- Listen to iPod, AM or FM radio, auxiliary audio sources
- Subwoofer and 2 speakers with 32 watts total power
- 3 line display shows what's playing on iPod
- Full function remote allows you to change songs or stations from around the room
- Compatibility: iPod nano (1G only), iPod mini, 3G iPod, 4G iPod with click wheel, iPod Color, iPod Video, iPod shuffle (1G only)
We brought it home (paid $199 in the store) and my 12-year-old was able to direct installation with no difficulty. Yes, there ARE lots of cables, but they are logical, color coded and really not difficult to manage. You'll need a phillps or nut driver to attach the FM antenna.
It is designed for a bookshelf, but we set it up with the subwoofer (that big, heavy speaker mentioned in another review) under the bed and the speakers on opposite nightstands.
Sound is wonderful, the remote works perfectly...very intuitive. We did have to refer to the manual to set the clock, but that made sense first time round with the directions.
Only one "I wish"....I wish it had an alarm clock. And I wish I'd known they come in white. I'd have looked elsewhere for one to match my iPod. (Which is a 30G video model. Adapters for all the models were included. Check the package before you buy, mates.)
Happy listening!
Buy iHome iH52 Bookshelf System with AM/FM Radio and Dock for iPod (Black) Now
This is about the only system of its kind that I can find, and I research obsessively! If you are looking for an iPod dock with good sound and the option for radio and aux input, and is NOT a blaster-style single unit, this is about it. I paid $160 at Linens n' Things, and I am pleased that it works as well as it does doing what I want it to do.Both white and black look sharp (I chose white to match my iMac). The "receiver" is really small and compact, due mostly to the lack of a disk player. The sub is also small and demure, and, yes, it suffers from logo-itis with a large iHome displayed prominently. The satellites are perfectly sized for a desk, and sound crisp. The remote is simple and does what it should.
The Good:
Looks sharp, unique feature set.
iPod dock that controls SOME iPods and displays SOME iPod info and synchs right through the receiver to iTunes for updates.
Good sound with limited (but effective) pre-set EQ settings.
Set-up was generally easy and straight forward.
Hooked up my iMac through Aux port and it sounds great. No general hissing as some others have mentioned (with the FM exception mentioned below).
The Bad:
The Remote batteries were pre-installed in the factory (who does that anymore) and were thus stone dead upon purchase. There are also AAs pre-installed in the receiver for clock backup, which will almost certainly leak and cause issues in some units during shipping.
This unit does NOT work with all iPods equally, INCLUDING the newer iPod video versions! My 4 month old iPod video will play OK through the speakers, but will not show any track details on the screen (which is explained on a small note INSIDE the box). There is NO dock insert for the video iPods, either, and there is a small note explaining that you should order some small $3 inserts from the iHome website for the iPod video (c'mon, iHome folks, the iPod video has been out for a YEAR now! At least give us a coupon for a free insert).
The FM reception is poor, and then when you install the included FM antenna, you pick up stations the SETI array cannot find I get overlap from some previously unknown station on that wavelength! I have settled on a minor amount of static as the best case scenario. My prior JVC system picked up the same station just fine in the exact same location. I have tested the AM briefly, and it doesn't sound all that great either. (UPDATE: I have a much clearer signal now, after laying the AM antenna over the FM antenna input port!)
I don't think the speakers are shielded. If they are, the company sure doesn't like to brag about it. This shouldn't be too big a deal if you have an LCD display and stopped using floppy disks, but keep in mind there be magnets here (UPDATE: I have been informed by the company that the speakers are shielded)
sub levels are changed via the ol' knob-on-the-back-of-the-speaker method. It seems to me that a receiver up on a desk close to the user would have been a more convenient location for this adjustment to take place.
This system gets 4.5 stars for promised features, 4 stars for performance, and 2 stars for all the lies, darn lies, printed on the box and on the web! Through all my bitterness, I'm glad I got it. It is real close to being great, and gets an "A" for effort, but close those loopholes, iHomeys!
UPDATE: One month later, and all is well. I sync my iPod via the iHome without any difficulty, and iTunes sounds great thru the AUX port. I'm a big fan of FM radio while hearing the system sounds on my computer, which I have.
Read Best Reviews of iHome iH52 Bookshelf System with AM/FM Radio and Dock for iPod (Black) Here
The sound sound quality & features on the iH52 are pretty good, but it has some minor flaws (no alarm clock, no ability to navigate menus/choose playlists on iPod) and one serious flaw with the remote when using newer iPods (specifically, the Nano, the Video, or the Classic), where the forward/reverse buttons on the remote don't work reliably. After a year of grumbling about those buttons and wondering if maybe I was just too stupid to use a remote correctly, I finally called iHome and got someone on the phone who knew exactly what I was talking about before I finished explaining the problem.Apparently, there's an issue w/ the hardware of the iH52 that means that it can't reliably send the correct instructions to skip tracks or scan within tracks for those newer iPods from the remote--some people have the "skip tracks" function work, others have the "scan within track" function work, and some (like me) have neither work reliably so we have to schlep ourselves over to the iHome to use those functions via the buttons on the main dock. He noted that people w/ older Nanos or Videos have reported being able to revert back to the original factory firmware and get them to work correctly w/ the iH52, but not users of the Classic (whose factory firmware is new enough to not recognize the codes that the iH52 sends when using the remote to control it).
(Apparently right now the only iHome product that can reliably control the skip/scan functions of newer iPods from the remote is the iH9 (IH9 Black Alarm Clock for Ipod), which doesn't have the external speakers or subwoofer of the iH52. The iH9 reportedly also has the ability to control the entire iPod interface (including navigating menus) via the remote, and has a line-level output that could in theory be connected to a stereo system for folks for whom the lack of external speakers is a deal-breaker.)
Want iHome iH52 Bookshelf System with AM/FM Radio and Dock for iPod (Black) Discount?
I purchased the iHome bookshelf system for my husband for Christmas, and we absolutely love it. The reason that I purchased it was (1) it accepts the iPod Shuffle Gen1, and (2) the small profile of the base unit. The design is very slick and clean, and it fits well in our space. And, the speakers don't take up a ton of room either.We also use the unit for the FM Radio, and the sound quality is very good. The only drawback that I see is that the interface is not as good with the Shuffle as it would be with a normal iPod. That is, you have to physically walk over and move between songs on the iPod, while it is docked in the system, and you can't use the remote for anything other than volume and on/off when the iPod Shuddle is playing. But, I knew when I got the shuffle that it wasn't as robust as the regular iPod, and went for the value price. So, it is really not a big deal.
Great product, I would buy it again!
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