How to Sign Up for XM Radio
XM radio is a digital radio broadcast service that offers over 150 channels of music, news, entertainment and talk shows. Listeners pay an activation fee and a monthly charge to use the service, but the trade-off is high-quality signals and no commercials. You'll need to sign up for XM radio service in order to listen.
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Instructions
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Sign Up for XM Radio
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Purchase an XM radio receiver. There are many audio and chain retail stores that carry home and car receivers. You won't be able to activate XM radio service without first buying the unit.
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2
Write down the identification numbers for your XM radio receiver. This number is located on your unit and sometimes on a card that's included in the radio box. You may also want write down billing and credit card info if you don't know the details off the top of your head.
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Choose the appropriate type of XM license. For private use, you need a regular consumer account. If you plan to use your XM radio in an office or other business, you need to sign up for a slightly more expensive commercial account.
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Call XM radio's Listener Care Center at (800) XM-RADIO. The line is open between 6 a.m. to 2 a.m. EST Monday through Saturday and 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. EST on Sundays. As long as you aren't setting up a commercial account, you can also sign up for service online (see Resources below).
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5
Turn your XM radio on and set it to channel 1. You'll need to scroll through the channels in order to make sure your account was activated. Activation takes 1 hour at the most, so call the Listener Care Center back if your service isn't working after that time.
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Tips & Warnings
You'll need to be sure that your home antenna is by a southern-facing window in order to get the best reception. Almost all commercial TV and radio satellites are restricted to traveling in the southern sky.
If your car XM radio isn't registering, be sure that it's in a clear area and trees don't obstruct the sky.
When you sign up for billing options, remember that there is a small fee for receiving a paper invoice in the mail each month. There's no charge if you sign up for automatic payment or pay online with a debit or credit card.
