My present device is now approaching 20 years old, and I am
wondering about getting one which does its tuning using something
more sophisticated than the traditional knob and length of
string.

As ever, my life on the edge of the bell curve seems to mean that
designers have priorities different from mine.

Amongst the desirable attributes I wish to retain a

Large clear LED digits easily read by the short-sighted,
permanently illuminated (no need to reach out and tap anything),
also displayed when the radio is on, but not so bright that they
light the whole bedroom.

At least two easily selectable alarms.

Radio when used as alarm to be the same volume as when last
listened, which can be set as low as I want.

Control buttons easily located and operated without my head
leaving the pillow, ideally on the front.

Sleep timer with adjustable duration.

Mains operated, with automatic clock synchronisation.

Setting not requiring navigation through lengthy menus.

I guess for future-proofing DAB should be included.

Reading reviews, many seem to fail on several of my requirements.

Any suggestions?

Chris
--
Chris J Dixon Nottingham
'48/33 M B+ G++ A L(-) I S-- CH0(--)(p) Ar- T+ H0 ?Q

Plant amazing Acers.

It even has DRM!

http://amzn.to/2hPfDXS

"Chris J Dixon" wrote in message
...
My present device is now approaching 20 years old, and I am
wondering about getting one which does its tuning using something
more sophisticated than the traditional knob and length of
string.

As ever, my life on the edge of the bell curve seems to mean that
designers have priorities different from mine.

Amongst the desirable attributes I wish to retain a

Large clear LED digits easily read by the short-sighted,
permanently illuminated (no need to reach out and tap anything),
also displayed when the radio is on, but not so bright that they
light the whole bedroom.

At least two easily selectable alarms.

Radio when used as alarm to be the same volume as when last
listened, which can be set as low as I want.

Control buttons easily located and operated without my head
leaving the pillow, ideally on the front.

Sleep timer with adjustable duration.

Mains operated, with automatic clock synchronisation.

Setting not requiring navigation through lengthy menus.

I guess for future-proofing DAB should be included.

Reading reviews, many seem to fail on several of my requirements.

Any suggestions?


Have a look at some of the own brand from John Lewis - they will meet
most of your needs, just be careful about illumination levels and
space needed behind for power connection.
The Sony 'cube' is quite good but make sure to get the more expensive
version that has two alarms and digital (as against analogue) tuning.
I bought a Pure Sienna Mk2 which on the face of it was a good radio
but had to return it as - like most Pure radios - it seems to have a
very limited HF cut-off and so sounds unnaturally muffled.
Roberts do a quite nice unit with large digits and a curved front but
at £70 it is expensive.
We faced the problem of not being able to see the clock at night so I
bought a clock radio of Sainsburys own brand (£13) which has red LED
digits about 2.5" high and put it on the other side of the room just
as a clock. Surprisingly the digits are not too bright and it is
very easy to read.
Most importantly look for a unit with a comparatively large speaker -
some are less than 2" across and distirt easily.

I would suggest that as you live in Nottingham, Jessops would be a
good browsing point.


--
Woody

harrogate3 at ntlworld dot com

On 04/01/17 09:03, Chris J Dixon wrote:
My present device is now approaching 20 years old, and I am
wondering about getting one which does its tuning using something
more sophisticated than the traditional knob and length of
string.

As ever, my life on the edge of the bell curve seems to mean that
designers have priorities different from mine.

Amongst the desirable attributes I wish to retain a

Large clear LED digits easily read by the short-sighted,
permanently illuminated (no need to reach out and tap anything),
also displayed when the radio is on, but not so bright that they
light the whole bedroom.

At least two easily selectable alarms.

Radio when used as alarm to be the same volume as when last
listened, which can be set as low as I want.

Control buttons easily located and operated without my head
leaving the pillow, ideally on the front.

Sleep timer with adjustable duration.

Mains operated, with automatic clock synchronisation.

Setting not requiring navigation through lengthy menus.

I guess for future-proofing DAB should be included.

Reading reviews, many seem to fail on several of my requirements.

Any suggestions?

Gut an old clock radio and build in all your required functionality with
a Raspberry Pi.

Been one of my 'tuit projects for years ...
--
Adrian C

In message , Chris J Dixon
writes
Any suggestions?

As a regular browser of the remainder areas of Aldi, I am very happy
with the projection alarm clock that I got there. It projects onto the
wall just as a clock and the only possible problem is that it isn't
visible during sun-streaming days. It sets itself when the clocks
change.

I use this in combination with various tablets and mobile phones,
usually leaving them playing radio from around the world, and using the
very flexible and easy to set alarms. Often I leave the radio playing
while I sleep and set the alarm to wake me on the Blackberry Playbook,
but both the Windows 8 and cheapo Android 6 phones have flexible alarms
and adequate audio quality.

I always found clock radios a nightmare to set to different alarm times
and for summertime etc.
--
Bill

On Wed, 04 Jan 2017 09:03:03 +0000, Chris J Dixon
wrote:

My present device is now approaching 20 years old, and I am
wondering about getting one which does its tuning using something
more sophisticated than the traditional knob and length of
string.

Hehe. Funnily we were / are looking at replacing our ~30 year old
Binatone Telephone [1] / LED alarm clock / radio (complete with string
g) but haven't seen anything suitable (but not looked that hard).

Considering it was probably cheap (Binatone) I'm amazed it has lasted
so well!

As ever, my life on the edge of the bell curve seems to mean that
designers have priorities different from mine.

The biggest issue I've founds is that they don't seem to take as much
care to make the UI as good as it was in the 'old days'. Easy to find
in the dark analogue knobs and chunky switches may not look 'swish'
(and be expensive to build) but there were / are very easy to use. Now
everything is based on a microprocessor of some sort, all the controls
tend to be Up / Down pushbuttons (with or without a screen and menu)
which whilst being cheap and flexible, aren't generally so easy to
use.

Amongst the desirable attributes I wish to retain a

Large clear LED digits easily read by the short-sighted,
permanently illuminated (no need to reach out and tap anything),
also displayed when the radio is on, but not so bright that they
light the whole bedroom.

(As per our Binatone)

At least two easily selectable alarms.

(As per our Binatone)

Radio when used as alarm to be the same volume as when last
listened, which can be set as low as I want.

(As per our Binatone)

Control buttons easily located and operated without my head
leaving the pillow, ideally on the front.

(As on our Binatone)

Sleep timer with adjustable duration.

Sleep timer but no adjustment.

Mains operated, with automatic clock synchronisation.

The Binatone is mains powered and clocked synched to the AC (if that's
what you meant)?

Setting not requiring navigation through lengthy menus.

(As on our Binatone)

I guess for future-proofing DAB should be included.

I've not really used DAB much as most of our radios are still AM/FM
but for the Alarm clock / radio the radio just needs to output a radio
station of some sort to be better than the built in buzzer (although
if the string gets moved all you get is a buzzer or white noise
anyway). ;-)

Reading reviews, many seem to fail on several of my requirements.

Again, we have not looked hard but those we have seen when browsing
generally seem to fail on some basic point pretty quickly.

Any suggestions?

Sorry no, but I'll be interested to see how you get on. ;-)

Cheers, T i m

[1] Pushbutton phone but only LD. ;-)

"Simon Mason" wrote in message
...
It even has DRM!

http://amzn.to/2hPfDXS

I suspect that fails the "easily read at night" test

tim

"Bill" wrote in message
...
In message , Chris J Dixon
writes
Any suggestions?

As a regular browser of the remainder areas of Aldi, I am very happy with
the projection alarm clock that I got there. It projects onto the wall
just as a clock and the only possible problem is that it isn't visible
during sun-streaming days. It sets itself when the clocks change.

I use this in combination with various tablets and mobile phones, usually
leaving them playing radio from around the world, and using the very
flexible and easy to set alarms. Often I leave the radio playing while I
sleep and set the alarm to wake me on the Blackberry Playbook, but both
the Windows 8 and cheapo Android 6 phones have flexible alarms and
adequate audio quality.

I always found clock radios a nightmare to set to different alarm times
and for summertime etc.

I found this one quite good ~30 years back -
https://c1.staticflickr.com/9/8449/7...3c1f395f_b.jpg
All controls on the front so I built it into a headboard.

In article ,
Chris J Dixon wrote:
Amongst the desirable attributes I wish to retain a

Large clear LED digits easily read by the short-sighted,
permanently illuminated (no need to reach out and tap anything),
also displayed when the radio is on, but not so bright that they
light the whole bedroom.

At least two easily selectable alarms.

Radio when used as alarm to be the same volume as when last
listened, which can be set as low as I want.

Control buttons easily located and operated without my head
leaving the pillow, ideally on the front.

Sleep timer with adjustable duration.

Mains operated, with automatic clock synchronisation.

If you find one, let me know. The problem here was finding one with a
large enough display for me to read easily without glasses. Really needs
to be about 2" high. Which I did once have - but that failed beyond
repair.

All I could find after much searching was an alarm only, which I modified
to switch on the sound system in the bedroom. It is mains locked, so at
least keeps to time on average. A radio controlled one would be better so
you don't need to set it when the hour changes.

Only thing it lacks in practice is a sleep timer.

--
*The fact that no one understands you doesn't mean you're an artist

Dave Plowman London SW
To e-mail, change noise into sound.

On 04/01/2017 09:03, Chris J Dixon wrote:
My present device is now approaching 20 years old, and I am
wondering about getting one which does its tuning using something
more sophisticated than the traditional knob and length of
string.

Push button tuning was fairly common even 20 years ago.

As ever, my life on the edge of the bell curve seems to mean that
designers have priorities different from mine.

Amongst the desirable attributes I wish to retain a

Large clear LED digits easily read by the short-sighted,
permanently illuminated (no need to reach out and tap anything),
also displayed when the radio is on, but not so bright that they
light the whole bedroom.

At least two easily selectable alarms.

Radio when used as alarm to be the same volume as when last
listened, which can be set as low as I want.

Control buttons easily located and operated without my head
leaving the pillow, ideally on the front.

Usually on the top.


Sleep timer with adjustable duration.

Mains operated, with automatic clock synchronisation.

DAB does this automagically (on a good day) signal permitting.

Setting not requiring navigation through lengthy menus.

That is the one you will probably struggle with when setting one up.
Most consumer goods GUIs these days are a tangle of random menus that
made sense to the guy who designed it but no-one else.

I guess for future-proofing DAB should be included.

Reading reviews, many seem to fail on several of my requirements.

Any suggestions?

If cost is no object Pure have one that should be ok

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Pure-Siesta...dp/B016L0RWYE/

Avoid Roberts ones - over priced under performing and sound like the
small box they are in with a peg on nose Brummy accent announcers.

--
Regards,
Martin Brown

In article ,
Martin Brown wrote:
On 04/01/2017 09:03, Chris J Dixon wrote:
My present device is now approaching 20 years old, and I am
wondering about getting one which does its tuning using something
more sophisticated than the traditional knob and length of
string.

Push button tuning was fairly common even 20 years ago.

As ever, my life on the edge of the bell curve seems to mean that
designers have priorities different from mine.

Amongst the desirable attributes I wish to retain a

Large clear LED digits easily read by the short-sighted,
permanently illuminated (no need to reach out and tap anything),
also displayed when the radio is on, but not so bright that they
light the whole bedroom.

At least two easily selectable alarms.

Radio when used as alarm to be the same volume as when last
listened, which can be set as low as I want.

Control buttons easily located and operated without my head
leaving the pillow, ideally on the front.

Usually on the top.


Sleep timer with adjustable duration.

Mains operated, with automatic clock synchronisation.

DAB does this automagically (on a good day) signal permitting.

Setting not requiring navigation through lengthy menus.

That is the one you will probably struggle with when setting one up.
Most consumer goods GUIs these days are a tangle of random menus that
made sense to the guy who designed it but no-one else.

I guess for future-proofing DAB should be included.

Reading reviews, many seem to fail on several of my requirements.

Any suggestions?

If cost is no object Pure have one that should be ok

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Pure-Siesta...dp/B016L0RWYE/

Avoid Roberts ones - over priced under performing and sound like the
small box they are in with a peg on nose Brummy accent announcers.

Try Revo - another UK firm - they sell factory reconditioned ones on ebay,
too.

--
from KT24 in Surrey, England

On 2017-01-04 09:03, Chris J Dixon wrote:
My present device is now approaching 20 years old, and I am
wondering about getting one which does its tuning using something
more sophisticated than the traditional knob and length of
string.

As ever, my life on the edge of the bell curve seems to mean that
designers have priorities different from mine.

Amongst the desirable attributes I wish to retain a

Large clear LED digits easily read by the short-sighted,
permanently illuminated (no need to reach out and tap anything),
also displayed when the radio is on, but not so bright that they
light the whole bedroom.

At least two easily selectable alarms.

Radio when used as alarm to be the same volume as when last
listened, which can be set as low as I want.

Control buttons easily located and operated without my head
leaving the pillow, ideally on the front.

Sleep timer with adjustable duration.

Mains operated, with automatic clock synchronisation.

Setting not requiring navigation through lengthy menus.

I guess for future-proofing DAB should be included.

Reading reviews, many seem to fail on several of my requirements.

Any suggestions?

Chris


I have been through a very similar experience. The problem appears to be
that the control boards (?) that support DAB or even digital FM tuning
are designed to have LCD displays. So if you want an LED display you
struggle to get "digital" features..

Nowadays, I have a LED clock and use an old phone with a blue-tooth
speaker and run the BBC radio app (it has an alarm).

However, I recently bought a new clock radio and it may press the right
buttons for you

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B018M0D9UW

I bought it as a small radio for the bathroom.

Big LED, proper aerial - but short, could be upgraded maybe.

No DAB (a good thing imo).

2p

In article ,
pamela wrote:
On 12:32 4 Jan 2017, WeeBob wrote:

However, I recently bought a new clock radio and it may press
the right buttons for you

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B018M0D9UW


That's different. Quite an interesting look!

Doesn't give any dimensions I can find. For some, large enough to be read
easily at night without glasses may be the most important thing.

If the 'normal' 1" or so display is OK, the choice is vast.

--
*No sentence fragments *

Dave Plowman London SW
To e-mail, change noise into sound.

On 2017-01-04 14:18, Dave Plowman (News) wrote:
In article ,
pamela wrote:
On 12:32 4 Jan 2017, WeeBob wrote:

However, I recently bought a new clock radio and it may press
the right buttons for you

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B018M0D9UW


That's different. Quite an interesting look!

Doesn't give any dimensions I can find. For some, large enough to be read
easily at night without glasses may be the most important thing.

If the 'normal' 1" or so display is OK, the choice is vast.


The dimensions are on the linked page:

Size:11.4*6.8*2.2cm

The LEDs are ~34mm high.

On 04/01/2017 09:03, Chris J Dixon wrote:
My present device is now approaching 20 years old, and I am
wondering about getting one which does its tuning using something
more sophisticated than the traditional knob and length of
string.

As ever, my life on the edge of the bell curve seems to mean that
designers have priorities different from mine.

Amongst the desirable attributes I wish to retain a

Large clear LED digits easily read by the short-sighted,
permanently illuminated (no need to reach out and tap anything),
also displayed when the radio is on, but not so bright that they
light the whole bedroom.

At least two easily selectable alarms.

Radio when used as alarm to be the same volume as when last
listened, which can be set as low as I want.

Control buttons easily located and operated without my head
leaving the pillow, ideally on the front.

Sleep timer with adjustable duration.

Mains operated, with automatic clock synchronisation.

Setting not requiring navigation through lengthy menus.

I guess for future-proofing DAB should be included.

Reading reviews, many seem to fail on several of my requirements.

Any suggestions?


I was looking for one today funnily enough. Saw one of these in John
Lewis that might fit the bill:

https://www.robertsradio.com/uk/prod...dio/blutune-50

Bit more than I am willing to pay, but I see they're available cheaper
online. Not that impressed with the sound - but a decent name ;-)


--
Cheers, Rob

On 04/01/2017 17:13, RJH wrote:
On 04/01/2017 09:03, Chris J Dixon wrote:

Any suggestions?


I was looking for one today funnily enough. Saw one of these in John
Lewis that might fit the bill:

https://www.robertsradio.com/uk/prod...dio/blutune-50

Bit more than I am willing to pay, but I see they're available cheaper
online. Not that impressed with the sound - but a decent name ;-)

Dunno about you but I choose sound systems based on how they *sound*
rather than the brand name. Even in their heyday Roberts were just
putting together Ferranti made building blocks in a half wooded case.

Back then they didn't try so hard to boost the base response which is
what leads to the excessive boxiness of their current offerings.

--
Regards,
Martin Brown

"RJH" wrote in message
news
On 04/01/2017 09:03, Chris J Dixon wrote:
My present device is now approaching 20 years old, and I am
wondering about getting one which does its tuning using something
more sophisticated than the traditional knob and length of
string.

As ever, my life on the edge of the bell curve seems to mean that
designers have priorities different from mine.

Amongst the desirable attributes I wish to retain a

Large clear LED digits easily read by the short-sighted,
permanently illuminated (no need to reach out and tap anything),
also displayed when the radio is on, but not so bright that they
light the whole bedroom.

At least two easily selectable alarms.

Radio when used as alarm to be the same volume as when last
listened, which can be set as low as I want.

Control buttons easily located and operated without my head
leaving the pillow, ideally on the front.

Sleep timer with adjustable duration.

Mains operated, with automatic clock synchronisation.

Setting not requiring navigation through lengthy menus.

I guess for future-proofing DAB should be included.

Reading reviews, many seem to fail on several of my requirements.

Any suggestions?


I was looking for one today funnily enough. Saw one of these in John
Lewis that might fit the bill:

https://www.robertsradio.com/uk/prod...dio/blutune-50

Bit more than I am willing to pay, but I see they're available
cheaper online. Not that impressed with the sound - but a decent
name ;-)



Click on the above link, then on refurbished at the top of the page
and you will find more much cheaper.


--
Woody

harrogate3 at ntlworld dot com

I suggest PURE Siesta Rise
http://www.pure.com/digital-radio/products/siesta-rise

Comments as follows:

Amongst the desirable attributes I wish to retain a

Large clear LED digits easily read by the short-sighted,
permanently illuminated (no need to reach out and tap anything),
also displayed when the radio is on, but not so bright that they
light the whole bedroom.

The Rise has very large time display (which I can read without glasses
and while half asleep). Permanent illumination is an option and
brightness can be set on a scale of 1 to 5.

At least two easily selectable alarms.

It has three. You can have one for weekdays and one for weekends.
Unfortunately you cannot differentiate between Saturdays and Sundays.

Radio when used as alarm to be the same volume as when last
listened, which can be set as low as I want.

You can set the radio volume (for when the alarm activates) on a scale
of 1 to 32. You will know level when last listened to so you can set
it the same.

Control buttons easily located and operated without my head
leaving the pillow, ideally on the front.

They are on top as the display occupies the whole front. It would be
better if they were were tactile for feeling in the dark but you get
used to where they are.

Sleep timer with adjustable duration.

15 minute increments to 60, then 90

Mains operated, with automatic clock synchronisation.

Mains or battery operated. Synchronisation can be digital only, FM
only or digital and FM.

Setting not requiring navigation through lengthy menus.

Depends what you mean by 'lengthy'. You obviously have to go through
the various options if you want a radio that provides options.

I guess for future-proofing DAB should be included.

DAB and DAB+.

On Wednesday, 4 January 2017 10:18:11 UTC, T i m wrote:
On Wed, 04 Jan 2017 09:03:03 +0000, Chris J Dixon
wrote:

My present device is now approaching 20 years old, and I am
wondering about getting one which does its tuning using something
more sophisticated than the traditional knob and length of
string.

Hehe. Funnily we were / are looking at replacing our ~30 year old
Binatone Telephone [1] / LED alarm clock / radio (complete with string
g) but haven't seen anything suitable (but not looked that hard).

Considering it was probably cheap (Binatone) I'm amazed it has lasted
so well!

As ever, my life on the edge of the bell curve seems to mean that
designers have priorities different from mine.

The biggest issue I've founds is that they don't seem to take as much
care to make the UI as good as it was in the 'old days'. Easy to find
in the dark analogue knobs and chunky switches may not look 'swish'
(and be expensive to build) but there were / are very easy to use. Now
everything is based on a microprocessor of some sort, all the controls
tend to be Up / Down pushbuttons (with or without a screen and menu)
which whilst being cheap and flexible, aren't generally so easy to
use.

Amongst the desirable attributes I wish to retain a

Large clear LED digits easily read by the short-sighted,
permanently illuminated (no need to reach out and tap anything),
also displayed when the radio is on, but not so bright that they
light the whole bedroom.

(As per our Binatone)

At least two easily selectable alarms.

(As per our Binatone)

Radio when used as alarm to be the same volume as when last
listened, which can be set as low as I want.

(As per our Binatone)

Control buttons easily located and operated without my head
leaving the pillow, ideally on the front.

(As on our Binatone)

Sleep timer with adjustable duration.

Sleep timer but no adjustment.

Mains operated, with automatic clock synchronisation.

The Binatone is mains powered and clocked synched to the AC (if that's
what you meant)?

Setting not requiring navigation through lengthy menus.

(As on our Binatone)

I guess for future-proofing DAB should be included.

I've not really used DAB much as most of our radios are still AM/FM
but for the Alarm clock / radio the radio just needs to output a radio
station of some sort to be better than the built in buzzer (although
if the string gets moved all you get is a buzzer or white noise
anyway). ;-)

Reading reviews, many seem to fail on several of my requirements.

Again, we have not looked hard but those we have seen when browsing
generally seem to fail on some basic point pretty quickly.

Any suggestions?

Sorry no, but I'll be interested to see how you get on. ;-)

Cheers, T i m

[1] Pushbutton phone but only LD. ;-)

Maybe someone should set up a website with feature grids for appliances.

Why have Binatone never realised the brand name is a disaster and changed it?


NT

On Wed, 04 Jan 2017 18:48:19 GMT, pamela wrote:

On 18:03 4 Jan 2017, Scott wrote:

I suggest PURE Siesta Rise
http://www.pure.com/digital-radio/products/siesta-rise

Comments as follows:

Amongst the desirable attributes I wish to retain a

Large clear LED digits easily read by the short-sighted,
permanently illuminated (no need to reach out and tap anything),
also displayed when the radio is on, but not so bright that they
light the whole bedroom.

The Rise has very large time display (which I can read without
glasses and while half asleep). Permanent illumination is an
option and brightness can be set on a scale of 1 to 5.

At least two easily selectable alarms.

It has three. You can have one for weekdays and one for
weekends. Unfortunately you cannot differentiate between
Saturdays and Sundays.

Radio when used as alarm to be the same volume as when last
listened, which can be set as low as I want.

You can set the radio volume (for when the alarm activates) on a
scale of 1 to 32. You will know level when last listened to so
you can set it the same.

Control buttons easily located and operated without my head
leaving the pillow, ideally on the front.

They are on top as the display occupies the whole front. It
would be better if they were were tactile for feeling in the
dark but you get used to where they are.

Sleep timer with adjustable duration.

15 minute increments to 60, then 90

Mains operated, with automatic clock synchronisation.

Mains or battery operated. Synchronisation can be digital only,
FM only or digital and FM.

Setting not requiring navigation through lengthy menus.

Depends what you mean by 'lengthy'. You obviously have to go
through the various options if you want a radio that provides
options.

I guess for future-proofing DAB should be included.

DAB and DAB+.

Looks like a nice product. Pure have chosen an up-market niche
and although there are diminishing returns as quality increases,
Pure's pricing always seems on the high side.

Just think of them as the Dyson of the
audio world.

Chris J Dixon wrote

Amongst the desirable attributes I wish to retain a

Large clear LED digits easily read by the short-sighted,
permanently illuminated (no need to reach out and tap
anything), also displayed when the radio is on, but not
so bright that they light the whole bedroom.

I prefer to do that a different way, use the iphone, just
say 'hey siri time' and have it tell you the time. That
way don’t even have to roll over and look at the clock.
It does light the screen with the time displayed when
you do that too.

At least two easily selectable alarms.

Best done with a smartphone app IMO. Much more control
over the alarm detail and multiple preprogramed alarms
for the sort of thing you want alarms for.

Radio when used as alarm to be the same volume as
when last listened, which can be set as low as I want.

Automatic with any decent smartphone.

Control buttons easily located and operated without
my head leaving the pillow, ideally on the front.

IMO best done by voice, see above.

Sleep timer with adjustable duration.

See above on alarms.

Mains operated, with automatic clock synchronisation.

Automatic with smartphones.

"Adrian Caspersz" wrote in message
...
On 04/01/17 09:03, Chris J Dixon wrote:
My present device is now approaching 20 years old, and I am
wondering about getting one which does its tuning using something
more sophisticated than the traditional knob and length of
string.

As ever, my life on the edge of the bell curve seems to mean that
designers have priorities different from mine.

Amongst the desirable attributes I wish to retain a

Large clear LED digits easily read by the short-sighted,
permanently illuminated (no need to reach out and tap anything),
also displayed when the radio is on, but not so bright that they
light the whole bedroom.

At least two easily selectable alarms.

Radio when used as alarm to be the same volume as when last
listened, which can be set as low as I want.

Control buttons easily located and operated without my head
leaving the pillow, ideally on the front.

Sleep timer with adjustable duration.

Mains operated, with automatic clock synchronisation.

Setting not requiring navigation through lengthy menus.

I guess for future-proofing DAB should be included.

Reading reviews, many seem to fail on several of my requirements.

Any suggestions?

Gut an old clock radio and build in all your required functionality with a
Raspberry Pi.

Lot less effort to use a decent smartphone.

Been one of my 'tuit projects for years ...

On Wed, 4 Jan 2017 10:10:56 -0800 (PST), wrote:

snip

Maybe someone should set up a website with feature grids for appliances.

Some places do don't they ... where you tick the devices you want to
compare ... but there isn't a big single site for most of the
appliances that I know of though.

Why have Binatone never realised the brand name is a disaster and changed it?

Good question ... but it's a bit like Bush or even Sony where you got
the good stuff and also the budget / rebranded stuff (and now Bush is
*just* a name I believe).

"In 1959 Binatone started importing transistor radios into the UK.
Over the years the brothers grew the audio based product selection
from radios to a wide range of audio products including world
receivers, clock radios, cassette players and audio towers."

"Dino Lalvani's Binatone Communications Group is headquartered Hong
Kong and has offices in London, Lummen, Indianapolis, New Delhi,
Bangalore and Shenzhen. Main product categories are communication
(landline, mobile), baby monitors, home monitors, pet training systems
and multimedia (tablets, e-readers, GPS sat Nav).[1] These products
are sold under the brands Binatone, iDECT and Voxtel and the licensed
brands Motorola and AEG."

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Binatone

I wonder if it's one of those things were the older people know the
Binatone name and know what it is (and mostly don't care as long as it
does what they want) and many of the youngsters wouldn't buy it if it
wasn't a big brand in any case (and probably wouldn't appeal to them
either)?

Cheers, T i m

"pamela" wrote in message
...
On 18:03 4 Jan 2017, Scott wrote:

I suggest PURE Siesta Rise
http://www.pure.com/digital-radio/products/siesta-rise

Comments as follows:

Amongst the desirable attributes I wish to retain a

Large clear LED digits easily read by the short-sighted,
permanently illuminated (no need to reach out and tap anything),
also displayed when the radio is on, but not so bright that they
light the whole bedroom.

The Rise has very large time display (which I can read without
glasses and while half asleep). Permanent illumination is an
option and brightness can be set on a scale of 1 to 5.

At least two easily selectable alarms.

It has three. You can have one for weekdays and one for
weekends. Unfortunately you cannot differentiate between
Saturdays and Sundays.

Radio when used as alarm to be the same volume as when last
listened, which can be set as low as I want.

You can set the radio volume (for when the alarm activates) on a
scale of 1 to 32. You will know level when last listened to so
you can set it the same.

Control buttons easily located and operated without my head
leaving the pillow, ideally on the front.

They are on top as the display occupies the whole front. It
would be better if they were were tactile for feeling in the
dark but you get used to where they are.

Sleep timer with adjustable duration.

15 minute increments to 60, then 90

Mains operated, with automatic clock synchronisation.

Mains or battery operated. Synchronisation can be digital only,
FM only or digital and FM.

Setting not requiring navigation through lengthy menus.

Depends what you mean by 'lengthy'. You obviously have to go
through the various options if you want a radio that provides
options.

I guess for future-proofing DAB should be included.

DAB and DAB+.

Looks like a nice product. Pure have chosen an up-market niche
and although there are diminishing returns as quality increases,
Pure's pricing always seems on the high side.




I would still comment as I did before that IME Pure radios (en bloc)
have a very limited high frequency response and seem to have low
frequencies boosted that makes them boomy.

I would suggest to the OP that he buys from such as John Lewis so that
he can take it back if it is unsuitable.


--
Woody

harrogate3 at ntlworld dot com

On Wed, 4 Jan 2017 20:28:19 -0000, "Woody"
wrote:


"pamela" wrote in message
...
On 18:03 4 Jan 2017, Scott wrote:

I suggest PURE Siesta Rise
http://www.pure.com/digital-radio/products/siesta-rise

Comments as follows:

Amongst the desirable attributes I wish to retain a

Large clear LED digits easily read by the short-sighted,
permanently illuminated (no need to reach out and tap anything),
also displayed when the radio is on, but not so bright that they
light the whole bedroom.

The Rise has very large time display (which I can read without
glasses and while half asleep). Permanent illumination is an
option and brightness can be set on a scale of 1 to 5.

At least two easily selectable alarms.

It has three. You can have one for weekdays and one for
weekends. Unfortunately you cannot differentiate between
Saturdays and Sundays.

Radio when used as alarm to be the same volume as when last
listened, which can be set as low as I want.

You can set the radio volume (for when the alarm activates) on a
scale of 1 to 32. You will know level when last listened to so
you can set it the same.

Control buttons easily located and operated without my head
leaving the pillow, ideally on the front.

They are on top as the display occupies the whole front. It
would be better if they were were tactile for feeling in the
dark but you get used to where they are.

Sleep timer with adjustable duration.

15 minute increments to 60, then 90

Mains operated, with automatic clock synchronisation.

Mains or battery operated. Synchronisation can be digital only,
FM only or digital and FM.

Setting not requiring navigation through lengthy menus.

Depends what you mean by 'lengthy'. You obviously have to go
through the various options if you want a radio that provides
options.

I guess for future-proofing DAB should be included.

DAB and DAB+.

Looks like a nice product. Pure have chosen an up-market niche
and although there are diminishing returns as quality increases,
Pure's pricing always seems on the high side.




I would still comment as I did before that IME Pure radios (en bloc)
have a very limited high frequency response and seem to have low
frequencies boosted that makes them boomy.

I would suggest to the OP that he buys from such as John Lewis so that
he can take it back if it is unsuitable.

Is this definitely a feature of Pure rather than a problem with DAB in
general - compression, low bitrates and an outdated codec?

On 04/01/2017 17:40, Martin Brown wrote:
On 04/01/2017 17:13, RJH wrote:
On 04/01/2017 09:03, Chris J Dixon wrote:

Any suggestions?


I was looking for one today funnily enough. Saw one of these in John
Lewis that might fit the bill:

https://www.robertsradio.com/uk/prod...dio/blutune-50

Bit more than I am willing to pay, but I see they're available cheaper
online. Not that impressed with the sound - but a decent name ;-)

Dunno about you but I choose sound systems based on how they *sound*
rather than the brand name. Even in their heyday Roberts were just
putting together Ferranti made building blocks in a half wooded case.


Bit of a whoosh situation there :-)

I find Roberts tend to trade on a name too much - bit like Hoover and
Dyson perhaps. I tried one of their internet radios while I was there.
Crashed/locked solid.

Back then they didn't try so hard to boost the base response which is
what leads to the excessive boxiness of their current offerings.


Yes, that's what I thought about the sound, very boomy and overbearing
bass, dull treble.

I do have a Stream 83i - had it for some years now and use it every day.
That's pretty good.

--
Cheers, Rob

On 04/01/2017 17:49, Woody wrote:
"RJH" wrote in message
news
On 04/01/2017 09:03, Chris J Dixon wrote:
My present device is now approaching 20 years old, and I am
wondering about getting one which does its tuning using something
more sophisticated than the traditional knob and length of
string.

As ever, my life on the edge of the bell curve seems to mean that
designers have priorities different from mine.

Amongst the desirable attributes I wish to retain a

Large clear LED digits easily read by the short-sighted,
permanently illuminated (no need to reach out and tap anything),
also displayed when the radio is on, but not so bright that they
light the whole bedroom.

At least two easily selectable alarms.

Radio when used as alarm to be the same volume as when last
listened, which can be set as low as I want.

Control buttons easily located and operated without my head
leaving the pillow, ideally on the front.

Sleep timer with adjustable duration.

Mains operated, with automatic clock synchronisation.

Setting not requiring navigation through lengthy menus.

I guess for future-proofing DAB should be included.

Reading reviews, many seem to fail on several of my requirements.

Any suggestions?


I was looking for one today funnily enough. Saw one of these in John
Lewis that might fit the bill:

https://www.robertsradio.com/uk/prod...dio/blutune-50

Bit more than I am willing to pay, but I see they're available
cheaper online. Not that impressed with the sound - but a decent
name ;-)



Click on the above link, then on refurbished at the top of the page
and you will find more much cheaper.


Yes, thanks, they were list in JL, £85 at Richer Sounds, and as you say,
£72 refurb. Still wouldn't buy one - if it sounded half decent, I might.
Although many on the amazon reviews seem very happy. Oh well.


--
Cheers, Rob

"Scott" wrote in message
news
On Wed, 4 Jan 2017 20:28:19 -0000, "Woody"
wrote:


"pamela" wrote in message
...
On 18:03 4 Jan 2017, Scott wrote:

I suggest PURE Siesta Rise
http://www.pure.com/digital-radio/products/siesta-rise

Comments as follows:

Amongst the desirable attributes I wish to retain a

Large clear LED digits easily read by the short-sighted,
permanently illuminated (no need to reach out and tap anything),
also displayed when the radio is on, but not so bright that they
light the whole bedroom.

The Rise has very large time display (which I can read without
glasses and while half asleep). Permanent illumination is an
option and brightness can be set on a scale of 1 to 5.

At least two easily selectable alarms.

It has three. You can have one for weekdays and one for
weekends. Unfortunately you cannot differentiate between
Saturdays and Sundays.

Radio when used as alarm to be the same volume as when last
listened, which can be set as low as I want.

You can set the radio volume (for when the alarm activates) on a
scale of 1 to 32. You will know level when last listened to so
you can set it the same.

Control buttons easily located and operated without my head
leaving the pillow, ideally on the front.

They are on top as the display occupies the whole front. It
would be better if they were were tactile for feeling in the
dark but you get used to where they are.

Sleep timer with adjustable duration.

15 minute increments to 60, then 90

Mains operated, with automatic clock synchronisation.

Mains or battery operated. Synchronisation can be digital only,
FM only or digital and FM.

Setting not requiring navigation through lengthy menus.

Depends what you mean by 'lengthy'. You obviously have to go
through the various options if you want a radio that provides
options.

I guess for future-proofing DAB should be included.

DAB and DAB+.

Looks like a nice product. Pure have chosen an up-market niche
and although there are diminishing returns as quality increases,
Pure's pricing always seems on the high side.




I would still comment as I did before that IME Pure radios (en bloc)
have a very limited high frequency response and seem to have low
frequencies boosted that makes them boomy.

I would suggest to the OP that he buys from such as John Lewis so
that
he can take it back if it is unsuitable.

Is this definitely a feature of Pure rather than a problem with DAB
in
general - compression, low bitrates and an outdated codec?

No, its like that whether on DAB or FM. Compare it with, say, a Sony
or Panasonic and the difference jumps out at you.

We have an Evoke 1. I've had a bad cold over the hols and it resulted
in a degree of deafness. I turned the Evoke on in the kitchen to
listen to the Today prog and with that set at a level that I could
hear (not that much higher than normal) it was impossible to listen
to. It was so boomy the case rattled and the sound broke up like
bubbling mud even though we (now) have a good signal and it doesn't do
it at lower levels. I even tried plugging the bass port underneath
with a large cork but it made no difference.


--
Woody

harrogate3 at ntlworld dot com

On 04/01/17 09:44, Adrian Caspersz wrote:

Gut an old clock radio and build in all your required functionality with
a Raspberry Pi.

Been one of my 'tuit projects for years ...

I think a Pi would be a good start.

You've got sound and I reckon some RGB(W) "pixel" matrix LED panels
would make a super display.

OT

I am surprised by the pathetic lack of quality alarm clock products.

The Philips "wake up to light" ones are good - well made, ring up an LED
light gradually to a very high brightness to help soften the wake up of
people who hate winter. But even that does not retain time in the case
of a power cut or (better) sync to the 60kHz time signal.

For me, the perfect clock would be:

Soft display - VFD or OLED simulating VFD.

60kHz time sync

Multiple alarms, with settable "which day" option.

Excellent snooze with light touch to snooze. Should alarm forever until
fully silenced.

Auto dimming display that is bright enough to be seem in direct sunlight.

Proper mains with no wall wart. Should be nice and heavy so as not to
fall off shelf when poked.

On 04/01/17 09:03, Chris J Dixon wrote:

Any suggestions?

We have a Roberts DAB one, always been happy with it. Can't see it for
sale any more, nearest thing seems to be a Dreamtime.

You might want to have a look at a suitable holder and app for a tablet.

In article ,
Martin Brown wrote:
Dunno about you but I choose sound systems based on how they *sound*
rather than the brand name. Even in their heyday Roberts were just
putting together Ferranti made building blocks in a half wooded case.

With a portable radio it's likely the speaker and cabinet which have the
major effect on the sound rather than the electronics. Pretty well the
same as with anything using speakers.

Back then they didn't try so hard to boost the base response which is
what leads to the excessive boxiness of their current offerings.

Ah. The Bose sound. ;-)

--
*Hard work has a future payoff. Laziness pays off NOW.

Dave Plowman London SW
To e-mail, change noise into sound.

Tim Watts wrote

I am surprised by the pathetic lack of quality alarm clock products.

I'm not given that so many have a decent smartphone now and use that.

The Philips "wake up to light" ones are good - well made, ring up an LED
light gradually to a very high brightness to help soften the wake up of
people who hate winter. But even that does not retain time in the case of
a power cut or (better) sync to the 60kHz time signal.

And smartphones do that fine.

For me, the perfect clock would be:

Soft display - VFD or OLED simulating VFD.

I prefer to have the clock announce the time because I am
short sighted and don’t wear my glasses when sleeping
and don’t even have to roll over to look at the clock.

60kHz time sync

Any smartphone does much better than that.

Multiple alarms, with settable "which day" option.

Excellent snooze with light touch to snooze. Should alarm forever until
fully silenced.

Plenty of smartphone apps do all that.

Auto dimming display that is bright enough to be seem in direct sunlight.

Any decent smartphone does that.

Proper mains with no wall wart.

I prefer to use a smartphone so you can be
reminded of anything, silently or noisily as
you choose, anywhere you are, not just at
the bedside.

Should be nice and heavy so as not to fall off shelf when poked.

Better not to have to poke it at all, tell it to
snooze or turn off completely. That way you
don’t have to fumble around with the buttons.

On Wednesday, 4 January 2017 10:53:49 UTC, tim... wrote:
"Simon Mason" wrote in message
...
It even has DRM!

http://amzn.to/2hPfDXS

I suspect that fails the "easily read at night" test

tim

Seems very visible to me.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ILtFAGSTPqA

Rod Speed wrote:

I prefer to do that a different way, use the iphone, just
say 'hey siri time' and have it tell you the time. That
way don’t even have to roll over and look at the clock.
It does light the screen with the time displayed when
you do that too.

I'm not sure my partner would be impressed!

At least two easily selectable alarms.

Best done with a smartphone app IMO. Much more control
over the alarm detail and multiple preprogramed alarms
for the sort of thing you want alarms for.

Did you forget

Control buttons easily located and operated without my head
leaving the pillow, ideally on the front.

Chris
--
Chris J Dixon Nottingham UK


Plant amazing Acers.

On 04/01/2017 20:33, Scott wrote:
On Wed, 4 Jan 2017 20:28:19 -0000, "Woody"
wrote:


"pamela" wrote in message
...
On 18:03 4 Jan 2017, Scott wrote:

I guess for future-proofing DAB should be included.

DAB and DAB+.

Looks like a nice product. Pure have chosen an up-market niche
and although there are diminishing returns as quality increases,
Pure's pricing always seems on the high side.

I would still comment as I did before that IME Pure radios (en bloc)
have a very limited high frequency response and seem to have low
frequencies boosted that makes them boomy.

It is a "feature" rather than a benefit of almost all of the modern
smallish domestic kit. Done I presume for the aging disco ghetto blaster
generation. They probably can't hear the high frequencies anyway.

Japanese makers seem a lot less inclined to shake their box to bits.

I would suggest to the OP that he buys from such as John Lewis so that
he can take it back if it is unsuitable.

Is this definitely a feature of Pure rather than a problem with DAB in
general - compression, low bitrates and an outdated codec?

Pure, Roberts and quite likely most of the others too. DAB basic rate
isn't all that bad unless you put it up against a good FM receiver or
original source material and then the losses are very obvious.

UK DAB isn't helped by its inability to work in many places without a
significant aerial and even then there is a tendency in bad weather to
get announcers who sound like they are gargling whilst trying to speak.

Driving down the A1 there are several bad DAB dead spots.

--
Regards,
Martin Brown

On 04/01/2017 22:11, Tim Watts wrote:
OT

I am surprised by the pathetic lack of quality alarm clock products.

The Philips "wake up to light" ones are good - well made, ring up an LED
light gradually to a very high brightness to help soften the wake up of
people who hate winter. But even that does not retain time in the case
of a power cut or (better) sync to the 60kHz time signal.

For me, the perfect clock would be:

Soft display - VFD or OLED simulating VFD.

60kHz time sync

There is no point in having 60kHz time sync when the set has DAB since
it can obtain the correct time from the transmission anyway.

Multiple alarms, with settable "which day" option.

Excellent snooze with light touch to snooze. Should alarm forever until
fully silenced.

Auto dimming display that is bright enough to be seem in direct sunlight.

Better would be LCD display with backlight for night time.

Proper mains with no wall wart. Should be nice and heavy so as not to
fall off shelf when poked.

Disagree entirely - just makes it a lot heavier, bulkier and more
dangerous with mains voltages inside the chassis.

It should be easy enough to make one work from a 5v USB supply.
(not like you need massive power or anything in an alarm)

--
Regards,
Martin Brown

On 05/01/17 08:45, Martin Brown wrote:
On 04/01/2017 22:11, Tim Watts wrote:
OT

I am surprised by the pathetic lack of quality alarm clock products.

The Philips "wake up to light" ones are good - well made, ring up an LED
light gradually to a very high brightness to help soften the wake up of
people who hate winter. But even that does not retain time in the case
of a power cut or (better) sync to the 60kHz time signal.

For me, the perfect clock would be:

Soft display - VFD or OLED simulating VFD.

60kHz time sync

There is no point in having 60kHz time sync when the set has DAB since
it can obtain the correct time from the transmission anyway.

Who said mine would have DAB?

Multiple alarms, with settable "which day" option.

Excellent snooze with light touch to snooze. Should alarm forever until
fully silenced.

Auto dimming display that is bright enough to be seem in direct sunlight.

Better would be LCD display with backlight for night time.

I disagree - I hate LCD displays. You can dim LEDs right down - but it
would be interesting to see how dim "Unicorn HAT" Pi LEDs go to when on
setting 1/255. VFDs were the nicest displays IMO but sadly non existant now.

Proper mains with no wall wart. Should be nice and heavy so as not to
fall off shelf when poked.

Disagree entirely - just makes it a lot heavier, bulkier and more
dangerous with mains voltages inside the chassis.

I want heavy. All the modern clocks are too flimsy and light - slight
tug on the cord and they fall off the shelf.

As for mains - unless you are planning on pouring coffee over it,
there's nothing dangerous about it. It's more dangerous to have a bulky
wall wart in a socket down the side of the bed where it's covered by
bedding or liable to get hit by the bed frame (on a smooth floor).

Also, I place more faith in a nice solid iron transformer with provable
isolation than some random cheap switch mode PSU.


It should be easy enough to make one work from a 5v USB supply.
(not like you need massive power or anything in an alarm)


That would be a theory - doesn't seem to stop the shop ones comming with
massive wallwarts sadly.

On 05/01/2017 09:32, Tim Watts wrote:
As for mains - unless you are planning on pouring coffee over it,
there's nothing dangerous about it. It's more dangerous to have a bulky
wall wart in a socket down the side of the bed where it's covered by
bedding or liable to get hit by the bed frame (on a smooth floor).

Also, I place more faith in a nice solid iron transformer with provable
isolation than some random cheap switch mode PSU.

The SMPS will have the same level of isolation as a heavy transformer
based one, it will be more efficient and a lot smaller. They also run
cooler, so are less likely to overheat if covered by bedding.

Don't forget, your heavy iron transformer based supply is under the same
cost constraints as the SMPS, so the same corners are likely to be cut.

It should be easy enough to make one work from a 5v USB supply.
(not like you need massive power or anything in an alarm)


That would be a theory - doesn't seem to stop the shop ones comming with
massive wallwarts sadly.

Part of the size of the wallwarts is to provide enough space inside to
safely isolate the mains from the low voltage side of things. Air gaps
are cheap, while space saving plastic mouldings cost money, which is why
the plugtop sized USB chargers cost more than the larger ones. If you
are buying one, then the space saved may be worth the extra, when you
are buying thousands, and are not the end user, the cost savings of
buying the larger ones are considerable.

--
Tciao for Now!

John.

Chris J Dixon wrote
Rod Speed wrote

I prefer to do that a different way, use the iphone,
just say 'hey siri time' and have it tell you the time.
That way don't even have to roll over and look at
the clock. It does light the screen with the time
displayed when you do that too.

I'm not sure my partner would be impressed!

Surely the alarm wakes her, Shirley.

At least two easily selectable alarms.

Best done with a smartphone app IMO. Much more
control over the alarm detail and multiple preprogramed
alarms for the sort of thing you want alarms for.

Did you forget

Control buttons easily located and operated without
my head leaving the pillow, ideally on the front.

Nope, voice control leaves that for dead, Shirley.