Pure Evoke H2 review: Compact, portable and stylish
Contributing Editor
Choosing the ideal new radio doesn’t have to mean opting for the most expensive or feature-rich solution on the market. Sometimes, you just want something that you can rely on to deliver excellent sound quality and smooth signals year after year.
Pure, one of the world’s leading brands in radio development, offers a wide selection of listening solutions as part of its Evoke range. The Evoke range features everything from state-of-the-art DAB Bluetooth radio systems, to compact and portable devices.
For those in search of simplicity and style, the Evoke H2 is an attractive portable radio from Pure that comes with DAB and FM radio connectivity.
Here’s everything that you need to know about the Pure Evoke H2.
Pure Evoke H2 review: Design and build
Style is one of the main features that always makes a Pure radio stand out.
Like Roberts Radio, or Ruark, the Pure radio brand concentrates heavily on delivering devices that you’ll be proud to have in your home. The great thing about the Pure Evoke H2 is that it’s a compact and highly portable device. That means that you should be able to find a home for this product pretty much anywhere in your home.
Whether on your bedside table or in your kitchen (or carried frequently between the two), the Evoke H2 will instantly draw the eye of your visitors and finish off the aesthetic of your room. What’s more, although the Pure Evoke H2 radio is primarily powered by the mains, there is an option to use a separate ChargePAK battery system from Pure to transform your device into something more portable.
If you want to take your radio with you on the go, the ChargePAK is an economically and environmentally-friendly option for hikers, travellers, and campers. As you’ll see in the Pure Evoke H2 manual, all you need to do is add the charging pack to your device and the model will automatically charge whenever it’s connected to the mains.
Pure also offers its ChargePAK for a range of other products too.
Pure Evoke H2 review: Features
While the Pure Evoke looks just as pleasing as many of the other devices in the Evoke range, with its bold wooden frame and stylish white façade, it doesn’t have nearly as many features to offer. We were a little surprised at just how basic this machine was when we took it out of the box, particularly when you consider the £100 price tag.
If you look at the Pure H2 vs the H3 model, the H2 comes missing everything from Bluetooth connectivity, to a colour-screen display. For an extra £20, it might make more sense to simply update to the H3 straight away.
Still, if you’re just looking for a basic FM/DAB radio that doesn’t have any extra bells and whistles, the Evoke H2 will definitely get the job done. Though many modern features are missing, the H2 still comes with things like an easy-to-read clock, a sleep timer, a kitchen countdown timer and more.
Some of the most compelling features include:
- Mains power or optional rechargeable batteries
- Small and compact design
- Easy-to-read clock
- Sleep timer and kitchen timer
- Alarms for waking up
- Stereo headphone socket
- Aux-in socket for playing music from your device
- 20 pre-set options
- DAB and FM connectivity
Although you won’t necessarily be able to stream your favourite podcasts and albums from your phone to the Pure Evoke H2 radio using Bluetooth, you can still do it with an aux-in cable. Really, you’re only missing out on the wireless functionality here. Additionally, although the screen included with the H2 isn’t as intuitive as the one on the H3, it does work well as a clock with basic information about what channels you’re listening to.
Pure Evoke H2 review: Performance
A relatively basic radio set with iconic style, the perfectly portable Pure Evoke H2 is excellent for anyone who wants a simple, but future-ready DAB radio. For instance, if you’re upgrading to DAB radio for the first time and you don’t want to end up confused as you read through the Pure Evoke H2 manual, the simplicity of this device will come in handy.
Additionally, despite its compact size, the Pure Evoke H2 is actually quite impressive when it comes to sound quality. You’ll get plenty of volume when you’re playing music for a crowd, and the high-quality digital sound is excellent for listening to a range of stations. There’s even the option to listen to your radio with a set of headphones if you prefer.
The wooden casing of the Evoke H2 makes the sound quality a lot deeper, but it can also mean that the device sounds a little bassy straight out of the box. If you like deep bass in your music, then that isn’t a problem – but you might need to adjust the sound otherwise.
We thought the sound quality was reasonably good for a device of this nature, and we liked the fact that you could set 20 presets for your favourite channels. It’s just a shame that the Pure Evoke H2 is lacking a few things, like a colour screen, CD player, or Bluetooth. Think of the Evoke H2 as a fun introduction into what’s possible from the Pure radio portfolio.
