I've had four of these clocks so far and only two have survived. Don't get me wrong... it's a GREAT clock with easy and logical buttons and features, but one was dead on arrival and another one lost half of its print on the screen after only two months. BUY ONE LOCALLY if possible and definately save your receipt and packaging so that you can return or exchange it if it acts up. When we bought our first one several years ago, it was REALLY expensive. Recently, I found one at my local Target and it was much more reasonable. This clock is great for me as an adult and two of my children use it as well. The time projection on the ceiling is a nice feature for children that sleep in a top bunk bed. It's easy for a young child to turn the alarm on at night and off in the morning. My six year old uses his faithfully. The time is dead-on accurate and doesn't have to be re-set after a power failure. All busy moms should appreciate that feature. From now on, I will always buy an atomic clock for my kids!
* You can't change the orientation of the projection. I'd like to have the clock facing me when I look at it from bed, but if the clock is facing you, the projection will be side-ways.
* As someone else mentioned, if you change the time manually, the clock will not synchronize. This is very frustrating because the clock will not initially be set, and you have to wait up to 72 hours for it to synchronize. Your clock is totally useless during this time. If you manually set it, you will have to reset it for it to synchronize. This is not well documented in the manual. I found this process to be frustrating, but now that it's set up, it works well.
Even with these two shortcomings, I give it 4 starts because it's a nice product for a nice price.
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Design and function collide in this so-very-cool little alarm clock. Available in several colors (red, blue, purple, clear), it's easy to find a clock to match the decor of whichever room its intended for and with the modern curvy design, it looks almost as much like a decoration as it does an alarm clock. But it's no dust-catcher this little clock (actual size, according to the manufacturer is 4.25" x 2.5" x 4.5") works 24/7 sending radio signals to the U.S. Atomic Clock in Boulder, Colorado one of the world's most accurate timepieces. This allows the ExactSet clock to maintain the exact time, even going so far as to update itself for Daylight Savings Time!Even with minimal instruction-reading, this clock is amazingly easy to program and use. The first thing to do is use the clearly-labeled 'ZONE' button on the clock's face to choose your time zone Pacific, Mountain, Central or Eastern. A small map of the United States on the clock's LCD screen allows you to see the time zone that you have chosen, making the process error-proof (as long as you know where you live!)
The clock automatically synchronizes the time and date via radio wave to the U.S. Atomic Clock. A Signal Strength Indicator on the LCD screen shows how strong the clock's signal is at any given time. While the instruction manual maintains that complete synchronization may take up to 72 hours, my clock reached full signal strength in less than five minutes.
The ExactSet alarm clock comes equipped with two AA batteries as well as an AC power adapter.
The overall design of this clock makes for easy information retrieval and it will tell you whatever you want to know the time, including seconds, the date and day of the week, and will even keep the time for which the alarm is set visible for future reference. Just a touch of a button allows you to choose what information you want displayed on the LCD screen at any given time.
The coolest feature of this clock, though, has to be the projection display. With the AC adapter in use, the time is projected in large, red numbers onto the ceiling above the clock. (I was worried at first that my husband would not be able to tolerate the projection feature as he requires total darkness in order to sleep well however, the numbers are a very visible yet very muted color that doesn't light up the room at all.) Oregon Scientific thought of everything with this clock, and a prime example is the angled projection. Assuming that most people will place the clock beside a bed, the projection unit is angled so that the time doesn't appear directly above the clock. I found that, upon waking, I didn't have to strain and careen my neck to find the time it was positioned directly above my head where I saw it first thing upon wakening. (If the AC adapter is not used, then the time is not projected continuously. More about that in a minute...
Before actually trusting the alarm to wake me up, I wanted to hear it and what I heard made me a little nervous at first. The alarm is a series of short, repetitive 'beeps'. Well after using my 70's model alarm clock that sounded a loud, terrifying blast (and having slept through it on more than one occasion nonetheless), I thought there was no way this little beep was going to wake this bedhead. I set the alarm for 6:30 a.m. and then set my old behemoth for 6:45 just in case. Well just imagine my surprise when I woke up at exactly 6:30 the next morning and indeed, for the mornings after to nothing more than a series of beeps! After just a few days, the decrepit blaring alarm clock was relegated to the guest room...
Like any good alarm clock, the ExactSet has a snooze button conveniently located on top of the unit. One tap and the offending alarm goes away for eight minutes before sounding again. Pressing the snooze button also activates a blue HiGlo backlight to illuminate the clock's LCD screen for about five seconds. (Were you *not* to be using the AC adapter, pressing the snooze button also causes the time to project on the ceiling again, for about five seconds.)
Setting the wakeup time is also a snap with this clock just a button here and a button there and the time is set. Another wonderful discovery on my part, since setting my old clock often took several attempts. The ExactSet clock is this user's epitome of "user-friendly".
The ExactSet is hands down the most easy to use yet technologically sophisticated timepiece I have ever had the pleasure to use. Cool enough in design to appeal to children and teenagers, it's every adult alarm clock user's dream come true.
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Purchased this so my 7-year old can wake up on his own for school. I checked several stores and was dissapointed to find nothing suitable for a child (didn't want radio, CD, telephone, and other features).** Pros **
1. Very compact size, fits good next to bed
2. AC adapter with battery backup (even came with batteries)
3. LCD display doesn't have annoying illumination while trying to sleep. Blue "glow" activates only when very easy to find button is pressed
4. Straight forward buttons and controls that took about 2-3 minutes for my 7-year old to learn. Buttons are a good size and are not real hard to press.
5. Great styling as a kids clock
6. The projection feature is a BIG hit. Projects about 4" high numbers on ceiling.
7. Projection intensity is good for laying in bed at night without lighting up the whole room
8. Decent construction for the $$$
** Cons **
1. None for my particular application
NOTE: If you are looking for a projection clock to use during the day (visible projection in sunlight), you will be extremely disappointed
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This is a fun and useful clock! My boyfriend got me this for Christmas, and now I know why. He plays with it every chance he gets. The first night, he must have hit the illuminate button 15 times in 5 minutes.Now some serious comments:
For those who worry that the projection on the ceiling will bother you don't worry, it doesn't. I'm an extremely light sleeper who needs complete darkness, but the projection of the clock doesn't bother me at all.
I agree that the projection should rotate based on where you position the clock.
Also, the only way to see the clock in the dark is to push the illumination button which lasts for 5 seconds. So if you're trying to set the alarm in the dark, you have to keep pushing the button, kind of a pain.
For me the clock synchronized in about 10 minutes, so that was no problem.
Again well worth the low price, and one of the more useful gimmicks I've seen.
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