Digital Radio or DAB radio as it is known, has taken off in the UK and other countries worldwide. The widespread popularity is in stark contrast to many opponents who claim that the audio heard over a digital radio is not nearly as high in quality as you can get over the FM spectrum. But much like the surge in use of MP3s for music, this is clearly a case of where ease of use far overrules quality - especially when only the keenest of ears can tell the difference.
The difference in sound quality has to do with the manner in which the signal is sent. Radio stations can alter the quality of their audio by choosing the bit rate that they use to broadcast; much in the same way users can alter the quality of their favourite song when they playback in MP3 format. As a rule, the bigger the MP3 file then the higher the quality, but also the more space the song occupies in storage. Many people find a happy medium where quality is not excessively compromised and the file size is not too large.
Station owners face a similar crossroads when deciding on their bandwidth that they broadcast at. However, the compromise reached by most stations is more than adequate for quality as most listeners can not tell the difference.
The most noticeable differences between digital and analogue radios come from the users' experience with the radio itself. A DAB radio can display text in a window detailing information about the station and can also include artist and song title, as well as news, traffic, and any other information the station wishes to provide. Owning a digital radio also provides users with even more choice when tuning in. There are more stations to choose from especially in some urban areas.
Navigating to all the different digital stations is also easier. A few clicks of a button or the turn of a dial is all it takes to see on the display what station you are listening to - quite different from having to memorize the frequency or tuning in and waiting to hear the call signs to see if you landed on the right station.
Some radios also come with advanced features allowing users to pause live radio. This feature is especially helpful when you need to jot down something you heard on the radio, such as a phone number, a name or other information that is easy to forget. Ironically many digital radio manufacturers appear to base their designs on the radios that were popular during the early "radio days" of the 30s and 40s, before there were televisions in every home.
Although the quality of sound is said to be less than analogue, the difference is undetectable. Most users would most likely say that the quality of digital broadcasts is far superior to the sound they get on the FM waves due to the increased reception quality. DAB digital radios receive signals which have been broadcast digitally so even when the signal is weak there is no hissing or white noise - something which everyone who uses FM is accustomed to.
Ever since people started listening to records there have been advances in the way the masses have listened to music, and each time something new arrives, most people tend to choose ease of use and portability over other factors. The same is destined for digital radio.