Do Not Be Fooled By It's Cuteness

A few months back when I was in the market for a new clock radio I stumbled on to this cute model at Target. It's sleek, modern, compact, and has a nice looking digital readout. I was even pleased when I brought it home and plugged it in to find that radio stations play crystal clear with the digital tuner. Perfect for my morning NPR fix.

My opinion totally changed that night when I went to bed and flipped off the lights. The "clear blue digital readout" glowed way too cheerily in the dark. We are talking RETINA BURNING bright. I tried turning away from it but could still see a blue halo of light in the room. Uuugh. I tried the "dimmer" which made next to no difference. I turned the face away from me and still couldn't get over it's brightness. Finally I grabbed a book on my nightstand and propped it against the front of the clock to drown out it's glaring face, and promptly fell asleep.

The next morning the radio alarm went off AT MAX VOLUME. After investigating I realized that there is no way to change this, and I am now jolted awake by a blaring Morning Edition daily (and sometimes on Saturdays when I forget to turn the auto reset off). This is particularly annoying when, as this morning, I am startled awake by a screaming, "IT'S 6:38, AND WITH WINDCHILL, 4 DEGREES HERE IN KANSAS CITY!!" ......4 degrees?!?!...gross....

In short, I give this little guy an F for FAIL. Anyone have any other suggestions for a clock radio that doesn't suck?