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CNET editors' rating:
3.5 stars
Very good
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Product summary
The good: Clock radio with built-in iPod dock that allows you to wake to iPod songs or the radio; streamlined design and improved sound versus previous models; line-in/line-out; high contrast LCD display; flexible alarm, sleep, and snooze modes; included remote lets you navigate iPod menu system from afar.
The bad: Bass is still thin; top-mounted iPod could be accidentally swiped while you're reaching for the snooze bar.
The bottom line: With the iH9, iHome Audio continues to improve its popular iPod clock radio while keeping it relatively affordable.
Specifications: Color: White; Device type: Clock radio; Tuner bands: AM/FM; ; See full specs
CNET editors' review
- Reviewed on: 12/10/2007
- Updated on:04/15/2008
- Released on: 12/01/2007
One of the first iPod-ready clock radios to hit the market was the iHome iH5. The no-nonsense design and affordable price tag helped that model make a big splash in the then-nascent market for iPod docks. The company (a brand of SDI Technologies, which also markets similar products under the Timex and Soundesign labels) continued to tweak the design in subsequent years, releasing the all-but-identical iH7 and iH8 models. With the iHome iH9, however, iHome is finally delivering a new look and feel to its iPod clock radio. The new model is available in black (the iH9BR) or white (iH9WR) and costs $100. (The older models remain on the market, and can be found for as little as $80.)
The biggest change you'll notice in the iH9 is that instead of sticking with the black-on-light-blue displays of previous models, SDI has equipped this model with a high-contrast white-on-black LCD readout, which we found slightly easier to read. The rest of the iH9 design retains the core elements of the original iH5--but with just enough of a refresh to make it look more 21st century and less 1960s retrofuturistic.
The buttons on the top of the unit have been streamlined, and--while it's still a small "credit card" model--the included remote has enough buttons to actually be useful. It's worth noting that the iH9's plastic finish is shiny and reflective rather than having a brushed finish like that of the iH8. Overall, the iH9 appears a tad cleaner-looking and sleeker than earlier models, though it's hard to pinpoint why--perhaps its the symmetry of all the circular buttons on top of the unit that complement the iPod's own scroll wheel on its face.
The product ships with "sleeves," or dock adapters, that make all dockable iPods fit snugly and securely in the cradle. When your iPod is in the dock, and the iH9 is plugged in, your iPod will draw power from the clock radio and recharge. You choose songs, playlists, or podcasts with the iPod's scroll wheel, as usual, but hear the audio through the iH9's speakers.
Apple stubbornly continues to omit a radio from the iPod, but the iHome offers AM and FM bands at the touch of a button. We also appreciate the line-in connection on the back of the unit, which allows you to connect other audio devices, including iPod models that aren't dockable. (A 3.5-millimeter patch cord is even included.). A line-out connection also is available for hooking up larger audio systems.
We found setting the dual alarms easy enough (you can choose to wake up to your iPod, the radio, or a buzzer), and--as mentioned above--the display is amply sized and even easier to read than past models. Nice touches include backlight buttons on the radio, the ability to dim the LCD display (there are eight levels of brightness, including "off"), and a well-placed snooze bar.
You can now choose to set an alarm to go off only on weekdays, weekends, or every day, and even wake to a custom playlist. If you're someone who doesn't like the idea of a viciously loud alarm jolting you awake, the iH9 has what SDI calls a "Gradual Wake and Gradual Sleep increase/decrease Alarm/Sleep volume," which offers the potential for a gentler beginning and end to your day. This gradual volume increase also applies to when you turn on the radio--the music starts out faint then gradually builds to the volume you have the iH9 set to. A pair of AA batteries keeps the alarm and radio presets intact during power outages.
Other alarm clock niceties: the sleep setting offers a wide range of times (120, 90, 60, 30, or 15 minutes), and, while active, has a volume control that's independent of the main volume. That means that you can drift off to sleep, listening to the radio (or iPod-based music, podcast, whatever) at a very modest volume, but still have the alarm be loud enough to wake you in the morning. Also, the snooze length can be set to any time between 1 and 29 minutes.
The iH9 offers 12 radio presets--6 each for AM and FM--but does so with only three buttons. Each of the preset keys applies to two presets, depending which band you're listening to (you have to hit the button twice to toggle between the two presets assigned to each button). On the remote, however, there's only a single "presets" button that you simply hit repeatedly to toggle through the stations.
Continue reading- See more CNET content tagged:
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