Satellite radio is one of those game-changing technologies that only come along every so often, offering consumers an easy-to-get method to improve the entertainment service in their car, at home, or virtually anywhere they walk.
For the car-borne, the primary benefits include a vastly improved variety of things to listen to (it's like going from the limited offerings of TV from an aerial to the endless choice of a cable connection) on a signal that does not fade as you drive around, and for a very reasonable fee.
All of this I learned in getting my Chevrolet Malibu Maxx kitted out with the necessary XM radio equipment in preparation for general driving around Ontario's Golden Horseshoe, and on a business trip to Detroit from Toronto.
Maintaining my neurotic affiliation with the 60s on a drive from Toronto to Detroit requires the use of four AM and FM radio stations, or even five if I wander too far from the fourth one's Windsor signal.
Even then they don't all meet my exacting standards in maudlin melodies, there are lapses in signal strength around the changeover zones, and the station in Windsor pushes station-sponsored holidays to Hawaii so hard it hurts.
Imagine my delight, then, on a recent trip to The Motor City to listen to one endless river of rock 'n' roldies (as I call them) on one station with excellent reception all the way and no -- as in pas -- commercials. Sure, there was a disc jockey making inane remarks, but that's apparently obligatory and took less time between songs.
If that doesn't turn your dial up to 11, consider unlimited hours of steady-stream country, urban, Christian, classical, kids, comedy, NASCAR, Major League Baseball and talk programming, among many, many other choices, pretty much anywhere you drive in the U.S. or near the U.S. without interruption or commercials.
XM has all kinds of content, and every week subscribers are e-mailed a list of upcoming special shows. Again, the variety is so much greater than anything currently available on traditional radio that it's literally hard to get your mind around it.
This is a nutshell explanation of XM radio (see www.xmradio.com for more details), which will be one of the two or three satellite radio services the federal government is likely to license later this year, for less than $15 a month and $200-$300 for the radio itself.
As it happens, you don't even have to wait, since any really aggressive audio store will be able to fix you up with an XM radio and the service in about 60 minutes. Sure, without the approval of the CRTC it's quasi-semi-demi-sorta-illegal, but there's no chance the Mounties will rip it out of your car or anything if they find it.
Sure, there's programming I'd like to add, such as a station that specializes in Leonard Cohen, Noel Coward and Slim Whitman music, but the vision of satellite radio hasn't extended that far yet.
But there's no doubt the programming is better by a factor of 10 than what you'll be able to find on the traditional dial, especially if you live beyond the normal range of a radio station. This you can see for yourself with a visit to the XM website.
All of these things can probably also be said about Sirius radio, though I have not tried that service myself. You can check it out at www.sirius.com to see what kind of programming they offer.
There is competition for content, with Sirius making a big deal of getting Howard Stern and XM recently signing Dr. Laura. Happily, both can be totally avoided with little effort, so there's no chance you'll every tune in to them again even by mistake.
What satellite radio doesn't offer is local programming, so if you're looking to find out the local weather or traffic conditions or something like that, you'll have to jump back to the regular AM or FM bands as desired.
For the car-borne, the primary benefits include a vastly improved variety of things to listen to (it's like going from the limited offerings of TV from an aerial to the endless choice of a cable connection) on a signal that does not fade as you drive around, and for a very reasonable fee.
All of this I learned in getting my Chevrolet Malibu Maxx kitted out with the necessary XM radio equipment in preparation for general driving around Ontario's Golden Horseshoe, and on a business trip to Detroit from Toronto.
Maintaining my neurotic affiliation with the 60s on a drive from Toronto to Detroit requires the use of four AM and FM radio stations, or even five if I wander too far from the fourth one's Windsor signal.
Even then they don't all meet my exacting standards in maudlin melodies, there are lapses in signal strength around the changeover zones, and the station in Windsor pushes station-sponsored holidays to Hawaii so hard it hurts.
Imagine my delight, then, on a recent trip to The Motor City to listen to one endless river of rock 'n' roldies (as I call them) on one station with excellent reception all the way and no -- as in pas -- commercials. Sure, there was a disc jockey making inane remarks, but that's apparently obligatory and took less time between songs.
If that doesn't turn your dial up to 11, consider unlimited hours of steady-stream country, urban, Christian, classical, kids, comedy, NASCAR, Major League Baseball and talk programming, among many, many other choices, pretty much anywhere you drive in the U.S. or near the U.S. without interruption or commercials.
XM has all kinds of content, and every week subscribers are e-mailed a list of upcoming special shows. Again, the variety is so much greater than anything currently available on traditional radio that it's literally hard to get your mind around it.
This is a nutshell explanation of XM radio (see www.xmradio.com for more details), which will be one of the two or three satellite radio services the federal government is likely to license later this year, for less than $15 a month and $200-$300 for the radio itself.
As it happens, you don't even have to wait, since any really aggressive audio store will be able to fix you up with an XM radio and the service in about 60 minutes. Sure, without the approval of the CRTC it's quasi-semi-demi-sorta-illegal, but there's no chance the Mounties will rip it out of your car or anything if they find it.
Sure, there's programming I'd like to add, such as a station that specializes in Leonard Cohen, Noel Coward and Slim Whitman music, but the vision of satellite radio hasn't extended that far yet.
But there's no doubt the programming is better by a factor of 10 than what you'll be able to find on the traditional dial, especially if you live beyond the normal range of a radio station. This you can see for yourself with a visit to the XM website.
All of these things can probably also be said about Sirius radio, though I have not tried that service myself. You can check it out at www.sirius.com to see what kind of programming they offer.
There is competition for content, with Sirius making a big deal of getting Howard Stern and XM recently signing Dr. Laura. Happily, both can be totally avoided with little effort, so there's no chance you'll every tune in to them again even by mistake.
What satellite radio doesn't offer is local programming, so if you're looking to find out the local weather or traffic conditions or something like that, you'll have to jump back to the regular AM or FM bands as desired.
