La Crosse Technology 617-1485B Atomic Color Alarm Clock with USB Charging Port

(01/14/18: UPDATE: See my update in comment section below)I did a review on an previous version of this clock two years ago:www.amazon.com/review/R32924DH2WLTB5/ref=cm_cr_rdp_perm?ie=UTF8&ASIN=B00EG8O2SSIt came in a silver bezel and I really liked it, but it had three problems: the battery backup did not always work (clock reset when power resumed), the buttons made a loud beep (annoying at night), and the moon phase was a few days off. These have all be been fixed from what I can tell, which makes it almost perfect for me, except the hard-to-remove screen protector residue (see below), and it could be brighter.First off, this is not an 'LED' clock as described by Amazon, but it's an LCD (multi-colored) clock with backlighting, which is why the viewing angle isn't so great. Try adjusting the height of where you place it, or wedge some padding underneath to change the angle a bit. Once you get it right, it's a very attractive looking display, especially good for bedside viewing. When the lights are off, it is actually too bright at its highest setting (hi/lo/off), but not so good in the day - that's about my only complaint. The multi-color LCDs are a very nice touch.If you're into the atomic sync function, the reception is about as good as any other atomic clock I've had, which apparently is not great here on the east coast (the signal originates from Colorado). It also depends on the room of the house (eg basement not so good) and the direction you have it facing. The manual goes into this in depth, but the backlight and USB charging port will turn off when it is trying to acquire the signal (to reduce interference). This happens every night after midnight, so that's what's happening if you see your clock seem to turn off. If you need to see the time while this is happening, tap the backlight/snooze bar and it will light up for 10 seconds. Since my reception is poor here, I just turn this feature off (it has a setting for this). Then all this weirdness goes away and the clock probably only loses a few seconds a month, though without the atomic sync you would have to manually adjust for DST yourself twice a year.Battery-only mode: You can operate the clock without AC power on just the two backup AAA batteries. Once you unplug it, the backlight will go out but all the other features (like the alarm) will still work, except USB charging (obviously). Whenever you want to read or set the clock, just tap the backlight/snooze bar and the full backlight will come on for 10 seconds. Without the backlight you can still barely make out the display in regular ambient light (moreso if you can shine a light directly on it). Running on batteries-only could be convenient for travel or if the power went out. There is no spec for how long the batteries will last like this, but there is a low-battery indicator.The USB charging port works (tested on my iphone 5) and is capable of 1 A of charging current (double the 0.5 A of the previous version).Some other tests: temperature and humidity readings are roughly accurate. Moon phase is accurate (fixed). Buttons are silent when pressed (fixed: previous version made loud beeps). Battery backup works (fixed). The alarm is a 2-minute gradual beep (improved pattern over v1) with 10-minute snooze. It beeps slow (1 beep/sec) for ten seconds, then faster (2/sec) the next ten, even faster (3/sec) the next ten, then fastest (non-stop) for the remaining 1.5 minutes.It doesn't come in the silver bezel anymore apparently (which I liked), but now comes in several other colors (B-lack/W-hite/BL-ue/R-ed/O-range), indicated in the last letter(s) of the model number.Overall, I found this to be a very good-looking alarm clock for the bedside, perfect for my needs, especially now with all the bugs worked out.NOTE: When I peeled off the temporary screen protector, there was a lot of stubborn residue. It took some isopropyl alcohol, soft lens tissue (careful not to scratch), and a lot of patience, but it eventually all came off: still, a big hassle.

I love that I just have to look up and see the time as opposed to sitting up to see it

The ask is simple: An atomic desk clock with time, date and day of week so I can be on time for virtual meetings. Atomic so it’s accurate and so I don’t have to reset it twice a year due to the time changes.It’s only atomic if it can pick up the WWVB signal.I chose the La Crosse because I have a weather station that’s been reliable for many years and it also features an atomic clock. The weather station picks up the WWVB radio signal no problem.The clock however, couldn’t pick up paper in a wind storm.Support from La Crosse includes, “… at least six feet away from a TV, computer…”. “Computer”. This is a desk clock. What might you find on desk in this modern era? I’ll wait…Also includes, “…best near a window…”I’ve had this “desk clock” sitting on the window sill for a week at least with WWVB “On”. Nope. It refuses.Major disappointment. Maybe La Crosse has gone the way of so many other companies in common sense and quality.It’s a sad day when someone can’t even make a clock to function for its intended usage.Oh, the weather station? It sits on a counter in the kitchen and no where near a window. Accurate time. Changes when the time changes.

Being totally honest with myself, the only reason I'm inclined to keep this is because 1) it shows a pretty illumination of the moon's status, 2) it shows the indoor humidity level, 3) it shows which day it is, and 4) it's a *nice* looking clock face. So basically it's pretty.But I've passed it on to someone else because there are enough things that bug me too much after owning this for just a few days: 1) too loud of an alarm sound, 2) the alarm doesn't increase in *volume* as it waits to be turned off, 3) having only 1 alarm (not dual alarm), and 4) the atomic part being almost non-functional. So basically it's lousy.More details:Directions are clear. But I wish there were more instructions so I could be more confident in how to make the atomic part work.Very few buttons... for very few functions. They make sense.A pleasant beeping, but very loud. My spouse knew it was about to go off (because he was already awake, and knew what time I'd set it for), and was still startled by it. I tested the alarm later, and tried putting my fingers/hands over the speakers, and that didn't muffle the sound at all. (So there's no hope for taping it with duct tape or packaging tape to try to make it quieter.)I don't believe the alarm gets *louder* as it waits for you to turn it off. Instead, it *increases its speed* of beeping very quickly. So it gets more intense, but I don't believe it gets louder.I wanted an alarm clock with dual alarms, which could be set to alarm on weekdays, weekends, or every day. Unfortunately this one only has one alarm, which can only be set to either on or off.I'm sensitive to lights in the room when I'm sleeping, but this clock works just fine for me on the dim setting. This clock has 3 settings: bright, dim, and a setting that looks off but has visible dark numbers on a dark background. Works for me! I was nervous about the white LED, which I'm also sensitive to, but on the dim setting it doesn't bother me at all.Other reviewers are right about the viewing angle for clarity. With it on my nightstand next to my bed, I can see it fine from the angles I need to see it from; so it doesn't bother me. BUT I did try it set on a dresser across the room, and it looks terrible and is very hard to read.It did not connect readily to the atomic clock. After checking on it a couple times over several hours and it not connecting (and thus not setting itself), I decided to do the work for the clock. I set the correct date and time zone (all the things except for the time, just because hello it's an atomic clock so is it going to do it or not?), opened a window, set it closer to the window, and it eventually connected. I'm not sure why it bothers to be an atomic clock if it can't readily connect. The reason why I like to have an atomic alarm clock is because if the electricity goes out in the middle of the night, it will know the correct time when the electricity comes back on. But if it didn't do it for several hours after I originally plugged it in, I'm not confident it will do it when the electricity goes out. Thus, this is the first time I've put batteries into an alarm clock - because I can't expect this one to do its job.The atomic part can be turned on or off, and a radio icon signifies that. I wonder why it would need to be on all the time. To double check it still has the time right? So I turned off that function, because I don't want it going dark for several min every couple hours. Well now that I've turned off the atomic part, now it's an hour off. Maybe because of a daylight savings setting? Maybe I accidentally messed with that?The hardest thing about this clock is setting the time... AND the time is extremely tedious to try to set, and to set accurately. If the darn atomic clock would just connect, it would sure get rid of a lot of the hassle.