A good bedside clock is very important...it's probably the first and last thing you see/hear before you are off to bed. So what of the Philips Wake up & Beam! Project clock radio? Decent, needs improvements!
First, as a clock, it's fine...good orange glow with 3 dim settings and very large digital display, although when laying in bed, I cannot exactly see the dark black of the letters against the orange glow at certain angles.
Setting the alarms is extremely easy, you get one on the left and on the on right side of the LCD display...you can set to beep, sound or radio...and a large snooze button on top, which I find irresistable to hit!
Radio works great, there is a long antennae included...and the LCD shows the station numbers very clearly. One of the problems with the radio is that there is only one speaker on the side of the clock so the sound is a bit not-balanced, because the other size of the clock has the projection. The other problem I have is with how the volume is set on the back side of the round-clock, so when turning it down or up, you'll hit the dimmer/snooze button. Also, when adjusting the stations and AM/FM or on/off for radio, I keep accidently moving the position of the clock since it's not at all weighted down and the rubber feet aren't grippy enough on the flat surface.
That movement of the clock makes the project screen awkward and continually move from one spot on the wall to another, where you cannot visibly see the time anymore! This is annoying...maybe there should be a suction cup attached at the bottom of the clock so it doesn't move as easily.
Also, while the projection is very bright red at night, it does disappear in daytime/during sunlight hours. The projection is very adjustable for a full 360 angle, and you can set it to read forward/correctly or backward, depending on where you project [in a mirror/reflective surface]. I also like the idea of having an on/off switch for the projector, in case you just dont want it all the time showing, if you're sensitive to light during sleep.
I think the buttons for the time/radio and projector are of good tactile feel, but a bit small. I wish it was more easy to click like the top large dimmer button. The materials used to make this clock is very nice plastic, soft edges and just a good feel to it when you pick it up. Just need to add a bit of weight so it feels more sturdy.
I like the overall design of the Philips AJ3600, but definitely could use the listed improvements I mentioned above. I think it's a good simple clock radio and if you like seeing the time before/after you sleep, it's definitely for you!
I do have to nitpick one thing, I wear glasses and have take them off when I sleep, so when I see the projection on the ceiling/wall without them, it's just a red blur. Sadly, you cannot make the project font bigger so near-sighted people like me can see it better! So keep this in mind if you don't have 20/20 vision.