Jul 222013
Sony ICF-C318 Clock Radio with Dual Alarm (Black)
- No Power, No Problem Alarm System
- Automatic Daylight Savings Time
- Alarm Volume(High/Low)
- Programmable Sleep Timer
This practical clock radio with super big display for easy reading comes with two independent alarms–one for you, one for your partner. Wake to radio or buzzer to start the day on time. The ICF-C318 has a 0.9″ green LED display, which is easily viewable from across the room, but takes up very little space on your nightstand. It hosts a number of features including dual alarm, extendable snooze bar, built-in calendar and full power memory back up.Battery Life (Approx) : Up to 250 Days (with Son
List Price: $ 19.99
Price: $ 13.23
A FANTASTIC LITTLE CLOCK RADIO!,
This is a great little clock! It doesn’t take up much space, but it has features that you would expect to find on a larger, more expensive clock. It is super-easy to operate, too. It has dual alarms – each can have either buzzer/music to wake you up. The radio has a wonderful sound to it. The time display has 3 settings. I’m sensitive to light, and sometimes the lowest setting on some clocks can be too bright. But, on this clock, the lowest setting is just perfect. You get so many features in this clock and you’d think you’d have to pay a lot more money for it, but you don’t!
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Inexpensive & Easy to Use,
So easy to set & price is right. Radio works good too.
2 seperate alarms, radio or beep. Time is correct out of the box – that’s the only “automatic time set” in play here – -1 star for the “automatic time set” which isn’t really… Battery backup built in – not a 9v, aaa or aa…looks like it will last – round, flat battery of some type like a watch battery, only larger.
3 settings for display. The lowest is dim enough not to bother me and the highest is fairly bright – low is tough to see in full daylight..
Good value here IMHO. Would buy again ….
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ICF-C318/BC: simple, intuitive and improved,
This clock radio shares an obvious family resemblance to its highly successful predecessor, the Sony ICF-C218 Automatic Time Set Clock Radio (Black): 90% of the buttons and functions of the earlier version are implemented and placed identically in the newer model. The buttons and their labeling are so intuitive that a manual is hardly needed (but helpful for the Sleep and Time Zone buttons). The ICF-C318 possesses four new buttons, switches and controls and a feature that make it a more desirable model than the earlier one: a 3-level brightness button, a two-level buzzer volume switch, a second alarm mode rotary switch, a second alarm time setting control, and most importantly, the ‘No Power No Problem’ feature means the alarm will still sound even if the AC power is off when the alarm was set to ring. The efficacy of those new contols and feature were assessed.
The brightness control was a feature requested by many users of the ICF-C218 who complained it was too bright in a darkened room. There is no doubt that the display of the newer ICF-C318 can be set to be very dim (thus pleasing insomniacs bothered by the ‘nighlight effect’) but at its brightest setting it is still too dim to be seen clearly in a brightly lit room. The alarm buzzer is not really a buzzer, its a peeper and the two level slide control has little noticeable effect on volume – its just not very loud either way. When ignored the alarm peeps more frequently. If you need a really loud alarm, you will be safer using the radio alarm rather than the buzzer. The rotary switches to set alarm mode (off, buzzer, radio) are improved in that the indicator on the switch is a larger, more visible groove than the the tiny, hard-to-see pit of the earlier model. The alarm time set knobs allow a new time to be set very quickly and easily; they are just a little clunkier looking than the sleek recessed toggle control of the earler model. The ‘No Power No Problem’ feature is the best new feature for this unit that sets it apart from the ICF-C218. I expect my alarm clock to work at a very high level of reliability, a power outage is no excuse for failure of that function. In this regard, the ICF-C318 performs as expected, but the ICF-C218 fails miserably. If the alarm mode is set to radio and the AC power is off when the alarm should ring, the ICF-C318 uses the buzzer (peeper) alarm instead; the buzzer probably drains less energy from the tiny backup battery than the radio.
The radio portion of this clock radio performs adequately. The sound can be quite clear for a strong station but it is obviously not high fidelity. The radio portion of this unit is just gravy – the alarm and clock function are the only real crucial parts to me. It seems to keep good time. I synchronised it with an atomic clock initially and a week later see no difference between the two when they were compared again. Clock time is maintained by a Li wafer battery even when the AC power is off; I don’t know why they didn’t use a more common, cheaper, higher capacity backup battery like an AA. The clock will perform automatic advance and setback of the time for regions that follow daylight savings time. Fortunately, this feature can be disabled for regions like the state of Arizona that do not use DST. By comparison, Emerson clock radios that have ‘SmartSet’ are crippled – DST advance and setback cannot be disabled.
How about aesthetics? In my opinion the earlier version’s (ICF-C218) simpler shape and flat faceplate were snappier looking. The rounded faceplate and rear of the newer ICF-C318 seem less attractive. But its easy to dismiss the skin-deep homeliness when the other good features of the ICF-C318 are considered. The ICF-C318 comes in a white case and a black case version (complete Sony model numbers ICF-C318/WC and ICF-C318/BC respectively). This review applies to both color models because they are functionally identical. Although I don’t normally like white appliances, it is a little bit easier to read the black button labels on the white case than the white button labels on the black case.
It took a while for me to understand that with this clock there is both a manual and an automated way to spring clock time forward for Daylight Saving Time and to ‘fall back’ when Standard Time resumes. These two mechanisms don’t always play nice together and that can lead to confusion. Well, at least it confused me. I should also point out that the instructions that came with the clock just discuss US Time Zones which have designated DST start/stop dates at least until 2015, and spring forward and fall back at 2AM. In other parts of the world, the designated DST dates and times often differ from the US so it is unlikely that the automated DST adjustment of this clock…
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