Sony RDPX500iP Dock for iPod, iPhone and iPad

• Powerful and crisp sound for iPod/iPhone/iPad1
• Built in sub & passive radiators deliver explosive bass
• Groundbreaking damperless speakers offer incredible sound

I first saw the Sony RDPX500 iP Dock at a big box store and thought it sounded great. It vibrated a lot but the sound was as good, if not better than the Bose Sound Dock II. This Sony unit puts out some serious base sounds. My issue with this sound system is that is not backward compatible with certain iPods. I ordered this Sony unit from Amazon and did not see any compatibility tables on the website, nor did I give it much thought to be honest. It said "iPod" so I took the statement at its word. Amazon was fast and efficient as usual and I received the item 3 days after ordering using free ground shipping. When my iPod did not work I went back to the big box store and tried my iPod on the exact Sony display model. It didn't work at the store either. My iPod did however work on EVERY other docking station in the store. Not an iPod problem. I went home and called Sony. Their customer support said there are some issues with certain generations of the iPod and those generations will not work with this Sony dock. I have a 5th generataion according to the serial number on the back of my iPod. The Sony customer service rep looked it up the generation status for me. Sony said you should contact them at esupport.sony.com to check compatibility. Better to be safe and check before you buy. I never saw mention of a compatibility chart anywhere before buying but the Sony customer service rep was knowledgable about it and knew exactly what I was talking about when I told her I had an older iPod and it did not work on this new Sony dock model. Amazon was great and arranged for the return and credit in minutes. Hope this helps.

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I was looking for a piece of equipment for my bedroom to replace my defunct mini-stereo which I had for close to 10 years. I decided to do away with the CD player, the radio, and just go 100% digital with my iPhone. I carefully read the reviews of many systems, among them Bose, Phillips, and Altec-Lansing.

I stopped by the Sony store and after looking at the workmanship, sound, and specifications of this compact system I decided to take the chance. I picked this over the following systems:

Bose SoundDock Portable Digital Music System

Bose SoundDock Series II Digital Music System for iPod

Altec Lansing M650 Speaker System

Soundfreaq SFQ-1

Philips Fidelio DS9000 Primo Speaker Dock for iPod/iPhone/iPad

The runner-up system was the Altec Lansing M650 Speaker System, so far I have no regrets.

I am no audiophile, so I can't give you a precise description of the sound other than to say that I am very satisfied with the compact footprint and the sound quality. It has no difficulty filling my large bedroom and most of my apartment with no detectable distortion. It comes with a free-app that you can use to control the bass, treble, and the equalizer settings. The app could use a little work, as it does not give you a perfectly designed alarm clock (you need to re-activate it daily). This is the primary reason for my giving it 4-stars.

You should have no difficulty docking your iPhone or iPod with most protective cases, as the docking clamp protrudes sufficiently and has abundant space to accomodate all but the bulkiest cases. It supports the iPad --which I currently don't have.

Finally, I can say that I don't miss my old stereo system. This occupies less than half the space, provides radio via TuneIn Radio App (purchased separately) and unlimited music via MP3 and Pandora App (subscription service).

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The Sony RDP-X500iP is pretty much as perfect a complete sound/docking system for Apple devices as you could expect, and I recommend it very highly. I have very few complaints, and those I have are really minor. As you can see from the product dimensions listed by Amazon, the stereo is fairly compact. However, take note that the listed depth of 6.4 inches is actually the depth when the dock is inserted into the stereo. The actual docking part comes in and out of the stereo; when it's out the device is 7.5 inches from front to back.

If you don't want to read my big long review, look at the bottom for the condensed version!

Long Review

Setup is really easy: just plug the device into an outlet, pull the little plastic insulation cover out of the remote, put your device in, turn the stereo on, and you're good to go. The actual docking part of this is universal and does not require you to fiddle around with different-sized inserts depending on what device you're docking into it. It should work fine with cases as well; my iPod Classic fits just fine with or without my case. In addition to Apple devices that fit into the actual docking mechanism, if you have something else like a non-Apple device then you can use the Audio In jack to plug that in and still use the stereo to play what you want to play. Two buttons on top of the stereo distinguish between iPod and Audio In.

The stereo does have to be on to work, however. Unlike some others that are always on and that you can just plug right into and start playing, this one has to actually be turned on first. This is not a huge deal; there's a power button on top of the stereo and on the "remote commander" (don't call it a remote control!). One annoying thing is that when first turning the stereo on or docking your device, the music fades in. Instead of just playing right away it'll fade in and you'll miss the first few seconds of whatever you're listening to, and I don't understand why it does that. This can be a real annoyance if you're changing tracks manually on your device, as the stereo is actually REALLY sensitive to movement. If you move your device just a small fraction it'll shut off the sound, and then it'll fade back in again when you fix it and press play.

That being said, sound quality is excellent. I find that all ranges are well-represented, with the bass being particularly powerful in the right songs but thankfully not overbearing. The stereo will actually shake a little bit if it's a bass-heavy song. Music is crisp, clear, and sounds great. If you're listening to older recordings or something like classical music then you may have to turn the volume up a lot to make it loud, but if you're listening to modern recordings that tend to be mixed loudly anyway then you shouldn't have a problem making a lot of noise really easily. This is where this device really shines, as well. Obviously as recording equipment has improved then sound quality overall will improve, but this device sounds *really good* when playing well-recorded music. I find that I'm listening to music a little louder than I normally would just because this sounds so good.

The included remote is very compact (approximately 3.5 x 1.5 x 0.25 inches) and is a great addition. Along with having the regular power, play/pause, forward, backward, and volume buttons, it also has buttons to switch between iPod (the dock) and Audio In, as well as buttons to navigate your device remotely. It has buttons for menu, enter, and an up and down arrow so that, if you want, you can change all your music remotely rather than having to manually change it on the device. When you use the remote there's a little indicator in the top right of the front face of the stereo that'll flash white in acknowledgement. However, I have noticed that you kind of have to be pointing the remote in more or less a straight line for it to register. Some stereos will let you point the remote off in some wild direction and as long as you're in the same room it'll work; this one kind of has to be pointed straight-on at the stereo or it's REALLY unreliable to actually register the remote.

To address a couple things that another reviewer claimed, you do not need to download an app to make this work, and it does charge your device. If you have a device that lets you use apps, like an iPod Touch, iPhone, or iPad, then sure, go ahead and download the app. I don't know what it does because I have an iPod Classic and have an Android phone and Android tablet, so I can't use whatever iOS app it is. And my stereo works just fine. From the sound of it it just lets you manipulate the equalizer and stuff like that. And yeah, this definitely charges your device, so I don't know why that other person didn't think it does.

Finally, my unit smells a bit like fish. I'm guessing this is just the typical "new product" smell that some things have for the first couple days or so, but normally that's like a plastic or rubber smell and in this case mine smells like fish. It's a little disconcerting when I get up close!

Short Review

Setup is very easy and this fits all supported Apple devices without having to change out the little different-sized inserts, and it should work fine whether or not you have a case on your device. If you don't have an Apple device you can still use this with the Audio In jack in the back of the stereo! The stereo does have to actually be turned on to be used, and the first time you turn it on or dock your device for some reason it'll fade the music in instead of just playing it, so be aware of that if the first thing you play has an explosive opening or anything. Sound quality is excellent, with crisp sound and all ranges well-represented, particularly the powerful but not overly-powerful bass. The remote will allow you to perform all the regular remote functions but you can also navigate through your device with it to change music remotely using the menu, enter, and arrow keys; just make sure the remote is pointed straight-on at the unit. The extra Sony app is not at all required to use the stereo, and the stereo definitely does charge your device.

Thanks for reading! :-)

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I am very impressed with the sound from this. It reminds me of a Bose wave radio. The controls are minimal and simplistic and which I like. It gets plenty loud with great even base and a clear high end. I never heard any distortion or over modulation from turning it up loud.

The problem I had was that I couldn't get sound out of my 5th generation iPod. The only way I could get sound was through the auxiliary cable that I had (it didn't come in the box). I liked the sound out of this so much that it pains me to give it 3 stars, but it's being sold as an iPod dock. That's a real problem if it's not going to work with my iPod.

Pro: Great Bass

Pro: Clear mid and high end

Pro: Nice looking metal finish

Pro: iPod dock drawer can be closed when no iPod is in it

Pro: simple controls

Pro: Has auxiliary input jack

Con: doesn't work with iPod classic 5th Generation

Con: doesn't come with cable for auxiliary jack

My phone has to be out of it's case (otter box) to plug in. Description claimed that docking station was compatible with all phone cases. When phone is docked, system is slow to respond to being able to play music. Don't appreciate the power cord system with it's large transformer. On the bright side, the sound quality is nice. Would have been more disappointed if I had paid more than $199.00.

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Grundig Globe Traveler G3 Portable AM/FM/Shortwave Radio, Black - (NG3B)

• AM/LW/FM/SW with SSB (150-30000 KHz) and VHF Aircraft band (118-137 MHz) Dual Conversion PLL Digital tuner, with digital display (LCD) showing frequency, time, sleep time and symbols for sleep timer and alarm activation
• RDS (radio data system) on FM shows frequency, call letters, artist, song title, date, messages in display when available Synchronous Detector with selectable side-band Line-in/out 700 randomly programmable memories for all frequencies
• 3.5 mm headphone input (earphones not included) Telescopic antenna for FM and SW reception Internal ferrite bar antenna for AM reception Power source: 4AA batteries (not included)
• Display Indication: Time, frequency, stereo, sleep, alarm, lock, battery, memory page, memory, time zone, week-day, wide narrow, signal strength, synchronous detector, SSB, RDS External antenna jack SW, FM, Aircraft Band
• Batteries 4 x 1.5 V (LR6, AM3, AA - batteries not included) ; 4 AA rechargeable NI-MH Dimensions: 6.614? x 4.13? x 1.1? and168 x 105 x 28 mm (W x H x D) Net weight: 345 g Accessories: owner?s manual, warranty card protective pouch, AC adapter/charger

I had high hopes for this radio, hoping that I could replace my much-used and beat up Eton E5. Sadly, this will not be the case. While the G3 adds some features such as the Aircraft band, LSB/USB switch, RDS and Sync detector (which sorta works), several important traits/features of the E5 are not carried over to the new model.

1. FM sensitivity is not as good. Several FM stations in Eugene Oregon (about 110 miles away) that are easy catches for the E5 can still be heard with the G3 but not as clearly, and with much more effort to get the antenna "just right".

2. MW (AM) sensitivity is not as good...side by side comparison on several weak AM stations that yield decent reception with the E5 are heard with more noise and hiss on the G3.

3. Ditto for LW... several aircraft beacons are heard, but with more hiss on the G3.

4. The "wide/narrow" switch does not also function as "voice/music" tone control on FM, as it does on the E5.

5. The push-buttons are NOT illuminated on the G3.

6. Tuning steps increased from 25 kHz to 50Khz on FM... not what is needed to pull in a weak DX station that is first adjacent to a strong local!

The good points:

1. The RDS functions well.

2. SSB stations are MUCH easier to tune with the G3 than the E5.

3. The Aircraft band works well, this will be great for airshows.

4. Under some conditions (stations that are not too weak) the sync detector does provide improvement. I find that I must tune 1 kHz LOW to get it to work, so there could be some alignment issues with my particular radio. The feature does not work as well as it does on my Sony ICF-SW7600GR and is not even close to the performance of my Sony ICF 2010!

5. The G3 is less likely to "overload" in strong signal areas than the E5... perhaps the sensitivity was reduced on purpose to provide better reception for city dwellers, at the expense of reducing DX capabilities.

So, I will keep my beat up old Eton E5, and use both... sad!

Update: 5/19/10 I have read several reviews/comments that seem to indicate that the sensitivity and Sync detector problems on early production units have been fixed. This model might be worth a second chance.

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I am a collector of radios, I have over 200 in my collection starting in the 1920's to today. Lets deal with complaint number one, the sync is bad, poor would be a better description. This discription will also apply to almost any radio under $1000.00. The SYNC on this radio performs as well as the Sony 7600GR which is not very good either. I personally have found this feature to be of dubious value.

Now to the good stuff:

The SSB feature on this radio is the best I have seen on any small portable radio. You can select either USB or LSB and it also allows fine tuning via a tuning knob. A great inprovement over the G6. The aircraft band works very well from my location ( about 10 miles from DFW airport). FM stations come in very well up and down the dial. The local AM stations come in great, even in my office building.To be fair I live and work in Dallas,Tx and there are many AM and FM stations close by.

The shortwave performance seems very good as well, on a par with My favorite portable radios the Sony 7600GR,ICF-SW100E, Grundig Yachtboy 400, DEGEN 1102 and ATS 909. The radio itself is quite small, smaller than the 7600GR. It feels like it is well made, only time will tell for sure about that. It also has RDS capability. I have not found any stations to test that feature on yet. The radio also has a line in/out connection, this is a bit unusual for a small radio.

The internal memory store is easy to use. I really like this while using the aircraft band.

All of my testing has so far been using only the built in whip antenna.

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I picked up a G3 after scouring reviews of every portable I could find in the sub-$120 price range. I wanted the radio primarily for shortwave reception as I already have plenty of ways to listen to the standard AM/FM broadcast band, although the air band was intriguing as well. For some reason reviews on all these radios tend to be highly conflicting, with many people giving 5 stars and many others griping that it's a piece of junk. Part of this I believe is varying expectations and intended uses. If you want a portable radio to listen to music your needs will be very different from somebody like myself who will spend a lot of time fiddling with the controls straining to pull in mysterious shortwave broadcasts from around the globe.

I've been using the G3 for several days now and over all I'm pleased. It's plenty sensitive, easily picking up everything I can find on my classic SX-190 tabletop. AM/FM broadcast band sensitivity seems quite good as well, at least as good as the radio in my car. Additionally, with a major airport about 30 miles away the air band picks up a lot of commercial air traffic loud and clear. It's fascinating to hear a jet fly overhead, catch the radio chatter and hop online to find what the flight is and where it's going. Tuning is continuous throughout the range from broadcast all the way through the shortwave band and the combination of direct entry, rotary encoder knob and auto scan makes tuning a snap.

Pro:

Very compact unit, clean logical layout

Nice fit & finish, feels reasonably solid and includes a padded carry pouch

SSB support, a handy feature that is absent from most portables

Good audio quality, ok so it won't rattle the windows but it provides a lot of volume for such a small package

Nice long whip antenna

Includes external antenna jacks, both line out and headphone jacks, as well as line-in which is of questionable usefulness

Wide coverage, air band is a nice touch

Capable of charging NiMH batteries internally from the AC adapter

Con:

Buttons are NOT backlit, this is a definite step back from the discontinued G5 this replaced

Volume control is digital pushbuttons, I would have preferred a real knob

No way to keep backlight on indefinitely when operating from batteries. Will stay on when on external power though

Rubbery texture feels nice but really shows finger smudges and is easily worn off edges

Table stand is a bit short, I'd prefer if it stood the radio slightly more vertical

No squelch control. To be fair I've never seen a portable with squelch but it would be nice for the air and CB bands

Clock/date settings lost when batteries are removed, minor but annoying. Station presets are retained at least

Tuning knob is a bit small, has no weight to it and has a lot of grippy bumps on the surface. A single dimple would have been easier for twirling through the band. Understandable compromise for a compact portable though.

Update: I found the lack of backlit buttons to be the biggest flaw in this otherwise excellent radio. It really makes a big difference when trying to operate it in a dark room, especially if you want to use this while camping or during a power outage or other emergency. Noticing how similar the radio looks to my friends G5 which DOES have backlit buttons, I decided to open my G3 and have a look. It turns out there are pads on the keypad PCB for three SMT LEDs and they are even wired up with the necessary resistor(s). Everything is there, they just skipped out on installing the three LEDs to save a few pennies. I had some tiny SMT white LEDs on hand so I soldered them in place, reassembled and now I have backlit buttons! The light is not terribly even but is sufficient for operating in the dark. Note that this modification is not for the faint of heart. You WILL void the warranty on your radio, and risk ruining it in the process. I used 0803 sized LEDs which are a fraction the size of a grain of rice and while soldering them you must take care not to melt the surrounding membrane keypad. DO NOT attempt unless you are experienced hand soldering tiny surface mount components and can afford a new radio if you manage to wreck this one.

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Purchased the G3 from Amazon and returned the next day. On the FM band the radio was unstable: it produced an internally generated rapidly knocking/ticking sound audible in the pauses of the program audio. The sensitivity in the AM/MW band was essentially nonexistent. The synchro failed to firmly lock even on rather strong signals looked totally useless. The display is crisp and well illuminated, although the largest part of it is allocated to textual information RDS info on FM, USB/LSB/synchro etc. By comparison the clock lettering is tiny. The keypad is not illuminated. On the positive side: the SW performance is fine, on par with the venerable Degen/Kaito 1103, the SSB is better due to the USB/LSB selection with stable fine tuning. The same feature allows to suppress adjacent interference on some broadcast signals by engaging SSB and zero beating the carrier. The sound is OK. The line-in feature is useful.

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I just received this radio yesterday and consider it similar to the Sangean ATS-909x except a fraction the cost. Only slightly smaller and lighter, but very similar.

INTERNAL BATTERY CHARGER

Concerning a previous review of the internal battery charger, batteries are only charged on demand for a certain time period according to the capacity of the batteries. A previous review left the impression the user must set "a time" to charge. Instead, you simply press a button and select the capacity and the radio starts charging. Granted, I think the Sangean 909x charges constantly and this is a small short coming when compared to price. So far, a 24hr charge on 2300mah has lasted 12-24 hours. Brain, the previous review I'm commenting on, posted a follow-up stating:

---snip---

On the note of battery charging, the radio is only capable of using about 1/2 of

the batteries' capacity. Initiating a charge based on the time calculation

specified in the owner's manual could result in reduced battery life, as the

device's internal Ni-MH charger doesn't shut off automatically based on the voltage

drop heuristic used by current automatic chargers. In the case of Ni-MH, especially

in a device like this that requires a more constant, higher voltage from the

batteries, "quick" charging is better than slow charging because it allows

automatic shutoff based on full-charge voltage drop. If it were the case that the

Grundig G3 completely discharged the batteries during use, then the slow charge

would in fact be the preferable option. It is surprising that the radio doesn't...

---snip---

He might be very well correct here, but again, $100 compared to $300 for a shortwave radio in my (US) opinion, is still a minor issue. But, if you're a European where shortwave is more common, maybe spending $300 on the Sangean 909x might very well be worth the extra money?

EDITED 2011.08.05: Rechargeable NiMH Battery life seems pretty good, somewhere between one and two day almost consistent listening. Alkaline batteries always seems to last longer for me for anything that uses batteries. I prefer to use an external battery charger, however, the internal charger might be of use if I'm traveling and forget to bring a battery charger along.

BUTTONS AND FEATURES

The buttons are a little confusing. MEMO means Memory (MEM), PAGE button is commonly an ENTER button, FUNCTION buttons (F1, F2, ...) are memory buttons. The volume keys are small for commonly used buttons and placed towards the center of the keyboard versus some place easily accessible like the tuning buttons. But after scanning the manual for half a day or so and practicing some of the buttons, all the previous mentioned button issues become minor as ones memory remembers each buttons function after an hour or so. In brief, the keys aren't so differently labeled compared to a glance at the Sangean 909x and I'm sure the manufacturer could make a pink version of the G3 with Functions keys labled "Memory #1, Memory #2, ..." etc.

EDIT 2011.08.05: I'm noticing some of the frequently used button labels ever so slightly wearing.

The biggest issue I'm noticing now, when entering labels for the Memory Locations, you cannot apparently modify/correct them, but have to enter each character again as the device clears the label on edit and there is no backspace key.

EDIT 2011.08.05: I keep accidentally erasing my memory stations by pressing and holding the function buttons by accident or just accidentally erasing them. Although a dumb dialog like "Are you sure you want to erase?" would help, it would also take more time to program the unit due to the dialog... and this is really just a discrepancy with the user's mind!

RECEPTION

As far as reception, I'm in Fairbanks, Alaska and am receiving all of my common AM/FM radio stations with little difference to other receivers as the transmitters are all within 5-10 miles of my location. Maybe a little louder/clearer and using a lot less electricity then my larger receivers. Matter of fact, I rarely need to use the whip antenna for the common FM stations, unlike other portables! For shortwave, AU broadcasts for a good 4-6 hours at night while JA only broadcasts 10-30 minutes a night. And, yes, I can still hear news faster then they're heard via the Internet by 2-6 hours!

EDIT 2011.08.05: I took a recent camping trip to Anchorage near the northern coast of the Pacific Ocean and easily had good S9 signals for Voice of Russia and other broadcasts using a very simple 10-20' long wire antenna made from 20(?) AWG stranded copper speaker wire with a soldered 1/8" mono jack. I then run one end from the top of the open truck window to a tree or under a rock on the ground. For home in Fairbanks, where we are behind the Denali (McKinley) Mountain range and receiving signals bouncing bouncing off the ionosphere causing fading rather then likely picking up ground signals in Anchorage, I get bouncing S5-S9 with the whip antenna indoors. I recently put up a simple ~80' long wire antenna on the exterior, 10-20' in height with a simple choke balun and now get solid S9 signals for Radio Australia, NHK Japan, and Voice of Russia. With this long wire antenna, I need to turn off DX and sometimes even use the narrow signal switch to prevent other signals from interfering. Many more weaker broadcasts throughout the Pacific Rim can be auto-tuned and also heard. I'm finding out I can't get Europe broadcasts (just across the northern pole) due to the aura. I've only used this receiver so far during Summer, day time with 2-4 hours of dusk at night time. I'll check back in later to document my experience with Winter, 18 hours of darkness and when I can see there's little aura activity.

CLOCK

GMT versus Local timezone, this receiver only provides one clock with no daylight time savings mode. Since almost all stations publish their schedules using GMT, and I'm on DTS, I need to convert to GMT by first calculating -8 hours, plus -1 hours for the additional DTS hour. Nor can I simply modify the timezone from Local to GMT while on DTS. This is a small issue to work around if you infrequently listen to shortwave. So I just program the receiver to use GMT time, and later I just might put two clocks on the wall.

WHY SHORTWAVE STILL?

The great thing about Shortwave stations, unlike other transmission methods, no commercials except for Government propaganda -ie. NK. I'm guessing this is partly due to the time and effort it takes to write a page in HTML. Verbally just stating something, whether live or recorded, seems still just easier for now.

UPDATE and Defects Found:

2012.04.25 After using this radio for awhile, there are one or two really irritating flaws. One, when turning on the radio with the power button, the "lock button" might be inadvertently activated, by either accidentally pressing the lock button instead, or just by pressing the power-on button. Using the alarms to automatically turn the unit on at a specific time to a specific shortwave station, does turn the unit on, but the volume setting conflicts with the default volume of the unit producing an abnormally loud setting when the alarm or default setting is used. If you plan on using the Alarm feature to automatically tune and power on to your favorite shortwave radio show, you might want to consider another unit, or this unit with a possible updated firmware fix. (Contact the manufacturer for specifics as I haven't tried this option yet.) Again, for the price, this shortwave capable portable radio still seems to be a good radio for the price!

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Crosley CR3005A-BK Duet Radio (Black)

• AM/FM Alarm Clock Radio
• AroundSound Design Provides Surround Sound Effect
• AC Power Adapter
• 5:1 Ratio Tuning Dial
• External Antenna

Great radio picks up many stations (has a built-in telescopic antenna) and has great sound, not like most clock radios. I have another one of these radios without the clock and love it.

However I have a few issues with the clock. The clock runs off of 1 AA battery and is not lit. The sleep function is fixed at 20 minutes. I took mine apart and lit the clock with a white LED (not an easy job) but I like it much better now. I am now thinking about modifying the sleep timer. I would like it a few minutes longer or adjustable. And if your wondering, yes I'm an engineer.

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This is a nice little clock radio, but too expensive for what you get. Other reviews have compared it to a Tivoli Model One, but they are light years apart. If you want a good looking radio that sounds ok, get this one. If you're just looking for a radio, get a Tivoli for just a bit more. Tivoli also do a clock radio, but they cost a fair bit more than the Crosley. Not having a backlight for the clock is disappointing and frustrating in the middle of the night. This radio looks good, but i really don't think it was worth the $120 paid with shipping.

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My old clock radio died and I purchased the Crosley Duet clock radio. I live in a low lying area where the radio reception is poor but the Crosley picks up stations with no problem. Also, the sound is superior. The Crosley has a very nice appearance to it, classic yet modern at the same time.

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This clock radio has a great sound and a great design. I love the fact that I can connect my iPhone (or anything with a headphone jack) to it. The only flaw, as far as I'm concerned, is that the clock is not illuminated in any way. If I wake up when it's dark, I have to look at my phone for the time.

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I bought this radio at BJ's and figured out how to connect it to my mp3 player with the cord that comes with the radio. I love it since it acts as a mp3 speaker, basically. The sound is great.

However, I cannot get the alarm or clock to work. You're supposed to just plug it in and the clock sets itself. Well, it doesn't. So, if you can't set the clock you very well can't set the alarm either.

I do love the look and came here to buy another one, but was shocked to find how expensive they are.

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Craig Electronics CMA3036 Retro iPod Alarm Clock Radio

• Universal dock for iPod
• Connect non-docking iPod, CD players and other players via line-in jack
• Retro AM/FM radio with alarm clock
• iPod not included

I got this on clearance at a local drugstore for $7, so I am sorry if anyone is paying almost $300. This works great for the iPod Nano which is what I had before, I recently got the iPhone and it does not work to charge or dock for playing music, just an fyi.

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Just bought this for the family at CVS for Christmas.. and it's great for listening to our itouch on ...have to use the dock plate that came with the itouch, as it doesn't come with the adapter for that..also doesn't support charging while it is docked, but for the $14.99 I paid for it it's great! Neat retro look too! Now to decide if it will be used in the bedroom or kitchen..hmm!

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I got this for Christmas because it looked retro and cool, and worked well for my ipod touch.

After about a month, though, the ability to play ipod music from the speakers stopped working out of nowhere. I figured that it was still useful because I could still use it to charge my ipod, play the radio, and use as an alarm.

Well, a few months later the piece that you stick your ipod on to charge completely broke off when I took my ipod out and you can't just put it back in obviously. So now this only serves as a radio and alarm.

NOT worth the money.

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I have had this clock/ radio for just over a year. The volume button just got a loose connection and I must fiddle with it to hear the radio without static. It used to work great. The light is too bright for the bed side table. I love the appearance though.

This is a nice radio for the price. Craig has made electronics for some time. The style is much like more expensive radio, but cost less with good quality.

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Sony CDXGT650UI MP3/WMA/AAC Player CD Receiver with iPod Direct Control via USB

• AM/FM radio, CD, CD-R/RW, MP3/WMA/AAC, USB, iPod receiver
• 4 x 52 watts maximum power with 2V front and rear/sub preamp outputs with HPF/LPF crossovers
• Two-line LCD display; customize LCD and illumination to desired color or pattern
• Includes front panel auxiliary input, USB port, iPod control; SAT-/HD-radio-ready
• One-year limited warranty

well just installed one of these units two days ago. easy enough. loved the fact that it has both front and rear rca amp connections, plus rca subwoofer connection. adjustment are plenty for getting great sound. the illumination feature is a real bonus, being able to dim the illumination when switching on your parking lights is nice. my wife unit is a couple models down from mine and the first thing i had to do is set the dimmer to low so she could see the road at night, ofcourse that means its dim during the day also, so that is a great feature on the newer units. the only complaint i have is the way the faceplate reattaches. taking it off is easy enough but putting it back on requires a steady hand and concentration. where i live its hitting 120 degrees so removing it during the day is pretty much a must. when temps get better ill be leaving it on. for whatever reason they decided to redesign the faceplate i dont know. all and all im pleased with this unit so far. i would deduct one star for the faceplate removal and install be feel that would be fair. maybe after a month or so it will come natural to me on installing it.

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The colors of it is wonderful and bright, I've never had one with such a variety of colors and choices. Great deal for the price!

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I had purchased one of these for my van and liked it so much I bought another. Excellent radio with USB support and quick searching as well as great sound and power. Satellite ready as well.

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Every time the you turn off the ignition this stereo beeps several times VERY loudly, unless you take the faceplate. Yes, every single time!! This feature CANNOT be turned off, which is shocking. Trust me, I've tried. Had I known about this feature, I definitely would not have bought this stereo.

easy instalation easy use no small knobs to fuddle with sounds great an nice to have usb on front and a cd player,

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Pyle PLDN79U 7-Inch Double Din TFT Touch Screen AM/FM/AUX for iPod and MP3 Input, USB/SD Card slot

• 7'' TFT/LCD Touch Panel - 30 Station Memory (18FM/12AM) - PAL/NTSC Color System - Subwoofer Output - Rear Camera Output-Parking Video Input
• Treble/Bass/Balance/Fader/Encoder Volume - Touch Screen Control Operation - LO/DX & ST/MO Selector - Selectable View Angle - 320 Watts (4x80W)
• PLL Synthesizer Tuner - Res. 800x480 Pixels Brightness: 400 cd/m2 - Repeat/Intro Random - A/V Input & A/V Output - Last Position Memory
• Auto Store/Preset Scan - On Screen Display/Title/Time/Chapter/Subtitle - Clock Function Mute Control - SD/MMC Card Slot-USB Connector - Selectable USA/Europe Radio Frequency
• AM/FM-MPX 2 Band Radio - Double-DIN Chassis - RCA Line Out Preset EQ - Wireless Remote Control - Dimensions: 7.26'' x 4.08'' x 6.36''

The product does not work well, the USB portion is inoperable, its cheaply made. Do not buy this product. :(

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let me start by saying i have nothing against this was the second radio that i ordered the first would not even turn on.this one would turn on but screen stopped working before i could set more then one preset but radio still played.this is not the fault of amazon and the return of items is esay with amazon that i am happy withjust not with the pyle radio.

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IT IS NOT AN DVD PLAYER WHICH IS PORTRAYED AS AND NOW I CANT EVEN RETURN THE S*** I HATE IT

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Worked ok for the first few days. After that it started freezing and switching automaticly to different settings. Quit working altogether after that.

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excelente producto muy buena calidad en la fabricacion se recomienda a todos buena adquisicion para cualquiera que requiera un reproductor de bajo costo

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Sony ICFS79W AM/FM/Weather Band Digital Tuner Shower Radio (White)

• Splash-resistant multi-band shower radio
• AM/FM/weather band with 20 memory random presets
• Built-In digital clock and countdown timer
• Selectable automatic-off timer
• Unique easy-grip design
• Selectable Automatic Off Timer
• Splash Resistant Multi-Band Shower Radio
• Unique Easy Grip Design

(2008 HOLIDAY TEAM)UPDATE: June 2011

The Sony ICFS79W AM/FM/Weather Band Shower Radio is well designed for its purpose, but some flaws do show up over time. I spent a long time searching for a shower radio that had more than just AM/FM, like a CD player for example. I eventually gave up that quest and gave this a try. There are few options in shower radios.

I was open minded but skeptical when I got this. The strong reception is really the best feature, and the weather band and auto on / off timers are nice extras. It would be almost perfect if not for a few cons. Still, it's hard to find alternatives.

After using this unit for several years, the plastic covering the buttons has worn away. This creates openings that water might be able to get into, damaging the unit. However, even with all the humidity that goes along with being used in the bathroom, it's still going strong. As some have commented, the batteries have indeed lasted forever. Given the fact that over 2 years I've only had to change them once, perhaps the larger cell batteries were best for this design.

PROS

++ GREAT reception; it's actually surprising how good it is

++ Nice simple and intuitive controls

++ Included Weather band reception

++ Convenient timer to get you going

++ Auto-Off feature for easy morning operation

++ Batteries last a very long time

CONS

-Plastic covering the buttons wears away over time

-Button placement makes it difficult to see buttons and the screen at the same time

-Analog volume adjustment provides little control at lower volumes

-Uses large C batteries, that are less convenient than AA

-List price is quite high

-Wire Antenna is difficult to stick up and often comes loose

-Weather band has more static than AM or FM

Some of the cons are minor. Still, this unit could use some improvements. It's hard to believe that for this price only AM / FM and Weather bands are included. But while the weather band has static from time to time, the AM and FM bands are some of the best I have heard in any radio. Whatever internal antennae and supporting electronics they used, the reception is surprisingly strong and clear.

Having to worry about replacing those large batteries is also a throw-back to 1989. It would have been nice if they used AA batteries. Most people with lots of electronics already have rechargeable AAs, but few people have rechargeable C batteries on hand. Still, the batteries last a really long time in it.

CONCLUSION

If you need a shower radio, this is still one of the better options. There are some that offer more features, like a CD player, but most have less reliability and performance. For the time being, it seems like despite a rather high price this might be the one to go with.

Enjoy.

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I very rarely write reviews but I love this radio so much I felt inspired. (Actually I own the S79V, but it seems to be identical to this one.) It is simply the perfect shower radio. Reception is excellent and better than some of the more expensive radios in my house. It has a clever suction cup aerial that sticks to shower tile well. The controls are simple and I particularly like the timer function, so I don't need to worry about turning it off. It goes forever on a set of batteries. I also like that this isn't equipped with a CD player, which would add bulk for a questionable extra function.

The white plastic has yellowed over time (four years?), and the top control panel membrane has deteriorated slightly, but it's still going strong. I purchased a replacement just to have a spare handy should I need one and find that Sony has stopped making these gems.

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I love this radio! We own 2, and I'm about to buy 2 more one more for our home and one for a gift. I keep one with my gardening tools and carry it around with me and listen while gardening. The others travel between the bathrooms and bedrooms. Good sound quality, takes dirt and water abuse, and the preset buttons are great for a portable radio. No playing around trying to tune in favorite stations. The batteries seem to last forever (I don't even know what kind they take, since I've never changed them and we've had our 2 units for years). So the time is always right, even with the occasional power outs we have in our area, which messes up all the plug in radio times. The best portable radio ever!

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This sony radio is a good shower radio and clock. It has an external antenna that suction cups to the wall.

There are a few parts of this design to note that make this a good product, not a great one. First, the radio has a strap that clips on the back and while hanging, it does not lay completely flat. Second, it takes C batteries and three of them. They are generally sold in packs on two or four and they are not included. Third, the buttons are on top. Style-wise this is a good decision, but because the radio needs to be high enough to see the clock, it makes it more difficult to see the buttons. There is a sleep timer built in to the on button. It would be great if I did not have to push the button five times to get the radio to turn off after 10 minutes. Lastly the volume control; it is well designed and simple to grip, but has only one purpose, unlike all the other pieces on the radio. It stands out as odd.

I wish there were another sleeker option for a clock radio for the shower, but until this one breaks it is good not great.

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I happily owned the analog predecessor to this radio for at least seven years and finally gave up on it when all the knobs broke off after falling on the shower floor. I really cannot complain because I accidentally dropped it. I then purchased this digital version. When I bought it, I was surprised that there was no gasket around the battery compartment. However, the compartment seemed to be designed to drain water away, so I did not worry about it.

Over the year that I used it, I occasionally noticed that the batteries were low. When I checked, it turned out that the water had corroded the battery contacts. The main drawback is that I had to be careful about getting corrosive battery material on my hands and the need to replace batteries that should have lasted much longer if they had not been exposed to water. Cleaning the electrical connections with steel wool generally did the trick. However, after about a year, the metal springs that hold the batteries in place (and provide electrical contact) snapped due to corrosion from the battery acids.

Now, I kept this radio on the shelf in my shower and I typically shower for about 5 min each day. It is not drenched in water, but it did get some drips from the showerhead. In thinking about it, I should have made my own gasket when the radio was new by using silicone caulk after the batteries were in place. This is a odd solution for a major design flaw and would require breaking the seal and putting in a new seal with each battery change.

I went ahead and replaced the metal springs with some careful soldering, then put in new batteries, and sealed it up with caulk. It worked for a few days, and then I noticed the low battery indicator. Apparently the moisture from the drying caulk was sufficient to again cause a corrosion problem. I then removed the caulk seal and gave the radio to a friend. It is sitting in his dry garage and working fine as long as it is never again exposed to moisture. I now have the Sangean H201 and hope that it will serve for many years. At least it has a seal around the battery compartment.

I am therefore giving this product a single star because of this design flaw that could have been so easily fixed. If you have this radio, I recommend that you never get it wet. Since it is sold as a shower radio, this is a clear problem.

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Delphi NAV200 GPS Navigation System - NAV20000-11B1

• Pocket-sized portable navigation system comes pre-loaded withNAVTEQ maps of the Continental U.S. (Excludes Alaska, Hawaii and Puerto Rico)
• Features voice guided directions using built-in speakers, and a powerful 400 MHz processor with a high sensitivity, SiRFstart III GPS antenna
• Includes an MP3 music player for listening to your favorite songs as you drive, a picture viewer, movie player, game, world clock, and calculator
• Large, 3.5-inch touch screen with easy-to-read, colorful icons; easy to install with the suction goose-neck windshield mount
• Weighs 2.3 pounds

I bought this item about a month ago and find it very useful. I live in Los Angeles so a GPS system is very helpful finding my way around. I agree with another reviewer that the load time is a bit slow, but nothing that would cause me to have an issue with it. The maps themselves are Navtech maps and are used in the majority of preinstalled GPS systems of major car makers. There are several options with the 'advanced' mode and the basic mode offers simple navigation tools. I would recommend this to anyone considering a GPS system who doesn't want to spend over $500.

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After looking into several models of Auromotive GPS, I got this unit for my wife @ Christmas. I have used it several times, and find it to be well built and reliable. The unit is easy to use, if you spend a few minutes looking at the instructions, and has a bigger screen than any other portable units, as far as I can see. Also, the windshield suction cup mount that comes with it is well-built, adheres to the glass very reliably, and is strong,without bounce or sway. The sound of the voice is decent also.

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Great product. I purchased for my wife and it works very well for her.

Though the unit is a little slow to load the maps compared to models twice the price, it certainly works smoothly once loaded.

I also use the product for road trips and it is nice having the entire US preloaded into the unit. other units require plugging into a computer.

For the price/size, you can't beat it.

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I spent a great deal of time researching navigation systems online before deciding on the Delphi Nav200. I began my search looking to spend between $200-$300 max. Having just moved to a new city, I decided it would serve me well in an area with confusing streets and poor sinage. I'm satisfied with my purchase. My Delphi nav system provides VERY accurate directions, and offers many features uncommon among systems at its price level. Not only does it show me exactly where I am, it tells me how far I have to go, how long it will take me to get there given current speed, and offers numerous views. Voice directions are loud and clear (volume can be adjusted). There are, however, a couple down-sides. Although the Delphi has an extensive POI database, you really do need to know the name of your destination as searching by category has proven difficult if not impossible on several occasions. The screen is large, but the many options I mentioned earlier are displayed along the sides during use making the map itself smaller. It can take several minutes to acquire satellite connection with each startup, but signal is strong and constant once acquired. Overall, I remain pleased with my purchase despite a few flaws. I think it would beat competitors in a side-by-side comparison.

I have only used it once,but I was impressed with it. The one feature that I really liked was the way that it showed the curves in the road as they were coming up. If you are traveling on a road that you don,t know it is very useful.....

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Hello Kitty AM/FM Projection Alarm Clock Radio with Battery Back-up

• Projector with Focus Control for Clarity and Pivot to Adjust Angle Up to 120 Degrees
• Wake to Alarm or Radio. Battery Back-up for Time/Alarm Settings (3 x CR2025 Button Cell Batteries Required, Not Included)
• Sleep to Radio (Up to 2 Hours with Auto Shutoff), Snooze Function (Up to 9 Minutes with Auto Shutoff)
• 0.6" Red LED Time Display,
• Dynamic Speaker

Okay, design alone makes this clock phenomenal... 'Hello Kitty' is made to perfection, she looks wonderful and houses both the clock display and the projection display. The projection display of the clock catapults the rating of this clock to 20 out of a scale of 10! You can set the projection time to what you wish, and the 'Hello Kitty' face is on display wonderfully next to the numbers. I absolutely love this clock and am grateful to the amazon seller: All Purpose Discounts for selling it, getting it to me fast, in pristine condition and above all at a fantastic price!

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The projector itself is dual function...1it shows the time and 2it illuminates as a nightlight!! What a great clock! I ended up buying 2 clocks (one for my daughter and the other as a birthday gift for my niece). Craftsmanship is durable.

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I purchased this at Costco last year for Christmas for my 2 daughters. They share a bedroom, and both love Hello Kitty, so it seemed to be a perfect gift. My oldest daughter loved the projection of the time on the wall, so it was easy for her to know what time it was, without looking at the clock itself. We have had no problems with setting the time, and the alarm, which we never use. About 6-7 months of use, the projection of the time on the wall was no longer visible. When you held your hand in front of the projector, you could see the time on your hand, so it was still functioning, but it did not display on the wall. Not sure what the issue is, because it actually still works, it just is not capable of projecting the display across the room. Mind you, we were checking this when the room was dark, so that wasn't the issue. I would have returned to Costco for a replacement, but they no longer had any in stock and would have only offered me a refund. My girls still love this clock (and everything else still works), so for now, we are keeping it.

Oh, and there is no (manufacturer) support for this item. I had to google the clock in order to find anything in the way of troubleshooting, but was only able to find 3rd party links (resellers, not retail locations or the actual manufacturer). I was eventually able to find a user manual online, but the limited warranty (90 days) was long past for us, and I didn't have the box or the receipt so that was a mute point. Most likely this was a product line produced in China, with no specific company designated as the main distributor.Maybe I'll try again to diagnose the issue, now that it seems many major retail stores carry this clock.

Bottom line, don't pay top dollar for this clock because it looks like it is available at many locations (now, it wasn't last year) so it's not a rare item.

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OMG!! I'm a Hello Kitty FAN!!! This is so cute!! been looking for an alarm clock and this is perfect!!! I'm also a college student :) Works well and in it's original package.

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This is a pretty addition to my granddaugher's room. She also liked to count the blinks of the dots on the projection time to fall asleep. Thanks.

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Garmin nüvi 850 4.3-Inch Widescreen Portable GPS Navigator

• Sleek, ultra-slim design fits in a pocket;High-sensitivity GPS receiver for fast satellite lock
• Pre-loaded with City Navigtor NT maps for North America, including more than 6-million name-searchable points of interest
• Speech recognition -- speak menu options and keep your eyes on the road
• Multi-destination routing -- enter several destinations and get the best route to all of them; "Where am I?" and "Where's my car?" features
• Full feature set -- text to speech for spoken directions with real street names; MP3 player, and Photo viewer

I recently bought a Nuvi 850. Here's my advice for what it's worth.

The real value of a Nav system comes from the fundamentals.

* Receiver

* Maps

* Routing Engine

* Display

* User Interface

Garmin does a solid job in all these areas. But that's not why you're paying a premium for an 800 series Nuvi.

This model has a couple of "nice to have" features that were introduced on the 700 series of Nuvi's.

* Where Am I

* Where's My Car

Both are very well implemented and can be very handy. But again, all of the stuff I mentioned so far can be found in a Nuvi costing $300 less.

So what are you paying a premium for?

* Voice Recognition

* User Replaceable Battery

* Front Mounted Speakers

Well, the front mounted speakers are still drowned out by moderate road noise. So, I wouldn't pay a nickel for that. The only real sound solution remains the FM transmitter that everyone complains about. It works OK for me, in my car, in my area. Your mileage may vary.

The user replaceable battery is excellent. For $30 you can carry a spare battery and go totally wireless in the car or use the Nuvi for 8 hours of walking around a city. I'd pay for that. In fact, every portable device should have user replaceable batteries.

OK, that leaves the "Big Kahuna" feature, voice recognition. Don't believe the hype from the professional reviews or some of the hosanna's being thrown around in Amazon reviews.

Does it work? Yes, it works amazingly well. In a dead silent environment.

With moderate road noise or even indoors with a TV at low volume 15 feet away the thing to gets confused about what it's "hearing". It should have a microphone with low sensitivity and high directionality to screen out spurious noise. A little DSP noise filtering wouldn't hurt either. Unfortunately, the standard piezo mic that Garmin also uses for bluetooth phone calls will pick up any sound coming from any direction. The result is that voice recognition becomes an excercise in frustration.

Still, I'm gonna keep the darned thing. I'll simply enter destinations in the quiet of my home, office, hotel room, or a restaurant before heading out on the road. The remote will live in my briefcase. It does save you from a lot of tedious keyboard entry. But, it is not the mobile safety feature that reviews would have you believe since voice commands are all but useless in a car. You can get essentially the same features in a Nuvi 760 and save yourself $300.

Your decision.

EDIT: Update.....OK maybe I was a bit harsh first time round. I have found that the unit will respond with moderate background noise.....some of the time.....if you yell at it. It appears to have the ability to lock in on the loudest sound it "hears". So, if you are relatively close to the microphone and speak really loud (yell), it does respond some of the time.

On the upside, connecting to the Garmin website was very easy. I registered the 850, downloaded the newest firmware, and downloaded/installed the latest maps (2009), all in about ten mintues without a glitch.

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I am a Realtor and have been using my Garmin GPS for almost four years. (It was the 2720 and had cost $999 when I bought it.) It's invaluable to me in my business. Today it died as I was previewing a dozen homes and I went back to where I bought it originally and picked up an 850. Boy, am I disappointed!

The new graphics will take some getting used to, but that's not the problem. With the newer technology and all the bells and whistles, I had expected this unit to be MORE intuitive than my old one. Turns out it's not. Twice it told me it could not find addresses in older neighborhoods where my old Garmin never had a problem. I had to guess my way across unfamiliar areas to find them and, sure enough, once I got there, the street names registered on my screen. I immediately saw what happened but was shocked that Garmin hadn't picked up the slight differences.

One street is named McLain Road. I typed in Mclain (small "l") and it couldn't find it. The old Garmin used all upper-case letters, so it found every address regardless of upper or lower case. This one obviously needs you to know which to use -very frustrating. The second one is spelled Hollowbrooke Lane. I typed in in every which way I could think of -Hollow Brooke Lane, Hollow Brook Lane, Hollowbrook Lane, etc. Now that I'm home and could play with it a little, sure enough, it found it. I should have typed in "Ln" instead of Lane and it had Hollowbrooke without the "e." When I had typed in Hollowbrook Lane, it couldn't find it because I spelled out the word Lane. Again, the old Garmin knew that Lane and Ln were the same thing.

Another very annoying thing I found missing on this new one which was on my old Garmin was the display of streets. Typically, each street will show up as I get near it, whether I'm turning onto it or not. With the 850 it doesn't show streets unless they are major thoroughfares. I finally clicked on the "plus" button twice in succession and it started to give me lines (which represented streets), but it rarely showed the name of the street. Again, the old Garmin showed every street you came up to.

The voice prompts are also unreliable. Several times the voice prompt did not match up with the screen and if I tried to answer based on what I saw on the screen (for example, a city was on the screen and the voice was asking for a street address), I could not get it to sync and had to start all over or (more often than not) just gave up and tapped the information into the GPS. Again, a nice concept but frustrating if it's not working properly!

I can't figure out why this newer model would be LESS intuitive than the old system. I'll play with it for a few days, but at the price I paid, I won't be keeping it very long if I can't figure out how to make this work better.

And, not to beat a dead horse here, but I'm shocked that the unit doesn't come with a carrying case. I just bought my daughter a nuvi 350 last week for her birthday and it cost a fraction of what the 850 cost -and it had a carrying case! SHAME on you, Garmin!

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This unit functions perfectly as it is described. The voice-activation is nearly perfect. Probably one of the best implementations to date that I can remember. The map is a bit under-detailed for the price but it gets you where you need to go. Voice commands from the unit are very easy to understand. Controls are easy to navigate as are the menu options. One thing that I think is a bit ridiculous is the absence of Bluetooth Hands-Free calling. For $800 they could have included that and it is the reason that I gave it four stars instead of 5. Many of the options included with the device are useless to me to be honest. Games? Picture viewer? MP3 player? I don't need any of these but the voice-commands for unit control are awesome.

If you have the money to buy this unit, get it... if not look at some of the lower-priced 700-series Nuvi's

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[Feb 28, 09 update: I've had the unit for several months and have grown increasing more frustrated with the unit for several reasons

1. The screen update is "laggy". I've turned off everything that could slow down the system (e.g I've set map details to normal and lower) and the map is about 3-5 seconds behind. I live in a near dead-flat area with no hills or buildings. The unit obtains 6+ satellites at full strength. It says that I have 10 feet accuracy but too often it doesn't seem to know where I am. Because of the delay, it'll tell me to turn a bit too late and when traveling at 65MPH on a busy highway with multiple exits, even one second is way too long let alone several seconds. I've tried every option. I reloaded the firmware to an older level. Same results.

2. Too often I get poor/useless directions. I keep getting "Recalculating, recalculating, recalculating". I was speaking to someone who was driving in in a car I kept hearing "recalculating...". Yep, he also had a Nuvi and he said the Nuvi drives him around in circles. I didn't tell him that I experienced the same problem myself.

3. I'm walking along and am using the Nuvi to get me back to the hotel. Even though I'm right next to the ocean withe the battery nearly full charged, it just wouldn't find any satellites. I kept turning the unit off for 8+ seconds, taking the battery out, holding it up to the sky (either hoping to get a signal or maybe I was praying). After 5 minutes, I asked someone for directions.

4. I'm tired of screaming at the unit.

I'm asking myself why I paid over $500 for something that isn't helping and even taking me longer to get somewhere.

I'm going to bring the unit back and try again when they update the unit; whenever that might be.]

--Original review ---

I bought the 850 nuvi last night. Before taking it out on the road, I spent a few hours learning how to use it and read the forums.

First off, I installed the latest firmware. The new Garmin software makes that extremely easy.

Here's my major gripes so far:

1) The speech recognition turns itself off after entering several voice commands and I have to keep turning it on every few commands. THIS DRIVES ME NUTS AND IT'S NOT SAFE. There's nothing in the manual that explains that. Yes, I read the entire manual. I reset the device by turning it off for 8 seconds. That didn't help. For me, voice recognition is extremely important. I nearly drove off the interstate once when I was using my fingers to access an old GPS navigator. I stopped using it that day and never used it again for driving.

2) The POI are seriously out of date. I asked where the nearest hospital is and the nuvi returned hospitals 5+ miles away but there's a hospital one mile away that's been there for over 4 years. I asked where the nearest police station was and the nuvi returned just a few of the major police stations. There are numerous police substations here, one is nearly within walking distance. I'm guessing that the maps are about 5+ years old. And Garmin wants *me* to pay for a map update. No, I don't think so.

3) The nuvi 850 CANNOT be used when it's plugged into the USB port.

4) The accuracy of location is woefully lacking. I have 7+ year old Garmins that are accurate within 10 feet. The Garmin nuvi 850 says that my house is 200 feet away from where I set my home location. We have very good satellite access due to lack of mountains and buildings. The satellite indicator has all bars lit up.

5) Keeps crashing. This has already happened several times. The system is completely frozen and I have to reboot or it reboots itself. When this happens, some of the values that I set are reset to the default values. This is unforgivable.

6) When navigating, the unit doesn't display the destination. If I accidentally enter the wrong address from my favorites whose locations are somewhat near each other, I won't know about the mistake until I'm there. I've tried every button to find to display the destination location but it's nowhere to be found. If it's a matter of knowing a secret set of steps, then the product was poorly designed. This too is unforgivable.

7) The screen dimmer intermittently goes bright then dims again. I have the unit sitting untouched on my desk and it alternates between dim and bright.

Minor gripes:

My last two old Garmins came with cases, manuals and wall-plug rechargers. This came with nothing. I searched on the Garmim site for the manual and couldn't find it. Eventually I found it by using "Garmin 850 manual download" into Google. The web site sucks. I wouldn't have a manual if I didn't have access to a computer.

I found a location on the Garmin site where I download vehicle icons. After an hour of searching, I never found that location again. I should have bookmarked it.

On the positive side, it seems that the voice recognition is pretty good (at least in my quiet office). I can mention part of the street name (e.g. just Northway instead of Northway Court or Northway Drive or Northway Street) and it will bring up all of the possibilities. Still, that requires you to look at the menu instead of the road.

Volume and clarity seems pretty good (at least in my office).

By accident, I came across a feature that I didn't find in the manual: You can scroll the screen with your finger like an iPhone. Move your finger across the screen and the map moves but it's not nearly as smooth as an iPhone (and the iPhone is a lot less expensive).

On another note, I've been reading the debates in the forums regarding the practicality of the "anti-theft" mechanism (a misnomer since the thief is going to steal it anyway if the unit or mounting bracket is visible). I decided to use the PIN since I don't have to enter my PIN if I'm already at home, BUT, it takes quite a few seconds for the Garmin to acquire enough satellite data to know that you're at the "security" location so it's faster to just manually enter your PIN. While the PIN won't deter theft, it's nice knowing that they only stole a useless brick.

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I'm new to the GPS world, having purchased a Navigon several months back (which was stolen). I decided to get a unit with speech recognition, because without it I found myself unable to utilize the GPS safely.

I love my Garmin Nuvi 850, although the model is discontinued (for the 880 I believe). I would never buy another GPS without speech recognition.

I've had no problems with it recognizing my voice commands, and it's easy just to follow the onscreen menus to select commands, but it is also very intuitive, and when I have just spoken a command, such as the name of my destination, or "gas", it responds quickly. I really like being able to choose the different voices (Australian, UK English) for a variety of accents. Before this, I had the Navigon, which I liked, but the onscreen display and graphics are much more pleasing to me than the Navigon.

I tend to forget to push the button to activate speech recognition, but it is easy to use when clipped on to the steering wheel. I was disappointed to find that the MSN service doesn't work in our area...you have to be in a very large metropolitan area for that, but otherwise, this is a great product.

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Coby Portable Dual Alarm Clock/Radio with Motorized iPod Docking System (Black)

• portable dual alarm clock/radio with motorized iPod docking system
• universal dock for iPod charges and plays your favorite iPod music, motorized docking mechanism safely secures your iPod, digital AM/FM radio with 30-station preset memory
• digital clock with two independent alarms and snooze/sleep timers, wake to your iPod, radio, buzzer, easy-to-read, five preset equalizer settings
• High-output, full-range stereo speakers
• 3.5mm audio line-in jack for use with any portable audio device (e.g., iPod shuffle), Full function remote control

What is good:

1. Nice appearance

2. Protected iPod compartment

3. Very good sound

4. Multifunctional remote

5. Reasonable price (around $80)

6. Runs on batteries (supposingly long)

7. Alarm watch

8. USB MP3 playback

9. FM Radio with a lot presets

What is bad:

1. At low volume makes noticeable hi-frequency noise

2. Alarm watch is too bright and does not deem even when running on batteries

3. Does not recharge iPod when running on batteries (8D)

4. Keeps iPod backlight constantly "on" which discharges fully charged iPod Nano-4 in about 1.5 hours that does not allow using it outdoor for any reasonable time

5. There is no way to navifate to the different folder when using USB playback function

6. Hanging out long wire as FM antenna?

Buy Coby Portable Dual Alarm Clock/Radio with Motorized iPod Docking System (Black) Now

I bought this because of its feature that let you plug in a flash drive and play mp3s, but it made a humming noise at low volume levels. I also didn't like that it took 8 batteries (which is sort of OK if I wanted it to be portable), but didn't have a battery backup for the time as a seperate battery.

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I bought this item for my sister for Christmas and it is awesome. My sister loves it and tells me very often that this was the best iPod Dock I could have gotten her. The only drawback that she has found is that she can't figure out how to make the volume on the alarm lower. She has tried many times to turn the volume down when she turns it off, but every time the alarm goes off it startles her with how loud the music comes out. Besides that, this is an awesome iPod dock.

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item works very well, fairly intuitive on control functions, great sound. My wife loves the Ipod dock and the fact that the remote works with it.

Initially I ordered a HOME brand docking system, but it cost more and the sound wasn't nearly as clear. Needless to say, I returned the previous item and kept the Coby product. Great bang per buck!

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