Sony ICF-C1IPMK2 Speaker System and Clock Radio with iPod Dock (Black)
by Sony
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List Price: Our Price: $40.00 You Save: $59.95 (60%) Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Category: Network Media Player See more product details |
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Customers in the UK,
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for British Pounds
Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of Sony ICF-C1IPMK2 Speaker System and Clock Radio with iPod Dock (Black)
Customer Review: Good iPod dock with no major flaws!!
Summary: 5 Stars
This is my 3rd attempt at getting an ipod dock without some fatal flaws, and I am happy to say I found my ipod dock, from Sony no less! ;)
Pros:
- Power brick is silent, no buzzing or humming noise.
- unit is silent, no humming electronic noise.
- amp does not produce any noticeable hiss.
- Control is very nice. The unit looks better than it does in pictures. The controls are very nice, and is something you have to play with to appreciate. Well designed.
- The support that touches the ipod in the back (the thing in the middle of the speaker) is easily adjustable and is the best I've seen. The ipod is rock solid when docked.
- Sound quality is pretty decent. Fairly natural to me (not heavy bass or boxy sounding)
- Nice LCD.
Cons:
- FM tuner is a bit weak, some stations I can receive clearly with the Altec Lansing comes in with lots of static. It's also very sensitive to the antenna orientation. The antenna is very short.
- The LCD is a bit on the bright side for a bedroom.
- Power-brick and FM antenna hardwired to the device.
Overall I am pretty happy with the device, and I am glad I found something I like in the $100 price range. If you like music or speakers that a bit more natural sounding, even if a bit lacking in bass, this might be the unit for you. If you prefer more bass heavy speakers, this is probably not the unit.
Here are the two other ipod dock I tried and the reason I returned them:
1) Altec Lansing M402SR Moondance Glow
- The amplifier produces a pretty noticeable hiss at all sound levels. Very annoying when I am listening close to the radio at night. Think of a low white noise that's always present, very noticeable on quiet music passages or between songs, especially on the ipod input. The noise does not change in intensity with the volume, and are the same for all inputs.
This Sony is much better in this respect. No noticeable hiss whatsoever. Music from iPod is much more enjoyable.
- Speaker is very boxy sounding. This Sony sounded much more natural to me.
2) Sony XDR-S10HDiP HD Radio
- It has a fan!
- The power supply emits a humming noise.
Customer Review: 2 Great Features rarely noticed...
Summary: 5 Stars
I also have purchased a few of this types of clocks etc and agree that none are perfect, but for me, this one has ended up being the best for two reasons (well they are both sort of the same reason) .. I don't think I'm the only one out there that has my iPhone in a case, like mine is an in INCASE rubber cover, so with the case on, the phone won't fit into any standard size docks - so what a pain as no one is going to take their case off to fit into a standard dock insert (right?).. so what is nice about this clock is that it doesn't even come with inserts, it has a decent size opening in the dock that nicely fits iPhones even with cases on (so that is what I think is the first good reason) and then this is almost the same reason but a bit different is that one could use the iHome IP9 without any insert and the phone would slide in there with a case, but it would be so unstable and could break the dock connector, but on this one, since the dock is mounted low and the phone can lean its back up against the phone itself, then the phone is securely in the dock and won't bend backwards and break the dock connector, and Sony put a dial on the back to so to adjust that square you see to hold the iPhone securely... so for me these are important features, I agree the iHome has a better dimmer, but I'm not as bothered by the light of the clock on the low setting when trying to sleep, if this is a driving issue for a person then that may be an issue.. and the iHome has the 5-2-7 alarm where you can set it for just work days, weekend or all 7 the same, that also is a nice feature the iHome doesn't have, but in all the rest of the areas I think the Sony is a bit more refined and better, the remote, the sound qualtiy, the tuner of getting in stations (as Sony has been doing this stuff for decades and is known for it where iHome has not).. actually both the Sony and iHome IP9 are both very good you just have to pick which features are best for you as not one model offers the best of all worlds, but for me, the fact I can use it simply with the case on alone makes this one better in my situation..Customer Review: Works fine with Iphone
Summary: 5 Stars
Seeing as one of the reviewers posted for all the items (always frustrating since its misinformative), I'll enter a fair review on the MK2 version of this Sony clock.
As a previous owner of 2 of the original Sony iphone clock radios and a current owner of the identical looking upgraded versions, I can say that the original (and one thats on big sale on amazon) will have interference with your iphone. It will also tell you upon docking your iphone, that the iphone isnt compatible with teh device. So hello, wake up and realize that sony released a new shielded version (THIS version, teh ICFC1iPMK2) specifically for the iphone. When you dock your iphone on the right version, you dont get an incompatibility error.
You also get none of the GSM buzz found on the previous model.
As for sound, this isnt my klipsche sound dock, but it does a good job. I keep one wherever I may need time, music and ipod charging. As someone who lives next to their cell phone, I love that in the evening I have one less thing on the nightstand when charging my phone. Iphone's been handy charging in my 2 cars, both factory ipod capable too. I'm down with the Iphone :)
The clock is where this unit shines. If you've had a sony dreammachine clock since you were 4 years old, you will appreciate the dual alarms, easy to reach snoozes, easy to set clock and alarm selection. The sound is more than enough for a bed room, although thats only my opinion. If you want a full blown knock your socks off stereo, these shelf units arent going to cut it anyway.
So, this model... 100% Iphone safe. In fact, its the exact model previous except with shielded speakers and iphone recognized approval programmed in. If you buy the cheaper, on-sale model, you'll know you have the wrong one the moment you dock and your iphone warns you!
Customer Review: Overall satisfaction: pretty high.
Summary: 5 Stars
I purchased this little iPod / iPhone compatible clock radio for my lady's birthday after doing a lot of research. Despite the iPhone being a huge hit in the US, it seems like not many of the iPod docks with an alarm capability are compatible with the iPhone. When I stumbled upon this, it was a pleasant surprise.
We have been using it for about a month now, and are very pleased with it. There are two separate alarms that are easy to set, and you can choose to wake up to your iPod/iPhone, the radio, or a classic alarm buzzer. This is awesome because I have to wake up 2 hours later than my fiancé and she appreciates not having to set the alarm forward 2 hours in the morning before she leaves and back 2 when she goes to bed. There's a nice big sleep button in the front middle on the top of the system -- so if you're feeling like sleeping in a bit more it is an easy find while incoherent.
The little remote control takes a bit of getting used to, but it controls basically everything on your iPod which rules.
The only thing I am not super stoked about, being a twenty-something, I want to listen to the music really loud sometimes. The bass on the stereo kind of drowns out the music if you turn it up too loud. So if you want to listen to something that kicks a little more butt than Tchaikovsky (some may argue that he does, in fact kick butt), you have a bit of a restriction of how loud you can turn the device up. I usually just turn the iPod volume down a little bit, and then max it out. Not too shabby.
All in all, I would recommend this.
Customer Review: So Far So Good
Summary: 5 Stars
Like most people, I did my home work before buying this product. As you might know, there are not many choices out there for systems that are compatible with IPhone 3G so it didn't take much time for me to pick this one based on the inputs from several other customers. This product performed as promised. It started charging my IPhone 3G without any glitch, the sound system was great and I loved the fact that I could wake up to different music every day. Several people complained about the powerful clock light illuminating the room during night but that didn't bother us. Infact, this happens to act as a night lamp and the easy time check now and then when you walk up in the middle of the night is very helpful instead of trying to stare at the dark wall clock. The other complaint was it might have the tendency to tip over (or at least felt like it because of the way it looks) but I didn't have that problem either. The full function remote is fantastic along with the scores of other feature like 2 alarms, sleep settings and snooze button. The FM / AM reception wasn't good as I anticipated but that didn't bother me much because we seldom listen to radio at home (more in the car). May be if I am careful with setting up the antenna it might work better. Overall, we love this product and it has become part of our nightly routine of sleeping with music on for a set time of 30 min. I highly recommend it!!!!