alarm clock
Latest
Lenovo's Google-powered Smart Clock drops to $40 at Best Buy
Lenovo's Smart Clock with Google Assistant is on sale for $40 at Best Buy today.
Sensorwake’s olfactory alarm clock is now the 'Night and Day Diffuser'
If you've ever wished that someone would spritz pleasing smells on your face as you woke up, then it's a good day to be you. Maison Berger is launching a new version of Sensorwake's olfactory alarm clock to diffuse smells that'll help you get to sleep, and wake up again. The Night and Day Diffuser is a "multi-sensory alarm clock" that uses dry diffusion to fragrance your room 30 days in a row.
Google Assistant can create alarms based on weather and time of day
An update on its way to Lenovo Smart Clock will add a Google Assistant option that can switch up the alarm ringtone based on factors such as the time of day and the weather. In fact, Google's AI can create and curate the piano ringtones for you.
Smiley Alarm Clock is how the selfie generation wakes up
Capitalizing on the selfie craze, the Smiley Alarm Clock aims to start your morning off with a smile. Unfortunately, the app, which requires iOS 7.1 and works on the iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch, leads to frustration and general annoyance. The concept is simple. When the alarm goes off you grab your phone and pose for a morning selfie. In theory, the app snaps a photo and the alarm turns off when it detects your smile. Once Smiley Alarm Clock takes your photo you can share the picture on Instagram or Facebook. Undoubtedly you'll include the hashtag #iwokeuplike this, or something similar. But who wants to take a picture of their morning face, let alone share it with the world? Not me. You couldn't even pay me to do it, as is evident by the loads of makeup I'm wearing in these pictures. I'm sure there are people who do this under the safety of Instagram filters, but Smiley Alarm Clock has zero filters to hide the bags under your eyes. Beyond the problematic concept, there are two major flaws with the app itself. You'll notice that I used the phrase "in theory" earlier and that's because the app doesn't do what it says it does. I spent a full 60 seconds smiling my face off and the app never took a photo and never shut off the alarm. You can manually shut off the alarm, but then what's the point of the app? This happened more than once, leaving me extremely frustrated. I tested this out in the afternoon; pretty sure it would've left me enraged had this happened at 7am. The second flaw is somewhat amusing but mostly annoying. You would think that the app would take your photo when your face is positioned nicely in the center of the screen and you look awesome. Nope. I took about 15 test shots and all but two of them turned out decently. A few of them only captured my forehead and eyes because the app didn't wait for me to position my phone correctly. Considering the camera is supposed to be triggered by a smile, those were pretty odd photos for it to take. Most of the time, I had to move my phone around randomly until it took a picture. These were the most unflattering pictures ever and were taken from very weird angles. They will never see the light of day. I wouldn't be surprised if the developer is deliberately trolling us here. Oh, and you don't even have to smile for it to work. Incidentally, this image sums up exactly how I feel about this app. When you're already not a morning person, the last thing you want is to fake a smile and pretend you don't hate how you look when you haven't had your first cup of coffee. However, if you are really into how you look in the morning, Smiley Alarm Clock is available for free in the App Store with an in-app purchase for extra alarm sounds.
Talking Weather Alarm Clock: Wake up to a personal weather forecast
A few years ago I looked at the Talking Weather Alarm Clock app and liked it. It's had lots of updates and added many new features since then, so I'm taking another look to see how it has progressed. The latest Talking Weather Alarm Clock is a US$0.99 app with a nice bag of features. Set an alarm time, which can repeat weekly or set individual days, like weekends, with their own wakeup times. The app wakes you up with a choice of included sounds, or with music that is already on your iPhone. At the time you set, you hear your chosen alarm sounds, followed by a personal greeting including the current temperature and the forecast. There is a snooze button, support for multiple languages, and the app also reads news from a variety of selected sources like the New York Times. There are also some built-in sounds like rain and the sea to get you to sleep. You just pick the sound and the duration, and let Talking Weather Alarm Clock lull you to sleep. The app worked well, and it's a good way to start your day. The menus are clear, and the app is easy to set up. One thing I did not like is that there are a whole series of in-app purchases that -- even when purchased in discounted packs -- can make the total app price tag approach $10.00. That's too much for an alarm clock app, even though some of the features are quite attractive, such as choosing different backgrounds for the screen. There are in-app purchases for more voices, custom weather, more news options, and different weather interfaces. I think it would be better for users and the developer alike to make the app $1.99 or $2.99 and include all the functionality. Talking Weather Alarm Clock also needs a preview function so you can hear what you are going to get at wake-up time and find out how the news reading functions work. The basic app works just fine, and I think that's what most people will opt for as it has lots of features, works well, and it is reasonably priced. Similar apps include BedBuzz Talking Alarm Clock, which is free but is saddled with overpriced options to really get you the features, and Talking Alarm Clock Free, which has lower priced ($1.99) in-app purchases to add all the features. Talking Weather Alarm Clock requires iOS 7 or later. It is not a universal app, but I think it should be as people may be about as likely to have an iPad on their nightstand as their iPhone.
Daily App: Morning Sun is a free alarm clock for iOS with some unique features
Morning Sun from Pico Brothers is a nifty addition to the popular alarm clock category in the iOS App Store. The free app (with some in-app purchases that are free for a limited time) mimics the colors of sunlight to wake you up. Morning Sun controls your iOS display brightness, turning the display dark when you go to bed and gradually brightening it in the morning to mimic the rising sun. The brightening starts about 30 minutes before you wake up. The app has alarm sounds, like the singing of birds, to help you gently awake. To get started with Morning Sun, you set your alarm time and then leave your iPhone or iPad on a charger with the screen facing where you are sleeping. When the alarm goes off, a tap on the screen gives you an additional 5 minutes of snooze time, while a double tap stops the alarm. The app works well as an alarm, especially if your bedroom is dark. It also has some fresh thinking for an alarm clock app, and is attractive graphically. Morning Sun has three in-app purchases, which are free for a few days as long as you are willing to message someone about the app. One in-app purchase gives you additional alarm sounds, and another provides a sunset simulator, which slowly fades the screen at night. There is also a package of sleep sounds to help you nod off, including ocean, winds, stream, an old fireplace, Thunder, a fan, white noise and more. Morning Sun is a universal app and available for free from the iOS App Store. It requires iOS 5 or later and is optimized for the iPhone 5.
My iPhone smells like bacon, thanks to Oscar Mayer
Back in March, Oscar Mayer launched a promotion for their bacon products and targeted it at iPhone owners. By signing up on the company's "Wake Up & Smell The Bacon" site you were entered for a chance to claim a limited edition, Oscar Mayer-branded bacon scent diffuser for your iPhone. I signed up, I got one, and here it is. It just arrived in a small package yesterday, and I have to say the entire production is pretty professional. The diffuser itself comes in a padded box along with the bacon scented liquid and charger, along with some documentation from "The Oscar Mayer Institute For the Advancement of Bacon." The device plugs into the audio jack of the iPhone and is used with the official Wake Up & Smell The Bacon app. After filling the device with a few drops of bacon scent, I set the alarm for my normal wake-up time and hit the pillow. At 6:30AM I was awoken by a sizzling sound from the app and a sizable puff of bacon fragrance which dominated the room and led my wife to ask me what the hell was going on. "It's my bacon phone," I said in a pre-coffee haze, and hit the snooze. It's a neat trick, and the gadget definitely produces a reasonable approximation of fried pig strips, but aside from today, I'm not sure if I'll use it again. Waking up to the smell of bacon is more of a cruel trick than anything else, and since I was still too lazy to actually cook some up, the craving remains unfulfilled. If you scored a bacon alarm, I'd love to hear your impressions!
Pandora adds alarm feature to iOS app, lets you trade clock radio buzzing for the Buzzcocks
Granted, this might not be for everyone. Some need that infernal clock buzzing to get out of bed -- particularly on a cold winter's day like today -- but for those who prefer to be lulled awake by machine-curated internet radio, Pandora's followed up its recent sleep timer feature with an alarm clock. Set it before you go to bed, and it'll rouse you in the morning by doing what it does best. You can turn the music off by tapping the song title or artist on the screen, or set it to snooze by shaking your iDevice. The feature's new for version 5.1, which also brings a new iOS 7-inspired design and a few bug fixes. There's also an Android version on the way.
Pandora Radio 5.1: Wake up to your favorite station
In the face of stiff competition from Apple's iTunes Radio and a variety of other streaming-radio services, Pandora Radio added some new features to its iOS app today. The best new feature? You can set song or artist stations as your alarm clock sound. If you've ever used the iOS Clock app to set an alarm, you know that in addition to a lot of standard alarm sounds, you can also choose a song from your music library as your wakeup cue. Unless you change that song every day, waking up can begin to seem like the movie Groundhog Day. Pandora's station alarm will provide you with a song from your favorite station, so you'll hear either a different song from your favorite artist or something from that same genre every day. Pandora thoughtfully provided a snooze button to the alarm screen as well. The updated app also gained a very iOS 7-like interface. Pandora fans should have the updated app on their iOS devices today.
Snoozr Aviator for iOS is a smart rethink of the alarm clock
Snoozr Aviator is a beautifully rendered, free alarm clock app for iOS. The author feels alarm clock apps have gotten too complex, so Snoozr Aviator makes setting an alarm a one-tap event. Tell the app what time you want to be awake, and then the software generates some alarms that vary in intensity until you reach your specified wakeup time. Most other alarms work the other way. They go off at the time set, and then you hit a snooze button as the time gets later and later. The app lets you adjust the amount of snooze time if you like, or you can stay with the algorithms that the app suggests. The included wake-up sounds vary from subtle to more jolting. They're all effective without being grating. Graphically, the app is very attractive. The clock face is based on a classic aviator watch and the colors are a good match for an early morning sun. I hate getting up in the morning, and Snoozr Aviator makes it a more pleasant experience. The app will bypass the mute or do not disturb settings on your iPhone, so no worries there. The app does not have to be running to activate. When the app is on-screen, there is a soft ticking sound. You will get an on-screen wake up alert as well as the alarm sounds at your selected time. Snoozr Aviator requires iOS 5 or greater, and is optimized for the iPhone 5, 5c and 5s. Snoozr Aviator meets the goal of a useful, simple and very attractive alarm clock. It's free, and worth a try if you're not happy with your current alarm app.
Daily iPhone App: CARROT alarm clock uses mild forms of torture to wake you up
CARROT, the beloved personality in the popular CARROT task manager from Brian Mueller of Grailr, is now the star of an alarm clock app that berates you into waking up on time each day. The new CARROT alarm clock is a minimal app with a whole lotta personality. You get a glimpse of what you are in for when you first open the app and you are greeted with a curt "Hello, meat bag" as you're chastised for clicking on the wrong part of the screen. CARROT Alarm is a basic alarm clock with a good-looking, gesture-based UI. It supports one alarm at a time. You set the time for the alarm by sliding your finger up and down the screen until you reach the correct time. As you drag your finger, the time changes in 15-minute increments. You can also tap directly above or below the time display in the center of the screen to adjust the time in 5-minute blocks. Tapping once on the time in the center will let you see the current time and a second tap will show you the alarm. This is handy if you need to set an alarm for 10 minutes from now and you are not sure of the exact time. After you select your time, you can turn the alarm on and off by dragging the big blue alarm button to the left or the right. When the alarm is on, the blue button turns into an alarm clock. It's an easy, visual way to tell whether the alarm is set. Once the alarm is set, you leave the app open, place the phone down on your desk or nightstand and wait. When the alarm goes off, you are woken up by various pleasing sounds and music. Depending on how deep you sleep, you may have to turn up the volume on your phone as the audible part of the alarm is a bit subdued. Once you're aware of your surroundings, you can turn off the alarm by completing your daily chores, which require you to tap, pinch and / or shake your device. If you need some extra ZZZs, you can hit snooze and grab 10 minutes, but I'll warn you --- CARROT won't be happy. When that snooze alarm goes off, CARROT will yell at you, and your daily chores will be harder. The yelling is pretty tame, but it's definitely geared toward adults. There are no obscenities, but some of CARROT's angry wake-up chants, like "Death, Murder, Kill," for example, are not appropriate for children. CARROT Alarm clock is an entertaining way to wake yourself up each morning or alert yourself during the day. It's the abusive drill sergeant that many of us need in our lives. The alarm music is a tad soft for my tastes (I always pick the obnoxious "Alarm" sound for my alerts), but not everyone needs a blaring alert to wake themselves up. The daily chores to turn off the alarm are challenging enough that they wake you up, and the fear of an angry CARROT makes you think twice about turning on that snooze. It's quite effective at waking you on time. You can check out CARROT Alarm in the iOS App Store. It costs US$0.99.
Rise Alarm Clock is lovely to behold and effective at waking you up
Some developers throw in a minimalist, gesture-based UI because it is trendy, while others use this style of interface because it works with their app. An excellent example of the latter scenario is Rise, a new alarm clock from Simplebots. Rise is a basic alarm clock. It only does one alarm at a time and doesn't have any fancy bells or whistles that turn your alarm into a challenge. It does one thing and does it well. When Rise opens, it takes over your entire screen, including the menu bar. You still have access to your notification slider, but every other distraction is hidden from view. Rise can pull this off because you really only need your alarm and some music to relax you when it's time to go to sleep. In the middle of the app is a simple alarm timer that you adjust by sliding your finger up or down your screen until your reach the correct time of day. To fine tune the alarm, all you have to do is tap on the screen above the timer to wake up later or tap below to awake earlier. It's an intuitive way to set an alarm and much faster than dialing in the time using a wheel. Once you pick the right time, you can turn the alarm on/off by swiping your fingers to the left or right. When you turn on your alarm, the app displays the amount of time until the alarm is scheduled to go off and a + and - button to adjust the alarm clock in five-minute increments. At the bottom is a volume slider, a repeating alarm toggle and your background music settings. The background music option lets you compile a playlist of songs that'll send you peacefully off to sleep. This music is optional and you can turn it off whenever you choose. The app is filled with thoughtful design elements such as a gradient background that changes color as you adjust the clock and a small clock that shows the actual time at the top of the alarm. The alarm sounds are unique and vibrant enough to wake you from a deep sleep. All on-screen elements are easy to tap and simple to understand. You don't have to think about setting the alarm, you just tap, swipe and you are ready for bed. Trust me, you'll appreciate this simplicity when you are drop dead tired and need to set an alarm. Rise Alarm Clock is available for $1.99 in the iOS App Store.
iPhone bell accessories will definitely wake you up
During my sophomore year in college back in 1976, I had a roommate named Chuck who had problems waking up when his alarm went off. We tried a variety of alarm clocks and clock radios, all of which failed. Then we did an experiment with a timer plug and his stereo, setting the volume to 11 and placing the speakers next to his head. Not much worked to wake up Chuck, including punching him and dumping water on him, and it was the downfall of his college career. Perhaps if I could travel back in time to 1976 with an iPhone and the new iBell (at right above, US$38) or iBell Mini accessories (at left above, $27), Chuck could graduate from the University of Colorado and change the course of history... I have to admit that these are some of the most absurd iPhone accessories I've seen yet. The iBell is a cradle that your 30-pin Dock connector iPhone sits on, while the iBell mini is just an attachment that plugs into the Dock connector. Like the ancient alarm clocks of yore, it features a pair of bells that clang incessantly when it is time to wake up ... or until your iPhone battery dies. While the iBell can also charge your iPhone, the iBell mini won't. There's an accompanying app, and the instructions are in Japanese -- but "self-explanatory" according to the website. By the way, you can get the iBell mini in blue, pink or orange in addition to the standard black and white.
Gear4 speaker dock supports USB audio for Jelly Bean at Google I/O 2012 (hands-on video)
Another day, another speaker dock. We initially dismissed Gear4's latest accessory at Google I/O 2012 until we noticed that the attached Nexus 7 was playing audio digitally via the USB port instead of simply through the headphone jack (or wirelessly over Bluetooth for that matter). It turns out that Jelly Bean supports USB audio, a software feature that's bound to spearhead a whole new generation of accessories for Android devices. Gear4's universal speaker dock with alarm clock radio is the first to handle USB audio. While the sound for any app can be routed to the USB port in Jelly Bean, the functionality is missing from older versions of Android. Thankfully, Gear4 includes an app with its accessory that can be used to set alarms, sync time, tune the radio and play media over the USB port on legacy versions of Android. Want to know more? You'll find our gallery below and our hands-on video after the break.%Gallery-159523%
Adafruit modder builds Captain Jack's Vortex Manipulator / Leela's wrist-lo-jacko-mator for real
This impressive wrist / forearm cuff is the brainchild of Adafruit forum member and modder Stephanie, who has built a sensor platform into the fashion accessory. The device can monitor the exposure value, track your movements over GPS, measure your galvanic skin response, tell you the temperature, humidity and even doubles as a watch and flash-light. It was built around Sparkfun's Pro Micro development board and a boatload of sensors purchased from Adafruit. We might just build one ourselves with a radiation detector, so that we can live out our Pip-Boy fantasies down at the mall. %Gallery-156412%
Daily iPhone App: Wave Alarm lets you turn off your alarm with the wave of your hand
Wave Alarm has one feature that sets it apart from the myriad of other alarm clocks in the App Store. It lets you turn off your alarm by waving your hand at your phone. This may seem like a gimmick, but I found it to be extremely useful. Wave Alarm is a no-frills alarm clock. It has a digital clock face with weather information that's pulled down using your location. The alarms are simple -- the app lets you set the time, select a sound, choose a snooze duration and give each alarm a custom name. There's no support for repeating alarms, which may be a drawback for those who need reminders everyday at the same time. The app also lets you customize the motion detection so you can either activate snooze or disable the alarm by waving your hand over the phone. As you would expect, the app uses the front-facing camera to detect your motion, which means you must have the app open in the foreground for the motion to work. Fortunately, it's not a big deal if the app is sent to the background. You'll lose the motion control, but the alarm will still sound. I've been using Wave Alarm for a few weeks now and find that it's perfect as a cooking timer in the kitchen or a project timer when I'm working at my desk. It's useful to be able turn off an alarm by waving your hand when you are in the middle of a messy recipe or an engaging project. You don't even have to move your eyes away from what you are doing, all you have to do is wave your hand at your phone. As much as I like the motion control, the requirement to launch the app right before bed and keep it open all night prevented me from using Wave Alarm as a morning alarm clock. I'd often forget to launch the app and when I did remember, I would check my email in the middle of the night and then forget to re-launch the alarm clock. Though I don't use it at night, I do enjoy Wave Alarm for those quick daytime reminders. Wave Alarm is available for free from the iOS app store. An in-app purchase of US$1.99 will remove the banner ads at the bottom.
DoubleTwist adds Google Music support, gets an alarm clock app
DoubleTwist is certainly still one of the better music management options for Android, and it just keeps improving. Two days ago the player app got an update and now it can hook into Google Music, though, it only recognizes songs that you've checked for offline access from within the Google app. An unfortunate restriction, but at least your tracks don't disappear into the ether if you prefer to play back your tunes via DoubleTwist. There's also new functionality coming to what is now less an app than an ecosystem, thanks to the just released DoubleTwist Alarm Clock. The functionality is pretty much what you'd expect -- set a time and pick a song from your DoubleTwist library to gently rouse you from your slumber (or kick your butt out of bed). The Alarm Clock is just $0.99 in the Play Market right now for the first 10,000 customers. After that it'll go up to $1.99. So don't waste any time, go download it now.
Insert Coin: Alarm clock makes you enter a code to silence it, in another room (video)
In Insert Coin, we look at an exciting new tech project that requires funding before it can hit production. If you'd like to pitch a project, please send us a tip with "Insert Coin" as the subject line. We love the snooze button as much as everyone else. But we've all postponed exiting the comfort of our Tempur-Pedic one too many times. Enter the Ramos alarm clock, a rise-and-shine solution that integrates a Defuse Panel in order to silence your wake-up call. Don't expect to stay in bed to enter the code either, as the keypad can be wirelessly situated in another room to prevent further slumber. Two time keeping options, LED and Nixie models, await your minimum pledges of $160 and $350 before the April 1st deadline. The latter features a nixie tube display that will put any regular ol' alarm clock's digits to shame. You can spring for a long-range kit if you need to place your key panel more than 50 feet away from your nightstand. If you're feeling extra generous, a pledge of more than $800 will allow you to select the type of wood used for your Ramos. In need of a bit more convincing? Peep the video on the other side of the break for a closer look.
Hello Kitty pays a visit to CES 2012: If you want it, we got it in pink
An electronics show wouldn't be an electronics show without celebrity endorsements. But there was one icon who had more product tie-ins than anyone else. Yep, Kitty-chan was in attendance and she had plenty of pink paraphernalia to hawk to unsuspecting fans of all things kawaii. We've collated together all the gear spotted at CES and, fortunately, there was more than just a few phone cases and laptop bags. Merchandise spotted includes Kitty-themed karaoke machines, alarm clocks with mounted laser cannons projectors, cordless phones and more. A brief video tour of some of our favorite surprises is coming soon, but until then, enjoy all that the super-deformed cat had to offer in our gallery below.Sean Cooper and Sean Buckley contributed to this post.
Archos 35 home connect hands-on
Though we didn't have the Archos 35 home connect to wake us up personally during CES, we had a chance to get hands-on with the Android-based alarm clock on the floor and it did not disappoint. The Archos 35 home connect is the company's entrance into the world of feature-filled alarm clocks, joining the already established Sony Dash and Chumby. In terms of functionality, it's a morning talk show all rolled up into one, providing weather, real time traffic, news, sports, movies, music, TuneIn radio, social networking and much more through the built-in WiFi. You'll also find a webcam on the front, supporting apps like Tango for video calling, a rechargeable battery to take the party with you, and a 3.5 headphone jack for more personal use. The overall device is solid and has a very curvy and nightstand-friendly footprint -- which is important for folks like us who sleep with other bedside gadgets. The volume controls are touch sensitive and the unit itself has a decent enough range. Archos is not only pushing this as a fully-featured Alarm Clock, but also a portable Android 2.2 media device -- supporting over 30,000-or-so apps in Archos' non-Android-Market, Appslib. While the 35 home connect's features make it compelling enough to make it a viable option, we feel there's nothing to push it past its aforementioned competition, especially with the $149 price tag. Check out all the angles and interface of the 35 home connect in the gallery below.
