Sony CFDS50 Portable CD, Cassette & AM/FM Radio Boombox

Arrived on first expected day. Even though "used" it looks buffed. And yet the most important thing is that it WORKS -plays cd & cassette tape. It fits on my shelf just like my old one which lasted 10 years. I like that can listen with my porter-pro earphones or not. I like the sound, but my hearing isn't very fussy. Mainly I keep it beside my desk, but it'll be easy to move if needed elsewhere. It's good advice to unplug it if not in use for a long time and during storms. May this one last ten years or more.

Okay this is NOT a big fancy unit, HOWEVER, it has several very good things about it:1: The price is good / reasonable and has a good name on it that we all trust.2: This unit has the BEST tuner on the radio and antenna system I have found yet. Really!3: It is compact, easy to use, and is not tooooo large to carry around.4: It has AM & FM, plus tape and CD player: that is great to have in one unit.Cons? Only one..... the speakers are quite small, and if turned up much sound poor.Even so this radio WILL DO what NO OTHER radio I have tried has been able to do. Even on my big very expensive Sherwood sterio receiver with various aux. power booster antenna systems could not get this station! For several years I have tested every radio I could find in stores and such and NOT one could tune in a weak local station that is my favorite FM station. I could ONLY listen to it in a car radio or on computer. This one must have an excellent PLL network tuner (is my best guess), and also an excellent signal booster built into it. With all that it will receive this very weak station clearly in my bedroom at home! That is a big deal if you wish to use the radio and get great reception.After around 6 to 12 months of use I will update this rating and let you know about longer term things. For now, so far so good and even better than just good, so 5 Stars is a reasonable rating for it... it deserves it. It is a new electronic device, so I bought a 2 year extended warrantee for it.... $4 is well worth the peace of mind too.

I purchased this to replace a 30+ year old Panasonic. It had every feature I needed except a CD player, but that was easily remedied with a Walkman-type and a cable. I used the tape recorder feature quite a bit: I am a musician and used it for practice. When looking for a replacement, I found that they just don't make 'em like that anymore! This Sony is adequate and meets my needs, although it isn't quite as convenient to use (tape feature doesn't have auto-search, for example). Now to review the Sony on its own merits and not comparing it to my old Panasonic: It's compact and easy to move around. The controls are clearly marked and it's easy to figure out how it works. I like the fact that the controls are on the top which makes it easy to use when its sitting on the floor. The sound quality is adequate. I usually use it with ear buds or headphones, though. Bass response is a little weak even with the MegaBass turned on. If you're a fan of rap music, this isn't the machine for you. (I'm keeping my Panasonic for when I need to use the radio in a whole-room environment - like Christmas morning when opening gifts!) If you're looking for a compact, portable machine with CD, cassette, and radio, I don't think you'll be disappointed so long as you're not expecting more than these little guys are meant to deliver.

Boom boxes like this are hard to come by these days. They are either flimsy for kids or to expensive for run of the mill daily use. So far I am very happy with this. I purchased it for my mom who is in a nursing home and has to contend with a night owl roommate. She has macular degeneration so can't see very well at all anymore. So I was looking for a player that had continuous play for CDs. Not a lot of descriptions are clear on this matter so I've done a lot of buying and returning. This one fits the bill. It has a mode button which you press once for a one time repeat of your CD and a second time for continuous repeat. I also a earphone extension cord and some lovely headband speakers which is perfect since she mostly uses this to drown out the noisy neighbor. (all from Amazon) . The extension cord is so she doesn't accidentally pull the radio off her bedside table while moving around during the night. I stuck a command hook on the side of the table, so the headband can be hung up and put out of the way when necessary. And since she can't see the headband works a little like volume control. She twists it around on her head to move the speaker part off her ear when she wants a little softer during the night.Update: I had an issue where it stopped reading disks just two months after purchase, I tried unplugging for a while (overnight) and plugging back in but it didn't help. However I am still keeping this at 5 stars for the following reasons. 1) I reached out to the question area here and Sony themselves responded with a link to their support site very quickly so they keep stars for customer service. 2) As I said, the unit was running nearly 24 hours a day so I didn't expect it to last too long. 3) After I let it sit 3 weeks and finally tried to contact Sony, it started working again, so apparently something needed to reset on its own. Anyway, Now I have 2 so I can switch them out as needed for my mom.