The best clock radio I've owned so far!
Recently, my clock radio, an Emerson SmartSet, decided to crap out on me after only five years or so. (The alarm function and radio stopped working, although, weirdly, the clock part still kept time, and on battery back-up, the alarm would still go off. I still can't quite figure that one out.) I thought about trying to play around with the Emerson, to see if I could fix it, but I just didn't feel up to it, so I went shopping and found this Magnasonic. I was really excited because it fit all the criteria I was looking for: it was a clock radio, not just an alarm clock; it had a dual alarm system; and the clock sets automatically as soon as it's plugged in. Plus, it has two other features that are just plain nice to have: it has a sensor that registers the room temperature, and it projects the time onto the ceiling/wall so I don't even have to raise my head from my pillow to see what time it is. I'll admit, it took a bit of time for me to figure out how to work this clock radio, for the mere fact that it's completely different from any I've owned previously. Not only because of the extra functions/features, but also because it's so sleek and compact. I'm used to those bulky, slightly rectangular, slightly oblong radios that are at least half a foot long, half a foot wide, and as thick as bricks (with the really old ones almost weighing as much as bricks). This Magnasonic is almost tiny in comparison: it's only 5 1/2 inches long, about the same measurement in height, and 3 1/2 inches deep. The biggest thing about it is the LCD screen up front. However, a brief perusal of the instructions showed that the Magnasonic is really user-friendly and once you figure out what each button is for and how to work them, setting the alarms and using all the functions is easy-peasy. As I pointed out, the clock part sets automatically as soon as you plug it in, so that's one less thing to deal with; all you have to worry about is setting the time zone if you're not in the default Eastern time zone. The dual alarms are set from one central button and you can not only set the time, but you're given options as to how often the alarm will go off: all seven days of the week, Monday through Friday only, Saturday and Sunday only, or just one day of the week. Buttons on the back allow you to choose whether you want the alarms to go off as a buzzer or as music from the radio, and to turn one or both alarms off completely. There are all sorts of other details you can fiddle with such as setting the time and calender manually, setting the snooze function, setting the sleep function, and changing the display content. And then there's the projection, which comes from a rotating arm on the left-hand side of the unit. The arm can be rotated into an almost horizontal position both front and back, and there's a wheel at the top which focuses the projection--just turn the wheel until the display is clear and crisp. The display can also be flipped by 180 degrees for rear projection; just press another button to do so. Now, there are two "downsides" to this clock radio that I've found. One is that, because the time isn't just a set of numbers on the front of the unit, but a full LCD screen with the time, room temp., and other info, the display is brighter than on a regular clock radio. However, there is a dimmer function to the front display, which helps, and also, because the time can be projected and therefore the front of the clock radio doesn't need to face my bed, I simply turn the unit so that the barest sliver of the screen is visible from where I'm resting, allowing most of the glow to dissipate into the room. On the plus side, if I have to get up in the middle of the night, the glow helps me avoid any cat toys littering the floor between my bed and the bathroom. The second "downside" is, because the unit is so compact, there's no room for any internal antennae for radio reception. So there are two thin external antennae to fiddle with, which, frankly, I haven't had to deal with since my clock radio from the 80's. However, neither of these "downsides" are really that bad (hence my use of quotation marks) or difficult to deal with, and, certainly, these two tiny, inconsequential details don't detract one iota from this Magnasonic's compact and functional nature. Read more
