Sony launches ICF-C8WM alarm clock

Sony has launched a clock radio which also doubles up as a charger for your Sony gadgets. Eschewing the current trend towards wireless power induction charging, it's a defiantly plugged-in affair, but could prove useful for people with Walkman phones and mp3 players.

When you go to bed, just slot your handset or MP3 player (or both at once, if you like) into the device's charging slot and nod off. In the morning, you can wake up to music from either device, or an FM or AM radio station.

Sony says it'll help keep your bedroom tidy - no need for chargers dangling wires all over the place. It comes with a wireless remote control, and there are three brightness levels for the display. There's a sleep timer, a snooze timer and a dual alarm.

It even has an internal battery that'll wake you up even if you lose mains power. Sony's calling that "NO Power NO Problem", which sounds like a dodgy reggae album, but is still a nifty feature.

No pricing or availability has yet been announced, but we'll let you know as soon as we hear anything.