Emerson CKS3020 Clock Radio
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Similar in Clock Radios
- Snooze Alarm: Yes
- Tuner Type: Analog Tuner
- Display: LED
- Dual Alarm: Yes
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Great Clock Radio
Pros
reasonable price, had the features that I wanted and has a decent sound quality
Cons
None yet
Recommended it?
Yes
The Bottom Line:
I would buy this clock again due to its price and features.
A few years ago I purchased a generic clock radio from Wal-Mart. It was the cheapest one that I could find that had two alarms that could both wake to radio and a battery back up. My wife has always complained about the brightness of the clock and I had to turn the clock face down on my dresser before going to sleep every night. I knew it was time to replace it when the alarm switch started working intermittently. Being a good consumer, I started looking in all places for prices on new clock radios and I searched for good reviews.
Most of the cheaper radios received poor reviews. Those that received good reviews were generally missing some feature that I wanted or were no longer available. The clock radios with the best and most consistent reviews were too expensive. I was not willing to pay $100 or more for a radio that would only be used 30 minutes or less every weekday.
After some research, I found the Emerson Research CKS3020. This radio comes set from the factory so all I had to do was plug it in. It automatically adjusts for daylight savings time and has an option for the new time adjustment that takes effect in 2007. The radio sounds decent and plays music without buzzing or hissing. The analog tuner is easy to use and the volume adjusts easily. I have had no issues tuning in local stations. The FM radio antenna is built into the power cord so there is no extra wire hanging out the back of the radio.
The clock radio has dual alarms that can each be set to wake to alarm or radio. If set to radio then they both wake to whatever radio station the unit is tuned to. The display clearly shows whether or not each alarm is set. When an alarm is not on then its display says "off", otherwise, the display shows the time to wake. Each alarm can also be set to wake every day, only weekdays or only weekends. I like this because my wife and I like to wake up at different times. The snooze button is large and easy to find in the dark. The only odd thing about the alarms is how you turn them off after they have sounded. The first option is to find the alarm button (the slide that turns the alarm to off-radio-buzzer) and push it. This may be difficult since there are three sliding switches on the side of the clock – two for the alarms and one for the display brightness. Depressing a sliding switch is also an odd (not too obvious) thing to do. Most people would not think of pressing a sliding switch. The other way to stop the daily alarm from coming on is to turn the radio on and then off again. The on/off button is easy to find in the dark and the radio doesn't have a chance to come on if you press the button quickly.
The display has three levels of brightness – high, low or auto. The high setting really lights up a room and the low is still a little too bright. One neat feature of the clock is its "auto" feature. The clock has a motion sensor built in. When the clock display is set to "auto" the display will be blank until you wave your arm in front of the clock radio. When the clock senses the movement it turns on for about ten seconds and then turns back off. The effective range for the motion sensor is supposed to be one to 24 inches. I have found that the display will occasionally turn on when I walk in front of my bed – about six feet from the clock. The snooze feature also works on the motion sensor – simply waive your arm in front of the clock and it goes into "snooze" mode. This may be a dangerous option for "snooze-a-holics" (you know who you are). I thought that my wife would like the dark display, however, she complained that she couldn't see the time in the middle of the night. Oh well, you can't please everyone. She has settled on the low display setting.
Please note – this radio does not pull its time settings from the power grid or the atomic clock broadcast. If the internal battery fails and you unplug the clock then you will have to reset the time and date manually. That said, the battery comes with the clock and is supposed to last for 5 years under normal use. The battery is replaceable.
Bottom line – I like the clock. It was reasonably priced, had the features that I wanted and has a decent sound quality.
UPDATE: 2007-06-28
I found that the instructions are correct - pushing the alarm buttons on top of the unit do turn it off. The slider switches on the side of the clock enable/disable the alarm.
Also, there is a "snooze" indicator. After you press the snooze button, a small red LED flashes to remind you that the alarm is not off - only "snoozed".
The reception has faded a little. Some mornings I awake to static rather than music. However, I can't fault the radio (yet) because I have small children who like to play with radios :)
Most of the cheaper radios received poor reviews. Those that received good reviews were generally missing some feature that I wanted or were no longer available. The clock radios with the best and most consistent reviews were too expensive. I was not willing to pay $100 or more for a radio that would only be used 30 minutes or less every weekday.
After some research, I found the Emerson Research CKS3020. This radio comes set from the factory so all I had to do was plug it in. It automatically adjusts for daylight savings time and has an option for the new time adjustment that takes effect in 2007. The radio sounds decent and plays music without buzzing or hissing. The analog tuner is easy to use and the volume adjusts easily. I have had no issues tuning in local stations. The FM radio antenna is built into the power cord so there is no extra wire hanging out the back of the radio.
The clock radio has dual alarms that can each be set to wake to alarm or radio. If set to radio then they both wake to whatever radio station the unit is tuned to. The display clearly shows whether or not each alarm is set. When an alarm is not on then its display says "off", otherwise, the display shows the time to wake. Each alarm can also be set to wake every day, only weekdays or only weekends. I like this because my wife and I like to wake up at different times. The snooze button is large and easy to find in the dark. The only odd thing about the alarms is how you turn them off after they have sounded. The first option is to find the alarm button (the slide that turns the alarm to off-radio-buzzer) and push it. This may be difficult since there are three sliding switches on the side of the clock – two for the alarms and one for the display brightness. Depressing a sliding switch is also an odd (not too obvious) thing to do. Most people would not think of pressing a sliding switch. The other way to stop the daily alarm from coming on is to turn the radio on and then off again. The on/off button is easy to find in the dark and the radio doesn't have a chance to come on if you press the button quickly.
The display has three levels of brightness – high, low or auto. The high setting really lights up a room and the low is still a little too bright. One neat feature of the clock is its "auto" feature. The clock has a motion sensor built in. When the clock display is set to "auto" the display will be blank until you wave your arm in front of the clock radio. When the clock senses the movement it turns on for about ten seconds and then turns back off. The effective range for the motion sensor is supposed to be one to 24 inches. I have found that the display will occasionally turn on when I walk in front of my bed – about six feet from the clock. The snooze feature also works on the motion sensor – simply waive your arm in front of the clock and it goes into "snooze" mode. This may be a dangerous option for "snooze-a-holics" (you know who you are). I thought that my wife would like the dark display, however, she complained that she couldn't see the time in the middle of the night. Oh well, you can't please everyone. She has settled on the low display setting.
Please note – this radio does not pull its time settings from the power grid or the atomic clock broadcast. If the internal battery fails and you unplug the clock then you will have to reset the time and date manually. That said, the battery comes with the clock and is supposed to last for 5 years under normal use. The battery is replaceable.
Bottom line – I like the clock. It was reasonably priced, had the features that I wanted and has a decent sound quality.
UPDATE: 2007-06-28
I found that the instructions are correct - pushing the alarm buttons on top of the unit do turn it off. The slider switches on the side of the clock enable/disable the alarm.
Also, there is a "snooze" indicator. After you press the snooze button, a small red LED flashes to remind you that the alarm is not off - only "snoozed".
The reception has faded a little. Some mornings I awake to static rather than music. However, I can't fault the radio (yet) because I have small children who like to play with radios :)
