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Audiovox XM Passport tuner Precisely two nickels high, just under two dimes wide, and less than half an inch deep (sorry - ran out of change), this miniature tuner lets you move your XM subscription from your XM-ready home receiver to your portable player or your car stereo, replacing your current plug-and-play tuner/antenna. Just snap it into the unit's plug-and-play port or a small docking station (for home, supplied; for car, optional), and you're good to go. Just don't lose it. 600 nickels ($30), xmradio.com

Yamaha HTR-5840 digital surround sound receiver There's something just so comfortable about a good old-fashioned home receiver - but one with a nice XM-ready zip. Just add an XM Connect-and-Play antenna (or, for upcoming models, the new XM Passport - see above), and you're all set. (You can also get XM-ready receivers from Denon, Harman Kardon, Pioneer, and Sony.) $350, yamaha.com

0604_satradio_homesirSIRIUS

Sirius SR-H550 tuner While there's a lot to be said for combo units - a box that, say, receives radio signals, stores them on a hard drive, and grinds your Kenyan coffee beans - there's something beautifully pure about a sleek, standalone tuner. Here, real estate's reserved for satellite-exclusive function buttons, like ones for scrolling through programming categories. Plus, a 2.5-inch-wide, 1.5-inch-tall readout tells you when you're listening to the Bubba The Love Sponge Show. Bonus: a Game Alert feature lets you know when your favorite teams are about to play! $270, sirius.com

Antex SRX-3 multizone tuner Remember how all the Waltons would gather around that one big radio to listen to the only station in town? Ah, sweet nostalgia. But radio today has much more programming diversity - especially satellite. So this tuner - a custom-installation tool, really - lets family members access and control up to three different satellite channels from three different rooms (there's also an XM version). So, Olivia can be down in the kitchen tuned into Cosmo Radio while John Boy is holed up in his room with Howard Stern. $2,000, antex.com

Watch Jamie Sorcher's interview with Sirius VP of corporate communications Jim Collins.

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