Sony ICF-C793 AM/FM Clock Radio

This unit is outstanding. Here's why:

- Size. It has a small footprint.

- SEPERATE DISPLAYS FOR THE TWO ALARMS! This is an awesome feature which on its own sold me. I don't have to fumble with buttons to see what the alarm times are. The radio alarm is on the left, the buzzer alarm is on the right. No confusion. When you can see the times, it's set. When the panels are dark, it's off.

- Easy to set using tactile feedback alone. Only three buttons: up, down, and set. The buttons are nestled on little shelves below each of the alarm panels.

- The alarm is plenty loud enough for me and just at the right pitch to make me get up and turn it off!

- The display is clear enough for me and not too bright. I can read it in bed and across the room. I can also tell if the alarms are set even if I can't read the numbers. The alarm panels are orange when lit.

- Perfectly capable digital tuner with 5 presets. Who needs more on a clock radio?

- Easy to find snooze button

-...Read more

You don't think that the design of something as simple as an alarm clock make a big difference, until you use a product like this. Sony has what I consider a huge innovation here: each of the two independent alarms has a display that is separate from the main clock. This means that, with one glance, and without having to push any buttons, you can tell: 1) which alarms are on and off, and 2) what times they are set for.

Another valuable feature is that each of the alarms has separate buttons for setting the alarm time. On clocks where the same buttons change both the main time and the alarm setting, and you have to hold down another button or flick a switch while you adjust the time setting buttons to change the alarm, I always have this nagging feeling that I am by mistake changing the actual time instead of the alarm setting. The independent alarm-setting buttons solve this.

Everything else on this clock radio works fine, and in a pretty normal way. But Sony's commitment to...Read more

As a previous reviewer says, the big feature of this unit is the independent displays of the alarm settings. This is the only clock radio that I've ever seen that has this amazing feature.

BUT... I have a major and minor problem with the display.

The minor problem is that it's too bright, even on the dim setting of the dimmer switch.

The major problem is that the display "disappears" when you look at it from below. Unless you're looking at the unit from above, the time and other display elements fade almost to nothing, leaving just a big, backlit rectangle.

I have tall end tables next to the bed, so the clock is basically useless to me, unless I'm sitting or standing up.

Too bad... because the unit is otherwise excellent.