Timex TO45B Radio Controlled Atomic Alarm Clock (Black)

Comment: I prefer to have clocks that sync up to the radio time signals. This one is small, intended for bedside or other close-by viewing. Numbers are approx 3/4"-tall by 3/8" wide. Clock is aware of North American timezones and DST. Picks up the radio signal at night down in my basement (some of my "atomic" clocks cannot). Nice feature set.

Comment: This clock is a tad bigger than I had been expecting but it still fits nicely on my bedside table. I use it as a backup alarm to my clock radio and so far it's worked well. The alarm is so loud that I've considered taping a bit of cotton over the sound hole in the back. The bedroom is on the north side of the house and the clock doesn't sync from there with big daddy atomic clock in the sky (or wherever it is--Cheboygan? Camden?) but it keeps accurate time without having to sync every day so it's not a big deal. I left it on the dining room table the night of Daylight Savings and it connected properly to big daddy atomic clock and moved itself ahead an hour. I'm deducting one star only because it's not strong enough to sync from my bedroom like the Oregon Scientific clock it replaced and I'm too lazy to take it to the dining room table more than twice a year. Hopefully that will be enough.

Comment: I GOT THIS TO REPLACE AN OLDER TIMEX CLOCK.

1. HAS A PLEASANT AMBER DISPLAY.

2. YES IT IS NOT A WALL CLOCK!

3. ALL CONTROLS ARE EASY TO OPERATE.

4. TAKES TWO AA CELLS, ONE MORE THAN MY OLD CLOCK.

5. BIGGER THAN MY OLD CLOCK.

6. SETS ITSELF TO WWV!

7. ONLY ONE GRIPE. THE ONE AND ONLY SWITCH TO ACTIVATE LIGHT IS NOISY. THERE IS A PRETTY LOUD CLACK WHEN YOU PRESS IT.

ADDED UP THIS IS A NICE CLOCK. I'M GLAD I GOT IT.

Comment: It is very difficult to find a small, portable alarm clock that is completely silent. Most battery operated units have mechanical gears that tick-tock.

This is a nice looking unit, with only a few design flaws. The buttons on the front are awkwardly designed. It only has four buttons, and one of them has the sole purpose of switching between Celsius and Fahrenheit. Functions you need to do more often require you to go into a submenu. But that's a minor quibble.

There is one serious design flaw, though, that will make this unusable for a significant number of people. The atomic clock feature cannot be disabled. So if you live outside the four major American time zones, you are out of luck. If your state doesn't adhere to DST or you live in Alaska, Hawaii, or the territories, this will be a constant problem. You must choose one of the four "continental" time zones. The best we in Alaska can do is choose PST. A few times a week the atomic signal is just strong enough to register and throw the clock off by an hour.

Timex doesn't have a solution. Since I really like this clock, my only option is to open it and see if I can find any sort of internal antennae and clip it off completely. Or maybe I will try to encase it in lead.

Good luck to you.

Comment: The product box says, "Atomic DESKTOP Alarm Clock." And it's a very pleasing desktop clock indeed. Just be aware that its "fat" (deep) configuration (which the photo doesn't reveal) precludes mounting it on a wall. Moreover, there are no wall-mounting holes or bracket. As long as you're fine with all that, you should very much like this product, which (after I inserted two AA batteries) fairly quickly automatically set itself via the "atomic signal" emanating from Colorado. The LCD display's characters are gratifyingly dark (high-contrast) and very legible. It reports the room temperature quite accurately, too.