Keeping
track of tunes and time
Time and tide wait for no man. While you cannot sit by
the seaside your whole life watching the waves, you can store yourself a Sonic
Gear iP12 Time Machine to keep track of the minutes ticking by. This simple
product serves as a handy home for your iPhone while doubling as an alarm
clock.
A compact form factor helps make the Sonic Gear iP12 Time
Machine perfect for beside tables and stands. The device face itself shows the
numbers on a clock and the brightness of the display can be controlled with a
dimmer button located at the back. In addition, the top face of the product
also has the power and snooze button.
After downloading the DualAlarmClockFMRadio application,
your iPhone will display the numeral 12, thus completing the Sonic Gear Time
Machine. If you ask us, the device looks much better with the iPhone docked, as
it gives a homogenous feel to the product. Minus the smartphone, the product
looks empty even though a small LCD screen is provided to display the time.
The settings menu helps you set alarms and
choose between FM Radio, iPhone Music and Buzzer as your wake-up call.
As can be expected from just two full range 1-inch
drivers and a speaker system this size, performance is not much to write home
about. When tasked with playing mellow tracks such as Adele’s ‘Melt My Heart to
Stone’, the iP12 Time Machine did a passable job. The emotion of the song was
conveyed and in general, the melody was dutifully reproduced. Similar
performance was observed with the live version of ‘Hotel California’ by The
Eagles, although the timbre and tone of both the shakers and alternate
percussion left a lot to be desired.
Heavier fare such as ‘Sail on Soothsayer’ by Buckethead
was the lowest point for the iP12 Time Machine during out listening tests. The
docking station was unable to handle the guitar parts which sounded muddy. In
fact, audible distortion and buzzing were heard during playback when the volume
was cranked up. Similarly, without a dedicated subwoofer, the Time Machine was
unable to cope with Tiesto’s ‘Elements of Life’. Overall, we cannot say we were
very pleased with the audio performance of the product.
When it came to functioning as an alarm clock, the Sonic
Gear iP12 Time Machine hit almost all the marks. An extensive settings menu
helps the user set time and frequency for alarms with ease. The provision of FM
radio means that you can wake up to music every day even if you forget to dock
your iPhone while a regular buzzer option is also available. However, the app
for the device is slightly glitchy and response times to input commands vary.
This detracts from the overall user experience.
Price at $89, the Sonic Gear iP12 Time Machine is a
docking station that’s affordable to all, assuming of course, that you already
own an iPhone. Its price point and alarm clock feature make it functional and
give it an air of practicality. Audio performance is satisfactory as long as
you do not task the speakers with playing anything with serious bass.
|
At a glance
Driver: 2 x
1-inch Full Range
Frequency Response: 80Hz
to 20,000 Hz
Impedance: 4 Ohms
Price: $89
Specifications
Driver Size: 2 X
1-INCH
Impedance: 4Ohms
Sensitivity: 452mV,
Frequency response: 80Hz to 20,000Hz
Total System Power: 3 W
RMS
Fm Frequency Range:
87.5MHz to 108.0MHz
Features: Alarm
Clock, FM Radio, Wireless Remote
|
Verdict: 7.0
Physique: 7.0
Features: 7.5
User-Friendliness: 7.0
Performance: 6.5
Value:
7.0 |
