gallbladder123 wrote: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!

The device does not have an AM tuner, only an FM one, but if the AM stations you want to listen to offer a streaming feed over the Internet, the Chumby should be able to capture that and play it for you.

cjpowers wrote:This might be a matter of semantics.

Didn't Charlie Sheen just get in trouble for making anti-semantic comments?

Oh, maybe that was anti-semitic...

Anyway,

cjpowers wrote: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.

I would actually disagree slightly with that terminology. "Audio output" is meaningless... "line output," "tape output," "headphone," and "speaker output" are all types of audio signals.

Of course "audio output" means it's not the video output! You might find an "audio output" jack on a DVD player.

"Line output" means it's higher voltage than mic level, and lower power than speaker level. In days of yore, it meant that the signal came pretty close after the internal device's preamp, before any power amp stages that would add noise and distortion. "Line output" is normally controlled by the volume control on the source device. (The exception is devices which might not have their own volume controls... like DVD players.) Today, many portable devices use the same jack for "line output" and "headphone."

A "tape output" jack, for example on an audiophile preamp, also gets its signal from the preamp, but before any volume or tone controls. That's because, if you're making a tape of a CD (yes, people used to do that), you want the tape to be as close to the original as possible... not changed by your tone control settings, etc.

Actually, for something like a Chumby, I would prefer having the Chumby's convenient volume control be in the circuit, so that it controls the volume coming from my external amplified speakers (which might be located less conveniently). That way I don't need to reach for another volume control (or two) on the separate speakers.

I do agree with you, the reviewer (or anyone else) making such a distinction with a device like this is being overly picky. I have several "prosumer" devices that use the same jack for "line out" and "headphone." Today's electronics are clean enough that the chip driving the headphones is plenty clean enough to drive a set of amplified speakers, too.

Although it's not a 97-gazillion dollar "audiophile" device.

gallbladder123 wrote: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!

(chumby employee) - The chumbys does not have a AM tuner. But it does come preloaded with IHeartRadio and you might be able to locate your AM station there. I would check with IHeartRadio first. Hope this helps

bnhadams wrote:Does it have a snooze button?

Yup.. there is a dedicated snooze on top as well as a volume knob on the right...

heyker wrote:Can I set this up in my kitchen as a recipe finder/viewer? I always print out recipes to carry into my kitchen from my desktop.

One of the very reasons I got three. Going to develop such an App since very few seem to exist.

oldirtdog wrote:Yup.. there is a dedicated snooze on top as well as a volume knob on the right...

(chumby employee) - And you can even program how long you want that lovely "snooze" period to last

I actually own the Chumby One and the original Classic.. I like it for push/ambient computing... my best advice is just go over and read the forums at http://www.chumby.com/ and see what you think.. The device has some shortcomings but I think woots description is a bit better than some of Chumby's own words.. its a smart information/stream appliance, dont think of it as a replacement for a clock or a radio..

no shipping to Alaska ? Sirius GPP.

fxfuji wrote: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.)

The Chumby seems to run pretty reliably over a wired ethernet adapter connected to its USB port... Im using the USB to Ethernet adapter apple is selling for the macbook air..

I just bought a battery for this on eBay.
$6 shipped.
http://cgi.ebay.com/Fuji-NP-120-BATTERY-FinePix-M603-F10-F11-Zoom-NP120-/190480566370?pt=Batteries_Chargers&hash=item2c5986c862

heyker wrote:Can I set this up in my kitchen as a recipe finder/viewer? I always print out recipes to carry into my kitchen from my desktop.

(chumby employee) - You sure can. Here are some available apps just for that purpose: http://www.chumby.com/guide/search?sort_by=score&query=recipe&x=0&y=0

Thanks for answering my question about the AM radio. I bought the Chumby!

crowbite wrote:@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.

Wow, you've gone all the way from wondering "what's it good for?" to nearly ordering TWO! A remarkable transformation.... I'm curious about your decision process, what was it that convinced you that you had to have it?

This thing needs to be steampunked 'cause it's beyond ugly - then it would be so cool!

Check out - original steampunk arthropod sculptures by Tom Hardwidge - http://www.arthrobots.com/

fxfuji wrote: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; ...[/i] In that case, its speaker probably doesn't matter much, as we've agreed.

I hope at a minimum that the built in speaker has a paper cone instead of the hard plastic ones. The plastic cone speakers sound beyond horrible, even the 3" ones. They sound like they're playing through a plastic cup.

pturner3 wrote:This thing needs to be steampunked 'cause it's beyond ugly - then it would be so cool!

Check out - original steampunk arthropod sculptures by Tom Hardwidge - http://www.arthrobots.com/

Well, it's designed from the ground up to be custom modded, hacked, and hobbied with. I think a steampunk version would be very cool. If you do something like that, please post pics (and instructions, if possible) somewhere, okay?

I'm in for two. That way there will be no arguing over who gets to keep it

+1 for open/hackable platform

lotussama wrote:Yeah, the Dash has a larger screen, but the actual functional part of the screen where the apps run is the same size...

Nope, BAD info. You apparently don't have a Dash as the apps will play full screen directly from a "theme" where other info surrounds it by touching the upper right corner icon. Alternatively, you can also use a theme where it plays full screen all the time.

Still wondering if this thing is capable of streaming Slacker Radio..... any Chumby employees want to chime in?

More relevant question than if it has an AM tuner.

Not entirely sure why I'm in for one...but I am! I figure I can use it around the apartment or office for Pandora if nothing else and may end up gifting it my mom or sister later on if I think it would useful to either of them. Wouldn't buy it at full price but for $55 shipped its worth a shot.

fsamaie wrote:Honey: I got a Chumby!

Can't really help you with that right now, dear, the kid doesn't go to bed for another 4 hours!

austinwebb wrote:...is there an actual keyboard that pops up ...?

I'm sure you can get it to pop up when you have a chumby...the question is how fast and for how long? ;)

Still wondering if this thing is capable of streaming Slacker Radio..... any Chumby employees want to chime in?

More relevant question than if it has an AM tuner.

I know it runs a modified linux, but can I run my own version of linux on it?

Thanks for the correction. I don't have a Dash. Every picture I've seen of them show the app running in a 3.5" window. I might be interested in getting one...do you know how the apps resize to full screen? If it's the way iPhone apps scale to the iPod (just stretching them out), I'm not really interested...

iguana71 wrote:Nope, BAD info. You apparently don't have a Dash as the apps will play full screen directly from a "theme" where other info surrounds it by touching the upper right corner icon. Alternatively, you can also use a theme where it plays full screen all the time.

powertrax wrote:Still wondering if this thing is capable of streaming Slacker Radio..... any Chumby employees want to chime in?

More relevant question than if it has an AM tuner.

(chumby employee) - Unfortunately, our chumbys do not support Slacker Radio at this time.

fxfuji wrote:I'm curious about your decision process, what was it that convinced you that you had to have it?

Well, the first posts I read were talking about checking Twitter (I don't even have an account), reading the news (on my side, in bed... no thanks), checking local traffic conditions (around here, that would mean Amish buggies) and other uses that didn't seem at all useful to me.

However, I could use a more functional replacement for my present clock/radio. I wondered whether Chumby would be a candidate.

Alas, I had originally read a review that said Chumby didn't have any audio output jack. That would have made the audio quality - from a single 2" speaker -unacceptable. But I later found out that info was incorrect... it does have an output jack. So, with that knowledge, I can play it through better speakers. That make it worth considering.

So then I posted three specific questions, which addressed things I can not do with my present Sony Dream Machine, or with any other traditional clock/radio I've found.

Another poster (sorry, I cannot see the name while typing this) was kind enough to send detailed answers. In fact, it seems the Chumby will be able to do all three things that I want to do (which I can not do presently). So I'll give it a try as a bedside alarm/audio device.

As far as ordering two... well, I always order two, just in case I really like the thing, or else to have a spare. Don't you? Doesn't everyone? ;)

Has no one asked - or have I just missed - the "can I set this up using my Mac" question? It would be nice to know the answer, either way.

iguana71 wrote:I'm sure you can get it to pop up when you have a chumby...the question is how fast and for how long? ;)

(chumby employee) - The on-screen keyboard will pop up for a predetermined time. This is dictated by the app or program. Don't worry it will never cut you off.

upsidehound wrote:I figured. Just pointing out their hype. It's an interesting idea but I think I'll save money and buy another docking station for my Droid. That's close enough for me and cheaper.

You can get even closer to the Chumby experience with the Chumby for Android app.

Ringo4422 wrote:I hope at a minimum that the built in speaker has a paper cone instead of the hard plastic ones. The plastic cone speakers sound beyond horrible, even the 3" ones. They sound like they're playing through a plastic cup.

According to iFixit's teardown of the Chumby, the 2W speaker has a 7/8" concave aluminum diaphragm. It's mounted inside a resonance box, per Gizmodo.

I actually think this will be useful. I've been looking for something to replace my alarm clock. I'm in. Thinking about getting a second one for work. Maybe I'll wait for the Chumby 8 and take this one to work.

Can I plug a usb stick into this and play my MP3's?

I realize with pandora/fm radio built in it's not really necesary but I'm just wondering. I presume since you can load pictures for the picture frame thing you could load music too?

I have one and love it. I use it for an alarm clock. You can dim the screen at night. It has a night mode, but if that still puts out even too much light, you can turn it off.

The only problem I've had with it is if you forget to turn off the alarms when you're out of town, the back up alarm, which runs if you lose internet connectivity or do not respond to the main alarm within a certain amount of time, usually crashes the chumby requiring a hard reset. That's a minor issue though, I'd still recommend it.

Be sure you get the backup battery, which is NOT included. It will save you hassle if you live in a thunderstorm-prone area. I got mine at Batteries+

I'm in, but only if it can stream Chumbawamba 24/7/365.24!

That would be some good Tubthumping.

chumzster wrote:(chumby employee) - The on-screen keyboard will pop up for a predetermined time. This is dictated by the app or program. Don't worry it will never cut you off.

Now I'm wondering: will it recognize a USB computer keyboard?

Tygress wrote:Has no one asked - or have I just missed - the "can I set this up using my Mac" question? It would be nice to know the answer, either way.

(chumby employee) - Yes of course you can setup this up on a MAC. All you need to have is a web browser so you can create an account and manage your chumby

crowbite wrote:Aside from "alarm clock" and "I don't know why anyone would want to read EMail on one" I haven't read any good examples, here, of what I would want to do with one.

Obviously it doesn't have an FM radio or play CDs, so I don't see that it's even a good replacement for a clock radio.

So, given that I will need to keep the clock radio on the nightstand (to hear radio and CDs), will someone please give me some specific examples of why I would want to have one of these, too.

CDs? Seriously?

You're right! I have to have my Victrola on my nightstand already if I want to play my records so why should I buy this?

It gets FM and it plays these newfangled things called MP3s.

crowbite wrote:Now I'm wondering: will it recognize a USB computer keyboard?

(chumby employee) - Yes & No. If you plug in a USB keyboard you will not be able to use it for inputting on apps & programs, but instead the screen will change to a Linux command line interface. If you are comfortable navigating in Linux then this is for you to play with.

lotussama wrote:..I might be interested in getting one...do you know how the apps resize to full screen? If it's the way iPhone apps scale to the iPod (just stretching them out), I'm not really interested...

No stretching. The screen is quite nice especially for wide screen movies. I bought a second one at yesterday's woot!-off for $75 shipped.