Boombox Buying Guide

If you want to avoid headphones and don't need the ultra-portability of an MP3 player, consider a boombox instead. Boomboxes make great music systems for the beach, picnics, offices, and dorm rooms. A boombox gives you multiple music formats and amplification ranging from decent to overpowering, all in a portable package. Today, boomboxes come in all different shapes, sizes, and styles. Find one that fits your personality and needs. Along with a variety of physical features, boomboxes now offer a large assortment of technological features. Aside from your standard AM/FM tuner, cassette player, two speakers, and CD player, boomboxes now play back CD-R/+R/-RW, are iPod or MP3 compatible, contain satellite ready tuners, come enabled with Bluetooth, and much more. All of these features allow you to choose what matters most to you.

Boomboxes come packaged with AC adapters for use with wall outlets. If you plan on using your boombox without a wall outlet, most units specify how many hours of battery life you can expect. Choose a boombox with a longer batter life if you plan on being mobile.

Boomboxes are developed for mobility and not for the home theater experience. However, new technology has allowed smaller speakers to produce a more enriched sound that will fill any room. Boomboxes with more watts and bass-boosting technology will give you the best sound from your portable device.

Memory presets use electronic settings so you can store your favorite stations and access them with a touch of a button.

Today's boomboxes come with digital AM/FM tuners. These allow drift-free tuning, so you no longer have to guess what station you are on as you turn a knob. Digital tuners precisely locate your favorite stations.

CD playback has been around for awhile, but now boomboxes can play CD-R/RW formatted discs. These allow you to record music from other sources and then listen to it on your boombox.

Bluetooth allows you to wirelessly stream and listen to music on your boombox from a Bluetooth capable cell phone or from a digital music player with a Bluetooth adaptor.

iPod or MP3 compatible boomboxes give you the option of connecting your MP3 device through an auxiliary input. Certain units have iPod docks that will connect and charge your iPod as it plays.

Listen to satellite radio with the optional home antenna and subscription service, sold separately. Supports either XM or Sirius satellite radio.