Must. kill. alarm. clock.

There are lots of ways to die: exploding cellphone batteries, being shredded to bum gumbo by Necoro catbots, and now...your alarm clock. Seems a young Welsh woman died suddenly in 1998 and her mother is convinced it's the fault of, well...the alarm clock. Nearly seven years later, DNA tests were able to prove she had a rare condition called Long QT Syndrome which left her vulnerable to sudden shocks-like the kind you get from being woken up by an alarm clock. Ok, so the odds of having Long QT are like 1 in 7,000...hmmm, hey wait! You mean we're more likely to die from waking up to Winger than by "inhalation of gastric contents" (odds: 1 in 10,095)!? For crissake man, where's the gun!

[Steve @ Dec 19th 2005 2:05AM]

This product promotes violence in my opinion. Not cool at all!

[Chris @ Dec 19th 2005 2:05AM]

Guess it was a real "murder by numbers" dun dun dun.

Lame, I know.

http://untitledi.com/

[addyourcommentshere @ Dec 19th 2005 2:05AM]

Ummm, what product? It's talking about somebody who was killed by their alarm clock, the picture is just a 'visual aid.'

[Frangible @ Dec 19th 2005 2:05AM]

Appearently, poor Steve was so afraid of the scary graphic, he couldn't even read the story.

[Dullicky @ Dec 19th 2005 2:05AM]

I knew those things were dangerous. It's healthier to get up whenever you felt like it. Now if my boss only understood...

[Nik M. @ Dec 19th 2005 2:05AM]

Next article on Engadget, Colt's M4-A6 Carbine v.3! :)

Steve, you are whipped!

[Tweaq @ Dec 19th 2005 2:05AM]

i heard this today on the radio. they said that is just loud sounds that can kill you. also i think that clock is cool, i'd buy one. lol

[Roger @ Dec 19th 2005 2:05AM]

Umm.... not cool. I had a friend who recently died of Long QT. Her sister is now undergoing treatment and will be under lifelong prescription drugs in order to combat Long QT. While it is rare, I'm not sure if it's something to joke about.

[teksno @ Dec 19th 2005 2:05AM]

where can i get that alarm clock...i want one. that thing is awsome looking...

[Crashless @ Dec 19th 2005 2:05AM]

My cousin has this syndrome, and all this is not entirely accurate.

Yes, someone with long qt could die from an alarm clock, but it's really just ANY event that gets the heart rate up too high. There was a basketball player (can't remember his name) that died on the court as a result of it. Basically, the heart can't recover from stress, and instead of slowing down, it speeds up, WAY UP.

The part I'm not sure about is the DNA part. While it's possible to test for genetic predisposition to long qt, you can't tell if a deceased person acually had the problem. You have to be looking at a heart monitor VERY CLOSELY. Unless a doctor is specifically looking for the issue, it most likely won't be found. I can't remember the exact numbers, but roughly: if a normal qt length on a monitor is 2 cm, a 'long qt interval' is 2.1 or 2.2 cm. Hard to see, to say the least.

What does this all mean? It means if you are that 1:7000, you probably won't know until it's too late.

Sleep well everyone. ;)

(oh relax, if you're over 20, and were in active in high school, or are now, you probably would have exhibited symptoms by now, so cancel that ambulance you have ready for your wakeup time.)

[James Kew @ Dec 19th 2005 2:05AM]

The alt text describes it as a "dynamite cock alarm". Hmm.

[hobgoblin @ Dec 19th 2005 2:05AM]

does it play the sound of a cartoon explosion when it rings (maybe have some pop out plastic flames and all so as to look the deal)? looks like something they would be packing over at thinkgeek :P

[doraemon @ Dec 19th 2005 2:05AM]

Roadrunner bip bip promotes violence in my opinion. Not cool at all!

[Jayson Elliot @ Dec 19th 2005 2:05AM]

This website promotes sarcasm in my opinion. Not cool at all!

[Jayson Elliot @ Dec 19th 2005 2:05AM]

There's a VERY realistic dynamite alarm clock at Spymall: http://www.spymall.com/catalog/gadgets.htm
(you have to scroll down or do a find on page for "dynamite")
http://www.spymall.com/catalog/images/bombclock3.jpg

[Michael @ Dec 19th 2005 2:05AM]

I agree that I hate waking up to something "blaring" at me. I want one of those clocks that starts quietly and gradually gets louder.
Alarm clocks in general are just evil... :-)

[spinteews @ Dec 19th 2005 2:05AM]

Hey, where can i get an alarm clock like the picture in the link? that thing looks dope, i'd love to have something like that in my room TRYING to wake me up every morning, any help engadget?

[Thomas Ricker @ Dec 19th 2005 2:05AM]

#17, the "clock" in the picture is actually a foam prop from this site:

http://www.peacheykeene.com/misc%20props%20cart.html

We've covered many an alarm clock over time, click the link to search our archives:

http://www.engadget.com/search/?q=alarm+clock&submit=Search+%BB

[Finished.Law.School @ Dec 19th 2005 2:05AM]

So where can I get the fucking clock displayed in the image?!