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Satellite Radio Systems Compared

Posted by michael on from the orbital-mind-control-lasers dept.

The NYT has a review/comparison of XM radio and Sirius, the two systems of digital satellite radio. Not everyone wants to pay for radio, but I guess if you spend enough time listening to it, maybe it's worthwhile.

5 of 429 comments (clear)

  1. Well, lessee... by dacarr · · Score: 5, Interesting
    Clear signal, buncha different stations, can carry it wherever, excellent audio on the Delphi units, and costs $10 per month. Oh, yeah, only commercials are the brief spots advertising upcoming shows for (say) Dr. Demento and other bits.

    Yeah, I'd buy that for $10. Hmm... FP?

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  2. FYI by DAldredge · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Delphi, the major maker of XM receivers has announced that they are moving all product design and engineering offshore because workers in the USA are paid too much.

    You may want to take that into account when picking a system.

  3. Not just that... by macdaddy · · Score: 5, Interesting
    Not everyone wants to pay for radio, but I guess if you spend enough time listening to it, maybe it's worthwhile.

    My folks just built a log home in an area where you can not get any cellular signal. You can barely pickup the nearest radio stations, and that's only if you hold your nose just right. TV via antenna is next to impossible thanks to our hills that surround the home. Satelitte isn't just used by radio aficionados. Real folks like you and I sometimes need it.

  4. Of course, the question remains: by DarkHelmet · · Score: 5, Interesting
    In every article I read about satellite radio, the one part that really pushes me back from purchasing one is this:

    Is there censorship???

    That's the one thing that bugs me more than anything else about an AM / FM radio. When I listen to songs, I'm tired of the FCC regulating stations, and butchering songs I would otherwise appreciate into beeps, buzzes, silent space, and otherwise crap FX.

    Maybe I'm the only one, but I couldn't care less about having a radio station that I could bring with me across the country. I'm more concerned about

    a) Having a radio station not play the same thing 20x a day and
    b) Having them NOT butcher the song.

    Of course, I've been to all the places, Best Buy, etc and ask them. They don't know. I don't have any friends with this device.

    So for now, it's a no go. Not until I know that it's uncensored, and always will be that way.

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  5. A blessing for use in aircraft... by meekjt · · Score: 5, Interesting

    I listen to Sirius everyday at work for about 4-8 hours a day. Now that I have it, I would say that I would have to quit my job if I ever could not listen to it for some reason. I fly aerial surveying missions, and it can get very boring up there with nothing to do. Now I have a way to have entertainment anywhere in the country, even in the middle of the desert at 12000 feet!!

    I have 100 channels to chose from, and have yet to get bored of the 5 or 6 I listen to regularly. I personally think Sirius is much better than XM, mainly for these "streams" as they call them: 2 NPRs, PRI and JamOn. There defiantly is a reason to pay for radio!