wootalyzer wrote:Wootalyzer's Pricing Post! - The price of today's woot item is saved here for future reference
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chumby one: Smart Internet Companion
$49.99 + $5 Shipping
Condition: New

*DISCLAIMER* Wootalyzer! is in no way affiliated with Woot!, and this post may not always be here!

I searched this - it's the same price on LOTS of sites - ALL THE TIME! WOOT - I am very disappointed. You are supposed to be lower.

Sounds like you are talking about the original Chumby here, not the Chumby One - This unit does in fact have a stereo output jack.

dliidlii wrote:Built-in speakers are weak. No Aux input. No audio-out jack.

pmcizhere wrote:NEW for $50? So in for one!!! (They're regularly $129.95)

Regularly on sale for $69-$89.

Mugford wrote:This would be cooler if it was big as the picture an i could dock my iPhone on it.

If you view the picture from your iphone the actual product is much bigger than what you see. How cool is that?

It has an audio out jack.

Where is all the bad info on these things coming from?

dliidlii wrote:PC REVIEW: NOT IMPRESSED
PROs:Touch screen. Streams Internet radio and programs like Pandora. Decent file support.
Cons
Touch screen is not very responsive. Useful widgets are few and far-between. Built-in speakers are weak. No Aux input. No audio-out jack.
Bottom Line
Stick with your old-school alarm clock to wake up and your computer or smartphone for portable entertainment—the Chumby One is underachieving and overpriced.

Clipdat wrote:Sounds like you are talking about the original Chumby here, not the Chumby One - This unit does in fact have a stereo output jack.

The review quoted was from 6/1/10 PC Mag review of Chubby One. They may consider the headphone jack different than an audio out jack?

http://www.bunniestudios.com/blog/?p=1076

Shows a good picture of how small it really is. Looking through bunnie's blog you can see how to add other LCDs or composite video out, maybe even a camera. If you're comfortable opening it up and soldering.

ON the fence here.... seems like fun, it is actually cheaper than my alarm clock that i currently have. But will I use it? will i like it? If not can i wrap it up and give away as a Xmas gift? Hope i'll decide before it gets sold out..

regal8lager wrote:This item is crucial if one is so inclined to track the progress of the Charlie Sheen Life Meter. Perfect for those office bets on who will last longer...Sheen or Gaddafi.

I'm betting just a few ticks of the clock longer than Lindsay Lohan.

I use mine at work. It's wireless and plays Pandora all day, also things like weather, Chuck Norris quotes and Letterman top 10. It's a great office accessory.

dliidlii wrote:The review quoted was from 6/1/10 PC Mag review of Chubby One. They may consider the headphone jack different than an audio out jack?

I read that review, and it didn't make any sense to me, either.

At one point the reviewer says there's no audio output jack. Further down, he does mention the headphone jack. If there's something other than audio coming out of that headphone jack, I'd be quite surprised.

Clearly the photos and specs do show a headphone jack; I'd use that to feed some powered "computer speakers."

crowbite wrote:I hope someone - preferably someone who owns one and has done these things - can answer these three specific questions.

1.) Can I set up a programmable alarm with the FM radio? For example: M-F 8:00 AM play 89.7; Sat 9:00 AM play 103.1; Sun 11:00 AM play 89.5?

Yes. The only caveat is that you have to have the different stations set up as presets. (I'm not sure if there's a limit to how many presets you can have)

2.) If I insert a USB stick with multiple MP3 files, will the file names (or tags) show up on the Chumby display? The sample screen shown on the Chumby website http://www.chumby.com/pages/cp_mymusic simply says "Song 1 of 9" which is not adequate.

Yes, it will list all the music files, with the one currently playing being highlighted.

3.) If I insert a USB stick with just one MP3 file (for example a 30-minute OTR program), can the Chumby play that just one time, then go silent and, hopefully, revert to "alarm clock" mode?

Yup.

THANKS IN ADVANCE!

No problem.

crowbite wrote:I originally responded to your comment that bad fidelity was more likely caused by FM radio or by MP3 files than by a 2" speaker. I thought, and still think, that that comment was pretty absurd. Any FM station, and any reasonable MP3 file (even as low as 128kbps) will have much better frequency response, and lower distortion (except at ridiculously low levels) than a 2" speaker in a plastic box trying to cover the entire audio spectrum.

Yes, of course the tiny speaker is likely to be the weak link in the chain. But you may have misunderstood what I was trying to get at.... I was trying to say that 1) the little speakers on most nighttable clock radios are probably not much better than the one in the Chumby; and 2) if you're looking for an audiophile experience, you're not likely to find it listening to MP3 files or FM radio in the first place. Since those are the sources from which the Chumby would be delivering content to your ears, a reasonable person such as yourself would not expect it to use it as an audiophile. In that case, its speaker probably doesn't matter much, as we've agreed.

It looks like a cool device and has a good review (on CNET). I will have to pass as it only goes up to wireless G and I have converted my Wireless network to N only for performance. Otherwise it would have been a cool Alarm/Wifi device.

crowbite wrote:I read that review, and it didn't make any sense to me, either.

At one point the reviewer says there's no audio output jack. Further down, he does mention the headphone jack. If there's something other than audio coming out of that headphone jack, I'd be quite surprised.

Clearly the photos and specs do show a headphone jack; I'd use that to feed some powered "computer speakers."

(chumby employee) - Yes you can definitely hook up any audio device (i.e. computer speakers) that has a 3.5mm audio jack

azarael1906 wrote:I have been charged to my account the amount for the shirt that i purchased yesterday. When i check my Woot account however, it says that i haven't purchased anything. Whats up with that?

You'll probably see it if you go ti shirt.woot and check your account there.

registrationid wrote:It looks like a cool device and has a good review (on CNET). I will have to pass as it only goes up to wireless G and I have converted my Wireless network to N only for performance. Otherwise it would have been a cool Alarm/Wifi device.

Pretty Sirius GPP reasoning. If you're going for max performance, then your N-only network should be running strictly on 5 GHz. You could enable mixed mode and have your G devices use the 2.4 GHz band without affecting your N performance.

dliidlii wrote:Regularly on sale for $69-$89.

Can't find those sites on Epinions. Can you let me
know where?

wow this thing is a pretty big waste of plastic and resources. might make a good paper weight though maybe even a good door stop or bookend or you could throw it your kids if there bad just make sure to wrap it up in a towel or somethig so it doesnt leave any marks

Found my new alarm clock!

registrationid wrote:It looks like a cool device and has a good review (on CNET). I will have to pass as it only goes up to wireless G and I have converted my Wireless network to N only for performance. Otherwise it would have been a cool Alarm/Wifi device.

Your 802.11n router doesn't support 802.11g devices?

EDIT: My mistake. You're getting max performance because you switched to the 5.0 GHz band, so your 802.11g devices are no longer compatible, right?

You still have several options. Most challenging imho would be to hack the Chumby and replace the 802.11g device with a 802.11n one. An alternative is to get a USB-to-Ethernet dongle and hook it up to your network via wire. Easiest of all might be to connect a 802.11g device to your existing 802.11n router. (I'm guessing you're running your 802.11n network at 5.0 GHz for max performance, so I don't think there would be interference issues if you run a secondary 802.11g network on the 2.4 GHz band.)

albuquerquemat wrote:Can't find those sites on Epinions. Can you let me
know where?

from dealnews:
Chumby offers the Chumby One Internet Alarm Clock for $129.95. Coupon code "VDAY11" cuts it to $69.95. With $9.95 for shipping, that's $19 under last month's mention and the lowest total price we've seen. (It's also $10 under our Cyber Monday mention and a current price low by $40.) It features a 3.5" touchscreen, dimmable backlight, 454MHz ARM processor, 802.11g wireless, USB connectivity, memory stick slot, iPod support, FM tuner, programmable alarms, access to Internet radio applications (including Pandora and SHOUTcast), and more.
Best buy has also had it on sale for $79. If you watch the ads or search the internet once a week it is not hard to find these sales. dealnews dot com is worth a daily view.

fxfuji wrote:I was trying to say that 1) the little speakers on most nighttable clock radios are probably not much better than the one in the Chumbly;

I certainly didn't read that. In fact, I have rejected many clock/radios because of the poor sound. Presently I have one of the bigger Sony Dream Machines, which does have pretty decent sound, as well as a CD drive.

Of course there's quite a gamut ranging from 2" speakers (or worse) to audiophile quality monitors. But even for a clock/radio, I'd most likely be listening to classical music, and could not stand the 2" experience.

fxfuji wrote:if you're looking for an audiophile experience, you're not likely to find it listening to MP3 files

Actually, MP3 (or AAC) at 320kbps is quite respectable, although it's not quite a CD (nor is it vinyl). But obviously nobody in his right mind would be looking at something like a Chumby for an audiophile experience... so "audiophile" really isn't relevant to this discussion.

Of course we haven't talked about how well the tuner works: sensitivity, selectivity, etc. That's a gamble I'll have to take.

Anyway, I'll let you know how a Chumby sounds with Fostex powered monitors. ;)

lotussama wrote:No problem.

@lotussama:

THANKS A MILLION! I appreciate the detailed answers, and, better yet, those are the specific answers I was hoping for.

I just ordered one, and had a hard time holding back from clicking the "TWO" button.

If I really like it, I can get another one the next time they come around... or the next Woot-Off.

crowbite wrote:VERY IMPORTANT POINT!

Can someone else please confirm that, one way or the other? If it won't at least handle WEP then I certainly have no use for it.

The specs posted on the Woot main page say it will handle several versions of WEP and WPA.

I've got it set up with WPA2-PSK encryption just fine. Easy to do, no problems with reception, although I am just twenty feet from my AP.

lotussama wrote:It has an audio out jack.

Where is all the bad info on these things coming from?

The review also mentions speakers. ??

albuquerquemat wrote:The review also mentions speakers. ??

The original or "Classic" Chumby had a pair of stereo speakers.

The newer "Chumby One" model offered on Woot has a single mono speaker, which I would guess is around 2" or a bit bigger.

As fxfuji points out, many clock radios have similar speakers. I personally would not be satisfied with that, but will try the Chumby with some powered "computer speakers" to improve the fidelity.

That is one butt-ugly piece of technology. I've heard it promoted on Radio Paradise, but never seen one. I wasn't missing anything.

In for 1. I will use it on my patio while keeping warm under my infrared umbrella heater in my not-a-snuggie.

albuquerquemat wrote:The review also mentions speakers. ??

(chumby employee) - Yes, the chumby does have an internal 2 watt speaker.

crowbite wrote:I read that review, and it didn't make any sense to me, either.

At one point the reviewer says there's no audio output jack. Further down, he does mention the headphone jack. If there's something other than audio coming out of that headphone jack, I'd be quite surprised.

Clearly the photos and specs do show a headphone jack; I'd use that to feed some powered "computer speakers."

This might be a matter of semantics. A headphone jack is volume controlled, same as the speaker. A true audio jack is a constant signal strength to be run through another amplifer. If you run a headphone jack through an amplifier at too high a volume, you will overdrive the signal causing distortion.
This is an important distinction if you are describing a DVD player, tape deck, CD changer, or other type of audio equipment. On a devices such as this, the distinction is a little picayune IMO.

widmer69 wrote:Huh? No more gigantic munkee?? Glad I got my 3!

How did you get 3? When I went to order it says I am limited to 2. I thought I bought the last 2, hence the only 2 option, but they seem to still be available. Guess I should have purchased earlier before the cap was placed.

I s it possible to get AM Radio on this thing? I like to listen to local sports casts on the radio........Thanks for your help!

crowbite wrote:Actually, MP3 (or AAC) at 320kbps is quite respectable, although it's not quite a CD (nor is it vinyl).

Is the dynamic range of MP3 @320kbps acceptable to you? For pop music, MP3 seems fine to me, but for classical and some jazz, the compression of the pianissimo and fortissimo really bugs me. Flim & The BB's Big Notes is an example of something where the difference between CD and MP3 is noticeable to me; perhaps the sample rate was too low?

But obviously nobody in his right mind would be looking at something like a Chumby for an audiophile experience... so "audiophile" really isn't relevant to this discussion.

Exactly. Which is why I couldn't understand why the speaker would matter. But as I said, my interest is in news and podcasts; the dial on my clock/radio is welded to the local NPR station.

Of course we haven't talked about how well the tuner works: sensitivity, selectivity, etc. That's a gamble I'll have to take.

Worst case, if the FM tuner isn't discriminating enough for you, these days you can get the streaming feed of most U.S. radio stations via the Internet, and your Chumby should be capable of playing that.

Anyway, I'll let you know how a Chumby sounds with Fostex powered monitors. ;)

I thought we agreed that "audiophile" wasn't relevant to this discussion? ;)

Oh yeah, a Sony Dream Machine is way above 'most nighttable clock/radios' imho. Certainly it should have better speakers than the Chumby... in fact, I suspect that the speakers on 95+% of all clock radios would fail to satisfy your ears, if the SDM is your standard.

esushi wrote:All stores must charge sales tax if you live in an area that has sales tax (or, sometimes, if the store is in an area that has a tax on exports). This includes online stores.

Delaware, for instance, has no sales tax. Did you used to make your purchases there?

Actually while a lot of states would like it to be the way you describe, there's a little issue of leverage to make that the case.

The practical reality is that if the online retailer has a physical presence in your state, AND your state charges sales tax, then they have to charge tax on online sales made to addresses in that state.

The change in owership has affected this. For example, Woot is in texas or somesuch, and I live in Washington. So I didn't used to pay sales tax on Woots. The Amazon, who is HQ'd in Washington, became the new overlords of the Woot crew, and now, I have to pay sales tax on my Woots.

rdctali wrote:BTW, can this guy do anything that a iPod Touch can't do? Just trying to find myself an excuse to buy it. :-)

If you already have an iPod touch just buy a dock. I use the Cyber Acoustics Portable Digital Docking Speaker for iPod For $35 you'll get much more functionality than a Chumby and decent sound.

KAZANOW wrote:But does size really matter?

That's what HE said.

trarbach wrote:
Overall, more useful than a leakfrog, and cuter, too. It's a little ridiculous, but I like it anyway.

Yeah, but for this much you could get a whole army of frogs. Think of the entertainment value of that when added to a splash of water!

crowbite wrote:I read that review, and it didn't make any sense to me, either.

At one point the reviewer says there's no audio output jack. Further down, he does mention the headphone jack. If there's something other than audio coming out of that headphone jack, I'd be quite surprised.

Clearly the photos and specs do show a headphone jack; I'd use that to feed some powered "computer speakers."

I believe there is a difference, a headphone jack sends out an amplified signal whereas and audio jack assumes that the amplification will be done by the device that is plugged into it.