Home > Consumer Reviews > Timex T276B Stereo Clock Radio (Nature and Bell Sounds, Auto-Set)

Shopping for an alarm clock isn't really something I put a lot of research into. After all, the common denominator of them all is the most important: they wake you up on time. But, I had some important features I wanted and not only found them all in the Timex T276B, but more than I expected.

AUTO-SET. This thing is ready for use right out of the box. Plug it in and the time is already set. If you aren't in the EST time zone, you simply need to set it to your correct time zone. Furthermore, the clock automatically makes adjustments for Daylight Savings Time -- so no more worries about forgetting it. It also has a 99-year calendar, which is an added bonus.

BATTERY BACKUP. Like most alarm clocks, the T276B has a battery backup system that will save the time and your settings in the case of a power outage. Unfortunately, saving the time does you no good if the alarm never goes off. With 3 AA batteries, the T276B's alarm will still function without external power. This is a huge plus as far as I'm concerned.

DUAL ALARMS. I'm a little behind the times when it comes to dual alarm clocks, so this is a bonus for me that most people probably already have. What is really nice about the T276B, though, is that you can set each alarm to be active 7 days a week or specify whether it will be active on only weekdays or only weekends. So, no more having to remember to shut off one alarm and activate the other. Each alarm can be set to wake you up to the buzzer, radio or nature sounds.

GRADUAL WAKE-UP. If I were to narrow down my single biggest reason for shopping for a new alarm clock, it would be that I was tired of the sudden blaring of my clock while in the middle of deep sleep. The T276B's buzzer alarm gradually increases in volume, allowing you a more peaceful wake-up.

NATURE SOUNDS. Another feature I wanted in an alarm clock was the ability to fall asleep listening to nature sounds. The T276B has 3 options: bubbling stream, waves and forest. Unfortunately, the loops are very short and less soothing than I had hoped -- hence, only 4 stars for this product.

VARIABLE SLEEP VOLUME. Another neat thing about this product is that you can fall asleep to either the nature sounds or the radio at a variable "sleep volume", while maintaining a louder alarm volume.

All in all, this is a great product with some other great features that I don't have the room to point out.

Good :
1. Adjusts time automatically after a power loss
2. Dual alarms
Bad:
1. The nature sound feature is not any good - the quality is poor
2. Makes a loud beep after the alarm is set - really annoying late at night while adjusting the wake-up time
3. Display is too bright at night even after dimming it

I recently bought this alarm clock. It seemed to have every possible feature you could ever want in an alarm, however, all these features were done very cheaply. The LCD display is always brightly lit, which is a distraction at night, the actual sound quality from the two small, mono speakers was reminiscent of my first transistor radio back in 1975, the sounds of nature might actually be nice if they weren't coming from those terrible speakers. The long and the short of it is, all those features for that low of price, I got exactly what I paid for.

Although it is very full featured, this alarm can be very difficult to use. Some of the buttons are inside a panel, while others are on top. The placement of these buttons makes no sense in terms of use. It's also very easy to accidently turn off the alarm when you're still half asleep.

Special note to users in Arizona, Indiana, and any where else that does not observe Daylight Savings Time: There is NO way to turn off the DST auto-set feature, so twice a year your clock will automatically set itself to the WRONG time!

This alarm clock was exactly what I was looking for. No more days of waking up to the annoyingly, obnoxious buzzing sound. Now, I'm waking up to the natural sounds of crickets and rolling waves. I don't usually fall asleep to these sounds, but you can if you want. You also have the option of listening to music or the buzzing sound.

I'm a big fan of the time (EST) already being set for you when you plug the clock in. It may be a little difficult to learn what all the buttons do and how to set the 2 different alarm settings, but once you figure it out, you won't forget it.

I also enjoy the "ramp up" feature where the alarm sound slowly increases the volume to wake you up from your restful night of sleep. You won't immediately jump out of bed at the sound of the buzzer/sounds, unless you're a light sleeper.

The price is a little high, but it is worth it if you want to wake up in a better mood, listening to natural sounds.