The RadioShark is a sharp looking product: a big white fin, to be exact. And it acts like a TiVo for the radio.

Now if you've lived under a rock and don't know what a TiVo does, here's the skinny: It records live TV and you can shuttle back and forth to watch, rewind, or whatever you fancy. The RadioShark does the exact same thing. Once you download the software, all you have to do is plug the fin in to a USB port and the radio streams live into your computer.
 
You can listen to AM-FM radio. The interface is just like you would expect. Simple. You can scan, record. Pause, rewind, skip commercials, schedule recordings just like a TiVo, and the controls are right there.
 
I like this product because I listen to talk radio, but hate commercials and waking up early enough to catch all of Kevin and Bean on KROQ or Howard Stern. So the scheduled recordings let you set the RadioShark to record the program EVERY hour, day, or week!
 
Now, the time-shift function is nice; just like the TiVo, it records while you listen to live radio so you can scan and go back to record something. And with the different record qualities and formats, you can manage how much of your hard drive you allow this Shark to eat.
 
And watch the fin: As you record, it turns from blue to red. People seem to really like that...
 
Okay, so back to the nitty gritty. One of the lab guys had trouble working the RadioShark, citing problems turning record off on his PC. I didn't have those issues on my trusty iBook, but I did notice that even though I left my computer on overnight to record Kevin and Bean, it didn't record. Oh, it records when your computer is up and running, but if it sleeps, the software doesn't kick into gear.
 
So yes, there are a couple of bugs with the software. Not only that, but the fin, as large and in charge as it looks, doesn't get great reception. And I don't understand why, but the Griffin people decided to put a little nub of an antenna into an enormous white fin. But the sound recording is pretty clear, when radio comes in clear. The interface is easy, the layout is simple to manage, and being able to stick it to the RIAA by recording songs off the radio to put onto my iPod is pretty good, too. So for $69, you, too, can get yourself a great white RadioShark.