iHome iH5 Clock Radio and Speaker System for iPod (Black)
by Sound Design, Inc.
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List Price: Our Price: $39.99 You Save: $60.00 (60%) Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Category: CE 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 iHome iH5 Clock Radio and Speaker System for iPod (Black)
Customer Review: It's great! (But mine has a unique problem...)
Summary: 4 Stars
The sound quality of this thing is VERY GOOD, especially considering it's size. If you have an iPod, this is a must have, because it is the easiest way to charge your iPod, play music w/out headphones, and it is really nice to wake up to whatever music you want (even though I usually use the radio.) Ever since mine was new, though, sometimes when I'd turn the radio on it would say FM for about 2 seconds, and then switch to am on it's own...???...I never thought much of it though, because the radio didn't do this when it turned on for the alarm...but now (yeah, now that it's out of warranty) it has started to switch to AM for the alarm also, and the thing doesn't wake me up, because there isn't anything on AM! The "buzzer" is wayyyy too quiet, so I guess I'll have to set the alarm to iPod, but I don't like the idea of leaving the iPod docked all night, every night, because it would leave the iPod turned on...sounds like it would fatigue the hard drive. :-( Other than that I love my iHome. It looks really cool, and I love how you can choose the brightness of the screen, and it is also sooo convenient that it says not only the time on-screen but the date as well.
*I would recommend not spending extra money to order the remote control. (I bought mine at Costco, and it was included at no extra cost) The remote is unresponsive, and you usually have to press the buttons a couple of times to get the iHome to register, and it seems to want me to hold it at a specific angle. Don't pay to be lazy...just walk over to the thing and adjust it! **Which reminds me, the whole device has a very solid and sturdy feel.
Go for it!
Customer Review: As advertised....
Summary: 3 Stars
My historical impression of Sound Design was cheapo Chinese, but this unit had the features I was looking for at a good price, so I took a chance. Overall, I'm satified with my purchase after a couple of weeks. The unit comes with a myriad of adapter plates for every imaginable iPod, sound is pretty good but lacks the oomph of my old analog Panasonic clock radio, and the unit is sleek and modern in design.
My nitpicks would be that the remote is not included but much be purchased separately, there is only one alarm, not two, and the remote doesn't have a sleep button so when you get sleepy from reading you have to get up and go over to the radio to use the sleep feature. As another reviewer noted, the "gradual" escalation of volume is like 30 seconds or less, but that's a new feature for me so I can't say if that's normal or not. One other thing I noticed is that the time display is not really big enough for me to read across the room in the night, but I usually don't really care what time it is in the middle of the night anyway.
I like the fact that you can turn off the alarm with the remote, handy when only one of you has to get up at 5:30AM and you're trying to not fully awaken your spouse.
Lastly, I wish radio manufacturers still used stiff telescoping antennas instead of those little trailing wires out the back, but that's not specific to this radio by any means. Surprisingly, this one also has an external loop coil AM antenna, which I would think would be easy enough to simple enclose in the housing.
Knowing what I know now after using the radio, I'd buy it again.
Customer Review: Quite satisfied with my iHome
Summary: 4 Stars
I bought the iHome primarily because I wanted to have a speaker system for my bedroom. The fact that it was also a clock radio and a docking/charging station made it quite irresistable. (The form factor is also a plus, by the way.) I'm quite satisfied with my iHome.
While the iHome's sound is not as good as JBL's OnTOur portable speakers (in my opinion, the OnTour has best-in-class sound for portable speakers), the iHome produces decent sound with deep base. I hope that iHome improves the high notes that their speakers produce in future releases.
The alarm feature works well and is easy to use. The display is huge and easy to read even from 10-feet away and nothing beats waking up to one's favorite song! I agree with what a few other consumers have said, however: don't expect the gradual alarm-volume increase that the iHome advertises to be anything great. It's not. The volume starts out soft but then goes to full volume (which you set, by the way) in a matter of 3 seconds. One other pet peeve: the iHome is not an "auto-volt" system... it requires an input of 110 volts so using it in other regions (that have 220 voltage) would require a transformer/voltage regulator. I just think that all electronics/appliances should be auto-volt by now.
Still, the iHome produces good sound that fills up the room. iPods look great docked on top of the iHome, and the clock radio works very well. Like I said, the sound isn't the best, but it's certainly enough to to the job.
Customer Review: It does what it was designed to do...
Summary: 4 Stars
While I did not purchase this item from Amazon I felt obligated to write a review as I have relied on these reviews for many purchases. To begin, this is an alarm clock with iPod integration. It offers all features that a typical bedside alarm does with the inclusion of the ability to dock and play your iPod. When I read reviews for an item like this and hear people complaining about inferior sound quality or lack of "boomy" bass I can only shake my head. Anyone that understands sound and acoustics knows that in order to create big bass you must be able to move large volumes of air which is only achievable with a speaker cone of significant surface area. This iHome does a decent job of producing bass through a ported system and for my needs is all that is necessary for a bedside unit. There are other options available for those that want more of a mini system or a richer sound platform (ie. Bose Sound dock) but as I've already said, this unit was designed as an alarm clock with iPod integration and it performs these tasks well. One reviewer mentioned that the alarm clock cannot be dimmed, there is a very easy fix to this problem...the very bottom button on the remote that is labeled "snooze/dimmer"...press it. For those of you shopping for an iPod enabled alarm clock that will also produce good sound I would recommend this product; if you are searching for a mini system to play your iPod then I would look into a unit more suited for producing bigger sound.Customer Review: Just the right amount of sound!
Summary: 5 Stars
I love my ihome! I recently got the black one (although regardless of color same product) as a belated christmas gift and already think its my best ipod accessory to date. Granted I have a normal size bedroom and wanted to consolidate and therefore didnt need a seperate stereo and alarm clock. Plus it came with the remote and adapters to fit ANY type of ipod (old and new) Now, Im sure a lot of you are questioning the need for a $100.00 alarm clock in the first place. But if thats your reason for buying it, I would rethink your purchase. The reason ihome was right for me, is because I needed a small stereo with a remote to play my ipod and the alarm feature was a bonus. The sound on the machine is clear, and if you so desire, can be very loud while remaining "quality". I have a lot of playlists on my ipod and therefore never need to switch songs or albums, so the lack of ability to browse my music through the remote or alarm base is insignificant, but once in an album or playlist you can skip songs (back and forth) with the remote with the next or previous buttons. I have read some complaints about the clock time LED display always being on, but what alarm clock doesnt always show the time (plus you can dim it if you want).
I wanted a small stereo and couldnt afford the BOSE, this was a more than suitable and quite lovable substitute, and its a kick-ass alarm clock too! -happy customer-