 Most Impressive! |
| Review Date: November 18, 2008 |
| Reviewer: David, Burnsville, MN USA |
I have nothing but praise for the Sangean RCR-5 clock radio. Specifically, here are the most noteworthy aspects of this truly amazing product:
Display
Here is where the RCR-5 truly shines, as it incorporates a backlit LCD with adjustable intensity: one may adjust the backlight to suit your needs, so you have a perfectly legible, yet not too bright display (at night) which can never be "washed out", even in direct sunlight. The display even has a clever feature whereby it will illuminate to full intensity when any of the buttons are pressed, after which it returns to the user's preset intensity after ten seconds. As you can see from the product photos, the display is of a soft, warm color, most conducive to a good sleeping environment; other clock radios using bright blue or green illumination, IMHO, should be avoided if you want to get any sleep.
Auxiliary Input
Very useful for listening to my podcasts at night; when an external source is attached, the Band button will cycle through AM/FM/AU; when none is attached, only AM/FM are available, thereby eliminating "clutter" for those who do not wish to enable this feature. (Note: I'm old-school, and prefer using this method over a "Dockable" iPod solution, as I prefer to completely run my iPod's battery source to zero before recharging...)
Flexibility in Programming
Only found on more expensive clock radios, this model will allow you to use the "Sleep" feature to listen to a particular station (or podcast with the Auxiliary feature) at night, and then to wake to radio on a different station. In addition, all alarms allow Daily, Mon-Fri, or Single, with the Audible Alarm using a gentle "ramp-up" feature.
Reception and Speaker Quality
The radio's receiver portion of this product is very good, rivaled by only my Sony short wave receiver (a great radio, by the way!); what looks like a 3-inch speaker provides a very warm, intelligible output, very suitable for the spoken word, adequate for music. If you need a strong system for powerful music, I would suggest purchasing an additional desktop speaker setup (such as for a computer) which can be attached to the headphone output by means of a standard mini-jack connection.
Finally, a no-nonsense Sleep function
Sangean has cleverly incorporated the Sleep function into the Power button (which is gently illuminated when the radio's off); to turn the radio on or off, press the button. To use the Sleep feature, press and hold the same button to select up to 120 minutes. Simple, effective, "it just works".
Final Recommendation
Well, what more can I say? This product works for me (and I'm purchasing three more for gifts) and has a lot going for it, including high value (very reasonably priced!). Is there anything that you should be aware of? Yes:
> As described in the previous customer's entry, setting the alarm may require a few extra key-strokes, as this product offers many options when it comes to waking by either the alarm or the radio; if you do not need all of these features, you may wish to consider something of simpler means. That being said, it took me only about 22 seconds to set the alarm; for me, it was relatively intuitive and logical.
> The built-in battery back up feature only works for about ten minutes worth of backup, according to the manual; in my neck of the woods, this is not a big issue, but should be noted if you experience many nighttime blackouts where you are located.
> Even though this model is referred to as an "RCR-5", it should be noted that it does not employ an automatic time synchronization feature as is found on Sangean's higher end clock radios. (Not a big issue for me, and may actually be desirable for those of us who prefer to set our clocks 5, 10, or 15 minutes fast to "keep us on time"!)
I hope this helps you in making the right decision! All the best! |
a QUALITY clock radio...
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| Review Date: February 13, 2009 |
| Reviewer: Joseph, Chicago, IL USA |
| I have to say that I'm quite impressed by the QUALITY of the Sangean RCR-5 clock radio. Quite a bit of great detail has already been mentioned in a fine way by a previous reviewer. I just have to say that I'm really impressed at how clear the radio reception is...absolutely NO drift, it locks onto the radio frequency and stays there! And the sound from the speaker (even if it is just a single speaker) is rather impressive...I've never heard a speaker sound so clear, crisp, and distinct, whether it be music or spoken word! I also like how smooth the volume control feels. It keeps great time with an easy-to-view display, and wakes you up comfortably with its "humane waking system." Some people have noted that the settings for the clock are too complex and complicated, but I frankly didn't experience any problems in that sense. Of course, it does not have the atomic clock updating, nor does it have a built-in cd player, but it does have the auxillary input, if you wanted to connect a cd player or mp3 player. Overall, I have to say that certainly alot of thought has gone into the designing of the Sangean RCR-5...this certainly is NO ordinary clock radio...it's a finely-crafted instrument! |
Wish I'd found this years ago
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| Review Date: July 31, 2009 |
| Reviewer: Vermont Gal, |
Great, well-made clock radio - external antenna brings in stations even in my valley location. This radio was an upgrade from a ~10-year-old Sony Dream Machine, and it feels to me like driving a brand new BMW after having had $2000 junker cars all my life. This radio had just what I was looking for in terms of digital tuning and programmable options, encased in a quality-feeling case. I like the dimmable display, and keep it on a very low brightness setting. On the downside, you do need to read the manual to set the alarm. OK once you get the hang of it, but still complicated. Were I to live in an area with longer power outages, I would like a longer battery backup.
I had never heard of Sangean before. Based on this experience, I will highly consider Sangean products in the future. As long as you are OK with the complex alarm settings, this clock radio is definitely worth spending $40 vs. $25-30 for a similar Sony. |
a good purchase
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| Review Date: December 8, 2009 |
| Reviewer: Louise, Home, PA United States |
| I am pleased with this attractive clock radio. I wanted a light-colored clock radio, and so many in the stores are black or silver. Because it is not very big, it does not take up a lot of space on my nightstand. Right now, I gave it 4 stars for ease of use, but as I get used to operating the 2 alarm systems, I know it will become second nature to me. I like the Human Wake System. It is nice to have the buzzer alarm slowly increase in volume instead of loudly blasting at the set time. As for the sound quality, I live in a rural area, so no radio has great reception which affects the sound, but it sounds fine, and I can listen to the news as I get dressed in the morning. |
excellent radio
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| Review Date: May 2, 2009 |
| Reviewer: D. Drucker, Ithaca NY |
| I gave this as a gift for someone who wanted programmed push button stations (like a car radio) which was not easy to find. This radio has good reception and sound quality and the feature of digital tuning that we were looking for. If you don't need the digital tuning it may be more expensive than some comparable radios but we are happy with it |
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