Coby CX789 Digital AM/FM/NOAA Radio with Dual Alarms, silver Review

This is a good deal for it's price- digital tuning with preset buttons- AM/FM/NOAA. There is a problem using the AC power (with supplied AC power cord)- when powered with AC the LED panel fades to almost unreadable!I decided to buy a second unit to see if another would have the same problme: yes!Thus, there is a defect when operating on AC power, so I don't recommend using AC power.However, operating on batteries is ok- no fading of the LED panel. Also, operating on DC adapter also tested and works ok (DC power adapter is not provided- I got one at Radio Shack: AC-TO-DC POWER ADAPTER 1.5-15VDC, 300ma and set it for 4.5 DCV)

Everything else works ok- and this is the style of radio I wanted, and there are no others like this at this price. I now have three units.This has digital tuning with quick change preset buttons and a volume knob on the right side, which is very nice! The LED panel has black letters on a non-lighted background and is hard to read- ignore the bright LED panel you see in the pic-it does not look like that!However there is a light button that lights up for 6 seconds and helps you read it better. Reception is fine for local stations, which provide good clear speaker sound, with no noise.

It's fine if you are looking for a very inexpensive digital radio, (I found nothing cheaper in this style) but you may have the AC power problem I have, and you will have to get the Radio Shack DC power adapter (4.5v, 300ma), or just use 3 D-size batteries.

UPDATE 4/7/09:Robert Lambert discovered the solution to using the AC power cord.There is an AC switch inside the battery compartment that is set on 220v when I received all three of my radios. Simply set the switch on 110v (for USA) and presto!AC power cord works fine!No need to purchase DC adapter!This power switch is not described in the instructions and I even called Coby support about my problem and they didn't mention the switch!Thankyou Robert for the info!I can't change rating, if I could I now rate this radio 4.5 stars!

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Product Description:
Coby CX789 Digital AM/FM/NOAA Radio with Dual Alarms, NOAA weather alert(turns on automatically to broadcast weather advisories), digital AM/FM tuner, digital LCD display, clock and dual alarm timers, high-performance telescopic antenna, integrated 3" dynamic speaker, 3.5mm headphone jack, 3-way power with AC/DC operation, silver

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