Electrohome: Signature Retro HiFi Stereo System: review

When I was growing up, my Dad had a pretty nice stereo system with a turntable. This was our only source of music other than the radio. My father had 100’s of albums from The Beatles to John Denver. We didn’t have a TV yet so in order to entertain ourselves we would all dance around in the living room to “Hey, hey, we’re the monkeys” over and over again. My mother was a saint and would DJ the songs for us. It kept us busy. When an opportunity came up to review Electrohome’s Signature Retro HiFi Stereo System I jumped at the opportunity if only for the sake of nostalgia.

Electrohome overview

The Electrohome Signature Retro HiFi Stereo System is a cabinet style stereo system. It is definitely meant to invoke feelings of nostalgia for those who are older and hipster-longing for those who are younger.

The stereo features an AM/FM radio, CD Player, USB audio file player, auxiliary input, and a record player.

The record player features a diamond tipped ceramic needle and a fully automatic belt-driven turntable spins 7, 10 and 12-inch records at three speeds of 33, 45, and 78 revolutions per minute.

The whole stereo is encased in a handcrafted real wood cabinet with a dark walnut finish.

Electrohome setup

Setting up the Electrohome Signature Retro HiFi Stereo System is fairly easy. The hardest part is taking it out of the box. It is packed in pretty tightly.

Realistically, it is pretty much ready to go the minute you take it out of the box. The only thing you have to do, other than plugging it in, is to untighten the screw that secures the turntable during shipping.

Electrohome usage

AM/FM Radio

I love that the radio features an actual analog dial and station indicator. There is a satisfying feeling of turning the dial to get to your favorite radio station while hearing the other radio stations blip in and out over the sound of static. No digital tuners here.

There is also a stereo indicator light on off to the left of the station indicator that will light up when a stereo radio station is found. I found that I used it as a signal strength indicator. If the light was on, that meant that I had a good signal.

There is also a wire antenna in the back that can help you get better reception.

CD Player

The CD player works well. There isn’t too much to it. It works exactly like any other CD player would with one exception. If you have a USB thumb drive connected to the Electrohome, you can rip the CD tracks to your thumb drive. I wish I had this when I was ripping my collection of CD’s back in 2002. It would have made it so much easier.

Record Player

This is the one area where I actually found the sound quality lacking. I’m not referring to snap, crackle, pop noises normally found in on records. I’m talking about the depth of sound. The record player just lacked in the lower bass tones. The higher treble sounds were great. They were crisp and clear, but there was little to no bass. To be clear, the sound on the radio and CD Player were fine. They had a great well-rounded sound.

The actual record player itself was a joy to use. Unfortunately, I didn’t have any records of my own, so my wife volunteered to go get some from our local Goodwill. She found a Lionel Ritchie record and a United Artists soundtrack record for $2 a piece.

I found that there was something quite satisfying as putting the vinyl record down and allowing the needle to begin playing to record. Again, this inspired feelings of nostalgia. My 12-year-old daughter quickly became obsessed with the new gadget. She had never seen anything like it before. I would wake up on the weekends to her playing the Lionel Ritchie album.

However, the best feature of the record player is that you can record the record to a USB thumb drive. Unfortunately, it will not create separate audio files for each song. You would have to stop and start the recording between every song, or use an audio file splitter to create separate files. It will also continue recording after the record has stopped, so you need to pay attention or you’ll have a long pause after the last song.

USB / Auxiliary

The USB port works quite well, but the interface is oversimplified. There is no way to tell what folder you are in or what song you are playing, but you are able to play music. To me, the main purpose of the USB port is to record your music. Unfortunately, it will only record music from CD’s and records. It will not record radio stations or sounds from the auxiliary input.

The auxiliary input works, as well as you, might expect. Just plug in an audio source with a 3.5mm audio jack and you can listen to music from your phone or whatever you like. I ended up using a Bluetooth adapter to stream my music wirelessly to the Electrohome.

Interface

The interface has both digital and analog elements to it. The analog interface is pretty awesome. There are switches for the audio source which have a satisfying click when pressed. The power button also has that satisfying click. The tuner and volume knobs also have a satisfying feel to them. The one knock on the analog buttons controlling the audio source is that they don’t line up together completely and the unselected source buttons feel just a little loose when they are not selected.

One thing I wish that they would have included is the ability to change the bass and treble levels.

The digital interface leaves a little to be desired. The display is an LCD number display that doesn’t show much other than the track that you’re listening to when using the CD player. The buttons that control the CD player and USB player are are labeled, but they are small and hard to read in low light situations. I felt that I needed a flashlight when operating it in  those low light conditions.

Electrohome Signature Retro HiFi Stereo System

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What we liked

• Retro design
• USB / Aux ports
• Ability to play records

What could be better

• Record player tonality
• Included Bluetooth
• Easier to read digital controls

4.25 out of 5 stars

Overall I really liked the Electrohome Signature Retro HiFi Stereo System. It’s not perfect by any means, but it takes me back to a time where your stereo was more than just a stereo. It was also a piece of furniture. I think that the Electrohome would find itself at home in any environment. For me it’s more than just a stereo, it’s a time machine and a conversation piece. It’s available on Amazon for just under $200 with free shipping.

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Withings Activité Steel is latest tracker from health company

Withings announced today a new addition to their line of Activité activity trackers, the Activité Steel. Unlike many of the trackers hitting the market today as dedicated units, like those from Fitbit or Jawbone, or built in to smartwatches like the Motorola Moto 360 or the Samsung Gear S2, Withings is following a hybrid route with the Activité Steel by combining a traditional watch with a modern activity tracker.

The Activité Steel consists of a stainless steel case enclosing chrome watch hands for the larger, traditional watch dial. A sub-dial located on the watch face provides a quick look at the percentage of progress towards the daily activity goal set by the user through the Withings Health Mate applicaiton. Besides counting steps, Withings says the Activité Steel can automatically detect activities like running and swimming and will monitor sleep without user input.

Although users may not get the benefits of a smartwatch with the Activité Steel, they do get an eight month battery life out of a standard watch battery and the device is water-resistant up to 50 meters, like a traditional watch.

The Withings Activité Steel will be available exclusively through the withings.com web site for $169.95. Initially, and probably throughout the holiday shopping season, the device will only be available in classic black. You can read the full press release from Withings below for more details if you are interested in picking up an Activité Steel.

Withings Strengthens Its Activity Tracker Lineup With The Introduction of Activité Steel

Activité Steel retains the most wearable, wearable title with confident masculine design

November 16, 2015 – BOSTON, MA – Withings, a leader in the connected health revolution, today announced the extension of its Activité line of highly stylized activity trackers with the introduction of Activité Steel. Continuing to spearhead the unique category of stunningly designed trackers within fashionable timepieces, Activité Steel marries the tasteful, high-end luxury feel of the original Swiss made Activité with the fun, versatility and value price point of the Activité Pop.

Exclusively available at Withings.com for the 2015 Holiday Season, Activité Steel features a bold, sophisticated design. With a stainless steel case, chrome hands, smooth silicone straps and a tachymeter-inspired sub-dial that appears to be taken directly from a high performance sports car, Activité Steel has a distinctive masculine feel. With a premium finish at a $169.95 price point, it will initially be available in classic black.

Like its predecessors, Activité Steel features two hand dials, one showing the time and a sub-dial showing the percentage of daily activity goal achieved. The activity goal (e.g. 10,000 steps) is set within the free Withings Health Mate application (available on iOS and Android) and, throughout the day, keeps users up to date on their progress, at a glance. It also automatically detects activities (such as running and swimming) and will transition to monitor sleep when worn at night. Powered by a standard watch battery that lasts up to 8 months, there is no need for regular charging and the device is water-resistant up to 50 meters.

“While the tracker market is booming we see growing demand from health conscious people who are not willing to compromise their style,” says Cédric Hutchings, CEO of Withings. “Steel is the perfect Christmas gift for those demanding trendsetters.”

All three Activité models connect to the Withings Health Mate application, named as one of Apple’s Best Apps of 2014. Health Mate acts as a personal coach to track and motivate users to achieve their own activity goals as well as advanced food log capabilities thanks to a proprietary integration with MyFitnessPal. The app also includes an interactive leader board, personal “data insights,” smart reminders and achievement badges. The application also integrates with over 150 partners whose services add to the 360° wellness experience (GPS running, food logging, etc.).

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About Withings Withings leads the connected-health revolution by inventing beautiful, smart products and services that help people become happier and healthier. Founded by visionary innovators Cédric Hutchings and Eric Carreel in 2009, Withings is committed to creating enjoyable, empowering experiences that easily fit into our daily lives.

Withings has built a range of award-winning products across the health spectrum including activity trackers (Withings Pulse and Activité), the Wi-Fi scale and health station (Smart Body Analyzer), the Wireless Blood Pressure Monitor, the security camera with air quality sensors (Withings Home) and an advanced sleep system (Withings Aura). Every piece of collected data comes to life in the Withings applications where users can find coaching, motivation and insights to shape key aspects of their health.

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