Crosley CR3009A-BK iSolo Radio (Black)

by Crosley

• Universal iPod Dock
• AroundSound Design Provides Surround Sound Effect
• AM/FM Radio
• Headphone Jack
• External Antenna

Product Details

• Product Dimensions: 7.5 x 8 x 5 inches ; 4 pounds
• Shipping Weight: 6 pounds
• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B003ZTRDDK
• Item model number: CR3009A-BK
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (20 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #63,804 in Electronics (See Top 100 in Electronics)
• Date first available at Amazon.com: August 23, 2010

Product Description

Imagine a radio that looks like it belongs in an art gallery, that sounds as good as it looks, and that best of all, even docks and charges your MP3 player. With Crosley's latest and greatest, our beloved Solo radio gets upgraded with an iPod dock. Never again will you settle for garish plastic iPod docks that are suited only for the inside of a cabinet. Enjoy the iSolo's clean, consistent sound, with Crosley's patented AroundSound technology that eliminates acoustic "hot spots." The iSolo also boasts a 3" studio driver with a 5:1 radio tuning dial and analog tuner.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars nice November 29, 2010

By C. Wilks

I love the retro look of this little beauty and the sound quality is pretty nice. The bass in reggae, jazz, and rock is pretty hefty for the size. Vocals come through quite nicely as well. Gets pretty good volume - loud enough that I can hear it clearly all over the house. IPod connects easily. Has aux in, line out. Like the retro radio antenna and the dial tuner for the radio. Drawbacks - no remote. Bass gets grainy when too loud. Great for its class.

24 of 28 people found the following review helpful

2.0 out of 5 stars poor integration with iphone 4 January 17, 2011

By S. Julien

Amazon Verified Purchase

I love the way this device looks, but was really hoping to use it for my alarm clock on my night stand. It doesn't work on a number of levels. if any calendar reminder comes up in the middle of the night, it overrides the alarm clock (so long first meeting of the day!). As soon as you dock the phone, the ipod starts playing, no matter what. there is no way to turn this off. so if you want to set your alarm, then put up the app that shows the time and stays on all night, then dock it, as soon as you dock it the music starts playing. you have to exit the clock app, find ipod app. turn off music, repeat.

in short, i can't trust it to wake me up and it is too much of a hassle overall to use daily.

it's going back in all it's cuteness.

13 of 15 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Just what I was looking for. February 1, 2011

By Steve525

I was looking for an AM/FM radio with an iPod dock for the kitchen. Not too many to choose from that have the AM band. Many were large or not what I could picture in my old house and kitchen. This was just what I was looking for. It does not take up much counter space and I like the design, although metal knobs would have been a nice touch at this price instead of the painted plastic ones. The AM stations are a little muffled but ok, FM stations sound good, but the sound from this when using the iPod is amazing considering the size of this radio. It fills the room easily with a full, rich sound. Bass is very good and the volume can be turned 3/4 or more and the radio is free of noticeable distortion and LOUD! As others have mentioned, it is a poor man's Bose. Who cares if there is only one speaker when most other small iPod dock/radios have two small speakers eight inches apart, you can't hear any separation with that setup anyway. You get both channels played though the Crosley and their "AroundSound" does a nice job of making this sound like it is from a much larger device. Perfect for a kitchen or bedroom.
Now the bad stuff. I am a little concerned about the engineering(?) of this radio and hope it won't develop problems down the road. Originally I was planning on ordering this from Amazon, but with the shipping on this item, I could pay the local sales tax and still get it now and for a little less at Target. The first radio did not get any FM stations well. You could tune in a station and the sound was loud and clear for 1/2 second and then fade away to a weak signal with static. The tuning LED never came on. AM and iPod functions were fine as was the sound quality. Returned it and got the last one this Target had. This one tuned in AM/FM well and worked with the iPod, but the amp was bad. It sounded like a $10 radio, there was no bass and with the volume at 80%, it was barely at a normal listening level. Returned it at a different Target and got the last, non-returned one they had. This one had great sound with the iPod, AM tuned in well, but there was NO FM at all, just a hiss. S.O.B.! I'm running out of Targets to return and replace this radio at. I really liked this radio and didn't want to settle on something else. Set to FM it sounded like there was no antenna connected. I unscrewed the back from the case and sure enough the antenna cable had come unplugged from one of the circuit boards. All of the connectors on the circuit boards have a dab of hot glue on them to keep them from unseating from their socket. I guess this one needed a little more glue or got yanked out accidentally during assembly. Hopeful, I put it back together and turned it on. I finally had a keeper!! It pulled in all the stations I would have expected and locked in on them. The instruction book and on the outside of the box says it should come with an audio cable for connecting non iP*** devices to the audio jack in back. Since there were no cables in the four boxes I looked in, who knows. I called Crosley at 9:30PM that night and had a cable in a couple of days. Can't complain about their customer service! A couple reviews I read had some return issues with their first purchase too. I've been using this several weeks now and am very pleased with it. In general, and after being inside the box, I think it is a quality (made in China) product. I think you're paying a lot for the retro looks, but if that's what you're looking for, this radio has that and a really great sound!