Product Description

Drift off into restful sleep while listening to your favorite MP3s with this sleek alarm clock featuring an iPod docking station. 15, 30, 45 or 60 minute sleep timer. Preset time with daylight savings time adjustment. Line in allows you to attach non-docking iPods, CD players and other audio devices. AM/FM radio with digital tuning and volume control. Projects time in soothing blue light. Wake to iPod, radio, nature sounds or beep tone. Dual alarm with snooze. 6 nature sounds: brook, rain, night, sunrise, waterfall and ocean. State-of-the-art bass reflex technology offers superior sound quality. iPod shown not included. Turn in for the night, unwind or start the day with your chosen tunes or nature sounds. Will not charge 4th generation iPods.

Product Details

• Color: Blue
• Brand: HoMedics
• Model: SS-7000
• Dimensions: 5.00 pounds

Features

• 15, 30, 45 or 60 minute sleep timer
• Preset time with daylight savings time adjustment
• Line in allows you to attach non-docking iPods, CD players and other audio devices
• AM/FM radio with digital tuning and volume control

Customer Reviews

HoMedics SS-7000: Decent, but Room for Improvement
Ultimately, I returned my HoMedics Sound Spa Sound Machine Clock Radio with iPod Dock, but not before I formed some observations about the SS-7000:


The good:

The unit looks pretty nice with the lighted blue trim.

Thanks to the projection and the blue trim, nightlight users will no longer need a second outlet.

HoMedics got it right by sticking to the tried-and-true lighted digits on their LED screen as opposed to the illegible backlighting that seems to be all the rage on alarm clocks and other recent electronics (as many a backlit product review will point out, backlit LCD clocks -- with the exception of the iHome in my personal experience -- are virtually unreadable at night from a distance even with perfect vision).

Sounds decent (not quite as good as my iHome, though).

Nature sounds are a vast improvement on this stereo unit compared to the other nature sounds products by HoMedics or Conair (which are impaired by a single, low-quality speaker). The stereo really does help make the nature sounds more realistic. Only one other iPod docking station that I know of, a Sharper Image product, offers a nature sounds feature. If you haven't tried falling asleep or waking to nature sounds -- or just using it to help you block out annoying environmental noises so you can study, meditate, relax or read -- it is a feature that will quickly grow on you. Similarly, this is the only model I know of to offer a projection clock. This may seem like a gimmick but it really is much easier to see the time at night when it is projected on the ceiling (without straining your neck, that is).


The not so good:

At night, the blue light may be too strong for some (although soothing for others).

The bass reflex technology gives the sound a hollow tone.

I wish there were a remote.

There are no AM/FM presets.

The radio reception is worse than my three-year-old mini boom box, which I bought as a novelty for $3.95.

The plastic housing, which is glossy black, displays every fingerprint and factory scratch it received.

The volume knob sometimes puts a clicking noise into the speakers when turned.

I'm not certain if the speakers are shielded properly. If not, it may explain the tendency to pick up static in the radio reception despite close proximity to urban-area transmitters.


Bottom line: I wanted to love the HoMedics SS-7000, but I was forced to return it due to my concern over the poor AM/FM reception. I am located in an area where radio reception is not a problem so there is no excuse for HoMedics to skimp on a decent tuning mechanism. Nevertheless, each users experience will vary -- and if you like only one strong station in your area you may never even notice this issue.

Plain and simple - it's too bright
Everything I like about this (that it has an Aux port, that is has a projector, that it's relatively small and pretty, and that it has NatureSounds) I have to take back for one simple reason:

The clock is just too bright, even on its dimmest setting. I find that more nights than not we cover the display with a book or whatever's available because it's just that bright. And don't get me wrong - our room isn't exactly pitch black...

Not to mention the bright-blue LED's that turn on whenever you have an iPod docked. Don't plan on going to bed with an iPod on using the sleep timer.

Oh, and don't even bother using the projector (which is the reason I chose this model). even at IT'S dimmest setting (of two) it's as bright as trying to sleep outside under a full moon. It's a strange feeling waking up in the middle of the night and seeing everything around you as though it were the middle of the day, not to mention trying to fall asleep.

If you honestly like sleeping in full light, this is the clock/iPod doc for you. If not, move along.

Very Bright Display
I was excited when I was able to purchase this at a discount, because I wanted a projection clock and this had the added benefit of the ipod function. My husband liked falling asleep to the nature sounds. My complaint lies with the display.

My kids have a projection clock that subtly projects the time on the ceiling. I always loved this especially on those nights when they were sick and I had to comfort them in their own bed and could easily see the time on the ceiling. With this clock though, the display is huge and brightens up the room--very annoying for me because I like to sleep in total darkness. The projection display is light blue and the light blue light also streams out from around the ipod when it is docked. The light eminating from the clock is almost obnoxious and I ended up sleeping with a pillow over my head until I returned it.