Hardware Review – Sony Alarm Clock model ICF-CD3iP

I try not to fall in love with hardware.  It tends to grow old quickly and dies on you when you least expect it.  But in the case of the Sony Alarm Clock model ICF-CD3iP, it was love at first sight.

I had needed a new alarm clock anyway and saw this one on one of the gadget websites.  My old one died so I asked for and received this model for the holidays.  It was the best gift I received this year.

Unlike other alarm clocks that interact with the iPod, this one, quite simply, looks cool.  It is not bulky nor does it look like a giant black brick with an iPod dock on top.  It is compact with a nice aesthetic design and offers a great deal of useful functionality.

For your iPod or iPhone, it has a docking station at its base that slides out and serves as both an interface to the unit’s speakers and a charger.  When not in use, the docking station can slide back in and not take away from the overall design of the alarm clock.
But wait, there’s more:  the unit can play CD’s.  In the event you don’t even want to charge your iPod/iPhone by your bed or wish to play a song that doesn’t happen to be on your media player, the circular front face of the clock flips over for CD insertion.  It plays both standard and MP3 CDs.  In the event you still like AM and FM, the clock is a radio receiver.  You can also plug in other types of external equipment to use the speakers with (such as non-iPod media players.  But why would you get those?).

The device has two different alarms that can be set to play either a song on the iPod, a song on the CD, radio or a standard alarm sound.  You can set the alarm to sound every day, every weekday or a particular day.  You can even set the volume at which the song plays on the alarm.

Naturally, the ICF-CD3iP is not perfect.  The sound quality of the speakers is a little tinny, but that is to be expected from such a compact unit.  The unit comes with an auto clock set function, but I have had difficulty getting it to work (it might not receive the signal properly where I live).  When this functionality is used, the clock automatically adjusts for daylight savings.

I found that a thorough reading of the instructions were necessary to understand how to set the alarm clock up, but once that was done it was fairly simple.

The ICF-CD3iP is a little pricey at $100, but is in line with the prices of other iPod dock alarm clocks.  Believe it is a fair price for the reputable Sony brand and as time progresses and more electronics chains stock the alarm clock (or its competitors), the price should go down slightly.

Overall, if you can afford it and have the space on your nightstand, the ICF-CD3iP makes an excellent purchase for those who want their iPod Touch or iPhone nearby when they sleep.