Electronics Sony XDR-S3HD HD Radio
Digital Life Average Rating:

Rating: - Great Sound - Good for Seniors Too
I purchased this for my elderly parents and they love it. It has that great table radio sound and a display that is big and logical enough for a post-85'er to use. The display has three light levels; they use it as a night light in the kitchen; it works that well.

The sound was very good; yes, it compares to those radios that cost twice as much. A sharp audio ear can hear the differences, but for background music there is little difference. It was what we wanted.

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Rating: - Attention potential buyers! Annoying fan noise
First, the unit has good reception, good sound quality for most stations. However, I did not realize that it has a built-in cooling fan on the chassis of the unit. Seems like the noise level of the fan of my unit is higher than average. I can hear it all the time no matter in midnight or in daytime. This completely destroys the quality of the unit, especially since it is supposed to be a HD radio!

Another reviewer mentioned the hissing sound which is noticeable at low volume. Yes, it is not a reception problem and most probably caused by the cooling fan. Try to let a ball pen penetrate into the air vents at the bottom so that the pen can stop the fan. (Do this before power on) Then with a 99.9% probability you will no longer hear the hissing sound even at volume 0 or line-in.

I have not decided yet to return the unit to the retailer or just unplug the fan from the system. In the former case, I am not sure whether the exchanged unit has the same problem. In the latter case, I am not sure whether the system will run safely and the warranty will continue.

In summary, I am disappointed at the purchase of this model. Sony's product is actually descending in its quality in recent years, compared with those manufactured in the 1990s. Incidentally, the Sony ICF-SW7600GR (a world band radio with SW) also has a generic problem of poor quality volume dial, another example of poor component ruins the whole unit. Both feelings are like finding a fly in a delicious soup.

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Rating: - Poorest Reception of all HD Radios
I should learn that SONY is a shell of its former self and the quality is not there. This radio looks good, but looks are decieving. The reception is poor, the poorest I have seen. And I am close to the business. Even local stations that my other HD radios picked up without a hitch, this radio had to struggle. Even fussing with the antenna, this radio could not pick up many non-HD stations. Yes, the AM was disappointing too. Of all the HD Radios I have, this was the only one I decided to return. I am not mean by giving this one star. If the radio does not pick up atations, who cares about any other feature?

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Rating: - Decent for the Price
I bought mine as a floor demo model for around $100. I live in an urban neighborhood with a lot of good HD Radio options in my city. The XDR-S3HD is located on the second floor of my house.

THE GOOD:
The tuner gets decent HD reception with the antenna fully deployed. (The included antenna is about 6 feet long.) I was delighted to find many HD stations in my area, and many of them have some really nice programming. The remote is functional and easy to operate. At low and moderate volumes the sound is rich for the size of the unit, although the highs have an artificial, "hyped" quality that is common to some Sony products. The hyped highs don't bother me, but they drive some people crazy. As for high volumes, well, this is a tabletop unit; it's plenty loud for a small room, but don't expect to use this at your next rave.

THE BAD:
Programming is only fair. I am a tech junky and something of a geek. While I was able to search for HD stations and set the presets using the "Idiot Test" (not opening the manual), the unit will be difficult to program for some people. The alarm functions are only fair, and there is only one alarm. In this price range you would expect dual alarms with a large and dedicated snooze button. As others have mentioned, the unit has a cooling fan which is audible at low volumes. The readability of the LCD is only fair.

THE UGLY:
The unit has no battery backup. Even a brief power outage wipes out all your painstakingly programmed presets. For some reason, the U.S. consumer market doesn't demand this simple feature from the major electronics firms, while Europeans have been getting it in most of their products from the same manufacturers since the 1980s. This will become more of an issue as the U.S. continues to place increasing demand on its power grid.