Sangean RCR-20 Digital Tuning Clock Radio: FM-RDS (RBDS), AM, Bluetooth, Aux-in, USB Phone Charging

ken cal: I’m not sure what other reviews were complaining about! This Bluetooth clock radio is awesome! Sounds way better than my Sony Bluetooth speaker!

United States on Nov 25, 2023

B Page: I purchased this for the sound quality, and the ability to pull in good radio signals, and I was not disappointed. It’s rather large, but has a number of worthwhile features. There is too little distinction on the buttons across the top. In order to turn off the alarm I attached a small, clear self stick round “bumper” on top the “off” button so that I could find it more easily by touch.

United States on Nov 08, 2023

Guy Bouchard: Déçu sur les ajustements du réveil matin ? Jamais réussi à programmer le FM . Même avec plusieurs essais ces le buzzeur qui ce fessais entendre.

Canada on Oct 14, 2023

Amazon Customer: Really good radio. Speakers up front with above average sound for a dmall radio. Bluetooth connection works very well. Lacks a true AM antenna. I'm old-school and still like to listen to AM radio on occasion. AM reception is ok, but not the best. It would have been nice to be able to plug in an AM antenna even if it wasn'tincluded. (Sometimes I'm able to stream the AM radio through my phone instead but not always).

Originally had challenge of the radio reception being impacted by a nearby cell-phone charger being plugged in about two feet from the radio, but I switched to using the USB port on the radio itself to charge my phone and the problem stopped. Radio reception was clear again. (There was no negative impact when streaming to Bluetooth connection or using auxiliary option in either scenario, only radio reception).

I would recommend this radio.

United States on Aug 16, 2023

EdS: I bought this clock radio mainly for better sound quality and have generally pleased with its performance.
It's considerably larger than the typical clock radio, so needs a bit more room on the bed-side table.
The build quality seems solid and set-up is fairly easy and intuitive. Main negatives are the tiny control buttons and the cheesy shiny black plastic case - a magnet for finger prints and dust.

Canada on Dec 08, 2022

Wilmot: It’s a good clock radio with outstanding features. I’ve had it for a week with no problems. The remote gives me flexibility of where to place the radio. In my area the reception is excellent if I extend the FM Antenna. I set my screen brightness to 2 at bedtime and 3 at other times. The brightness can be turned off or go as high as 7 which is very bright. The controls on top are illuminated according to the dimmer settings. It has Bluetooth pairing, audio out socket, usb A for charging a phone via your cable. The setup is ok after reading the user manual. This is a chunky radio, so make sure you have room on your bedside table to accommodate it and your lamp and other things. You will notice the price on Amazon is at the top end for clock radios, but I think it’s worth it. It’s made in the U.S.A. or most of it is.

Canada on Jun 17, 2022

Laurie Miller: FIRST REVIEW, June 2021:
Sound quality is uncommonly good at low volume, which is important for nighttime listening when you don't want to disturb other people. FM sensitivity is good, though I haven't tried the AM. Controls are internally lit, which is also excellent for nighttime use. It's a quality piece of work. I don't mind one bit having spent that much money to get it. Highly recommended.
EDIT, June 2023, two years later:
Oh well. Other reviewers warned that the RCR-30's LED display has a tendency to self-destruct and, sure enough, mine went haywire just under two years after I bought it. Suddenly it was coughing up only random collections of LED elements that meant nothing. A clock radio on which you cannot read the clock (or anything else on the display) is not very helpful. The manufacturer's warranty is good for only one year. Still, call me crazy, but the RCR-30 is *so* good in every other way that I have actually bought another RCR-30 to replace it! Only, this time I also bought the two-year third-party (Asurion) "protection plan" Amazon offers as you place the order. I hope I won't need that. If I do need it, I hope it works.

Canada on Jul 29, 2021

Blair: I had the RCR-22 Atomic Clock radio for several years. I liked it. I listen to an AM all-news station in the morning but the AM just stopped working on the RCR-22. Liked the sound from the RCR-22 but wanted something with more bass so went for the RCR-30. The RCR-30 does have a good sound with more bass and the ability to adjust the bass and treble to fine-tune to my liking is a nice feature. I also like the larger display as I can read it without having to put on my glasses. I like the Bluetooth capability. Connects to my phone fairly quickly. The AM radio does have a hum that the RCR-22 did not have. The date and time setting from the radio stations got the date correct but not the time. I didn't play around with it to see if it would work with other radio stations, I just set the time manually. RCR-22 Atomic clock time setting always worked for me, never had to worry about adjusting for daylight savings time. Was not sure what to expect from the sound soother sounds. Pleasantly suprised at the quality of the sounds. Actual recording of birds, trains, streams, etc. The Soothing sounds are relaxing music. Think of background music at a spa when lying there being pampered and...

Canada on Nov 19, 2020

M.Mich.: I almost didn’t buy this clock radio after reading several of the negative reviews. Two problems I read about were the clock doesn’t keep good time, and the device is hard to operate. I ended up buying this unit because it is similar to my old iHome iP87BZ clock radio. The form factor is similar, the controls are similar, and it has good sound quality.

I had to replace the iP87BZ because it died. I thought that the wall adapter broke, so I bought a new one. That didn’t fix the iHome device, so I opened it up and discovered to my disgust that almost all the electrolytic caps on the main board had leaked their guts out. Electrolytic caps can fail when they get old, but picking good quality parts and having a good design margin mitigates this. The fact that so many caps leaked on the iHome unit really soured me on the idea of purchasing anything else from iHome…ever. So after a long search, and finding not other contenders but iHome products, I crossed my fingers for luck and bought the Sangean RCR-20.

With the negative comments about the RCR-20 clock accuracy, I decided to check it. I set the clock via time.gov. After 6 days, the RCR-20 clock is still within 1...

United States on Sep 22, 2019

MargeMarge: My 15 year old Sony alarm clock radio broke and I needed to replace it. I’ve been using the new alarm clock for about a month now.

First, I will give you a synopsis of my thoughts.

My Requirements:
Speaker on top or front
Digital tuning
USB charging port
Dual alarm
Radio used as alarm
Large time display

Desired Options:
AM band
Preset buttons
Bluetooth (functions as BT speaker)

Unexpected Features That I Like:
Dimming of display
Weekday/weekend setting for alarm
Station display info (from RDS)

Negative:
Can't distinguish buttons by feel
Can't get RDS time to work

I was surprised that it was difficult to find the things I wanted in an alarm clock radio. The biggest surprise was how many had their speakers facing to the rear! That was absolutely unacceptable for me.

The Sangean RCR-20 met all my requirements and had the desired options. It was a little more than I wanted to pay, but I decided to invest in it.

The speakers, which face the front, are acceptable. I listen to talk radio and music. The sound is fine. I have the FM antenna strung up the side of a bookcase, so that helps the...

United States on Mar 14, 2018