La Crosse Technology WT-2165U Travel Alarm Clock

While I sympathize with other reviewers who find that "atomic" clocks IN GENERAL do not suit their needs, it is grossly unfair to criticize this excellent product based on the fact that ANY "atomic" clock is inappropriate for them. Yes: if you travel outside of the continental United States (and yes, this includes Alaska and Hawaii) then this, or ANY "atomic" clock, will require you to set the time manually. Now that that's out of the way, I'll explain why this is the best travel alarm I've found. (1) I find the self-setting feature to be extremely useful and reliable. If I want to use the clock right away, then I set it once when I install the battery. From then on it keeps the clock set for me (this includes Daylight Saving settings). If I don't need to use the clock right away, then I let it set itself, which sometimes takes overnight to happen, but often happens during the day too. (Note: as with any atomic clock, you do need to specify the time zone that you are in.) This clock...Read more

I first tried this clock in Chicago, my hometown. It could not pick up a signal. I tried putting it in a different window each night, hoping it would get a signal, even put it outside. No luck. I recently took it with me on a trip to Toledo, farther from the signal origination point. I arrived at my hotel about 11:30 p.m., put the battery in and waited an hour. No signal. So I just left it on the windowsill and used the hotel clock that night. When I woke up the next morning, I found that it had picked up a signal sometime during the night. I used it as my alarm clock the next few nights with good results. So I would guess that the tall buildings in Chicago blocked the signal, or there was some other interference. In other words, I will never assume this will pick up a signal while traveling and so must often rely on manual setting.

However, the features are terrific. I particularly like that you can set the length of time for the snooze and that is the main...Read more

I got this clock because I hate clock-radios and I hate the awful beep beep beep of most electric or battery operated clocks. I really miss my old Baby Ben, bought back in the 60s. My boyfriend took it to South America in the Peace Corps and I never saw it again. I replaced it with a newer model, which was made of plastic and was a piece of garbage, and I have muddled through w/ a variety of clocks, none of which I've liked, ever since. This clock has two alarms, and if you set them both, 15 minutes apart w/ a 24 hr snooze function, the second acts as a snooze for the first and I never have to remember to set the alarm again unless I change the time. The back light is not permanently on but is easy to turn on, the alarm itself is not terribly loud (but I'm a light sleeper, so it's plenty loud enough, and it doesn't bother my husband). I don't care about the self-setting aspect, so it doesn't bother me that I have to manually re-set it if I leave the country with it. However,...Read more