They say that some of the simplest ideas are among the best; and looking at the Tykho radio designed by Lexon I just wonder whether we all are really going the right way, technologically speaking. I assume that the mere word “simple” is not powerful enough to describe the striking simplicity and the minimalist design of the Lexon Tykho portable radio. Now, everything comes with its own price and, in this case, it might not be what most people could ever expect from a “designer radio”.

Nevertheless, if you're the kind of guys who can appreciate the designer's vision upon a certain subject, it might prove that the Lexon Tykho is one hell of a gadget.

Lexon Tykho is one piece of audio gadgetry which simply can't spell “features”. It's almost the same with that foreverish joke “they're not bugs, they're features!”: in our case, I'd rather think that the absence of other basic radio-world elements is indeed a specific mark for the Tykho character. There is no scale, digital or analog, whatsoever. Everything is blind and homogeneous: no accents, no different colors, no fancy-design buttons and no friendly shapes - Lexon Tykho has nothing!

Well, such a severe feature-poverty has its own benefits: there are way fewer things to become loose or to break! And in terms of reliability, this is a very serious point, especially if you're thinking about using the Lexon Tykho in less than perfect environments such as beaches, poolside, bathrooms or on boats, even construction sites and other harsh places. There is no official indication about the waterproof degree, but it's quite sure that a good splash won't fry this radio as would destroy any common electronics.

With an electronic volume control and shock/water-proof rubber casing, the Lexon Tykho sports a devastating simple principle of tuning into the stations you're looking for: simply rotate the antenna and there you go! No presets for the AM and the FM wavebands, sorry.

The Lexon Tykho runs on four AA batteries and retails for prices around $80. Now, all that's left to do is to decide whether you can cope with its painful simple design; and if you don't, then find a friend who needs a radio and make him/her a dazzling present.

 

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