a lot to evaluate the quality of reception. On the radioscanner forum, this issue is discussed. People make band antennas, filters, to reduce interference from the FM band.
    But in general, in my opinion, the reception is normal. True, compared with the classic superheterodyne and the AM detector, this is 737, which is noisier in the absence of a signal. I wonder how they implemented the AM detector, in a frequency band not specified in the characteristics of the chip.
    Sensitivity even pleased, not inferior to Yaesu VR-500 (takes all the same). It’s a pity that the threshold of the noise suppressor is not regulated (On / Off only), a weak signal does not open it. Very – very weakly, in some places, sometimes FM stations are heard, still prolazit))).
    And in the CB range, I (as usual) failed to accept anything. And this is not the problem of the receiver, but rather the problem of the absence of an external, highly located antenna and not high transmitters’ power, among car owners. I basically can not hear them, not on Yaesu, nor on Degen, nor on this 737.
    On the MW band, the receiver accepts almost everything the same as the others (for example, the Sony ICF-SW11), although the magnetic antenna is none (small) and is clamped to a metal speaker, which is not recommended. But 15-17 stations, approximately, I accept (only closer to midnight). It also turned out to be very inconvenient to tune with the buttons, which are medium waves, which are short. If you do not know exactly the desired station frequency. And switching the 9 / 10kHz step, the same creates inconvenience. Some stations are well tuned in 9 kHz increments, and some in 10 kHz increments … Not impressed. Analog pen is better))).
    Short waves, I think, is not worth discussing. Yes, it does, but … it’s a toy, practically. I, in general, for large receivers, with contours, screens, with the KPI, with a large scale and a good speaker.
    But the range of VHF (FM-Narrow, FM-Wide), controversial. With this coverage, 30-230 MHz, you need to have more possible settings. At a minimum, setting the pitch frequency. And here is a fixed pitch, 25 kHz. And in general, apart from TV channels and re-FM band, you will not accelerate very much. At least 12.5 step add. On this band, (i) is received, TV1 – 56.30 MHz, 66.50 – Radio Russia, TVC – 83.75 MHz, MATCH – 181.75 MHz, NTV – 197.75 MHz, Russia 1 – 221.75 MHz. Well, re FM. Aviation is no longer intelligible, since the modulation frequency for the entire range.
    At the beginning of the range, some kind of nonsense. From 30 to about 70 megahertz, FM stations are accepted. For example, at 30.15 MHz, the station sounds from the FM band, 92 MHz, at 31.17, it sounds 96.8 MHz, at 31.30 – 94.4 MHz, and so on. The approximate (average) frequency spacing is about 62 – 66 MHz. Maybe the similarity of the mirror channel? …
    Sensitivity in the FM band, very worthy. Better than the Supra PAS-3907 and even slightly better than the Sony ICF-SW11. It receives 51 FM stations, all that is, the memory is only 50))). BUT, the auto scan worked as it is generally incomprehensible, the stations were remembered partially mixed, not in ascending order. I suffered and as a result I brought all the settings manually, so it’s more reliable.
    It accepts stations even with a folded antenna (but only when you hold it in your hands). Can the headphone wire still be used as an antenna? …
    By the way, the sound of FM stations, in headphones, is stereo. There are stereo / mono switching. The sound is full, with sufficient low frequencies and generally good.
    I listened in headphones Koss Porta Pro and Beyerdynamic DT 990 PRO, I liked it. Interestingly, the headphone output comes from directly embedded in the m / c. receiver, stereo amplifier. And the built-in speaker is connected from a separate, single-channel chip.
    The board is quite neatly soldered. Chips, the processor and the receiver, are no longer jammed, but are not physically marked with markings. Only LM4871. On the board there are unidentified elements in the case of sot-23-6, labeled C5Z. Could not find the decryption, sorry (((.
    Consumed currents. In sleep mode – 22µA, clock mode and backlight – 14.3 mA, turned on, but the volume is 0 – 40 mA and the maximum volume – 220 mA.
    Turns off the receiver at a voltage of 2.8 volts. In this case, the display on the display becomes very pale.
    The charging current, the initial, 670 mA, is further reduced to a complete shutdown.
    Sorry for the unsuccessful translation, Google translate works.

    Reply
  2. Newvo

    I was wondering what the tuning step would be on the VHF (30-233 MHz). I’ve asked a couple of AliExpress about that – none knows it. One of them replied that he would contact the supplier to get the answer.

    Reply
    1. Igor

      25 kHz tuning step VHF 30-230 MHz (FM-Narrow, FM-Wide) band. And unpleasantly, in the range VHF the noise canceller does not work.

      Reply
  3. Laurence N.

    I was interested in this frequency range, but I do not think the interface on this radio is sufficient for its capabilities. Some have a good relationship with a tuning wheel, while I prefer to have, at least in addition, direct frequency entry. Unfortunately this one will satisfy neither preference. Changing the frequency, according to the manual, requires repeatedly holding a button until the correct one shows up. The manual does not say whether there is any sound from the thing when doing this, but it admits that the process is hard so I’m guessing that there is not. Similarly, you choose memory locations from a list, rather than by number. So you have an interface that requires you to know the target frequency *and* won’t let you enter it. I’m hoping that they manufacture a new model with the same range but a more fluid set of controls.

    Reply
  4. James Fields

    Ordered from Ali Express with a tiny discount for using the mobile app, paid $37.70 US including shipping, expected delivery about 01/19/19. Noted that the Ebay and Amazon sellers are also shipping from overseas, no distributors local to the US yet.

    Reply

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