Sangean RCR-2 AM/FM Atomic Clock Radio (Silver)

• Updates time automatically from US atomic clock
• Dual alarms
• Automatic preset station option
• Modern styling
• Gentle wake-up alarm
• Easy to read LCD display
• HWS (Humane Wake System)
• PLL tuner
• Radio Controlled clock available for DCF/WWVB/MSF/JJY
• Weekday selection; Time zone selector switch

I spent a lot of time trying to find the perfect alarm clock for my bedroom and, as you can tell, I am still looking. The Sangean RCR-2 certainly has some attractive features like the atomic clock, which took a few hours to set itself, and the nice styling but it fails in so many areas as an alarm clock. First, and most importantly, the display is unreadable. It is very busy with lots of symbols and numbers but using very thin LCD numerals for the time and the off axis viewing angle is very small; you must basically face it head on. Worst of all, however, is the blindingly bright orange backlight with makes is impossible for night adjusted eyes to read the display if you want to check the time in the middle of the night. It is so bright as to cast shadows throughout the room. I keep it across the room but I can't imagine trying to sleep with this minor sun positioned on the nightstand. Sure, you can turn off the backlight but then the clock is invisible at night. Maybe LEDs are not cool but they make a lot more sense for an alarm clock. Also, it takes at least four button presses to turn on the alarm as opposed to one on my old alarm.

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I own several radios and clock radios, including CCrane's CCRadio (made by Sangean) and the GE SuperRadio. Some of the negatives given in reviews above have an element of truth, but are overblown, in my view.

Compared to the CCRadio (the several year old one, I don't have the more recent CCRadio Plus):

* The RCR-2 is noticeably smaller. It is somewhat narrower, and half the height. It is twice as deep. It feels solid, heavy, and polished.

* The extra buttons make it quite a bit easier to use. Sangean is still no Apple or Timex when it comes to making intuitive interfaces, so the interface will still confuse some. And while Sangean has improved on their translation of the instruction booklet, it still leaves much unsaid. But the function of each button is clearer and simpler, with less strange overloading of uses.

* The CCRadio used any button for Snooze, so I could not switch stations, or just turn the radio OFF in the morning, without pushing the ON/OFF button 3 times, to get it out of snooze mode, and just plain OFF. The RCR-2 only uses the one up/down big tuning button for snooze, so other buttons continue to function for their primary purpose in the morning. This is good.

* The front third of the RCR-2 is polished metal, with a closely fit clear face plate over the front. The buttons are a very solid feeling, smooth polished round metal nubs with strong spring loading. This is good for most of the buttons, though the snooze (big up/down bar) button requires more focused pressure than I like first thing in the morning.

* The CCRadio buttons are flimsier feeling plastic, and have some annoying delays -you have to hold them a major fraction of a second to take affect (debounce circuitry, I guess). You hold the CCRadio station selection buttons perhaps a half second to change station, but not more than two seconds, or you just reprogrammed the memory. This is an annoyingly small window between the times required for the two functions. I have not noticed any such timing problems with the RCR-2 -the station selection buttons take affect immediately, so far as I can tell.

* The 7-day programming, and display, is the first such I have used since a Sony model, many years ago. Each of the two alarms gets one programmable time, and can be enabled or disabled independently for each of the 7 days. Each of the seven days of the week gets its own button, and the status of each day is separately shown on the display. Nice.

* I haven't pushed the radio tuner yet, except to note that the one weak AM station I like, late at night, which only my best radios (the CCRadio and GE SuperRadio) can pick up, also came in just fine on the RCR-2. So I assume this is another fine Sangean AM frontend.

* The RCR-2 display is _much_ more readable than the CCRadio display. There is _no_ angle from which I can read the smaller details on the CCRadio display, except when I hold a flashlight just right and squint through my good eye. The RCR-2 display is crystal clear from a range of angles (and utterly invisible or unreadable, outside that range). You must view it from straight on or from above, looking down, but not more than about 20 or 30 degrees above the horizontal. If you are more than 5 or 10 degrees below the horizon, looking up, it is _completely_ invisible, with just an orange lit rectangle. You can look from the left or right of straight on by 20 degrees and see an excellent display, or perhaps 40 degrees to the left or right and still make out the numbers. The backlight is just from one side (the right), but covers the whole display fairly well, only mildly less bright on the left side. The backlight on my CCRadio is utterly dark on the opposite side, and only marginally useful. The orange backlight on the RCR-2 is almost bright enough to use for a night light, which some folks who like real darkness for sleeping will find way excessive they will have to turn the light off. Personally, I can sleep in broad daylight, and rather like the light.

* I have tried several atomic clocks that set using a radio signal from Boulder, Colorado. Only two of them were able to find any signal in my location -this RCR-2 and one other higher priced wall clock. The RCR-2 has a separate antenna for the clock setting signal, which can be hung off the back of the radio, or placed separately within the 3 foot range of the attaching wire. The cheaper atomic setting clocks that I have tried, $20 or less, have never worked for me. The RCR-2 still won't work for everyone, depending on signal strength, but it's good enough for me, and better than most.

* I have no comments on audio or speaker quality I am half deaf, and only listen to AM Talk Radio and Alarm Buzzes ;). The RCR-2 handles these two just fine, so far as I can tell.

* Unlike both the GE SuperRadio and CCRadio, the RCR-2 does not take a big heavy set of D cell batteries. So I suspect when I lose electric power, I won't be listening to the RCR-2 for long. It's no emergency radio. The backup power (internal capacitor) did last the couple of minutes it took me to move the radio between locations, as I tried out the atomic time setting reception. It kept time while unplugged, with the display light off, but the seconds still counting.

* And the RCR-2 is no DX long distance radio tuner. While the AM frontend seems to be quality, you don't get the fine tuning and antenna options required for DX'ing.

* The RCR-2 doesn't have the Weather channel that my CCRadio has -not that I care.

* The RCR-2 has no bass or treble controls just a volume control. Fine by me.

* The Nap function is the first I've seen of such that I will likely use. Just push the Nap button once for each 10 minutes you want. The display shows 10, 20, ... 120, OFF in sequence, for 10 to 120 minutes of nap time, and OFF. The only minor annoyance is that you have to push the button the remainder of the 12 times to turn it back OFF, but in normal usage, one doesn't need to do that often.

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I used to have an Emerson CKS2237 Dual Alarm Clock Radio (Silver) (it was a "smartset" that was supposed to be smart enough to "set itself"). After the new DST rules came into effect, the Emerson lost its smart and no longer set itself properly (it was not atomic as many had thought it was). I then found and purchased the Sangean RCR-2. The clock itself was excellent with the one exception that it was nearly impossible to read the clock at night (and also during the day at certain angles). I opted to return the clock and wait for the Sangean RCR-22 to come out.

Sangean RCR-22 AM/FM Atomic Clock Radio

I waited for about 3 months for the RCR-22 to come out. It was really worth the wait. The RCR-22 is an excellent upgrade over the RCR-2. In addition to the features of the RCR-2, below are some of the upgrades that the RCR-22 offers over the RCR-2:

The display screen for the RCR-22 has a dark blue background with white text. It makes for a very easy read from a wide variety of angles (unlike the RCR-2).

The display screen for the RCR-22 has an adjustable display knob to make the background screen lighter or darker (the RCR-2 was lacking this).

The RCR-22 has a wider display screen than the RCR-2 (this keeps the clutter down when trying to read from a distance and at night).

The RCR-22 has aux input so that you can connect your mp3 or CD player.

The RCR-22 has a super capacitor that provides memory and alarm memories for up to 1 hour during power disruptions (the RCR-2 also provided a similar type of protection, however, Sangean never made a claim as to the length of memory time that it had).

The RCR-22 appears to have better atomic reception and better AM/FM radio reception than the RCR-2.

In appearance, the RCR-22 looks much cooler than the RCR-2.

Although I gave the RCR-2 3 stars, I give the RCR-22 a full 5 stars.

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I really like this alarmclock a lot! It got the highest rating for alarmclocks by the Dutch Consumer organisation (Consumentenbond) in 2005. So on this score i bought it because my old alarmclock had gotten a bit 'shifty' on me. And i must say i like it a lot. I think it is 'pretty' as far as alarmclocks can be called pretty. It sounds really good for such a small box. I actually like the display, despite other people calling it awful. Sure when i'm standing up next to my bed it becomes unreadable but when i'm lying down in bed on either side it is very clear. The dial has a warm yellow glow and the numbers are black and very clear.

It has a bunch of features, to much to name them all but for example: I can set the alarm for any time, any day of the week and any station that i want. It's time setting and keeping is radio controlled, so it always keeps perfect time, summer and winter. Reception on FM or AM is very clear and free of noise and distortion. The sound is clear and rich actually just plain good, even with classical music :-) Sofar i would call it the best alarmclock i've ever owned or heard before. I give it 5 stars!

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You will definately need the manual to learn this alarm clock. Setting the alarm without reading the manual would have been more difficult. I could not get the alarm to set to the station I wanted, until I figured it out by holding the (alarm 1 or alarm 2) button just like setting a pre-set station button.

I will agree with others about the display. It does fade if your not looking directly at it.

Here's the caution for deep sleepers. If you are like me and use the snooze button until you have to get up; beware, the alarm automatically turns off after 1 hour. I was late for work twice in the same week the week after I received the alarm clock. I've adjusted the time the alarm goes off, as well made the adjustment myself. Perhaps this is a good thing. I'm not waiting until the last minute to get up.

The sound quality is good. AM reception is impressive, and clear. FM music quality is good as well.

It took a couple hours initally for the time to set. Overall, I am very satisfied, even after being late for work twice.