Radio Reviews

We had this player for less than a year and the CD Player just stopped working.

I bought this for my wife for Xmas. It was easy to mount...it stays up out of the way and looks great. The cord can be left long or wound short depending on the distance to your receptacle. The sound is much much nicer than the counter top radio she had before. Plus it has many extra features. She rarely uses the CD player, but she has had no issues with it. Oh, did I mention the remote control that is magnatized so it will stay on your fridge or other metal surface. All in all I am very happy with this purchase...and my wife loves me!

This was one of my favorite Mother's Day gifts ever. I love listening to it in the kitchen. I like it so much that I am buying it as a birthday gift for someone else!

MP3 CD Experience: TDK Mojo Owner, Used Sony MP3 Boom Box
Overall Rating:Very Poor (A Lemon) Going Back to the Store!

Features:
Power: Very Good 10 Watts (5 Watts Per channel)
Clock/Timer
Digital Bass Boost
EQ Controls
MP3 Options:Program, File/Folder Mode,Repeat,Intro
18 Page Manual (English)
Appearance (Weird Shape) No On/Off Light, No way to even tell if it's on or off, No MP3 LEDs at all
Sound:Very Good
Speakers:Very Good, Two Way (5Watts per channel)
Interface/Navigation: Very Poor - Buttons and Names Don't make any sense at all, Definitely Not User Friendly
AC Plug didn't want to stay in, very hard to get in
The Remote is pretty Good but controls are strange
MP3 Information:Excellent - MP3 Bit Rate, Name, Artist,Album No Back Lighting

MP3 Playback:Very Poor
Too Many Skips, Searching Delays, and problems reading
Very long delays between songs and directories
This Unit spends more time searching then playing
Extremely long time spent searching, even for the next song
Unit gets very Hot, CD's come out very hot like pancakes
Display:Hard to read
No MP3 Shuffle

Comments:
It Read my 320 Bit MP3's although the manual says only up to 256
The manual says it has problems reading multi-session CD's but It seems to have problems reading the MP3's on most CD's

I can't believe how long this unit takes searching an MP3 CD, even for the next song!
Many times it seems to just freeze while searching
I still can't tell when this thing is off (how about an On/Off LED)
It actually spends more time searching then playing
I wasn't able to play even one CD without any skips or delays

My experience with the Sony Boombox was a much more favorable one.
Problems with Sony:
Very Low power (Less than 2 Watts per Channel) and small One Way speakers. Display of MP3 Info is limited.
The Remote controls nothing on the tape player,which only takes Type 1 tapes.
Too Expensive

Pros:Has a Backlight, Pretty good Cassette Player, Shuffle Mode, Jog Dial, And Much Better MP3 Reading

Pros: Solidly Built, Has great folder, subfolder, file aqusition. Can select a folder and it will only play the songs in that particular folder. (set to file mode and it plays the whole disc) Sound is very good for a portable...has punch and plenty of power for playing outside at picnic or bar-b-que. The remote control is easy to use, as is the buttons on the machine itself.
Cons: Poor radio reception, even in large metropolitan area. Putting discs in is awkward..potential to scratch them if not done carefully...don't let the kids do it. MP3 tracking is fair to poor at best. If your discs aren't burned and finalized at 8x's speed or less expect skips. The display, while great, lacks a backlight..even though most ad's picturing this item appear to have a backlit display. For some reason this unit runs very hot...your discs are quite "warm" when you remove them.
The technology is out there to play mp3's without skipping...why rca didn't put more into their tracking lens with this unit baffles me, since they spared no expense in the materials for the cabinetry.

MP3s are tricky under the best of circumstances and with the most expensive of equipment. I concur wholeheartedly about what has been said here recently about reading directions before putting the knock on an otherwise excellent product like the RCD118. Besides, most people (me included) who buy a portable because it has MP3 do so "just in case" - not unlike how 95% of the people who buy four-wheel drive vehicles end up never taking their vehicle offroad.

The quality is there with this unit in terms of great portable sound - MP3 is a bonus to that, as is the remote control. I haven't heard another unit in its class that sounds better, and many more of the other big brand names that sound (and look!) decidedly inferior.

I brought this radio because it is small and I wanted to use it at work to listen to the radio or my tapes. Needless to say that the door for the radio broke off within a couple of days and the CD player just wouldn't work. I sent it back and got another one but the CD player didn't work on that one either. If I could have given this radio zero stars I would have! Whatever you do, do not buy this boombox.

This CD/AM/FM/Cassette player is getting poor reviews from most consumers; so I have to say....you get what you pay for. If you want an inexpensive CD/RADIO/Cassette; then buy it. If you expect it to last....forget it! I have had experience with Boom Boxes from White-Westinghouse, GPX; which are similar to this one; and they have all been disappointments. They either had poor bass, poor recording quality, or poor radio reception.

BUY IT AT YOUR OWN RISK....BUT KEEP THE RECEIPT! IT is your only hope of returning it.

The CD player on this was execelent and despite what other reports say it was perfedctly clear and the speakers were also good. The volume had a wide range and was good for any occasion.

The digital tuning was definetlt a plus and ALL my favorite stations came in.

Phone receiver volume and clarity was poor. Display screen died after 1 year.

I purchased this item about 18 months ago and I'm not particularly satisfied with it. It's a great idea - a phone and clock radio all in one - a great space saver. Unfortunately, this is not the model to buy. The display screen is at a difficult angle to see unless you raise your head. The controls are not particularly intuitive to use. The worst aspect of the unit, however, is the volume control. It is very imprecise and the volume can't be set low enough without cutting out completely. Don't waste your money....

Excellent clarity on the phone and radio. Has volume control for phone. Volume control on radio/alarm is in a very bad location. Reach over and turn the clock where you can see it and you have inadvertanly turned the volume all the way down. That is a real problem come morning. While this is a first rate phone and radio, I have a problem with having to push so many buttons to set the alarm. To reset the alarm for the next day, you must turn off the alarm and then remember to turn it back on for the next day. Alarm A is radio; alarm B is buzzer.

This is a great looking radio with a small footprint - a nice alternative to the black cubes. But that's it. I had it for less than six months when the CD began stopping and re-starting on its own. Now it just stops. The display is as bright as a night light and can't be adjusted. Now it's basically a $79 piece of sculpture on my nightstand. Soon it will belong to the Goodwill.

The labour warranty is only for 90 days.If you need repairs after the 90 day period the cost of labor is higher than the value of the product. If available purchase an extended warranty.

You'll be sorry if you purchase this clock. I searched the net, & looked at Aiwa's site. They said it had adjustable snooze feature. [Not true!] You're stuck with this thing going off five minutes after you hit the snooze bar. It's very annoying when you're really tired and need that extra rest. Otherwise it has many features... 30 radio station presets; program the order of songs on cd; choice of radio, cd, or buzzer for both (2) alarms. Most important, the alarm volume comes on low and slowly builds so that you aren't shocked out of bed. Aesthetically, it's very attractive machine. The speakers are substandard... definately not Bose quality, but ok for an alarm. The clock display is large & easy to read, and the display isn't so bright that it keeps you up at night.
AIWA... take notice: add programable snooze time and use better speakers... then you can get 5 Stars.

the alarms just do not work on any regular basis, very unreliable and waste of money

But, like several other reviewers have reported, alarm 1 never worked. The 1-second burst of radio was enough to wake a light sleeper like me, but I wasn't about to count on that every day. The huge numbers were nice, but actually not as easy to see from across the room without my contacts as I had hoped. Red or green numbers just seem to be easier to see if the clock is not on the bedside. The overall size and design of this clock radio is good, and I love the independent dual alarms--not always easy to find--but the switches to set them seemed really flimsy and apt to break. If the quality of this clock was better, it would be a great deal.

This alarm clock is fine for most features and I bought it because the blue light was more pleasing than the usual red but the light is sooooo bright (even on it's lowest setting) that I have to put a black hankie over it so I can sleep at night. If you need a night light with your alarm clock this is the one - but if you're just looking for an alarm clock think twice.

i purchased this and in the first week it would no longer play cds. i have no clue why, i never did anything to it. i recomend you find a diferent boom box. VERY DISSAPOINTED!!!!!! :(

I have a library of 35 MP3 discs. 20 worked fine right off the bat. Got 8 more to work after burning over 60 CDs trying to figure out what was wrong.

Memorex support is NON-EXISTENT. Sent detailed email to their support group and never heard back.

Still can't get 7 mp3 CDs to work....ready to give up guessing.
These 7 work fine on portable mp3 player and DVD/mp3 and computer.

The ones that work come up in about 12 seconds ready to play.
Works with 128, 160, 256 kbs

Problems:

- Will not read CD...spins forever until you stop it
- 60 to 120 seconds before ready to play
- Lists wrong number of folders
- List total files greater than actual files, repeats earlier songs 1 or more times later in playback list.

Some fixes were:
- only 23 or less files per folder (fixes total file read problem)
- possible limit on number of folders
- Can't handle long file names (unsure of actual limit)

Any suggestions please email me at: cranekenup@attbi.com

I picked up one of these at a local Good Guys. Within a couple of months the CD (and thus MP3) stopped working. As a cassette player it has eaten multiple tapes (mostly books on tape which always sucks to loose one of a multiple tape set). The radio works fine, but 1 out of 4 functions doesn't even start to redeem this unit. I hope other manufactures take note, because IF the unit worked as it was designed, it would be the perfect small portable stereo. I spotted Amazon carrying this while shopping for it's replacement. I still haven't found one that fits the bill, but if you are looking for something like this, I'd try another brand first.

I have seen three of these and unfortunately owned one. All have what I assume to be a bad laser and all had the "no disc" message flashing. This is an initially pleasing product re: design & sound quality yet is an example of really bad quality control or maybe planned obsolescence that got carried away. I would buy precisely no Sony CD/ laser product unless it had a longer warranty.

I have the Sony CFD E55 boom box. We've had it for a while, and my son uses it to play tapes. When I tried to play a CD I got the NO DISK message. Until I read the other opinions I thought this was an isloated problem. I could not find an authorized service center, and based on the number of negative reviews it is a shame that Sony won't do anything for the owners of this machine, warranty or no warranty. Guranteed that as I look for a replacement it won't be a Sony - I suggest that everyone else do the same. By the way, IF I COULD HAVE GIVEN SONY AND THIS BOOMBOX LESS THAN A ONE I WOULD HAVE.

We got the item 2 months ago and we were very pleased with it. Three days ago I received the message "NO DISC" while trying to play CDs. Any CD will give me this message, there is no such thing like one CD is the source for the problem. Interesting as well is that I went back to fry's to exchange it and there is 0 left on the shelves. I presume that Sony did re-call or if they were all sold many, many are still to complain...i will search for service in my area to take it for repair...what a hassle.

I have seen three of these and unfortunately owned one. All have what I assume to be a bad laser and all had the "no disc" message flashing. This is an initially pleasing product re: design & sound quality yet is an example of really bad quality control or maybe planned obsolescence that got carried away. I would buy precisely no Sony CD/ laser product unless it had a longer warranty.

I have the Sony CFD E55 boom box. We've had it for a while, and my son uses it to play tapes. When I tried to play a CD I got the NO DISK message. Until I read the other opinions I thought this was an isloated problem. I could not find an authorized service center, and based on the number of negative reviews it is a shame that Sony won't do anything for the owners of this machine, warranty or no warranty. Guranteed that as I look for a replacement it won't be a Sony - I suggest that everyone else do the same. By the way, IF I COULD HAVE GIVEN SONY AND THIS BOOMBOX LESS THAN A ONE I WOULD HAVE.

We got the item 2 months ago and we were very pleased with it. Three days ago I received the message "NO DISC" while trying to play CDs. Any CD will give me this message, there is no such thing like one CD is the source for the problem. Interesting as well is that I went back to fry's to exchange it and there is 0 left on the shelves. I presume that Sony did re-call or if they were all sold many, many are still to complain...i will search for service in my area to take it for repair...what a hassle.

I have seen three of these and unfortunately owned one. All have what I assume to be a bad laser and all had the "no disc" message flashing. This is an initially pleasing product re: design & sound quality yet is an example of really bad quality control or maybe planned obsolescence that got carried away. I would buy precisely no Sony CD/ laser product unless it had a longer warranty.

I have the Sony CFD E55 boom box. We've had it for a while, and my son uses it to play tapes. When I tried to play a CD I got the NO DISK message. Until I read the other opinions I thought this was an isloated problem. I could not find an authorized service center, and based on the number of negative reviews it is a shame that Sony won't do anything for the owners of this machine, warranty or no warranty. Guranteed that as I look for a replacement it won't be a Sony - I suggest that everyone else do the same. By the way, IF I COULD HAVE GIVEN SONY AND THIS BOOMBOX LESS THAN A ONE I WOULD HAVE.

We got the item 2 months ago and we were very pleased with it. Three days ago I received the message "NO DISC" while trying to play CDs. Any CD will give me this message, there is no such thing like one CD is the source for the problem. Interesting as well is that I went back to fry's to exchange it and there is 0 left on the shelves. I presume that Sony did re-call or if they were all sold many, many are still to complain...i will search for service in my area to take it for repair...what a hassle.