My now-ancient Philips CD clock radio let me down, so I decided it was time to upgrade with more-modern technology. I still wanted to wake to CD sound rather than a radio station or normal alarm sounds, and after a short search, I found this Sony. It has some features that I really appreciate, which make this clock intuitive and useful. Specifically ... 1) There is a perpetual clock built in, so that after a power failure the clock has the correct time. My old clock had a 9V battery to keep the clock circuit energized, but it always ran fast (really fast) and needed to be reset after the power returned. This one works really well.
2) The CD track selection works every time. My older clock seemed to have a "mind of its own" when I set the wake-up track. I resigned to just letting it go on track 1, which would reliably repeat; just pick a CD with an acceptable first track. This Sony clock wakes me on whatever track I set it to every time.
3) The second alarm is a nice feature. I can easily set it to one of two different wake-up times with the press of a button (really it is two buttons). The out-going Philips clock had a more-arcane method of setting a second wake-up time. I don't think that I ever mastered it.
4) The sound quality is more than adequate. What I would expect out of the tiny 2-in speakers seems to be surpassed. Perhaps it is my imagination.
5) The generously sized snooze bar is easy to find in the morning. Although my Philips clock had a proximity sensor to detect my approaching hand, it seemed to have a very narrow field of regard, and I often had to wave my hand numerous times to get the alarm to stop. This Sony clock has the snooze bar located just above the table surface, so a groggy sliding hand can find it easily.
6) The addition of two alarm times on the main display help in seeing that the alarm is set and to what time. No button pushes are required to read the alarm time.
7) Oh yeah ... it is a pretty cool-looking clock with an easily loaded CD.Now for the not-so-good part...
This clock uses blue LCD backlighting, which is very bright in a dark room, even at its lowest setting. It is so bright that I had to cover over the display to prevent it from lighting up my room. I found that cutting out a 2.5 x 5 piece of card stock makes a suitable display cover that prevents the night-time light pollution, but you also lose the time on the display. It works out OK in my bedroom, because we have a second perpetual-time clock with a less-obtrusive red LED display.
Overall, I would still give this clock a high mark, and I am happy using it. I would expect that someone with more light seeping in at night might not have the same objection to the display brightness that I have. Selectable display colors, where red is a choice, might be a solution for me.
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Product Description:
Stylish and interior conscious - distinguishes this versatile system from ordinary looking clock radios while compact styling also saves space on your nightstand
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