Goodmans GPS222

...into Argos and spotted the Goodmans GPS222 on display, so I bought one.

~Design~

The Goodmans GPS222 is 13 inches long, 9 inches deep (at it's widest) and 6 inches tall. It weighs around 4lbs - not very heavy - but it might feel quite weighty if you were carrying it around for a while. As you can see from the picture the Goodmans GPS222 is quite modern looking and I was pleased with the design of it. The buttons are ...
...~Functions~

The Goodmans GPS222 plays ordinary cds, and also wma's and mp3s (on disk). It has mw/fm stereo radio and has a single cassette deck. It can be operated by the mains lead included, or by 8 (yes, that's 8!) size C batteries. It has a 2 x 1.5 watt power outlet.

You can record from the radio, or from cd, and it also has a built-in microphone. There's a standard headphone socket, and also an extra-bass button.
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In my home I have my main stereo downstairs. The trouble is, I often like listening to music at night before I go to bed. I did have a (really old) personal cd player, but I was sick of replacing the batteries. I went into Argos and spotted the Goodmans GPS222 on display, so I bought one.

~Design~

The Goodmans GPS222 is 13 inches long, 9 inches deep (at it's widest) and 6 inches tall. It weighs around 4lbs - not very heavy - but it might feel quite weighty if you were carrying it around for a while. As you can see from the picture the Goodmans GPS222 is quite modern looking and I was pleased with the design of it. The buttons are laid out symetrically on the top of the player, which makes everything easy to find, and makes it look nice too.

What you can't see very well from the picture is that the panel on the front, over the cassette deck, is purple and the cd player's lid (which opens on the top of the player) has puple edging around it too.

In the centre of the cassette panel is the digital display (you can just about see it in the picture), which shows what track you're playing, or what radio station you have on. This glows orange when in use.

~Functions~

The Goodmans GPS222 plays ordinary cds, and also wma's and mp3s (on disk). It has mw/fm stereo radio and has a single cassette deck. It can be operated by the mains lead included, or by 8 (yes, that's 8!) size C batteries. It has a 2 x 1.5 watt power outlet.

You can record from the radio, or from cd, and it also has a built-in microphone. There's a standard headphone socket, and also an extra-bass button.

The cd/mp3/wma player is fully programmable - so you can set it to repeat individual tracks, or repeat the whole album, or play random songs. There is also 'intro scan play' which plays the first ten seconds of each track - useful if you want to find a particular song but don't know where it is on the cd.

With this being an mp3 player, you can programme over 100 tracks to play in an order of your choosing. There's also a '+10' button, which skips the next ten tracks on the cd. The player plays home-made disks made on your computer with CD +/- R/RW.

The radio isn't digital, so there's a 28 inch pull-out aerial on the back of the player.

~Use~

You can select between radio, cd and cassette by sliding a switch on top of the player. If moved into the 'cassette' position, without a tape playing, this turns the player off.

The player comes with full instructions, if bought from new, which are clear and very easy to follow - although most buttons are self-explanatory anyway. For the cd player function there's a mode button which is what you use to repeat and programme tracks, but this is very simple to use.

I've never turned the volume all the way up, but it gets pretty loud two-thirds of the way up, so this would be ideal for people who like their music loud!

~Availability~

I got my Goodmans GSP222 from Argos, for £29.99, and it's still currently available there. You may also be able to pick one up from Ebay.

~Verdict~

My main reason for choosing this player was the price, and also the fact that it has purple on it - which matches my bedroom (a girly reason, I know!) I found it very easy to set up, and I didn't need the instructions provided to figure out how to use any of the features - though it was nice to have them.

I've had my Goodmans GPS222 for around six months now, and have only had one real problem with it - which is that sometimes the digital display light goes out. This means that you can't see what track is playing very easily and have to put the player in front of a light to find out. The light usually comes back on itself within minutes, so it's not a huge inconvenience, and may just be a fault on the one I bought.

Anyone wanting a truly portable player, would probably find that this isn't really suitable. I have only used it with batteries once, and it played a cd for around two hours before the batteries died. Not a very good length of time really, considering it takes 8 batteries. However, for anyone just wanting to use mains electric, this is a good little player.

It's very compact, and fits easily on a little shelf I have, out of the way. The fact that it plays cds made on the computer is a plus, and I've never had a problem with playback. The only thing I could suggest to improve this (other than the battery problem) would be to give it DAB digital radio - then I'd have everything I could possibly want, all in one compact player.

Another plus is that it's very sturdy. I've knocked it and dropped it a few times with no ill effects, and there's not even a scratch on it.

This is an excellent cd/mp3 player and has never let me down. However, I would advise anyone thinking of buying one to maybe shop around first. With the advances made in mp3 and DAB technology lately, it may be possible to buy a player with better functions than this for the same price - or maybe even for less.

**Please ignore the 'clock' ratings below - they aren't relevant** 

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