Product Description

. . . . Genuine Dark Ebony Veneer . . Pendulum . . Curved Glass Crystal . . Wooden Case . . One "AA" Battery Included . . 24 3/8" High x 9 1/4" Wide x 3 1/4" Deep . .

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #64 in Watches
• Brand: Seiko

Features

• Light Sensor

Customer Reviews

Best Alarm Clock for me
This alarm is easy to see, easy to set and the alarm is LOUD! I'm a heavy sleeper and it's just what I needed. Typical excellent Seiko quality too.

ALARM IS TOO LOUD
The alarm is way too loud for my taste. It starts loud instead of slowing increasing to loud. As a result, even though I have shut it off immediately, I've already had a heart attack and awaken my husband. My husband does not need to wake up until one hour after I do. This is the same with the gold model, as I bought both.

great alarm clock but not quite "Ultimate"
The is a really good alarm clock, but it's by no means perfect or "Ultimate." I bought it to replace a perfectly functional Braun alarm clock whose annoyingly loud ticking sound finally drove me to get a new clock. The Seiko is a bedside clock rather than a travel alarm clock because it's huge, measuring 5" tall and 4.5" wide.

What I like:

1. It's smartly illuminated. There is an optional button to enable/disable background illumination. When enabled, the illumination turns on by a photo-sensor. It's lit by a faint orange LED if the alarm function is not set and by a noticeably dimmer green LED if the alarm is set. By glancing at the color you'll know instantly whether you have set the alarm or not, although I'm bit perplexed by this reversed color scheme because I tend to associate the color orange with "alarm" and green with "no alarm."

2. Not only no loud ticking sound, but no ticking sound at all! It's totally silent, perfect for light sleepers and those who have trouble falling asleep. I think the reason it doesn't have any ticking sound is it's not quartz-based, but I could be wrong on this. At least nowhere on the box, the clock, or the instruction does it mention the word "quartz." The lack of quartz could mean it might be less accurate.

3. It has a 5-minute snooze feature.

What really annoys me:

1. The alarm is supposed to be soft-start to get progressively louder so as not to shock you out of your deep slumber and give you a heart attack with the first note. But there are several problems. One is it's not soft to start with. Even the first note is still far too loud and jarring. Putting a tape on the outside of the alarm port or stuffing crumbled paper towel over the outlet port did not attenuate the sound. To do the job right, I had to open up the back case by unscrewing four screws to get at the piezo alarm chime. (Take out the batteries first to get access to the screws). I then put a tape on the chime's port and then stuff the paper towel on the INSIDE of the case to muffle the loud alarm noise. Now it's perfect for me.

2. The soft-start alarm progresses from soft to loud too quickly. The volume progression should take much longer and rise much more gently. I also fault the design for it's lack of a dial to adjust the alarm volume. Some Seiko travel alarm clocks have this feature, but this "Ultimate" clock doesn't! The loudness is probably there to accommodate sound sleepers, but light sleepers, as many adults are, will almost invariably find the first note too loud. A truly "Ultimate" alarm clock should have the capability to adjust the volume.

Overall, I love this clock, but those several things I noted really annoy me and so I give it only 4 stars.