Sony XDR-S10HDiP HD Radio with Dock for iPod/iPhone
by Sony
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Our Price: $400.00 Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Category: Network Media Player 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 Sony XDR-S10HDiP HD Radio with Dock for iPod/iPhone
Customer Review: great for the money !
Summary: 5 Stars
Awesome HD radio...the sound is great, especially the surround sound mode. I love this radio...excellent valueCustomer Review: Sony HD radio is Great!
Summary: 5 Stars
Very happy to have this radio. It makes a room full of music with either FM or IPod/IPhone. /JimCustomer Review: Incomparable audio quality (despite undeniable negatives)
Summary: 4 Stars
As someone active in broadcasting music on HD radio, I have opportunities to check in on the somewhat limited (and hardly growing) number of radios capable of receiving HD. The Sony tuner, which is now 5 years old, may still be many HD-minded customers' first choice, especially if they simply want an HD tuner to hook up to an existing audio system.
Between the Sony HD tuner and the pictured XDR-S10, Sony came out with a boxy, wooden HD radio, which has now been supplanted by the XDR-S10 (above). It comes with features lacking on other units, it's frequently available at deep discounts, and it really delivers in terms of sound and sensitivity. I would judge the audio close to, if not comparable with, the audio fidelity from a Bose or Tivoli system, with a Surround Sound feature, easily turned on and off, as an added, desirable and effective feature. Sensitivity on both the AM and FM bands is equal if not superior to every previous radio that I've tried. (Sony supplies an AM antenna as well as 2 FM antennae--one a simple wire and the other a more elaborate conventional dipole.)
As other users have pointed out, the setting up of the radio is not particularly "user-friendly" (it would help if Sony provided a manual with large print and readable instructions instead of jamming everything in small print on a single sheet). Once you've achieved one setting, it has a tendency to revert back to where you started from, not allowing sufficient time to make the next setting. Hopefully, the radio can be set once, then forgotten. Also, with a bit of practice, the alarm system should not prove insurmountable.
Some controls are "dedicated" controls, easily accessible by simply pressing the appropriate button; but a few too many are buried in the menu system (thank goodness the front panel is relatively bright and generous in size).
As other reviewers have pointed out, the "iPod charger" and "iTunes Tagging" system are likely to disappoint some. It must be remembered that Sony is not about to go out of its way to please Apple fans. The iPod dock comes with a single insert (most come with half a dozen), which will have to do for all of your Apple toys (I judged it inadequate for the iPod Touch or iPhone). And I'm insufficiently "inspired" by iTunes tagging to try it out regardless of who offers it. But just in case you have an iPod that you wish to run through Sony's good-sounding unit, an input on the backside of the radio should take care of that need--perhaps better, in most instances, than placing the iPod in the dock (which appears made primarily for an iPod Nano or Classic).
Negatives, preventing a 5-star rating:
1. I thought wall-warts, especially the ones that are the size and weight of a boat anchor, were artifacts of the distant past. Not as far as Sony is concerned. In fact, it's one of the biggest I've ever seen, a real eyesore that you'll just have to hide underneath your bed somehow.
2. There is no output! That omission is admittedly less serious given the outstanding audio quality of the unit, but it's sure to be missed by anyone who relies on their bedside radio for headphone or pillow-speaker use.
3. Finally, it's one of the larger, heavier bedside radios I've seen in a long time. In contrast to the cheap clock-radios that Sony sells at Walmart, this one is a clock radio on steroids, a real Sherman tank.
In sum, this radio is the best HD radio on the market, free of the bugs that have plagued the JBL On Time iHD unit. At the same time, I'm not about to replace the HD radio I already have on my bedstand--an iLuv model--for almost a year now. Many consumers have trashed the model, and granted it does come with some minor--largely cosmetic--drawbacks. But not only does the iLuv not have a "boat anchor power adapter"; it has no power adapter at all! It pulls in the stations I listen to, and the sound is adequate, without the tinny or plastic quality of really cheap speakers. It doesn't have the power of the Sony (the advantage of the boat anchor), but unless you're intent on blowing out the neighbors, it's plenty loud. Above all, it has both an audio input AND output, conveniently located on the front panel. After a couple of days, I had the speaker under my fingers like braille, and it now serves me with requiring scarcely a thought on my part.
I should have mentioned that the Sony comes with a decent remote control, replicating most of the functions that are on the radio itself. The iLuv has no remote--which, frankly, is the last thing I need (my nightstand already has a half dozen or more remotes).
For a while the iLuv was being sold on close-out, getting down toward the 50 range. It's harder to recommend at its current prices, but I'm afraid I'd still have trouble choosing this Sony ahead of it, even though I'll freely acknowledge the Sony is the better built, better sounding radio.
Should it show, here's the iLuv radio page:
http://www.amazon.com/iLuv-Radio-Dual-Alarm-Clock/dp/B0015YMY7W/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=home-garden&qid=1289508278&sr=8-1
Customer Review: Really good product for reasonable price
Summary: 4 Stars
Very happy with the product. We originally bought it for our daughter's small bedroom, but we first plugged it in our kitchen and it looks like it is going to stay there. :)
+ Pretty good sound quality for a product in this sound range. We spent a lot of time comparing this to other sub-$200 products and it fared very well. Most importantly it does not distort the sound and it does not sound tinny, as many systems in this price range do. Compared to high end systems, the sound is a bit more "muffled" and not as crisp, but I find the presentation pleasant.
+ The sound performance is big enough to fill in our spacious kitchen/living room.
+ Good form factor. It is extremely convenient to have this sitting on the kitchen counter and just plug in ipod or turn on the radio when you come back home. Of course, we can do the same with our bigger home system, but that one is stacked away in the cabinet and so we almost never do it... :)
+ Radio reception and HD radio features. This was not a big selling point to me and honestly I did not even know if any stations in the area support it. But they do, the reception is really good and we get station/song info + multiple channels for some stations. You can also "tag" the song playing at the moment and you should later be able to access the list of all tagged songs in iTunes. I will probably never use it, because I mostly listen to NPR and there are very few songs on the radio that I would actually want to purchase, but other people may find it handy.
- Controls could be better. I would definitely prefer to have knobs for volume and tuning, instead of the buttons. The buttons are also small, impossible to find only by touch and difficult to see in the dark. We do not use the remote control. We are usually all around the house and it is just as easy to walk up to the system as it is to the remote control :) Quite frankly, I cannot imagine how one would use the remote to control the iPod anyway, unless your eyesight is 20/20 and you can see the iPod display from 15 feet away.
+/- Price was at the higher end compared to other similar products, but it is still reasonable. And I guess it will only fall over time, so it may actually be very favorable by the time you read this review.
If you are looking for a smaller iPod/radio unit that can sit somewhere in the frequented areas of your house, then I would definitely recommend this product.
Customer Review: Big sound, little machine ... but needs improvement
Summary: 4 Stars
My husband listens to radio bedside, and he said wanted an HD radio after his Sangean began "misbehaving." After a little research, I chose this model for two reasons -- the docking feature and the Sony name. It was a good (but not ideal) choice.
The docking feature means we can charge our iPods & iPhones. But not only that, the Sony unit ends up functioning like an Internet radio because we can stream Pandora through our devices (although there is some degradation of sound quality). This is brilliant. We love this functionality!
The Sony brand name did not disappoint. The device was easy to set-up, and it's easy to use. We were surprised & delighted by the big, beautiful sound that comes from such a small box.
At the current price of less than one-hundred and forty, I didn't think we could go wrong. I was right. It's a good value, especially considering that audio quality far outshines our Grace Internet radio, which cost about one hundred dollars. We only use the Grace for Pandora, and this Sony unit does the same thing and more. So, a great value for us.
But, there are a number of downsides to the unit -
(1) Only 20 radio presets, no setting during HD scanning, and presets that are lost after losing power (even 15 secs.),
(2) A purchased FM antenna was needed to improve reception in our area,
(3) No audio out for head phones (which rendered it useless for its intended use ... bedside at night),
(4) Finicky docking adapters that result in "cannot detect" messages depending on whether the iPhone or iTouch is used (We resorted to removing the plastic and exposing the metal, which was an non-elegant fix to the problem),
(5) Delay when changing/scnning HD stations (a feature of HD radio in general?).
I hope Sony looks at these issues moving forward. Crutchfield is reporting that this model is discontinued; If that is true, I hope a new version is in the works. This machine has the potential to be best in-class ... but right now, it's not.
Overall, the machine still brings a smile to my face every time the radio is on. If you're like us, on you'll be thrilled -- yet slightly disappointed -- with this radio & docking system.
BTW, I'm still on the market for a suitable bedside radio ... one with audio out!