In the fall of 2002, my friend Art Vuolo suggested strongly that I should subscribe to the then-fledgling XM satellite radio service. I was able to buy the hot at the time Sony Plug-n-Play receiver for $99, so the start up costs weren't all that bad. I figured that at $9.95/month, giving the service a tryout wouldn't be a bad idea to get a flavor of what satellite radio was all about.
I was immediately hooked on the music channels - especially the 60's, 70's, 80's, Top Tracks, and a couple of the Country stations. At that time, the service still had commercial breaks on the music channels - but they were really no problem as the total time each hour was minimal compared to regular radio. I liked the service so much that when XM started discounted rates with multi-year agreements, I signed up for 5 years.
Even though I really enjoyed XM with the Sony unit, it wasn't as portable as I would have liked. After buying an extra docking station for home, I still didn't do a lot of transferring back and forth. The car installation was kind of clunky with wires everywhere and it wasn't the easiest thing to change stations on while driving.
When the opportunity came to upgrade to Delphi's MyFi, I jumped at it -- especially at a discounted price from the Consumer Electronics Show in January '05. What a great decision that was!! My time listening to XM both at home and in the car has increased dramatically since I've owned the MyFi. It's easy to move between the car and home- and in between the upstairs and downstairs while at home. The MyFi is designed to be all-inclusive for most users, coming with the necessary hardware to get setup in one place at home and in one vehicle.
Of course, I'm a difficult customer. I've already purchased several extras- an extra home kit (for the basement) and an extra car kit (for our other car). I also purchased a short personal antenna for portable use to replace the ineffective "lipstick case" antenna that comes with the MyFi. In addition, I picked up a Lowepro EX60 camera case to carry the MyFi and it's accessories in when I'm on the go.
Installation of the MyFi in my Yukon was pretty clean as I was able to hide the wires behind the dashboard trim plate. I also installed an auxiliary lighter adapter under the dash that is connected to one of the fuses that powers on and off with the truck's ignition, just like the regular radio.
Some of the positives: The MyFi's 5-hour recording feature is great; I'm sure though that the recording time will be longer in the next generation of the radios. The display is easy to read and the battery lasts a decent amount of time. Extended batteries are available now if you spend a lot of time away from AC power. Some of the negatives: Mostly it's the pricing of the accessories and the current inability to just buy the pieces you want. For now, you're stuck buying entire kits for the home and car, which has resulted in extra antennas. I guess there is always e-bay.
All satellite radios need to see the sky in order for them to pick up the signal -- as a portable unit it's awkward to need an external antenna in order to get decent reception. The internal antenna technology still leaves something to be desired. Bottom line though is that I'd recommend the MyFi to anyone considering satellite radio- either as their primary system as it is for me, or as a way to get portable with satellite.
As for the XM service itself... I wouldn't be happy if I had to give it up. I've grown very fond of the commercial-free music channels and the availability of major league baseball and other sports play-by-play. The decades channels remain a favorite because of the deeper variety than heard on regular radio. Critics have commented that the deeper variety equals more clunkers-- I'd disagree. While some of the songs you hear wouldn't be so nice if they were repeated over and over again, it is nice to hear them every once in awhile. For now the XM programmers seem to be finding a decent balance between playing the 'super hits' and the 'oh wows'. If you're really in to only hearing those super hits, those channels are available too. XM Pops is a nice diversion too.
Being a sports junky, it's great to be able to hear the Tigers games when up north camping in areas without local affiliates (or ones that are so full of static they are unlistenable). ESPN radio carries play-by-play of big national games too, so the NBA playoff games with the Pistons were available when away from home too. Sirius has the better sports package- I'd probably subscribe to both services if there was a receiver similar to the MyFi that was capable of receiving both. My main complaint with XM's major league baseball is the high compression that is used- it makes the audio sound very 'digital' (like a computer is talking instead of a person). I hope XM finds a better way to do compression sometime soon.
You don't have to be a super music nut to enjoy XM radio-- everyday listeners have plenty to listen to and enjoy. I'm not at all surprised to see the service at the 4 million subscriber mark in the spring of 2005. It will be interesting to how high those numbers are 3 years from now.
In case you couldn't tell by now, I'm a big fan of XM radio. It'll never replace traditional radio and the services it provides, but it is sure a nice addition to my entertainment choices. As the numbers of satellite subscribers continue to grow, it will be interesting to watch how local radio adjusts to keep itself relevant.
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