Homedics SS-5000 Sound Spa Premier AM/FM Atomic Clock Radio
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Product Reviews of Homedics SS-5000 Sound Spa Premier AM/FM Atomic Clock Radio
Product Review: What good is an alarm clock if it won't keep time?
Summary: 1 Stars
I have owned 3 other projection clocks (all LaCrosse) in the past with NO problems.
I "upgraded" to this clock because the backlight stayed lit all of the time (versus having to hit the snooze button) and could be read from across the room. I have now owned the clock for over a year and am just as disappointed with it as my boss is.
MAJOR ISSUE: The time randomly changes. When I first noticed this, it seemed like it was just changing from one time zone to another (even though the settings still showed it was on Central) as the minutes often stayed accurate and it seemed to occur when there was low cloud coverage (no power failure, just during storms or heavy overcast). So, I turned off the atomic sync hoping to resolve that issue... WRONG! I just had the same problem compounded with the potential of the time resetting due to power outages or surges from storms.
Other smaller issues: [1] The projection is too small unless you have 20/20 vision (the digits on my LaCrosse units were at least twice as large). [2] The volume controls EVERYTHING (i.e. if you turn the radio or nature sounds down to use with the sleep timer, you won't be able to hear the alarm in the morning)! [3] EVERY button that surrounds the snooze on the bottom will shut off the alarm.
So, if you really want this clock -- you can fetch mine from the garbage. As for me, I'm go back to my 7-year-old LaCrosse projection clock, live without a permanent backlight, and KEEP MY BOSS HAPPY.
Product Review: While pleasant as a noise machine, it is UNRELIABLE as an alarm clock
Summary: 2 Stars
My husband and I have had this clock for three years now. We purchased it at Bed Bath and Beyond (I had never read a review on it). The sound features are great for white noise, and the 'footprint' of the clock is small (great for those bed stands that have limited space). We really liked the dual-alarm, as there are days when one of us has to get up earlier than the other.
Our complaint with this contraption is that the Atomic clock feature WILL make the time inaccurate eventually. By hours, or fractions of hours. The first few times this happened, we thought it was user-error. We have turned the Atomic clock OFF altogether to circumvent the alarm activating at an hour before, or after, our wake time. However, it TURNS ITSELF BACK ON and has wrecked our night's sleep (or made us late) by resetting at an incorrect time. We have been unsuccessful in deactivating the Atomic feature permanently. A friend of ours has a similar HoMedics alarm clock and has the same trouble; inaccurate time at random intervals. Almost always occurring overnight.
My husband and I are both tech savvy, and keep every manual for every device we own until it croaks. We have followed the directions on setting and keeping time, the Atomic feature, and the multiple alarm settings. This clock has a mind of its own. If neither of us had jobs that required us to be at work at a specific time, then this would do just fine as a sound machine. But, that is not the case.
9/21/09 Update:
We have not replaced this clock yet; we have been unable to find the right replacement. While we still enjoy the sound machine feature, the clock has changed the time (again, either forward or backward - it seems to have a mind of its own) at least three times since I last wrote this review. This is not user error, this is a malfunction of the clock. I use my iPhone alarm as a backup now.
Product Review: Worst clock ever
Summary: 1 Stars
Worst problem: changes time, even with the satellite update option turned off. A clock that makes you think it's an hour earlier that it really is can really screw up a person's life! I've tried numerous times to fix this issue, assuming that the clock is resetting itself but not to daylight savings time. I've turned off the satellite feature but the problem still occurs. For this reason, I threw it away rather than donate it. No one needs a clock like this.
Other issues: the buttons are too tiny to use if you are actually going to use this as an alarm clock. The ceiling display did become more difficult to read over time. The outside thermometer never worked from day one. Tried numerous ways to fix this with no luck.
Product Review: Wow! This clock is difficult to use.
Summary: 2 Stars
I never write reviews but I had to weigh in on this one. Yowza this clock is wonky. It's difficult to program. It sometimes resets itself - and, no, not on the hour as advertised. Mysteriously it will turn off. I had to plead with the projector to get it to work. The alarms go off randomly even though I had them set for morning (4 a.m.) they go off at 6 p.m. and 8 p.m. at night. I love the idea of this clock. The rainforest sounds are great. However, the execution sucks.Product Review: don't buy this one
Summary: 1 Stars
The only thing I liked about this clock is the nature sounds. The time and the alarm time kept re-setting on me, the numbers don't light up on the display - only the backlight is lit which lights the room up. The projected time is also way too bright and instead of displaying the time that was on the clock display it kept going back to projecting "1200". I would have to unplug it and re-set it to get the projector to work. The blue light is just too bright. Stick with a red light display if you want to keep your room dark or read the time easier. I wear glasses and I could not read the projected time or the display (when it actually displayed the correct time). The temperature reader is kind of a wasted feature. I had a hard time picking up a radio station on the tuner. I had a simple alarm clock that cost me 5.00 that worked better than this one does. I had this clock for only a week and I returned this item to the store I bought it at and I am looking for a replacement... this time with a red light display and no wall/ceiling projector.