Philips SA32 4 GB Flash Video MP3 Player with FM Radio and 1.8-Inch Color Screen (Black) Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)First of all, bear in mind that I got this player for $30 in Staples (May 09) so that sweetened the deal for me. And also, I am looking to get a larger unit in the future.
Pros:
1- Nice size player. Small and fits in your hand and pocket.

2- Very responsive when I connect it to my PC.
3- Very fast transfers of files.
4- Good video conversion software. But it converts the files only to an SMV format. Nothing else plays on the unit but .smv. Not mp4 or 3gp. But the software produces a nice product. The video is crisp. Surprisingly so for such a small screen (1.8 inch). I have another mp3 video player made by another company and their conversion software creates a 3gp that is mono and scratchy sounding . But this one converts the avi or wmv in stereo with a decent sound. But that also means the file size is larger.

5- Customer care, so far, has been great.
6- You can create folders for your audio and video files aka playlists. That was a big pro for me. (see below for instructions)
Cons:
1- Not crazy about the ear buds. Large. Kind of triangular shaped so they don't fit comfortably in your ear which also means the sound suffers because of it. Also, the sound only comes out of half the bud, not the entire bud. ??? Anyhow, for now, I press them in when a good part of the song comes around so I can hear it better. (New ear buds are on the horizon for me.)
2- I would have liked a bit more in the equalizer dept. You have preset equalizers (Jazz, Rock, Classical, Rap etc) but they don't sound great. But there also is a "custom" equalizer so you can fiddle around with that but I still haven't gotten a setting I'm happy with.
3- Very small menus and I can't read the song information without glasses.
4- Also no expandable slot so you can't add a memory card to expand storage.
5- Had a problem when watching videos initially. Whenever I would fast forward or pause the video the picture and sound would go off sync. I called custom care and they told me to reset the unit. There is a reset button and, after pressing it with a paper clip end, it fixed the problem. Also I think I did a firmware update for that too. Not sure. But all is working fine now.
How to make your own playlist:
For anyone who also hates Windows Media Player for making playlists, here's how I created my own. Create folders for audio and/or video files on your hard drive and then put your audio and video files in them. Then go to "My Computer" and copy and paste the folders into the "Playlists" folder on the Philips sa32 unit.
Then, to access these folders, when you put your player on, rather than going to the "Music" folder where everything is all jumbled together (individual songs, speech files, album tracks etc), go to the "Folder View" folder and then scroll down to "Playlists" and inside that folder there will be the folders you created with your songs and your videos in them.

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The Philips Go Gear digital audio player features the company's patented FullSound technology, allowing you to have crystal-clear, digital music as it's meant to be heard.
Express Yourself With the press of a button you can sing, dictate, record notes--whatever your heart desires--using the built-in microphone. Your files are recorded in WAV format and available when you want them.
Easy Navigation The full-color, 1.8-inch LCD makes quick work of moving through the hundreds of music, movie, and photo files you can store on the player. Ready for a change? Connect to your computer using the included USB cable and then simply drag and drop your music or data via to your device.
What's in the Box Philips 4 GB Flash Video MP3 Player with FM Radio and 1.8-inch Color Screen; CD-ROM with IFU, device manager, media converter and Windows Media Player; high-definition headphones; quick-start guide; USB cable

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Philips NP2500/37 WiFi Internet Radio Network Music Player with Rhapsody (Black) Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)The entire problem with this player is that it does one thing really well, but has a couple of other features thrown in addition that don't work as advertised.
As a player for Rhapsody, this really rocks. The songs come up quickly, the interface is easy to navigate, and all the songs feature artwork that looks great on the small but crisp LCD. The only downside is that it requires a paid Rhapsody account, although the free month is a nice introduction.
When it comes to internet radio and streaming music as an UPnP device, this player really falls apart. The internet radio functions work well, but the connectivity is very slow compared to the Rhapsody service, and it is unable to display song information from every station. Some stations work, some don't. Also, to find radio stations you are limited to either browsing the menus, or using the number pad to enter the station's name or a serach keyword. The number pad works about as well as using a cell phone without T9, so it is functional but very, very slow.
The UPnP service for streaming music from your home computer never worked for me. I installed the bundled software, updated it from the company's website, but the music never started. I was able to find my music library, even my iTunes playlists, but when I hit "Play," the player just hung forever and never started the music. FYI, I'm running a Macbook Pro with iTunes, and I keep my music on an external network hard drive, so that may have been the issue. A search through the forums of the Twonky Media Player(used for streaming) revealed nothing helpful, and I was unable to resolve it in the time I had to review the item.
As far as the player itself, the design is attractive and should fit well with most home electronics. The screen is bright and clear, and the remote works as well as can be expected. There are no on device controls, so the remote is essential to any use of the player, but I had no problems. It was also easy to connect to the internet, although entering a wireless network password using the number pad was time-consuming.
Bottom line, don't expect it to work seamlessly as a streaming media center from your PC or Mac's music collection. If you want it mainly for internet radio, it works, but is a bit hard to use. Rhapsody works great, but again, it requires a subscription.

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Wirelessly access 10,000+ Internet stations FREE, your music library, and Music On-Demand with a free trial from Rhapsody. Streamium is your Home Jukebox. You can access Internet music from your home country or hometown, by musical genre (rock, pop, news, sports, 80's, etc.). Your digital music is easily accessed by Streamium so you are always connected to music you already own (in addition you can leverage music from multiple PCs/Macs). Finally, you can get music-on-demand with Rhapsody (free trial included). Search thousands of titles and artists for music of your choice or play "name-that-tune" with your friends and family (by preferred genre). This network music player allows you to "free your music" from MP3 players and your computer. With easy setup you can hook-up to your home theater or home audio system so you can experience seamless entertainment with quality you are used to hearing. FullSound is a great feature built-in that brings back high-quality CD sound from your digitally compressed MP3 files. Enjoy album art from your favorite artists (from your PC/Mac, or from Rhapsody) and enjoy radio station logos and pictures that can be shown on your player. A remote allows easy music management from a distance.

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Philips AJ300D Clock Radio with iPod/GoGear Dock Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)Once you get past the fact that Amazon has really misrepresented this item, I can say that it really is a what I needed. Yes, as mentioned by another reviewer, there is NO CD player funtion at all. It would have been fantastic if Philips had designed it with one in mind, but I think it would have killed it's compact size which is why I bought it. There are only 5 presets (not 20 as per Amazon's description and the unit only plays FM, no AM). This is mentioned in the "Technical Details" of the description page, if you click on it. The detail that there is no CD funtion is there, too - very contradictory.
I love the fact that it's small (I can move it from room to room). There are three wake-up modes (FM radio, gentle wake buzzer, and iPod dock). But, the best item would have to be the wOOx technology for powerful bass, on the back of the unit. That sold me on this "Play and Charge" unit, and I love that feature the most. The sound is excellent for the price. You can still connect a portable CD player, VCR or even an iPod Shuffle, through the AUX port and cord supplied. So, it's not a one trick pony.
The clock function is good, with 3 brightness settings (Bright, Low and OFF), and both Sleep and Snooze funtions on the alarm. I found it simple to set the clock and alarm(s). No battery back-up is a negative. Even a simple 9V would be enough to keep presets and radio function if the power went out.
Overall: I like it, I really do.

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Dock your iPod or GoGear player into the compact Philips AJ300D Clock Radio and enjoy powerful bass supported by 12 Watts of total power. The great sound is enhanced by Philips wOOx technology.It is a revolutionary loudspeaker concept that allows you to hear and feel fantastically deep bass. Special speaker drivers work in harmony with the wOOx bass radiator. Precise tuning between the main driver and the tweeter ensures smooth transitions from low-mid to high frequencies. Dual suspension and a symmetrical sandwich construction deliver low and precise base without noticeable distortion. The Philips AJ300D also features a large LCD display, dual alarm, digital AM/FM tuner with 5 presets, and a handy remote control

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Philips DC350 iPhone Docking System with Bluetooth Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)Unlike the other 2 users, I didn't have any problems with the shipping of this product. The original box came inside the Amazon.com box and was in good enough condition. The remote was included (which actually didn't really matter to me too much cause I don't use it).
SPEAKERS:
I bought this product primarily for it's speakers and bluetooth function and they serve quite well, although the speakers aren't wonderful, if you live in a small apartment or have it in a room it is well enough. Not powerful enough to blast music like party speakers though. The sound quality isn't as good as per se a JBL on stage sound system. I wish it had EQ, but it doesn't, but the speakers are good enough, I don't really mind.
BLUETOOTH SPEAKERPHONE:
The bluetooth speakerphone works very well and seamlessly. I never had the trouble that TechGuy experienced with the volume being to quiet. That only happens if you are listening to radio or music WHILE you are on a phone call. If you answer it, it automatically turns off the music (so you can hear the person talking). If you insist to play the music in the background of the call, it is more quiet. I can always however hear the person speaking, it's just the music that is more muted. When I have someone on speakerphone, I usually have them on volume 20 or so, and max volume is 32, so as you can see it's not a problem.
FM RADIO:
This is where I seem to have a tiny bit of problem, and it's probably more where I have placed the speaker and where my apartment is located, but the radio reception isn't particularly great and even moving it around doesn't work that well. It doesn't come with an actual antenna that you can adjust so I guess it's just too bad if you don't have good reception. I'm also not sure if weather affects the reception.
IPHONE DOCK:
Another big reason I bought this was because it has an adjustable size for the iphone dock. I have a pretty thin case on my iphone, but some docks you have to take the case off for it to fit, but this one is adjustable so you can keep the case on. That was a big deal for me as it would be the most annoying thing to do.
All in all I think this is a great unit, especially if you're using it for a small room and also use speakerphone.

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Philips docking entertainment system DC350 plays music from iPhone/iPod and radio. It features a dock for iPhone/iPod to sync music, calendar and to-do lists from PC. Bluetooth receiver allows hands-free mobile call or music streaming.

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Philips DCM250 Docking Entertainment System Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)I received my Philips DCM250 and have been nothing but impressed by this unit. Right out of the box, it's a gorgeous piece. Very sleek and very modern. The scrunched up photograph on the page does it no favors whatsoever, so make sure you look at the larger image. It took me no more than a few minutes to get the unit set up in my bar room and it was off to the races with my iPod.
The sound quality immediately blew me away. This unit sounds fantastic. It's got two large, ported speakers that produce the full spectrum really well. What I really noticed was how much punch the little unit could throw behind bass. It's incredible. It doesn't quit at high volumes either, it fills the largest room of my house with enough sound that it starts to resonate off the walls creating a pseudo-surround effect without any distortion whatsoever.
I chose to navigate to whatever album I wanted to listen to using my iPod wheel and just turning back to what I was doing. You can't really read the iPod screen from far enough away to bother trying to control it's playback with the remote. What the unit does do though that's special is it has full video support. You can plug it directly into your TV via component cables that are included to get a large screen and full video playback.
It has a ton of playback sources. Along with the iPod it has AM/FM radio support that can be boosted with included external antennas, it plays CDs including discs that are loaded with MP3 files and it has an Aux input and a dedicated USB input. I tested the USB input with my Sandisk Sansa Clip and was able to get playback from it also once I played with the USB mode on the Sansa. If you have a device and you want to plug it into this, there's an input for it.
I really recommend this unit. It is easily the finest iPod dock that I have ever touched in this price range.

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Philips iPhone/iPod compatible docking entertainment sytem with built-in CD player.Stylishly designed with a cool metallic finish, the sleek system features smart functions and boasts 30W RMS power for truly dynamic sound

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Philips AmbiSound Home Theater Sound Bar with Integrated 1080p-Upscaling DVD/MP3 Player, HTS8100/37 Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)Always a tricky one when reviewing something which sounds great, but doesnt really do what it says on the tin.
I read a few reviews on the Phillips sound bar and decide to go for it rather than the Yahama, due to its inclusion of an upscaling DVD player being built in.
My house just doesnt lend itself well to placing 5 speakers, particularly rears, so I thought what the heck I'll try this.
The audio quality is excellent, deep bass (not quite sharp enough with movies on normal settings but that can be fixed by tweaking the audion settings and cranking the treble)and a huge array of different pre set movie and audio settings to suit your ear.
But as far as virtual Surround Sound capability goes...there isnt any as far as I can tell. I've tried various DVD's with scenes I know bring in the rear speakers on full systems and there is no distinguishable surround effect.
Disappointing really, although I have to say I still love the overall sound when its cranked up, it really booms out.
So if you want a boost to your TV sound and have a beautiful looking sound bar with built in DVD (and it does look awesome), you cant go far wrong. But if you are thinking you can change the laws of physics and have surround sound without rear speakers, think again, cause this just doesnt work!

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Sometimes the quest for home surround sound is as ignominious as seeking the holy grail. Where do you place all those speakers? Do you have to reshape the room? Philips engineers have tackled that problem. They've managed to take the output from 5 distinct channel amplifiers and placed them in a single speaker called a Soundbar. Within the soundbar, speakers are angled to provide a realistic audio environment that literally emulates sound as if it's coming from all sides. It's 5.1 surround without the mess! In addition to the latest audio technology, the Ambisound system is only five inches thick and can be easily mounted onto a wall underneath an existing Flat-TV. The simple, yet elegant design enhances the décor of any home theater space, regardless of the room layout or design. The center console is designed to be mounted on a wall or resting on a stand. For maximum audio quality and clarity, the Ambisound system features a 3-band equalizer and DoubleBASS deep bass performance, creating a smooth cross over between sounds. The speakers feature soft dome tweeters for increased clarity and clear voice performance and are designed for maximum efficiency for full midrange performance. Additionally, users will enjoy the Smart Surround feature, which automatically ensures correct surround sound settings whether a movie or music is playing. Though not exactly 5.1 channel sound, The HTS8100 uses a host of technologies including array processing, precise driver positioning and psycho-acoustic innovation to achieve the full surround sound performance that is 5.1 channel compatible. Auxiliary input ports Subwoofer Only five-inches thick, the Ambisound SoundBar provides a stylish system with amplifier and a DVD player all in a single sophisticated design Philips advanced Sonowave surround SonoWave surround sound technology is compatible with all 5.1 channel surround-sound sources, such as DVDs, SACDs

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Philips HDD6330 30 GB MP3 Player Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)The Philips HDD line looks sleek and has some cool features, but all of that is wasted when you find out that the battery was factory installed and must be replaced by the factory at a cost of $143.73. Their customer service is neither apologetic or concerned about the cost or retaining a customer.
My advise is to avoid the Philips HDD line like the plague!

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Take a large chunk of your music library with you wherever you go with the nicely compact and incredibly stylish Philips HDD1630 GoGear digital audio player, which has an integrated 30 GB hard drive that can store up to 15,000 MP3 and WMA files (including DRM protected Plays For Sure WMA files from online stores and subscriber services). You can also show off your favorite photos to family and friends on the 2-inch backlit color LCD (220 x 220 pixels, 65 thousand colors, 8 lines of text) with the built-in photo viewer (compatible with JPEG image files). You can choose to see your pictures in thumbnail, full screen or slideshow mode and you can listen to music while browsing through your pictures.
It's easy to find files with Philips' SuperScroll navigation. The double action search keys allow easy speed control when scrolling through large libraries. You can choose to move through your playlist one song at a time or just press and hold down a little harder to scroll more swiftly to your desired track. This GoGear player also features a voice recorder via the mono microphone (files saved in WAV format), an FM tuner (with FM radio recording functionality), 5-band customizable equalizer with numerous presets (including classic, jazz, hip-hop, electronica, lounge, and more), 64 MB buffer memory, and SRS WOW bass enhancement.
It connects to PCs with Windows XP (SP1 and above) via ultra-fast USB 2.0 (not compatible with Mac OS). It's powered by an internal lithium-ion battery that provides up to 17 hours of continuous play when fully charged. It has a 1-hour fast charge time (charging the battery up to a 70 percent capacity), or a 4-hour full charge time.
The PlaysForSure designation ensures compatibility with Windows Media Player 10 and Windows XP. Using the Windows Media player, you can easily manage music on your GoGear digital audio player and auto-synchronize your PC music collection. Also, you'll enjoy the widest online shopping selection by simply looking for the PlaysForSure logo at your choice of online store or subscription service.
What's in the Box Philips HDD6330 30 GB digital audio player, protective rubber pouch, earphones, AC adapter, USB cable, CD-ROM with software and drivers

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Philips GoGear Ariaz 8 GB MP3 Player (Silver) Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)This is actually a review of a GoGear Aria. This is my first MP3 player so all comparisons will be to other kinds of devices.
1) The radio reception is terrific: so much better than any of the other armband-type radios I've had that there's really no comparison.
2) Charges fast with 8 or more hours battery time.
3) Sound with the earbuds that come with it is kind of flat, but I never use earbuds anyway. Sound with my own (I'm currently using JVC hanger-style) is great.
4) Obviously, there's plenty of memory.
5) The "buttons" don't work well, or at all, if the player gets too cold or goes unused for any period of time. This is easily remedied by carrying it close to your skin. This is a fairly minor annoyance and the reason I gave it a 4 star rating.
6) Images on the screen are bright and clear.
7) There is a 4- minute voice recording feature which works quite well.
8) My desktop runs Windows 7, and the two seem to be pretty well synched - I have had no problems getting it going or downloading from my library. Transfers from Overdrive (audiobooks through my local library) is fast and easy.
9) It has no capacity for "bookmarking," although it will resume where you left off; there's no click wheel or any other way to fast forward other than to hold down the FF button, which can get pretty agravating if you need to get half way through a one-hour track which is common with many audiobooks.
Overall, I really like it, use it constantly, and am very satisfied with my purchase.


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Philips GoGear SA2ARA08K Flash Portable Media Player SA2ARA08K/17 Portable Video Players

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Philips AJ3600 Time Projection Clock Radio Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)I just received this clock yesterday and have already fallen in love!
To avoid hitting the snooze or reset button(s) and never waking up, I keep my alarm clock across the room from my bed. This way I wake up enough to get out of bed and walk across the room before I hit any buttons. As my eyes are getting older it has become increasingly more difficult to focus on the clock when I wake up in the middle of the night.
When I decided that a projection clock would solve my problem of focusing on the clock in the middle of the night, I started to look around for one and I was not pleased with what was out there. I did not need nature sounds, nor did I need a light to turn on as part of the alarm. I do not have an MP3 player to dock into my clock, and I do not need a complete weather report when I open my eyes (LOL, I will find that out soon enough when I shlep out of bed and let the dogs outside!). I do not need to know what time the alarm is set (I just like to be reassured that it is on), and I am perfectly capable of pressing a few buttons to set the time all by myslef.
This little guy projects the time and whether or not the alarm is on...the two things that I am most interested in when I open my eyes in the middle of the night. The projection can be moved 180 degrees and the further away you project the time, the larger it is. It has an adjustable backlight on the face so it is not too bright. It has an AM/FM radio with ten station presets, and when the alarm is set to chime instead of the radio, it starts gentle so as not to jar you awake. It does have two alarms, but instead of having a choice of alarm types (chime or radio) Alarm 1 uses the radio and Alarm 2 uses the chime. The chime is a little bit quieter than I am used to, but it woke me up just fine this morning.
So far (after one night) I love this clock, it's a great price, and I would defiantly recommend it!


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Philips Clock Radio with Time Projection that beams the time on any surface - just wake up, open your eyes, and you'll see the time!

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Philips AJ260 Weather Station Clock Radio Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)After reading all the other reviews I wasn't too sure. But reading between the lines I decided to take a chance. I bit the bullet and bought it and so far I am happy I did. I did find one thing I would like changed, one thing I would like enhanced.
The negative and needing changed is that the dual alarms will both sound by the same method. Either both by buzzer or both by radio. I personally like to use one alarm by radio, one by buzzer. That gives me a gentle wake up and then a reminder alert a little later.
To make the clock better, it would be nice if you could dim the weather LED. It is bright, no doubt about it. You can set it so that it only comes on for 10 seconds when you press a button, but I'd still like to see it dimmable.
As far as the other complaints... almost all the bad reviews could be corrected and attributed to user error. If people would RTFM before moaning, life would be easier.
Time resets to central but you live in the west, well read the manual. Not getting the auto time update, RTFM. Weather indicator light stays lit and keeps you up at night, read the manual. Outside temperature sensor giving inaccurate readings, read the flipping manual and mount the sensor in an appropriate place. As far as the sensor only measuring barometric pressure indoors and not outside, well unless you live in a submarine or a minute-man missile silo and use the airlock, the pressure inside and outside your house are the same. Humidity might be different, but pressure is the same, and that is what gives the clock its rudimentary weather predictions. Yes, it is really basic weather predictions, but what do you expect. It's a clock radio, not a meteorologist. Turn on the radio if you want more details.
I'd buy one again, but I would prefer separate buzz/radio selections for each alarm.


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Philips Personal Weather Forecast Clock Radio with wireless outdoor temperature sensor. Start your day right - every day! The compact AJ260 features an atomic clock and graphical weather forecast icons with multi-color light indicators. Your trusty weather forecaster always keeps you punctual. Stylish design with all the functions you need, weather forecast display with graphical animations. Multi-color light weather indicator which displays indoor-outdoor temperature has abuilt-in hygrometer display of the indoor humidity. Convenient digital tuning presets to start the day your way. Dual alarm time, wake up to your favorite radio tune or a buzzer for gentle wake with increasing alarm volume.Digital radio-controlled clock for accurate time settings with large backlit LCD display (bightness controlled) for easier viewing in low light

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Philips MANT940 UHF Digital and Analog Indoor/Outdoor Antenna Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)If you subscribe to satellite or cable you may be surprised to learn that in many area, over-the-air digital TV offers better picture quality and may offer some unique channels not found on your cable system. But getting great over-the-air TV requires a good antenna. Over the years I've tried the following:
-Traditional roof antenna with rotor: Works great but antenna must be turned to get stations in different directions.
-Simple indoor bow-tie or loop antennas: Very cheap to buy, but only pick up the strongest channels. Very prone to interference that can cause picture freezing and break-up.
-Indoor rabbit ears with UHF: a little better than the cheapies, but still difficult to adjust and prone to interference.
-Radio Shack Double Bow-Tie antenna: This one is no longer available, but it is legendary. It looks like a gold screen on legs, with two gold bow-ties mounted in the front. (Very '50's in appearance.) This is a very good indoor UHF antenna (and all the digital/HD channels in my area are UHF.) It provides good, stable reception on most of my local channels, but sometimes has problems with the handful that are in a different direction. It's not a very pretty antenna, but at about $16 it was pretty cheap.
Recently I got a new TV for the bedroom and after looking around, I decided to give the Philips MANT940 a try. It fit my criteria:
-Relatively inexpensive (I paid just under $40).
-Small and unobtrusive
-Can be used indoors or out.
-Got mostly good reviews from consumers in online reviews.
I put the antenna on the top shelf of the bedroom closet. The included 20 cable was plenty long enough to reach the TV.
So far I'm very pleased. This is the best antenna I've used so far. All of my local stations come in clear and stable without making any adjustments to the position of the antenna. I'm even getting a station from the next town over that previously only came in with a broken signal. I'm very pleased and would recommend this antenna to anyone living within 20-to-30 miles from the TV stations they want to receive. I'm not sure how well it would work at greater distances.

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PHILIPS MANT940 AMPLIFIED INDOOR/OUTDOOR ANTENNAINDOOR/OUTDOOR AMPLIFIED; UHF AMPLIFICATION: 18 DB ; CHANNELS: 1469 ; PLUG & PLAY ; INCLUDES Inline AMPLIFIER, 20-FT COAXIAL CABLE & MOUNTING KIT

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Bath Time Boogie F3170 FM Shower Radio with Colour Changing Lights Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)Bought this as a Christmas gift, didn't last once until one of the legs broke off. The sound was of very poor quality as well. It's true you get what you pay for!

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You feel the exhilaration as the hot water hits you revitalizing and awakening you from a good nights sleep, why not awaken all of your senses?With this Bath Time Boogie shower / bath radio you can let your favorite station fill your ears with music and sing right along. This water resistant radio features four suction cups to help it stay in place while you wash. It is Simple to operate thanks to its easy button layout and auto scan. Simply push the scan button and the radio station changes. It's easy enough that you can do it while your eyes are closed, or even full of soap! This radio is also a light which changes color, an easy fun way to ease into your day! This shower radio runs on 4 AA batteries which are not included.

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Philips DC185 Sound Machine with iPod Dock (Black) Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)I say medium because this thing is a little bit bigger than some iPod docking stations I've seen, but it has so much to offer. Great sound quality as far as my ears can tell once you turn DBB on. Comes with a radio which is a bonus for me because I wasn't really looking for one with a radio, but I have used it, and the quality is great and I pick up every station I pick up in my car. Also allows you to have up to six preset stations which is nice if you do use the radio a lot.
It works great with my iPod (80GB Classic), and I'm sure it works fine with any other iPod. One of the things I like is that if you turn the player off, for whatever reason, the next time you turn it on, it takes about 1-2 seconds to load up and starts up exactly where you left off. Heck, it takes me longer to resume my song with the iPod manually than it takes this thing to resume. Also, the buttons on the stereo work great with iPod. Very easy to navigate the menu's with it, though if you have alot of songs it might take a while to get from A to Z, though you can still use your wheel if you need to get that far. Also has buttons that you can use to turn shuffle on/off, as well as turning repeat on/off for the current song, or the current playlist.
Let's see...the volume on this thing can actually get very loud too. I keep it on about 10 when I'm listening to it, and if I put it on 15-20 I can hear it fine in another room...and it goes all the way up to 32, which I haven't even tried yet. I can't imagine how loud it would be. It also has DBB which, to be honest, without it the audio is terrible, but turn it on and it's like a miracle, though it's like that with any stereo with DBB really. Comes with different covers for the dock so you can use it with a Nano, Classic, Touch, or other popular iPod's. Also comes with an auxiliary cable so you can plug in another MP3 player if you don't have an iPod.
Now, one of my favorite features...a USB port. Simply plug in any USB flash drive with music on it and listen away. I have used four different USB flash drives on it so far, one 1GB drive, two 4GB drives, and an 8GB drive. All of them work seamlessly and takes less than a second to load up and play...even if it is filled up with songs. Had 5GB's+ of music on my 8GB drive, and all I did was change the source to USB and the player started playing in less than a second...it's that fast. Using USB also has the ability to turn shuffle on/off, or turn repeat on/off, again for the current playlist (which in this case would be every song on the drive) or for the song currently playing. The auxiliary option obviously doesn't provide these options as you're simply transferring the audio to play out of the speakers, but you can still turn repeat/shuffle on via your device.
All in all, this is a great stereo, with great features. Sound is perfect and loud, and also create's a nice home for my iPod to keep it when I'm not using it, and charge it at the same time. And it's nice to have because before I was having to plug my iPod into my PC and listen to music off my iPod through my computer (using SharePod), and it was getting kind of annoying, so this thing is great for me. Also accepts C batteries so you can carry it with you and listen to your tunes with ease wherever you go. Would make a great portable player if you want to go outside by the pool, go to the park, or something similar...even has a nice handle.
It's true, what the other reviewer said, the plastic probably isn't the best in the world, but as long as you aren't throwing it off balconies it really shouldn't break. Really, I think any stereo that you drop is probably going to be a bad thing...not just this one. And I've actually knocked it over twice now, with my iPod inside, and it kept playing and wasn't damaged at all...and it kept the cover closed with my iPod secured inside, so I'm glad about that.
Also plan on taking some pictures and adding them later so check for those.

Click Here to see more reviews about: Philips DC185 Sound Machine with iPod Dock (Black)

Enjoy your favorite music no matter where you're headed with the Philips DC185. With two channels of 2W sound, USB direct support, and a universal iPod dock, it's sure to liven up your party or picnic. Take it with you or just take in the sound at home.

Play and Charge Your iPod The DC185 features a universal iPod dock for playing and charging your iPod. Your iPod keeps charging even as it plays, so when it's time to grab it and go, it'll be ready.
USB Direct for MP3/WMA Music Playback With the USB Direct mode, you can simply insert a USB device with your favorite WMA or MP3 files and enjoy hours of music.
Take it Anywhere While you're at home, use the DC185's AC adapter. On the go, just pop in six C batteries (not included) and head out the door.
Digital FM Radio When you need to tune into the news or a favorite radio show, just switch to the DC185's FM radio. Add your favorite stations to the 20 presets for quick access.
Auxiliary Input The DC185 also features a 3.5-mm auxiliary input for connecting external devices like MP3 players.
Dynamic Bass Boost for Deep and Dramatic Sound Dynamic Bass Boost maximizes your music enjoyment by emphasizing the bass content of the music throughout the range of volume settings--from low to high--at the touch of a button. Bottom-end bass frequencies usually get lost when the volume is set at a low level. To counteract this, Dynamic Bass Boost can be switched on to boost bass levels, so you can enjoy consistent sound even when you turn down the volume.
What's in the Box Philips DC185, AC Power Cord, 3.5-mm stereo line-in cable, User Manual, Warranty certificate

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Philips GoGear Vibe 4 GB MP3 Player (Black) Review

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(More customer reviews)The very first portable MP3 players were introduced in 1998 but didn't really catch on en masse until Apple released the iPod in late 2001. Apple chose to use their own audio compression (AAC), which had better sound quality than MP3. Apple's iPods are ubiquitous now with portable music players but believe it or not, there are other music players that offer features equal to those of or better than the iPod. Philips offers the GoGear ViBE as an alternative to the iPod nano by appealing to one very important consideration: value.
PROS:
- Very good value
- Good user interface
- Good sound quality
- Good battery life
- Supports MP3, WMA, and FLAC formats
- Firmware upgradeable
- Decent FM reception
CONS:
- FullSound "feature" is a gimmick
- Songbird application is weak
- Cannot update firmware without Songbird
- Terrible 90-day warranty
- Earbuds are awful
Back in 1998, I bought the Diamond Rio PMP300, which is often incorrectly credited with being the first MP3 player ever made (it was the 2nd), for about $200. It only had 32MB of space and used a parallel port cable to transfer music. I had been using l3enc, a command line encoder, a few years earlier to compress my CDs and listen to them on my PC. Having a portable was a godsend. Fast forward 12 years and wowie zowie! I myself have never owned an Apple iPod. I never found it to do anything much better than the plethora of other music players available and was typically far more expensive while relying on proprietary cables. The Philips GoGear ViBE is one of those other players that does just about everything an iPod can do at an MSRP Steve Jobs would fire an Apple employee for even suggesting.
SOUND QUALITY
I personally found the sound quality of the GoGear ViBE to be very good. It's signal-to-noise ratio is very good compared to that of other high quality music players. I did an A-B comparison with a SanDisk Sansa CLIP+ player. The CLIP+ is considered by many audiophiles to have one of the best audio chips in a portable music player so it made an ideal measuring stick for the ViBE. I used several FLAC files as well as Lame VBR extreme files for my comparison. I also used an Etymotic hf5 audiophile earphone and tossed the terrible included earbuds. I have to honestly say that the differences were very subtle. While I personally still preferred the SanDisk's sound quality overall, the Philips GoGear was no slouch. However, the FullSound feature really is a gimmick. It's essentially just another EQ preset to me and it really boosted the lows but caused undesirable distortion in the mids and highs. You are better off using the included 5 band equalizer and setting your own custom setting or leaving it flat, which is my preference. If lazy, you can also select one of several presets available as well. I also really liked the volume limit feature because it will help me keep it at safe level for my kids when they use it.
USABILITY/SCREEN
I found the interface of the ViBE to be very easy to use and the sceen was easy to read. The navigation controls are on the front of the player. It simulates a typical d-pad style layout though the directional buttons took a few tries to get used to. Additionally, there are two buttons just below the screen. One of those buttons is a return button while the other provides options depending on which feature of the player you are currently using. The volume up/down buttons are on the top of the player and aren't as easy to press. I probably would've preferred a volume dial at that location. There are no buttons on either side of the player. The bottom of the player has the USB and headphone ports along with the power/lock switch and mic. I found no issues with the headphone port as reported by another reviewer. My earphones and the included earbuds plugged in firmly and stayed in. Twisting the connector around in the jack did not cause any static whatsoever. The 1.5" screen is easy to read and you have 3 color-based theme choices. Though the demo video and photos looked pretty nice and could double as a photo/video viewer in a pinch, it is really too small for regular use and more trouble than it's worth, especially for video. One thing I didn't like too much about the screen was how it uses album art as the background while playing songs. Some album art didn't make great backgrounds because it sometimes made the text (song title, album, artist, time, etc.) difficult to read.
FM TUNER
I rarely have had good luck with FM tuners that were built-in to my devices so I was pleasantly surprised when the GoGear ViBE actually got good reception. It pulled in stations better than my SanDisk Sansa CLIP+. It also supports RDS, which can display information like the station ID, song title, and artists. You're allowed 20 presets and the autotune feature worked pretty well and it scanned all the frequencies before selecting the 20 strongest.
CHARGING/BATTERY LIFE
The battery life indicator was at 2 out of 4 bars when I first turned it on. I plugged it into my PC using the 6 inch or so mini-USB cable and it took another couple of hours to reach a full charge. I actually preferred the small USB cable because I happen to have a box full of longer mini-USB cables from a variety of other devices I own including digital cameras and Blackberries. Unfortunately, you are limited to charging only via a powered USB port from a computer as no AC adapter is included. This could be a problem if you decide to travel with the GoGear ViBE without a laptop but there are a lot of universal USB chargers available these days. I myself can just take my old Blackberry charger along, should the need arise. The rated battery life is 24 hours of audio but that is probably with all the battery saving features set at aggressive levels. It's also likely that certain audio codecs like FLAC will also drain more power. If I can get 75% of the rated life (18hrs) then I'll be very happy. One neat battery save feature is to have the screen shut off after a period of time but you can choose to display the date and time. I've only seen this work with the music player. In FM mode, the screen just blanks out.
AUDIOBOOK
I'm not an experienced audiobook listener, but decided to get Dan Brown's The Lost Symbol since I hadn't gotten to reading the physical book. After ripping the discs, I loaded them onto the GoGear ViBE and Dan Brown showed up as an artist and The Lost Symbol as an album. I selected play all and it began playing the files in order. I paused the audio and turned the player off and turned it back on to find that the player had remembered the point I had paused it. I may have found myself a new way of catching up on my reading :)
SOFTWARE/FIRMWARE
The GoGear ViBE comes with a custom copy of Songbird. I tried to install it on my Windows 7 Ultimate 64-bit computer and it gave me an error message that some features may not work correctly in my version of Windows. Come on Philips. There is no reason not to have full 32-bit and 64-bit support. It installed fine however, and I was able to add my music to the player and use it to transfer music to the GoGear ViBE. Firmware updates are performed from within the customized version of Songbird as well. I downloaded a more current version of Songbird but the non-customized version did not have the option for updating the firmware and there is no way I know of to update it without using the included version. Boo Philips! The firmware version on my player was v1.33 and when I checked for updates, was told that was the most current. I don't care for Songbird so I chose to use Winamp. The only problem with using Winamp was that it copied the music into the root directory of the player rather than straight into the "Music" folder.
CONCLUSION
The Philips GoGear ViBE 8GB MP3 Player is a very good player with lots of good and useful features. I found the sound quality to be good and the player very easy to use. It's unfortunate that Philips only provides an anemic 90-day warranty, but at least the build quality appears solid. It is a good value. If you don't need the large screen for viewing album art, photos and video, I highly recommend the SanDisk Sansa CLIP+ instead because of better overall sound, smaller size, and expansion capabilities. The GoGear ViBE is not the cheapest 8GB MP3 player you can buy, but it certainly offers a very appealing feature set for the money and I have no qualms about recommending it.

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The GoGear Vibe hits the perfect note with its compact yet tough-bodied design, FullSoundTM and comfortable earphones. With features like Philips Songbird, enjoy a great entertainment experience.

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Philips DCM276/37 Docking Entertainment System for iPod (Black) Review

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(More customer reviews)Good sound, would like it a bit more powerful but solid all in all. The ipod dock and usb input work well but as mentioned in the previous review did not show ipod display on the Philips lcd screen! All the inputs work great and charge ipod. Light weight, very durable, easy set up for wall mount hang. I have it in my garage hanging for work outs. If your looking for a solid sound, durable easy to use with your ipod mini system, this is it!

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Philips Docking Entertainment System for iPod (Black)

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Philips DC1010 CD Sound Machine with iPod Dock (Black) Review

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(More customer reviews)There are no other reviews for this "sound machine" yet, so I thought I would share my experience. I wanted a portable speaker unit with a CD player for my ipod, since I use both CDs and my ipod for my work.
This "sound machine" does have the ipod dock, CD player and AM/FM radio. It also has a bass-boost button (which sounds like it "boosts" the bass a little).
It also has a decent volume level.
First problem, this ipod dock did NOT come with the adapter for the most recent Nano (4th generation). Therefore, the Nano just kind of looks silly sitting in the large opening in the front of the player. Because of this fact, I was concerned that it would be easy to bump the Nano around and potentially cause damage to the connector. (I do not know if this can actually happen, I am just assuming that it could, since the Nano does not appear to be properly secured.)
Secondly, the sound quality is only fair. It sounds tinny (if that's a word) and almost a bit fuzzy, like a radio station that's not perfectly tuned-in(that's the best way I can describe it). It's not static, but it was noticeable enough that I instinctivly rechecked my power cord connection and ipod placement.
I have a less expensive, but comparable CD player (without ipod dock) that has MUCH better and clearer sound than this.
No, the price of this player/ipod dock is not high, I still expected a bit more.
Third, the "sound machine" just looks cheap. It's just the first impression I got when I opened the box. Again, my cheaper CD player looks nicer and sturdier than this one.
We are sending our machine back and have decided that, for this price, maybe we will just buy a dock/speakers without the additional CD player.
Good luck, maybe I am just super picky.

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iPods haven't killed the boombox--with Philips' DC1010, you can play your music from your iPod and CDs loud and proud. This slick docking entertainment system boasts a full-range speaker system enhanced with powerful Dynamic Bass Boost for a rich and clear sound experience--perfect for pumping up the volume wherever you go.

Take it Anywhere While you're at home, use the DC1010's AC adapter. On the go, just pop in six C batteries (not included) and head to the spot with your tunes in tow.
Play and Charge Your iPod The DC1010 features a universal iPod dock for playing and charging your iPod, slapped right between the speakers on the unit's face. Your iPod keeps charging while it plays, so when it's time to throw it in your pocket, it'll have plenty of juice.
Play Your Favorite CDs Not all of us have ripped our entire music collection to our hard drive just yet. The DC1010's top-loading CD player has you covered, and also will play CD-Rs. You also can program a CD to play in a particular order, even repeating certain tracks.
AM/FM Radio When you need to tune into the news or a favorite radio show, just pull out the antenna and switch to the DC1010's radio.
Dynamic Bass Boost for Deep and Dramatic Sound In conjunction with the DC1010's immersive full-range speakers, Dynamic Bass Boost maximizes your music enjoyment by emphasizing the bass content of the music throughout the range of volume settings--from low to high--at the touch of a button. Bottom-end bass frequencies usually get lost when the volume is set at a low level. To counteract this, Dynamic Bass Boost can be switched on to boost bass levels, so you can enjoy consistent sound even when you turn down the volume.
Auxiliary Input The DC1010 also features a 3.5-mm auxiliary input for connecting external devices like MP3 players.
What's in the Box Philips DC1010, AC Power Lead, User manual, Warranty certificate

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Philips USA AJL308 Clock Radio with 7-Inch TFT LCD Color Display and USB/SD Card Slot Review

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(More customer reviews)There is a lot to love about this product. It's sleek. It's stylish. It's bright, bold and clear. (It can be dimmed!) It's a clock-radio with two independent alarms that also plays audio files (.mp3 and .wma), video (mpeg4 and divx codices) and photo slide shows (.jpg only). It has built-in "relaxation" sounds to help you fall asleep. It has so much going for it! And just when you think it can't get any better...
It doesn't get better. It slips a little. You start thinking to yourself, "If only..." and "Why didn't they just take the next step?" Why isn't there a tiny bit of built-in memory so that I don't need a SD card or USB stick to be attached to change the cute-but-becoming-annoying default photo? Why can't I select an audio file on the SD or USB as my alarm music? Why only three built-in sounds for the "relaxation" music? Why isn't there an AM tuner? Why isn't there a headphone jack? Why can I only display JPEG-format images? For a widescreen 7" LCD picture frame, why is the resolution only 480 x 234? Why isn't there a back-up battery?
This is such a near-perfect little gadget that it's painful to see how close Philips came to making the best device on the market. Yet despite these flaws, it is still so wonderful that it demands four stars. Lucky for Philips, there don't seem to be any viable alternatives with all of the features it does have at this price point... yet.
And regarding the day-of-the-week issue: Philips posted a firmware update on their Web site on September 14, 2007, that fixes this issue. Visit the Philips Web site, type in "AJL308" to find the product page, select the Support link tab (just above and to the right of the product image), and scroll down to the Software section. There is a PDF read-me file and a ZIP file with the actual firmware update. Read the PDF and carefully follow its directions to update the firmware. You'll need a USB drive to transfer the firmware update to your AJL308, and it takes several minutes to complete the update, but once it's done the day of the week should be correct.

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Start the day right with the Philips AJL308 Clock Radio, where you can wake up to the 7-inch color showing off your favorite photo, song, or video. In addition to clock, radio and calendar functions, you can even use pre-loaded relaxation music that will help you fall asleep. Built-in USB and SD card slots let you store all of your photos, music and video clips. You can enjoy music or radio channels with FM digital auto tuning and presets. Set dual alarm times and wake up gently with the increasing alarm volume.

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