The SKYFi3 features a slim design with a large screen and intuitive button layout.
The SKYFi3 is more than just a facelift of the popular SKYFi2, it's a total redesign. Delphi retains all of the features that made the SKYFi2 a great all-around XM radio, as well as throwing in some new features to make the SKYFi3 more user-friendly.
The first thing you'll notice is the new look that features a huge, 2.8-inch screen, currently the largest of any plug-and-play or portable satellite radio on the market. The black and silver face has four large buttons on the front of the unit, along with a directional button for easy navigation. The top of the unit features a headphone jack and a MicroSD card slot, with volume controls and a button lock on the side. A USB connection and antenna and cradle jack are on the bottom of the SKYFi3. The whole package is slim and light, only slightly smaller than newer, full-size iPods.
I immediately liked the layout of the buttons, and controls were intuitive and easy to master. Menus are simple to find and navigate, and the big screen makes all options easy to read. In regular play mode, there's plenty of room on the screen for all artist, track, and channel info, along with a handy sports or stock ticker along the bottom.
The one-button record feature was nice, especially when in the car and scrolling through menus can get dangerous. It's easy to quickly build a large library of music from a variety of genres with satellite radio, and this makes the SKYFi3 a great music player even when it can't receive a live signal. If you travel on trains or subways, or just want a music player full of your favorite songs, this is a great feature.
The screen is very bright and easy to read when mounted in the home or car dock. There is no washout in direct sunlight, but the screen does fade when viewing off axis. Any more than 20 degrees or so, and it's just tough to read. This was a little bit of a problem in the car, where I used the included vent mount to get the SKYFi3 up high, just below my line of sight. I had to lean over a little to get a clear look at the screen. Were I mounting the car cradle in a more permanent location, it would be easy to compensate for this by angling the unit, but for a quick plug-and-play application, this could get annoying.
A unique feature of the SKYFi3 is its ability to switch from a vertical to a horizontal mount in its car cradle. The cradle's buttons are laid out to make this an easy transition, with 10 preset buttons that have a few other features built-in. With the ability to mount the SKYFi3 horizontally I was able to use the vent mount without having the unit sticking up too far into my line of sight. I imagine this will open up more options for others when installing the SKYFi3, and the versatility will be much appreciated.
The included car kit features a cradle that allows you to mount the SKYFi3 horizontally or vertically. Also included are an antenna, remote, power adapter, and vent mount.
As far as sound goes, the FM transmitter is barely functional. This is not a weakness exclusive to the SKYFi3, as new FCC regulations have all but made these transmitters useless. XM includes their SureConnect cable to aid sound transfer, which should improve things a bit.
However, I couldn't use the SureConnect. Neither can you if you have a power or roof-mount antenna. I'm not sure how this was overlooked, but there are other, better options. Luckily, my aftermarket receiver has an aux input, so I was able to get sound to my speakers without any problems. I cannot recommend enough the importance of having a receiver with an auxiliary input if you are adding satellite radio. You just aren't going to be satisfied with the FM transmitters in newer radios. If you don't have an aux input, pick up an FM modulator that plugs into your receiver's antenna port. It's fairly simple to install and the only other option when it comes to a universal solution to sound transfer.
An available home kit lets you play the SKYFi3 through your home stereo to take full advantage of XM Satellite Radio.
The SKYFi3 also makes a great radio in the house. While you do lose the ability to mount the radio horizontally because of the home cradle, all of the other functions are fully operable. There are no buttons on the cradle, but all functions can be accessed and controlled through the included wireless remote.
I was impressed with the range of the included indoor/outdoor XM antenna. When I first set up the radio and turned it on, I had not yet run the antenna over to the window. Everything was still sitting on top of my entertainment center, about 10 feet from the nearest window. The SKYFi3 immediately received a strong signal, and there was no need for me to try to tuck the wire around the floorboard all the way across the room. The signal never faded, and I got great sound through my stereo's auxiliary input.
For fantastic sound and efficient design, the SKYFi3 Bose kit is tough to beat.
The Bose kit includes a SKYFi3 radio, as well as everything you need to connect it to your Bose Wave music system (not included).
There's also an available SKYFi3 kit that gives you a direct connection to a Bose® Wave® Music System. The kit includes a SKYFi3 radio, home dock, wire management hub, indoor antenna, power adapter, and a remote that controls both the SKYFi3 and the Bose Wave radio. There is no denying the excellent sound quality of the Wave, but I was very impressed with the depth and fullness of XM music through the radio. Being a compressed format, satellite radio can sometimes leave you wanting a little more. But with the Bose setup, everything sounded rich and well-rounded. Connecting everything is extremely easy, and the included remote was great. I'm not a huge fan of the smaller credit-card sized remotes included with the Bose radio, so it was nice to have a remote with some substance when controlling everything. Button layout is intuitive, and Delphi even includes overlays for Wave radios with and without CD players.
A portable kit for the SKYFi3 enables you to receive a live XM signal when you're out and about on foot. The kit includes a special pair of headphones with a built in antenna and an armband. Again, I first tested the reception of the unit inside my home, and I was blown away again by the range of the antenna. I was expecting little-to-no signal anywhere indoors, and a shoddy signal at best outside. I was wrong. Reception was strong and clear anywhere within 8 feet of a window when inside, and outside was spot-on almost everywhere. The armband was a nice addition, and I was able to keep my hands free to do yard work and other tasks without worrying about the SKYFi3 taking a fatal plunge out of a pocket or accidentally bumping it if it was on my belt.
The wearable kit features special headphones with a built-in antenna, making the SKYFi3 a true portable satellite radio. Reception was surprisingly good, though the ear pieces turned into torture devices after a few minutes of use.
Not only was live reception very good, but I was able to play the songs I had recorded on a MicroSD card. These cards are super small, hold up to 500 songs each, and are easy to pop in the SKYFi3's integrated port. I really appreciated this feature, as it meant I didn't have to bring the SKYFi3 into my house every time I wanted to add new songs to the memory.
My only complaint with portable use is that the headphones get pretty uncomfortable if worn for more than a few minutes. The hard plastic ear pieces really dig into your head, and the bulky size gets a little cumbersome after a while. Battery life is also limited, but at 90 minutes, it's tough to drain it in one shot.
After a week or so of enjoying the SKYFi3, I was impressed. Since I'm in my car so much, I especially liked being able to record live XM music and programming so simply, along with the simple button layout and bright screen. I was also really surprised by the excellent signal strength when using the indoor and portable antennas.
The one blaring weakness of the SKYFi3 is the FM transmitter, but this is easily defeated with an auxiliary input or an FM modulator. I was disappointed that I couldn't use the SureConnect to find out how well it addressed the problem. This is definitely something that XM will need to correct in the near future.
Would I recommend this radio to a friend? Absolutely. It's an attractive, well-built radio that really gets the job done. The big screen is exactly what I want when I'm on the road or trying to find out what song is playing from across the room when I'm listening at home. The fact that it has all the bells and whistles is just icing on the cake.
