Ozaki iCommand for the iPod Shuffle
June 6, 2009 by Technorati Search for: mp3 players · Leave a Comment
Ozaki iCommand for the iPod Shuffle
June 6, 2009 by Technorati Search for: mp3 players · Leave a Comment
New Fifth Gen iPod Nano: with Camera?
May 28, 2009 by Technorati Search for: mp3 players · Leave a Comment
Sony ICFC1iPMK2 Speaker Dock and Clock Radio with iPod Dock White
May 16, 2009 by Mp3 Players Review · Leave a Comment
Sony ICFC1iPMK2 Speaker Dock and Clock Radio with iPod Dock White
AM/FM clock radio with built-in iPod dock * for all docking iPods, including iPod classic, iPod touch and iPod nano * backlit blue LCD screen * dual alarm and sleep timer * remote control *
User Ratings and Reviews
4 Stars works great with the iphone 3G – but I don’t recommend it anymore
**UPDATE September 4, 2008**
Unfortunately, I have to change my recommendation to a *not recommended* After using this product for a few weeks, I’ve found the overbright screen to be too much of a nuisance. I shouldn’t have to turn my alarm clock sideways to dim the light to a bearable level. Also, the abrupt waking (instead of a gentle sound faded in) became too annoying. Other issues I had after a few weeks of use are noted below in the “CONS” area. If I could change my star rating on amazon, I would give it a 2 or 3 instead of a 4.
**ORIGINAL REVIEW**
After getting my iPhone 3G, I knew I had to get a “night time dock” so I could keep my iphone in a safe place during the night.
I’ve been known to wake up and step on my old motorola razr, and I definitely didn’t want that happening with my iphone 3G 
After reading through reviews on ilounge and macrumors, I finally decided on this unit. It was actually the review by R Allison that made me take the plunge.
PROS:
I was worried about the unit being compatible with my iphone 3g, and then I was worried about the buzzing sound that other people had experienced.
I decided to go ahead and try it, knowing that Amazon has a great return policy.
I can safely say the unit works as described. I just docked my iphone 3G (white) and it was ready to roll. I’ve used it for a little over a week now and I haven’t heard any buzzing, there were no device errors, it just “works”.
I like that my iPhone 3G can charge at night and that I can wake up to any track that I want.
CONS:
I only gave it 4 stars as a product because the are only 3 things that would make it perfect:
1) The ability to have the alarm “fade in” instead of blaring the track at the volume you set. Even though it’s not an advertised feature, it is something that would have made the product better. My wife has a Bose Wave Radio and it’s nice to be able to be “gently” woken up by your favorite track and have it slowly rouse you out of your sleep. A work around is easy enough. I can just create a track of my favorite music and create my own fade in with editing software.
2) The sound quality isn’t “super duper”. I mean, it’s a clock radio, so it’s not supposed to sound like your home theatre system, but it would be nice if it had a bit deeper base or was a bit more adjustable.
3) The display is way too bright. It has 3 “dimmer” levels and even on the lowest level, it illuminates the whole room. I’ve actually turned the unit around sideways (to face the opposite wall) to make it seem less bright. It would have been better to make the display light up by a button so if you need to see it at night, you could turn it on (like those indiglo watches). Or have an auto dimmer for night time to keep it not lit at all.
4) *Added Sept 4, 2008* When you wake to your iPod or iPhone, it defaults to the last track you were listening to. So you may have been listening to a “loud” song, and when you wake up, you get jolted to that same song. It would have been nice to be able to wake to a specific playlist you can create or a specific song so you don’t have to remember to cue up the right “wake up” song before you go to bed.
5) *Added Sept 4, 2008* The way that you activate the alarm is a bit awkward. It took me a while to realize that after you set the alarm time, you have to activate it. It probably says this in the instructions, so that’s not much of a con. It just wasn’t intuitive.
Overall, for the price and for the functions it has, I would have to withdraw my recommendation of it.
I ended up purchasing the iHome iP99 from the Apple store online and it has all the same features, without the “Cons” of the Sony clock. The iHome iP99 (not the product featured above) has a “real” dimmer that goes down 8 settings, all the way to “off” if you want the display off. The iHome iP99 (not the product featured above) allows you to wake “gentle” with a playlist, song, radio, etc faded in, and also has settings that allow you to only wake during the “weekdays”, “7 days a week”, or “only on weekends”.
You can see pictures of my Sony unit (I bought the white Sony unit) in the gallery for this product
2 Stars Great speaker. Poor reliability.
We had this for 3 1/2 months (since it was a gift, it was in use slightly less than 3 months). Then the unit completely failed – first stopped charging the iPod then within a week the display went blank. Catch is after 90 days only parts are covered so it will cost approx 1/3 of a new unit to have it repaired ($24 charge from Sony plus shipping the unit in).
As far as function when it works, it is a nice clock radio. I was considering getting another – but will pass on getting a second one (or purchase an extended warranty)
5 Stars The best value iPod clock radio gets even better – good sound, great radio
Last year I bought the previous version of this clock radio (the ICF-C1IP) and was extremely impressed, especially compared to many other iPod clock radios that I tried. This week I bought this updated version for another room, and was pleasantly surprised.
What I’ve noticed in this updated version:
- explicitly iPhone compatible (”works with iPhone” indicated on the box)
- AM radio reception is notably clearer (and the old one wasn’t bad)
- the display is brighter and easier to read (it might, in fact, be a little too bright at the lowest dim level)
- sound quality just slightly less bass than earlier version (subtle – probably because of magnetic shielding for iPhone)
How do you tell which version you’re buying, aside from the model number? Look for the “MK2″ in the product name, as well as the “Works with iPhone” on the box.
Like the previous version, the Sony is fully compatible with my iPod Classic, and the sound quality and radio performance is notably better than other iPod clock radios I’ve tested.
Sony has done a great job with the ICF-C1iPMK2. It is an upright design, with most of the unit behind the iPod, in a slanted design with controls at the top. The iPod dock accepts universal adapters, but they aren’t really needed as Sony has an adjustable supporting plate behind the iPod.
Unlike other iPod clock radios, the Sony does not attempt to duplicate the iPod menus on its display. Instead, the Sony includes a remote control that lets you completely control the iPod menus as if you were manipulating the scroll wheel. Quite impressive.
Sound quality is very good for a clock radio – with crisp highs and even midtones. You may want to play around with your iPod equalizer settings to see what sounds best. (To my ears, “Jazz” EQ setting works well with these small speakers.) Sony includes a simulated mode they call “Mega XPand” that in my experience made the music sound muddied and under-sampled. Your mileage my vary.
The blue-backlit clock is located in the iPod dock area, and 3 brightness levels are available. In my experience, even the lowest setting is a bit too bright, but not enough to disturb me at night. I wish that the display were slightly larger, although the high contrast lets me see the time without my glasses from a reasonable distance.
And, unlike most iPod clock radios, the radio reception is outstanding – with an external AM antenna provided. The unit has dual alarms, which can be set to iPod (you can even select a wakeup volume), Radio, or Buzzer.
On the downside, the battery backup for the buzzer alarm and clock is a small expensive lithium battery (although after nearly a year of use, this battery was still working on my old model). And, if your relying on just the buzzer to wake you up it’s not very loud. You also have to be careful when changing the alarms to make sure that you don’t accidentally turn the alarm off. But all of these are minor issues. However, these are all very minor issues that don’t detract from the unit overall.
All in all, in my experience, this is the best iPod clock radio you can buy.
5 Stars Works great w/ iPhone
This speaker alarm clock is awesome and is appealing to the eye as well! The sound is great, I use it in my room and the sound is pretty loud, more than sufficient. Also, it is compatible with the iPhone, and you dont have to put the iphone on airplane mode, so you can receive phone calls while your music is playing. It also has a radio, which is nice, and the remote makes scrolling through your music library easy from across the room.
5 Stars Works and sounds great. Excellent quality
Purchased this for my nine year old daughter. She has been able to use it with her iPod nano without issue. The Alarms are a bit tricky to set up so I had to do that. Sound is excellent and remote works fine (a bit small and I worry she will loose it). Display intensity is adjustable which is good as it can be very bright at the highest setting.
