SIRIUS Stiletto SL100 Portable Satellite Radio Receiver
by Sirius Satellite Radio
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List Price: Our Price: $189.99 You Save: $210.00 (53%) Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Category: Car Audio or Theater See more product details |
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Customers in the UK,
Buy this product at amazon.co.uk
for British Pounds
Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of SIRIUS Stiletto SL100 Portable Satellite Radio Receiver
Customer Review: Not quite portable...
Summary: 1 Stars
Bad job setting expectations by Sirius.
It's only portable if you are standing in the middle of a field with no trees above you and your head is pointed towards the nearest satellite. It probably also is portable if you are in Manhattan near the Sirius headquarters and there are all sorts of repeaters boosting the signal around you. Anywhere else.....you can only play what's you've saved to it. (yea...yea...maybe you can pull an open WiFi signal here and there.)
Portable - yes you can pick it up and carry it with you.
Portable Satellite - nope, not even near. When it's portable it's not getting live satellite feeds.
Other cons:
-The antenna headphones are clunky and uncomfortable.
-You cannot have the power adapter and antenna headphones plugged in at the same time. This makes it impossible charge while listening without purchasing the options car or home kit. This may not seem like a big deal - but remember it does not come with a car or home kit - so especially during setup you may want the power and antenna headphones connected at the same time.
-The headphone connection is on the base of the unit. This makes the usability of the unit a little clunky. For example, if you'd want to use the machine while on a treadmill or exercise bike you might want to have the unit set so you can actually read the display right-side up; however the headphones connect through the bottom so you would need to rest it on it's side.
There are some positives:
-The visual design of the unit is very slick, very cool looking (though suffers from some usability issues mentioned above)
-The setup (even WiFi) was very straightforward and took only about 5 minutes
-The user interface is great - big improvement over the Sirius Sportster unit I also own.
Overall I regret the purchase and would not recommend to others. If you want this level of "portability" you could just plug any other Sirius radio into your favorite MP3 player - record what you want and carry around the MP3 and listen off-line the next day!
Customer Review: All these features fit into this little thing? amazing!
Summary: 5 Stars
I received my Stiletto 100 from Amazon.com yesterday, and already I know that this was one of the best and coolest investments I've made. I had mine shipped Overnight which ended up being $33 cheaper than going to a Retail Store, even after Shipping Charges. Set up was absolutely a breeze. I called Sirius at 12:30 AM (when I got off work) and someone helped me transfer my account from an old radio to this one in about 10 minutes max, which really was no time at all. Now that its been activated, I'm like a kid in a candy store! IT DOES WHAT?! I CAN RECORD LIVE RADIO?! TAKE IT ANYWHERE?! It truly is amazing. I brought it into work today and pretty much everyone around me was in awe at how cool this gizmo really is. I couldnt get a Satellite signal indoors (big office) but with the WIFI feature it offers, I picked up Internet and was listening to Sirius Internet radio with ease.
When you open the package, it is kind of shocking to see how much stuff really comes with the Radio. Included are two rechargeable batteries, a slim one and one that is alittle more bulky but not by much really, and the adapter to charge them. You get two sets of headphones, a special USB cable to hook up to your PC (not MAC capable though, bummer) and the Software.
Im a HUGE Howard Stern fan and like many people i hate when it starts getting great on the show and i have to leave the car! Today I was digging the show and just pulled the Stiletto off the Car Cradle and I was off walking to Work with Sirius Satellite Radio all the way throughout my day. This thing really is amazing.
The only thing that I've noticed that isn't pleasant is finding a Radio channel to broadcast to in the Car. Maybe its just me not knowing how to find a good station, or figuring out the car kit? A Friend highly reccomended the Direct connection box from Sirius, which costs about $20. Basically it hardwires your Stiletto to your Headunit, and eliminates the FM Transmitter.
Other than that, i have had absolutely no issues with my Stiletto. This thing really is amazing. Highly reccomended.
Customer Review: A Sirius Letdown
Summary: 1 Stars
I have been a Sirius subscriber for over two years. I have the Sportster
hooked up in my home and my car. I love the programming they offer and have never had a problem with reception.
I was thrilled when I heard that Sirius was coming out with a portable device where you could listen to Sirius live. I am a Howard fan and was looking for something to listen to at the health club and around the house away from a three year old's ears.
I had heard Howard's fans raving over the quality of the Stiletto and of the reception they received.
My first problem was the five weeks that it took to receive my order from Sirius. My mom had ordered one from a store around the same time as I did and she had hers in five days.
I signed up for a two year subscription since I had been so happy with my Sportster and I was told it would be cheaper.
I cannot get reception at home or at the health club even with the antenna headset which is as uncomfortable as everyone says.
I downloaded the Sirius software and tried to transfer songs from Yahoo to the Stiletto and was unsuccessful.
Sure I can drop another seventy bucks on a home docking kit but I really don't want to invest anymore than the $500.00 that I already have on a product that is useless to me.
Sirius states in their product description that live or recorded Sirius programming can be heard almost anywhere. That is not case and according to the reviews I have read I am not alone.
Purchasing the Stiletto, the subscription, and then music to download costs well over $500.00. For that kind of money customers should be more than satisfied. We should be able to get reception and the headset should be a lot more comfortable.
Instead of satisfied I am sick that I threw away so much money. I don't think that I have ever hated a product and regretted a purchase so much.
The Stiletto does not deliver what it claims to and it should at the price that is being charged.
Sirius should be ashamed.
I know I am for throwing way so much money.
Customer Review: Great Product But....
Summary: 4 Stars
This is my 3rd Sirius radio and by far the most enjoyable. I've had the Stiletto for about 3 months and at first I was a bit disappointed because I was not able to connect via wireless at McDonalds, Starbucks, etc. because they all have networks that require signon/passwords. That disappointment quickly turned into excitement when I go to client sites and connect to their wireless networks with no problem. I work in downtown Chicago and walk all over with the Stiletto in my pocket and still get uninterrupted satellite radio. This while only using the internal receiver and not the satellite headphones. I purposely go to lunch spots that are farther than I need to so I can justify spending the $350. Since I am no stranger to satellite radios, I know that the signal is impaired by bridges, buildings, etc. Given this, I have never tried to get a signal while on my 1-hour train ride home every night. Every satellite radio I've purchased had the same blurb about not working on trains. Heck there's even a picture of places it works and doesn't work and the train is one of them where it will not work. So don't blame Sirius or the Stiletto for the lack of reception when the consumer didn't do their homework before spending $350 and getting there hopes up.
I give the Stiletto 4 stars instead of 5 because 1)cost, 2)not getting a home/car unit with the unit to begin with given the coin dropped, 3)memory is split 50/50 between what you can use for recorded storage and what you can use for mp3/wma storage and 50 hrs of mp3/wma seems to get eaten quickly, 4)not to impressed with the white color on the back considering how sweet the front screen looks, 5)kinda unrelated to the Stiletto but the case made for this thing is $30 yes $30 on top of the $350 you've dropped for the unit and if you opt for a home/car kit that's another $70 yes $70. I'm not crying because I haven't listened to "regular" radio since early December 2004 and have no intentions on going back to "call
Customer Review: Technology hasn't caught up to the concept
Summary: 2 Stars
A great concept -- largely commercial-free and recordable radio in a portable format that can also play MP3's -- is too often ruined by this disappointing unit.
I got this unit along with a car dock so I could listen to Sirius programming on my terms. What I received is a device that's great when it works, but is far less reliable than any other electronic device I've ever had.
In the car, the FM transmitter is useless. I switched to a cassette adapter and got much better reception, but that was a minor inconvenience compared to everything else.
The satellite reception usually doesn't exist when I'm using the built-in antenna. On the bus I get nothing at all, and when walking around the signal constantly drops even when I have a clear view of the sky. I am able to record when the unit is pointed out my rear window, although my recordings frequently have lengthy periods of drop-outs and skips.
The Internet reception in my house is sketchy at best and, no, it's not my router. I also have an Xbox and a PC that have no trouble connecting -- and staying connected -- to the network, but the Stiletto frequently can't connect even when I'm touching its antenna to the router's antenna!
I out and out refuse to install any software just for the privilege of transferring files between my PC and my USB portable device (Windows Explorer does just fine), and Sirius insisted I could do this with the Stiletto. It could, but only after almost a full day of back and forth with tech support. It finally came down to installing a version of Windows Media Player that the documentation said the Stiletto wouldn't work with.
Oh, and this is my second unit. The first one gave me similar headaches until the trackwheel fell off.
I truly love the variety and quality the service provides, but without a reliable way to receive that programming I'm nearing the end of my rope with Sirius.