iHome iH27 Portable Alarm Clock for iPod (Black)

by Soundesign

Product Details

• Product Dimensions: 1.9 x 10.2 x 6.5 inches ; 3.6 pounds
• Shipping Weight: 4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B000NLLXUM
• Item model number: IH27B
• Average Customer Review: 3.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (36 customer reviews)

Product Description

Amazon.com Product Description

Perfect for the busy traveler, this portable iPod alarm clock speaker system lets you sleep or wake to your favorite iPod tunes or buzzer, or just enjoy a little music while your iPod charges. With a lock feature to maintain settings, battery or AC power, and a protective carrying case, it lets you take some room-filling sound nearly anywhere.

A perfect iPod dock for the busy traveler. Click to enlarge.

Protective carrying case.

Charge and Play Your iPod Anywhere
Play back your favorite tunes at home or while traveling with the iH27. While your iPod is docked, it receives a charge (when on AC power), so when you're ready to go, so is your iPod.

The iH27 power adapter is able to handle input voltage from 100 to 240 VA, so it'll work overseas with the right plug adapters. And because the iH27 is powered by either AC or four AA batteries (not included), you can enjoy music with or without an outlet. A handy carrying case is also included to keep the device safe and sound while in transit, whether it's a business trip or a barbecue.

Sleep or Wake to Your iPod
The iH27 lets you wake to your docked iPod (or the buzzer alarm for you masochists). A gradual alarm feature gently raises the alarm volume, so as not to jar you out of sleep. You can also dim the display, with high, medium, low, and off settings.

The iH27 also has a sure alarm feature so the buzzer alarm will still sound in the event of power failure, if backup battery is installed.

And of course, there's a snooze button for grabbing a few more minutes of slumber and a sleep mode for falling asleep to your favorite tunes or podcasts.

Big Sound in a Small Package
iHome's Reson8 technology, with through-body ported speaker chambers, gives the iH27's four speakers better response characteristics for superior stereo sound. In addition, SRS WOW technology is designed to provide a broader audio image with enhanced low-range and mid-range sound reproduction, in order to bring added life to compressed MP3 files.

Auxiliary Input and A/V Output
Use the iH27's auxiliary input to connect external devices such as MP3 or CD players. You can also send the audio and/or video from the dock's A/V out to a television or stereo, for enjoying your iPod content on a larger scale.

What's in the Box
iH27 main unit, AC adapter, iPod dock inserts, auxiliary cable, and user's manual.

Product Description

On the Go? Then this portable iPod alarm clock speaker system is for you. Sleep or wake to your favorite iPod tunes or buzzer. This unit has a lock feature to maintain settings and includes a protective carrying case and even charges your iPod. Perfect for the busy traveler.

SRS WOW® expands the size of the audio image to create a deep,rich bass response

Wake and sleep to your music by docking your iPod in our portable alarm clock

4 Reson8® speakers (2 passive and 2 active) for superior stereo sound

Built-in dock lets you charge the iPod with AC adaptor (included)

Protective carrying case

Aux/MP3 line-in jack with patch cord

5 Watts total output

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

56 of 62 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Alarm Function a Deal Breaker, December 2, 2008

By 

Ken Lecomte - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: iHome iH27 Portable Alarm Clock for iPod (Black) (Electronics)

I can't imagine what they were thinking when they designed this thing.
Here's the problem. If you have an ipod in the unit you cannot wake up to the buzzer, only the ipod. If you go to sleep with the ipod on, playing some mellow music at low volume, this is what you will hear for your morning alarm. It's not going to wake you. You cannot use the buzzer for an alarm unless you take the ipod out. What's the point of having it?
Mine is going back.

15 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Do They Not Understand That Most People Use a Case?!?!, December 1, 2010

By 

Raven A. Wind (Michigan) - See all my reviews

This review is from: iHome iH27 Portable Alarm Clock for iPod (Black) (Electronics)

(What's this?)

When my iHome iH27 arrived, I was dismayed to find that it didn't work. No sound from the dock or from the Line-In, and no light on the panel. It also didn't seem to be charging my iPod, whether it was in the case or not in the case.

After a tech-support email finally made the rounds (turn-around time: 2 days) I was told to remove the little built-in back-up battery from the device, wait 30 seconds, and then put it back in and try again. I was happy to see that this worked.

The sound is decent, the alarm is OK, and the clock works like-- well-- a clock. I don't really need this to be much more than what it is, and I don't really care whether the alarm is from my iPod or the clock itself, as long as it goes off as scheduled. What I really cared about was having a charging dock that provided speakers, and didn't start up iTunes and go through the sync like my PC does when I dock my iPod (and yes, I know I can disable that, but I want it to be automatic when I need to sync, and so I leave it that way). In terms of being a charging speaker dock, this works well. The speakers are sufficiently loud, the charging works as advertised. No complaints here.

However, there's one glaring issue that has plagued all iHome devices I've used, and that's the use of different-sized plates in the dock to fit all the different iPods. It's completely unfriendly to those of us who use slim-fit cases on our iPods, and there are a lot of us, judging from the number of them available and being reviewed online. I'm not snapping open the case every time I want to use the official iPod touch dock plate on this device, and none of the other plates really fit all that well, either. I can go without a dock plate, but that leaves the iPod sitting there without support, and that's not a great option.

I'm looking over at the iPad dock I'm using for my iPod touch... Now THAT is an intelligent design. Instead of needing a specific plate to fit each iPod, they just built up a slanted wall behind the dock connector, which lets my iPod touch rest safely and securely. Why couldn't iHome do that? Why not make a universal connection that doesn't require different plates? At the very least, why not make plates that take into account the extra millimeter of material for the vast number of iPods being protected by a close-fitting case or skin?

As it is, I had to take a razor blade to a spare plate, and cut out a bigger slot for my iPod touch to fit into it, along with the slim case I prefer to keep on my device. I would gladly have purchased a plate if they made them in the right size, but a look at iHome's website shows no plates that even support the iPod touch 4th generation, let alone plates that will support an iPod touch 4G with a case on it.

I'll also note that there was no iPhone plate in the package at all. None. If you have an iPhone, you don't get one. Sorry. You'll have to cut the iPod classic plate open, I guess.

On the plus side, the iH27 comes with a nice carrying sleeve (see, iHome? EVEN YOUR DOCK HAS A CASE!) and folds to travel easily. The folding worries me a bit because it actually folds down over the AC adapter port, and if you accidentally fold it down without disconnecting AC power, you might just bend your AC adapter's connection... I doubt this will be an issue, but it's a curious design choice, nonetheless.

Another curious choice was to have the black alarm clock unit gain its power from a white AC cord. So you have this black device with a stark white cable coming out the back of it, and it looks a little tacky. You could always use batteries, but I can't imagine they'd be a good idea for long-term use. Fine for travel, sure, but if you plan to dock your iPod a lot, batteries will surely drain quickly.

iHome told me that this product is discontinued, and so my review-- though on a new item-- is a tad late to the game. I can report that it works with the 4th Gen iPod touch (as long as you carve out your own docking plate for a good fit), but as it is an older model, you may want to be sure before buying it... Newer iPods may not be compatible.

I'd give it one more star if only the docking plates were more user-friendly and varied.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars rich sound!, January 12, 2008

By 

Michael L. Fluharty (La Jolla, S.D.) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

this is an excellant investment! i was a bit tired of using my head phones and needed an alternative. along came ihome and i am at home with my ipod! when i got it i wasnt expecting much because of the small size but boy was i suprised! the sounds are deep and the midranges and treble does not overpower it as i had expexted it to sound like a speaker in a soupcan or something. the sounds are clear and the fidelity is rich and almost like one of the more expensive docks. the base does not sound like the speaker is farting. it is all around an excelent investment and i am glad i got oneIH27B Port Alarm for IpodSdi IH27B Port Alarm For Ipod (SDI IH27B)!