Side by Side Comparison of: Marathon

Good features, but mine was missing an instruction manual. Set up was easy enough without the manual. However, it took me a while to find out that to illuminate the dial I have to push down the center silver button. It features temperature readings in centigrade and Fahrenheit, and this is very helpful when traveling in Europe. it runs on one small AAA battery located in the black base of the clock, removing the battery will erase the settings, and the information will have to be reentered.

A very economical, nice looking, compact, battery-operated alarm that is perfect for travel. You can never fully trust the alarms that are provided in hotel rooms, so having this gave me real peace of mind that I would not sleep through early morning meetings of early-ups to get to the airport on time. I liked it so well, that I now use it on my desk in the office as a quick reference for the date, time and temp. It takes us so little space, it makes a great desk-top clock also. The only issue for some might be that the screen is not illuminated at night, and you have to touch the center button to see the time. The button is large and easy to find in the night, but not being able to see the time in the darkness may be a problem for some.

I like this clock for use as a night table clock as well as a travel clock. It is really very simple to set up if you read the instructions. I recommend it to anyone looking for a very small digital clock. The fact that it also has a calendar and tell the temperature are nice extras.

We had a pair of Brookstone travel clock/thermometers in our bathrooms for many years. They started to fall apart after a long life so we went looking for new ones. Didn't need anything fancy, just time and temp. We decided on these because they are compact, inexpensive, and fit our exact need. They fit nicely on the shelf, the display is easy to read and gives us the info we want. The light is bright at night and it was easy to set everything. Overall, we are very happy.

This is a great travel or at home alarm clock! It is easy to set up, has big numerals and the alarm is easy to set. I like the temperature display. It is also easy to fold up for travel. The base is also sturdy unlike other small travel clocks and the price is very reasonable. I would highly recommend this clock!!

After my old travel clock died I bought a new one, which was worthless because the buttons were on the outside when folded and got pressed by contact with my luggage. It seems that nearly all the travel clocks have that inexcusable design flaw!But this Marathon Atomic Travel Alarm Clock has the buttons on the front, making it much easier to reach them if needed, and when folded the display is still visible but the buttons are covered.When I first got it I pressed the button to get it to set itself, and nothing happened. So I read the instructions (I needed powerful magnifying glasses as the little leaflet is printed in teeny tiny print) and it said the automatic set can take a day, so I put it on a windowsill overnight, as suggested, and this morning it's got the right time and date! Apparently the auto-set feature, which uses a radio signal, will not work outside the U.S. & Canada, but it can be set manually. The backlight can be turned on or off, and it uses two AAA batteries (included) so there's no searching for just the right button battery.I think it's silly to call it an "Atomic" clock. There's nothing atomic about it. But as Juliette said, "What's in a name?"

This may very well be the best travel alarm clock available. It's small (but not too small to see and operate easily), compact and loaded with features. The auto illuminate should be required in all alarm clocks. Just two caveats: 1. The DST indicator does not show unless the clock is auto synced with the "RC" beacon. This is true even after manually setting the clock for the time of year that would include Daylight Savings Time. The instructions do not mention this. Secondly, even when auto-synced with RC, it is necessary to set the time zone manually. Once this is done, however, you're all set until you next change the batteries or press the reset button. Not exactly clear in the instructions either. Note that both of these criticisms/caveats have more to do with the instructions than the product itself.

I normally like to spend a little time with a product before posting a review but, upon opening the box, I am so impressed with this little jewel that I can't wait. If time proves me wrong, I will come back and update.I do a lot of travelling. Hotel clocks are a source of frustration for me that goes something like this:1) Figure out how to set the time.2) Set the time.3) Figure out how to set the alarm time.4) Set the alarm time.5) Figure out how to set the alarm mode (buzzer, radio, volume, etc)6) Set the alarm mode.7) Figure out how to arm the alarm.8) Arm the alarm.9) Reattach power cord which came loose while setting up the clock. Clock now flashing "12:00".10) Repeat steps 1 - 8. (should go faster this time).11) Choose between clock and lamp since I need to charge my phone.12) Accidentally unplug clock.13) Repeat steps 1 - 8.14) Unplug lamp and realize clock time display is unlit. Live without it.15) Wake up to my watch alarm only. Reason: clock's lack of AM/PM indication meant the opposite assumed.Thinking there might be a better way, I started looking around for a small, light, simple, battery powered clock with, and this is the tough part, a display that can stay lit at night.In addition to meeting my requirements, I like that the CL030036 syncs to atomic time. This makes the clock a little more expensive but it's worth it to me.Two minor criticisms:1) The location of the display OFF/AUTO light switch. It's in the battery compartment. Since I don't want the light wasting the batteries while the clock rides around in the darkness of my overnight bag, I'll be switching it from AUTO to OFF whenever it's not sitting on a hotel nightstand. Having to open the battery compartment for such a frequently changed setting just doesn't make sense. Incorporating it into the foldout stand, switching the light off whenever closed, would have been the slickest way to do it. At the very least the switch should be easily accessible somewhere on the outside of the clock.2) I agree with what others have said about the hole in the stand/cover. I really don't need to see the display through the cover and would rather have it fully protected. That said, if it's really a concern, a piece of tape over the hole should easily solve that problem.Other than that, it should be perfect for my needs and I couldn't see withholding a star for such small items.Now when I get to my room, I'll unplug the room clock and set it aside. I'll then plug my phone charger into the now-vacant 110 receptacle. Last, I'll pull out my CL030036, quickly and confidently set/arm the alarm, and place it on the nightstand. Ahhhh, life just got a little easier. Good night :)

It's the perfect clock for travel. Time is always correct, doesn't have any buttons sticking out to be activated in your luggage, gives ambient room temp, day and date with and easy to read display. Alarm is easy to set also. I wish I had had one of these when I was flying 75K to 5K air miles a year.

Perfect size and lightweight. The stand flips forward to cover the function buttons below the clock display and make the clock flat for packing. I like the "atomic" feature - that I know the time is always accurate. I had no trouble at all setting it. Read the directions. Follow the directions. The backlight can be set to always on or only on when you press the snooze button. The alarm is effective but not annoying. Great purchase!

I have used many alarm clocks in the past and in my opinion this is the best of them all. Right size for travel, easy to setup and use. Specifically I like the auto night light feature. I have seen this feature in many table clocks that are plugged in but this is my first battery operated alarm clock that has the auto night feature. I am very happy with the purchase and it's worth every penny I spent.

I needed a travel clock, something that was compact, readable in the dark, and easy to operate. The Marathon travel clock delivers. It delivers on all counts. As with all digital products, the Marathon travel clock requires some study to operate with ease (I am a baby boomer), but this is the case with all modern electronic equipment. If you can do, then do it even if you are providing a solution for which there is no problem. (This opinion should be taken as a comment more on me than the clock.) One final note, I do not downgrade the Marathon clock with four stars. I give four stars to all products that operate as advertised, reserving five stars for the rare instance when a product or a vendor goes above and beyond reasonable expectations. In all fairness, Marathon has had no opportunity to do this because it delivered all that it promised as promised.

Just received this so review is based on limited experience. Seems to be a nice quality product, well made and with nice features. My only gripe is that there is no "off" switch so it remains powered up at all times. Since this is a travel clock and used infrequently you would probably want to remove the battery between trips. Not the end of the world so in total I'd rate it as a keeper. The company emails you asking for feedback, so that's a good sign as well.

I have had this little clock for a few days now, and so far I like it. It was very easy to set up the time and date, and I do like the sound of the alarm. It's not too loud and obnoxious, but a nice beep that wakes me up. I'm a pretty sound sleeper, too! The snooze is easy to find and sets off the alarm again in 5 minutes. It's also a nice compact size and will fit nicely in my suitcase for travel. I also like the fact that it only requires one AAA battery. There are a lot of nice features packed into this little clock. Now I'll see how long the battery lasts!

I haven't had this product for very long, a couple of months maybe, but it is nicely designed and performs as billed. It is very functional, and one 'bonus' feature I like is the thermometer.

I do have one concern that may affect battery life - that is the 'snooze button'. This is the round chrome button that located at the bottom of the clock when it's in the open position (this is very handy for alarm clock purposes). This button also activates the light that illuminates the clock. But when the clock is folded for travel, the button is exposed. My concern is when its sitting in a packed suitcase - will it be activated from time to time and drain the battery prematurely?

I called the manufacturer about this issue and they were helpful. They advised that they had not heard of this issue, but also advised that the warranty is for a year. All that said, at this point - so far so good!

I was not sure about ordering this clock as there was only one review of it, but I just received this clock and so far it is great. It was easy to set, the temperature reading was accurate to 0.5 degrees F (when compared to a calibrated source), the back light is even and the right brightness, and the alarm is the right volume for me (but might be quiet for some). Other things I like are it takes a standard AAA battery, it is very stable when unfolded, the display is readable from all angles with the light on (REVISED--see below) and off, and it folds to protect the screen when traveling. There are no beeps when the buttons are pushed like another popular clock. The side buttons are not covered by the folding case but I don't think they will move when traveling.

Two complaints when folded: it does not snap in place (but is spring loaded in place) and seems a bit weak and wobbly at the folding pivot point, and the light button is still exposed and active, and can easily be pushed when packed away for travel--if this happens, the battery would wear out quickly (thus only 4 stars).

Overall, much better than most of the others I read about. After I use it on a couple of trips, I'll revisit my review and updated it if necessary.

UPDATE: This appears to be the identical electronics as the Brookstone travel clock I was replacing (it never returned from a Caribbean trip--not sure what happened to it!) Compared to the Brookstone clock:
- The Brookstone clock snapped closed (more secure). I added a bit of Velcro to this clock to ensure it stays closed when folded
- This one is easier to set time/alarm than the Brookstone one (don't have to remove the battery cover)
- For both, the snooze/light control is still active and can be accidentally hit when folded
- When unfolded, this one is more stable
- Both are difficult to read when the light is on in the dark when viewed straight on or from below (like from a nightstand)
- The alarm volume and sound is identical for both

Overall I still like it--best one I've found so far.

Seems to be exceptionally good quality for this type of product, but I'd like it better with: higher contrast, a wider viewing angle, more of the surface given to the face so the numerals would be bigger, the option to set the auto-backlight a bit brighter, and easier setup. While the atomic clock feature means it is supposed to auto-setup, I waited hours before I gave up on that working. I set it manually, and then the next morning, it must have done the atomic thing because it was off by an hour. I fixed that and it seems okay now. I am willing to believe this reflects error on my part, but that just brings me back to saying setup should be easier.

This is a good clock for my purposes (setting a wake-up time for my afternoon naps); however, the display's contrast is poor unless you look at it at a specific angle...then it's great. Same with the snooze light. The ideal angle seems to be about 30 degrees above the display; looking at it head on is difficult, and from 30 degrees below, it's pretty terrible. I do like the snooze light, though, partly because of its amber color and partly because of its brightness...and also because it only stays on for 5 seconds unlike many other clocks where it stays on 20 seconds. The one annoying thing is that the stand folds down from the back and up over the face, covering the snooze light. Also, the stand is some sort of plastic that I don't think will hold up to lots of folding/unfolding; however, since I've had it less than a week, I could be totally wrong about that.

I bought two of these for use on a long road trip. One for us and one for the couple that we were traveling with. They seemed to work well except the automatic time updates from the Navy Atomic clock didn't seem to work. Otherwise I would have rated this with 5 stars. I like the nice glow in the dark feature and I also like the ability to easily change the time zone, e.g. PST to MST, etc. It is pretty rugged and the batteries seem to last a long time. For me the alarm was loud enough to be effective but for some it might not be enough to wake you. Given the small size though, this is understandable. The glow in the dark feature is nice but not too bright.

Great little travel clock. The numbers are clearly readable, although as is the case with a lot of LCD displays of this type, it is at its clearest when viewed from a higher point (so looking down at it).It has a light you can bring up by pressing the snooze button but it also has a light that can turn on automatically whenever the room is dark (this option can be turned off to conserve battery life). I got the atomic signal quickly and the clock set the correct time with no issues.Make sure you read the manual though because if you set the time zone manually it can cause the automatic sync to be disabled. If you already did that just push the button on the back to reinitialize the sync process.The ringer starts off slowly and then builds up. It is not super loud but it works. The only thing that I would say appears to be pretty flimsy is the cover, which must be flipped and becomes the stand. That is my reason for the 4 stars for what is otherwise an excellent clock. As long as you are very careful with it, I can see it lasting but I would prefer a more sturdier material or design. The good parts about the cover is that when it is closed, you can see the clock display but not press any buttons by accident. This is great if the clock is in your luggage.

I was looking for an digital clock that meets two criteria: It had to be "atomic" and it had to be readable at night without the need to push any light button. Turns out that there actually aren't many available that meet both of these criteria. So I was happy to find this one.Pros:- "Atomic" feature works great- Night light feature works great- Small and slim- Reasonably pricedCon:My main issue with this clock is that if you look at the display from below it becomes unreadable. If your nightstand is at the same level or above the level of your eyes, you will need to raise your head in order to decipher the display at night.Other minor cons:- No holes for wall mounting- Overall design and materials leave a bit to be desired. Particularly, the big and rather ugly company logo is a bummer.- Setup and instructions can be a bit confusingThe pros clearly outweigh the cons as far as my expectations are concerned, so overall this was a good purchase.

I like this clock. It has all the features that you would expect from a portable atomic alarm clock. The two bad sides are that this does not take rechargeable batteries, and that the screen is difficult to see from some angles.The alarm is progressive so that it doe snot wake you with an annoying blasting blaring sound. I will be using this on my cross country backpacking trip next year, so the weight of it is perfect for what I need.

Product exactly as described. However, I did not realize there is no way to keep the light on, even dimly. This means there is no way to easily check the time at night without pressing the small button under the center of the clock. This task requires more than enough concentration and effort to wake me up. Clock is difficult to read in daylight from more than about 6 feet.

It is nice watch, but pictures on screen are deceiving wooden color part of the watch is much smaller compare to base in real life. I also do not like location of snooze button, it is hard to find in a dark. I will probably return it.

I look at these cheap clocks and try to figure out if I'm going to be able to read them. Since so many were raving I figured I was in luck. Nope. The nightlight doesn't improve anything at night or during the day. Unless this beast is under a lamp and I have my glasses on I cannot read it. Bummer. So be warned or be disappointed.

I returned one travel clock because it did not light up. Then ordered this one. It does light up, but you have to punch the button down to do so, and it only stays lit briefly. I will most likely give this as a gift or use in the bathroom while continuing to search for the perfect bedside clock that takes up minimal space. I am retired so I just want to glance over and see the time, date, and weather.

I really like the design, BUT when the unit is closed the night light button can still be depressed. Just worried that when its packed in the suitcase it will be turned on so much the battery will wear down quickly. I wish the cover would protect that portion. If I had paid more attention I would have chosen another travel alarm clock.

This is the same shape and product description as my trusty, but old, Radio Shack travel alarm so I purchased it as a replacement. It took days before connecting with the atomic clock, using it isn't intuitive (I'm still travelling with the directions), and the display saying which time zone you've selected is really tiny. As a result, I've spent the last couple of months carrying both alarms because I still don't trust this one.

I wanted a clock with a night light for the bathroom counter which actually gives enough light to read the time and light up the bathroom. This one has it but it isn't bright enough to easily read the time. I think the manufacturer is trying to preserve the battery life. If you pick it up and press the top bar the light will brighten for a moment but resume to normal when you let go. The size is good and would be perfect for traveling. Today's shopper

Mostly functional, but I really hate the design (unless I'm missing something) that the only way to turn off the alarm is to shut the switch off and then you have to remember to switch back on. In just a few weeks of owning it had several days of no alarm because I didn't switch it back on. I'm used to an alarm where you can just hit a button to turn off the alarm for the day, but the alarm is still functional, so I find this alarm design strange. Maybe it's nitpicking but when I'm half asleep, the last thing I'm good at is turning a hard switch button off and back on. Otherwise, it's functional, backlight works well, no huge issues getting the radio sync to work, but having an alarm that I have trouble consistently getting to work means I'll likely be looking elsewhere soon for a different alarm.

Although the clock works fine, the frame that holds the clock in a upright position broke within 2 weeks. It is flimsy. Additionally, the temperature display is not even close to accurate so that feature is totally worthless. It does what I need it to, which is keep time to the second but I am irritated that the flimsy frame to hold up the clock broke so quickly.

This is a very nice clock ... I liked the first one that I bought so much that I bought two more, so I now have one for each of two home locations and one that resides permanently in my travel kit. HOWEVER I rated it only "okay" because radio-synchronization has stopped working on all of three clocks. I suspect the receiver is of a marginal design that uses a short-lived component, or maybe there has been a small change in the transmitted signal coding that proved big enough to confuse the receiver's decoder. Also there is an undocumented feature: a settable number of offset hours, which can be very useful when on-the-move, but unfortunately there is no display icon to indicate that an offset has been set; its absence is a design oversight that I can imagine could be dangerous.

This may be, in part, my fault for not doing better research but this alarm clock has one huge fault. It is the alarm OFF switch. Every previous travel alarm I have owned, and they were virtually all from Radio Shack, allowed you to press the top of the clock to silence the alarm. This clock has a slider switch. In the light of day and fully awake it is a no brainer. Sound asleep, waking up in the dark without all your cognitive functions it is a pain in the neck. I have struggled with this since I purchased the clock, and I get up during the work week at 4:20 am. That is my only knock on this clock, otherwise I have been reasonably pleased.

I bought one of these several months ago and love it. Use it on my bedside table. I like that the display is not illuminated unless you press the button. So I ordered another one for my camper. It worked for a few minutes then quit. I have tried replacing the battery but still getting nothing. Very disappointing, and the return window has already closed.

I love the style, however, the backlight quit working within 2 days of using it. Disappointing.

When you push the silver button to turn on the light so you can see what time it is in the dark, it emits light, but ALSO a high-frequency WHINE that stays on the entire time the light is lit. SO annoying! Horrible sound. Whose idea was it to add that feature?

There are several annoying problems with this clock, but the fatal flaw is the snooze. You can only hit the snooze button for up to 15 minutes of extra sleep, and then the alarm inexplicably just stops. Yes, I know I shouldn't hit snooze for long periods of time, but some mornings can be rough getting up on short sleep. After accidentally sleeping in late because this alarm stopped, I had to set a backup clock. I gave this one a good try, but can't get past the snooze limitation.

Aside from that, the alarm sound itself quickly goes from a calm alarm into a panic sound, waking my wife before I can shut it off. As other reviewers have noted, there is also an annoying electronic buzz after you hit the snooze button, and the display is hard to read at an angle.

It's a shame, because this clock looks nice & is well built, but some simple design decisions have caused me to return it and look for another.

I'm primarily disappointed in this clock because of how loud it chirps from the outset...very jarring. I much prefer a softer chirp, gradually getting louder. Also, in the snooze position, it activates only two additional times after the initial blast, five minutes apart. So, one can only snooze for a total of an additional ten minutes. Often, I'm not ready to get up in ten minutes after the first blast. Also, the back light doesn't stay on but a couple of seconds, making it hard to focus and see how to set it or read the various pieces of info that it provides. I would not purchase it again or recommend it to a friend.

Big problem with this clock is the display. In the dark with illumination on, you can only read it standing over the clock, looking down on it. As you start looking at the display directly at eye level, it becomes very dim, and if you look at the display even slightly from the below the clock, the display vanishes and becomes blank. NOT clear and sharp in the dark in its own illumination as the picture suggests. So if you're in bed looking at the clock on your nightstand (where it is close to eye level) it will be close to illegible unless you have 20/20 razor sharp night time vision. It also seems to me that the display area could have been made larger -- notice how much wasted plastic there is in this design, and it's already small to begin with. That being said, clock works well otherwise, in the particular the 'auto-set' feature using the radio -- although in my area the signal is only strong enough after dark to use it. I may return the clock, I've ordered another from a different manufacturer to see if anyone makes a better display on a small self-setting alarm clock.

Real pain to set the time manually; not intuitive at all. Sub-par instructions. Had it in a tropical climate for 3 months, batteries started leaking in the compartment; fortunately saved it on time. Disappointed. It's ok if you use it in the Western hemisphere, in temperate climates, and where there is always access to WiFi so it can automatically set the time. Not applicable to my situation.

I am on my second one. The first one never could receive the radio signal no matter where I placed it. I took it to several cities on the east coast and Cabo in western Mexico. Nada. However it keeps time reasonably well and I needed a travel clock. I recently purchased another one for my office. This one can't receive a radio signal either. On top of that, DST can't be set. The choices are "off" or some unintelligible word. Bottom line if you want an atomic clock don't waste your money. If you want a travel clock, there are cheaper alternatives.

Returned it because lighted numbers can be seen at eye level or from above but not from below and my bed is lower than the nightstand on which I have my clock. The clock itself seemed to be a satisfactory product in other respects although setting it up was cumbersome and a bit of a bother.

Really wanted to like it, given all the research I did before making the purchase. However, the temperature was off by more than 10 degrees and the clock was not able to connect to the signal. I took these as signs that these tiny micro buttons were destined to fail as well. I will go for something with fewer features.

For seven months this clock was great. Easy to set, alarm loud enough, lightweight, glowed in the dark when button pressed, accurate, folded up flat, etc. While it was in my travel kit between trips, the batteries went dead. Replaced the batteries but now when folded for travel the back light stays on thus running the batteries down. When sitting upright on the bureau sometime the light is on and sometimes it's not. Weird. I could just remove the batteries and put them in at night on my trips, but I'd need to take a mini Phillips screwdriver with me because screws keep the batteries in place. I thought this product would last longer than it did.

Clock does not work. Replaced batteries... nothing. Poor quality product.
Would not recommend...Is beyond return window
Left our home in the trash

Setting it up fresh out of the box was easy. Setting time, date, 24-hr, etc. was intuitive. However, its main function as an alarm clock was a dismal failure. I could barely hear it arm's length away, set 2 mins in advance. The snooze function worked once or twice with each of 6 trial runs. My phone alarm snooze function responds for up to an hour. This clock is worthless to me - I'll send it back right away. Particularly disappointing as this technology has successfully been around for decades. My 20-year- old generic version is just now getting iffy with the snooze, yet is much better than this Marathon brand.

Not really a good product for the price I paid. There are better choices under $10. Unfortunately can not return because amazon charges return shipment cost.

Impossible to see from the bed because if you put the watch on a bedside table with the same hight with the bed , numbers fade... You must look at the watch from above.. Thus, it is very unuseful if you are going to use it by the bed.. Thanks.

This clock was great until it stopped working properly two months after purchase. It seems the lock position is defective. Unfortunately it was too late to return it

This was returned product that end up with me. I was going to send back, I don't want somebody else to suffer. I will use it for target.

ONLY WORKS NEAR A WINDOW NOT WORTH THE MONEY.

Haven't even put batteries in yet-plastic case is still outgassing a perfumy smell after a week-smell still on its enclosed papers, too. Odor was not on other items in shipping box, so can't claim anything spilled on it. Cheap enough to keep as a backup, but will be used across the room instead of next to me on nightstand.

It doesn't work. I took it on a 3 week trip & it never worked. I would return it, but I must have thrown away the box. I was in a hurry to pack and just assumed it would work. Will still try to return.

the clock would not stay on the hour. it would gain or loose an hour over night. would not stay connected to the radio wave to reset at 2am. It was a piece of junk..

Did not work. I returned it