Key Takeaways
- The Gracioso cassette player has basic features and is a simple, affordable option for playing tapes on the go.
- It’s not high tech, but it gets the job done – no Bluetooth, just basic cassette and radio functionality with a microphone.
- The built-in speaker quality is not great and the design could use some improvement, but overall it’s a solid choice for retro tech fans.
When you think of portable technology these days, you probably think of how the technology has gotten smaller and smaller, our ability to store digital files has increased, and how easy it is to carry large amounts of data around with us, like with smartphones that fit easily in your pocket. But if you think back to the old days of listening to music, when it was still fairly small, in a standardized format, and most of the time entertainment was at home, something like a portable cassette player was the way to enjoy music on the go. The old Sony Walkman cassette player was the gold standard for portable cassette players, and the resurgence of retro technology has some people wanting to go back to the good old days.
That’s where the Gracioso cassette player comes in. This cassette player, tape recorder and radio, like Sony’s Walkman cassette player, is a throwback to retro tech for portable cassette entertainment, and it’s priced pretty reasonably. But does it actually meet the standards you need for a portable cassette player? We put it to the test to see if it’s worth taking your favorite tapes out of storage.
Gracioso Cassette Player
The Gracioso cassette player is an affordable and simple option for anyone who wants to listen to tapes, listen to the radio, or record tapes on the go.
- Simple and easy to use
- With microphone
- The built-in speaker sounds poor
- The design is not good
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Pricing, Specifications and Availability
Cheap classic cassette player design
The Gracioso Cassette Player retails for $36 and can be purchased on Amazon. It’s roughly the same size as the classic Sony Walkman cassette player, measuring 3.6 x 1.4 x 5 inches and weighing 7.2 ounces. As portable as a cassette player goes, it’s still a lot bulkier than most tech gadgets we carry around these days.
However, this cassette player does more than just play tapes. You can also record tapes with the included microphone through the microphone line-in port, and listen to AM and FM radio. Earphones are also included, but the sound quality is not great, so be sure to bring your own earphones or headphones. This cassette player only supports wired headphones through a 3.5mm jack, not Bluetooth. It also has a built-in speaker, but the sound quality is not great.
The Gracioso cassette player can be powered by the included power adapter or two AA batteries, which are not included.
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What I like about the Gracioso cassette player
There’s nothing frivolous about it.
For me, the best thing about retro tech is its simplicity. The Gracioso Cassette Player does exactly what a cassette player should do: play tapes, record tapes, and play AM and FM radio. There are no bells and whistles with this product, and I love that. While modern iterations of retro tech sometimes add in modern tech like Bluetooth, this cassette player thankfully does not. It stays true to its roots and only supports wired headphones.
No need to provide your own 3.5mm microphone.
This simplicity makes it incredibly easy to use: it has a classic cassette player layout so all the buttons are well placed, and volume and radio tuning are both controlled by an easy-to-use wheel.
It’s also really handy that the Gracioso cassette player comes with a microphone, as it makes recording much easier as you don’t need to get your own 3.5mm microphone. It also comes with a foam windscreen, which is a great addition.
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What I didn’t like about the Gracioso cassette player
Some of the drawbacks are not major
Thankfully, the Gracioso cassette player has very few flaws, and they are fortunately nothing that is completely fatal, but rather minor annoyances.
The biggest problem with cassette players is that the built-in speakers are pretty poor quality. They sound very cheap and really struggle to reproduce low frequencies. This isn’t surprising considering that it’s a cheap cassette player, and a portable cassette player, so most people will be listening to it through headphones or connecting it to their home speakers. But if you want to listen to your tapes or radio through speakers, you might be a little disappointed.
For me, aesthetics are not a prerequisite for enjoying technology, but it would certainly be nice if it looked good.
Secondly, although this is a portable cassette player, I was really surprised to see that there is no built-in clip or other means of attaching the cassette player to your body – if you want to take this outside and listen to tapes while you’re out for a walk, you’ll have to hold it in your hand or have it floating around in your tote bag, both of which are pretty impractical.
Finally, and this is a minor complaint, it just doesn’t look very good. The Gracioso cassette player is silver with a periwinkle blue accent in the middle, and overall it looks very plain and pretty boring. For me, good looks are not essential to enjoying technology, but it would certainly have been nice.
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Should I buy a Gracioso cassette player?
If you’re looking for a cheap cassette player that also has a radio, the Gracioso cassette player is a solid choice. Its flaws are small and barely noticeable. It has all the features you’d expect: tape playback, recording, radio playback.
If you’re looking for a more modern cassette player with features like Bluetooth support, this isn’t the best option for you. This is a simple, bare-bones, no-frills cassette player, so it doesn’t have any fancy features and you’ll need to use batteries and wired headphones to use it.
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