Delphi SkyFi3 XM Satellite Radio with Car Kit
by Delphi Products
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List Price: Our Price: $114.99 You Save: $115.01 (50%) Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Buy Used: from $49.99 (click here) Category: Car Audio or Theater See more product details |
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Customers in the UK,
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Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of Delphi SkyFi3 XM Satellite Radio with Car Kit
Customer Review: Worthless
Summary: 1 Stars
I've had this unit for 6 months, and the last couple of months have been a nightmare. The unit locks up about 75% of the time on startup, and the only way to "fix" it is to allow the battery to die. The volume up/power button reset doesn't work. The screen displays "Scanning media 22.29," and won't go any further. I've seen suggestions to update the firmware, but when I attempted to do so, I found out I've already got the latest updates installed.
The buttons sometimes are slow to respond, if they respond at all. I don't like having to look at the unit while I'm trying to drive to make sure that it's doing what I anticipated. I like to be able to push the buttons while keeping my eye on the road. I've found myself in for a few surprises this way - for example, I've pushed 54 and wound up on channel 4 instead... oops. The directional buttons have the same problem.
I've also had the unit randomly do odd things such as change from vertical to horizontal display, and change the channel that it transmits on to the radio.
The unit seriously doesn't like the cold. It responds even more slowly and is much more prone to locking up.
I haven't even been able to successfully use my XM radio in the last two weeks. Unfortunately we paid for a year subscription, so I'm stuck with it. I would highly recommend going with a non-Delphi product. I'd have to say this is the most awful experience I've ever had with an electronic product.
Update: 4/24/2009 - This radio still is horrible. It still locks up all the time, and the buttons have gotten more and more touchy. Last night the power adapter died. I'm giving up on it, and asking XM for my money back - if they even have it to give back. It's no wonder that both Delphi and XM are bankrupt.
Customer Review: Horrible, WORST product I've ever owned, 10 hours w/ tech support & still no resolution
Summary: 1 Stars
Where do I begin? I was comforted to read that other folks have had the "freezing" issue. This happens to me, on average, every 2 weeks. Beyond that, my unit does record. I have spent much time w/ tech support trying to remedy this with no luck. The unit also "defaults" back to a horizontal display each time I turn the car engine over & I have to manually set it back to vertical AND it "loses" the FM frequency I've chosen & I need to re-select it each & every time. Delphi finally threw their hands up & said to send it in & they'd ship a new one - which they did. I received it yesterday & was so excited to finally have a working unit but, alas, I now only get about 50% of the total XM stations (how exciting, a NEW problem) & the record function still doesn't work. They want me to ship it back again & try another unit but in the 10 months I've owned the unit it's NEVER worked 100% properly, it's been replaced 3 times yet each time there are some new & some familiar problems. I am exhausted, frustrated & so disenchanted with the Skyfi I want my money back to maybe give Sirius a whirl. The series of issues I've had with this are staggering & Delphi, while willing to replace the unit over & over, seems somewhat unconcerned & not a single customer service rep has gone the extra mile to say that these constant problems & hours on the phone w/ tech support are not right & ASSURE we finally get my unit up & running properly. Horrible, terrible, awful experience- my poor husband is so sorry he gave me this gift for Christmas. I have a faulty unit which has made me rip my hair out on numerous occassions & he feels terrible when he tried to do something thoughtful-- lovely!Customer Review: Nice little unit...when it's working
Summary: 3 Stars
I've had a fairly decent experience with my SkyFi3. First, don't even bother with the FM modulation...get it properly installed or do it yourself. I had a local installer mount the skyfi and run all the cables, and wire it into the Aux jack on my radio, and the results are quite nice. The radio does cut out once in awhile while driving but it's fairly rare. The features on this unit are quite nice, with built-in memory and the ability to upgrade with a microSD card, ability to record programs (not a whole lot of use in the car, but useful if you have a home kit like I do). It's also really easy to record a song on the radio to save in memory, and the cradle has presets to access your favorite stations. I did find the navigation and menus somewhat confusing and often was lost trying to get to the right screen or find the right function. But I've certainly seen worse in this area. If you tend to easily get confused by electronics though, there probably are more user-friendly units than this one.
The biggest problem with this radio, and the reason I have to drop it to 3 stars is the locking issue. As others have mentioned, it does sometimes freeze up and there does not seem to be any way to reboot it, you just have to unplug it until the battery dies out (which can take awhile!) Why they don't have a simple reset button like most small electonics do is beyond me, it would make the problems with freezing far less frustrating. Suffice to say, if you get this radio, make sure you always bring some CDs along on a long trip so you aren't stuck with nothing to listen to if it freezes up (as it always seemed to do for me when I was on long drives.)
Customer Review: Could be better, but still a great unit!
Summary: 4 Stars
My unit seems to freeze up constantly, especially when playing MP3s. It is quite annoying. Once, the player froze up playing some of the recorded songs, and somehow forgot that I was a registered XM subscriber. I kept getting warnings that my license to play my recorded music would soon expire, even though I was connected to the XM Satellite. Eventually, the message went away (after a week or two), and I never did have a problem playing any of my music, other than an occasional reminder to subscribe if I wanted to continue to play my recorded music. This problem has only occured once.
The freeze ups, on the other hand, is almost guaranteed to happen just about every time I play MP3s, and about once a week when playing some of the recorded XM songs. It is frustrating, but I do still like the unit. At the time I purchased it, this was the only unit I could find that could "TiVO" my XM radio, which is a feature I could not live without! It's great to hear a new song on the radio that I like and be able to save it for future listening! No more "What was the title of that song???" and having to search the internet for lyrics to find the songs I like.
I only wish the screen was color, and the device could be a little more user friendly. I find myself having to "interact" with the radio more than I would like to when changing songs or radio stations, which is a distraction while driving. This may be more of a side effect to having a unit with so many features, and not necessarily a design limitation of the unit itself. I think a better screen, with color and better contrast, would help in this regard.
Customer Review: SkyFi3 pretty nice.
Summary: 4 Stars
I got this to replace my MyFi which failed recently (won't charge) after a little over two years. I have to have one that records, since I like to listen while biking and hiking, and the standalone reception isn't very good when moving around. I've only had it for a month, but I really like it... It has some great features, like replay and replay record. The ability to rotate the display is excellent! It records three different ways (single song, channel, or scheduled) and has nice features to allow you to find, organize the recorded songs. Even creating playlists, and saving songs, so they don't delete when your record more. It weighs less than half of the old MyFi (keeps my shorts fro sagging, while I cut the lawn). I don't find it to be cheaply made. And I like the fact that they increased the menu complexity in order to get rid of all the buttons the MyFi had.
Only 5 stars because I'm not sure but I don't think the sound is quite as good as the MyFi. I don't notice it in the house or car (over speakers); but with earbuds, I think both the separation and dynamic range are lower. Does have a nice EQ, with 8 or so presets. AND (I don't know about you, but I am glad) that it automatically reduces the volume to mid level when you cycle the power. I used to blast my ears regularly, with my MyFi.