Today there are apps for anything and everything. Yes, even to sleep! Well while it might sound bizarre, sleeping disorders can negatively impact your health and sleep apps can help you record your sleep pattern and also give you tips on how to sleep well. Here are some apps that will help you sleep tight, and yes sweet dreams!
Name: SleepBot
Availability: Android, iOS
Price: Free
Details: This is an app that tracks your sleep activity in order to help you get a good night’s rest and wake you up at the right time. It uses your phone’s accelerometer and can also be set to record sounds. The app has a smart alarm that lets you set a series of time within a time band for you to be woken up. The app decides to trigger the alarm based on your sleep activity, so that you are well rested. The app also has several sleep tracking metrics including a sleep debt log and a detailed knowledge base to educate you on smart sleeping habits. The app also logs all the movements in your body when you sleep which gives you a good indication of what is making you lose sleep. For instance, if you sleep near the window, it is probably the outside noise that is causing the lack of sleep and this app can point that trigger to you!
Name: Sleep As Android
Availability: Android
Price: Free for 2 weeks, ₹ 10 – ₹ 63,22 per item (feature)
Details: This is a sleep cycle tracker and alarm that uses on-board sensors to track your sleep and wake you up at the right time. Apart from the smart alarm and sleep logging features, Sleep As Android has a collection of natural sound wake up noises and wake-up tests that ensure you are woken up correctly. The app uses sleep actigraphy, an accelerometric movement measurement that recognizes phases when you are sleeping. The best part of that actigraphy is easy and simple to setup. When you are in deep sleep, the graph is flat and as you toss and turn, there will be peaks seen so if there are more movements then it means you have slept very lightly. Apart from calculating a smart wake up time, the app also calculates the percentage of your deep and cycle count which could indicate healthy and unhealthy sleep patterns. According to the app, a healthy sleep cycle will have 10-30 minutes of light sleep with deep sleep for 40-100 minutes.
Name: Sleep Time+
Availability: Android, iOS
Price: ₹ 330.00 – ₹ 2,050.00 per item
Details: This is an app by Azumio that combines sleep tracking and smart alarm clock, using your phone’s sensors to measure both the quality of your sleep and wake you up at the right time. It also has sound scapes to help lull you to sleep! This app works by using the accelerometer in your phone to detect any movement and uses an advanced algorithm to determine your sleep phases to ensure you are not woken up in deep sleep. This is a great app for those who need white noise to fall asleep and are looking for a smarter alarm clock. The interface for the app is sleek and easy to use. The alarm clock part is intelligent so you wake up refreshed and feeling well rested. The app allows you to set the alarm clock with a single gesture and the alarm rings even in silent mode. You can choose from 20 built in alarms and the app has a Sleep Lab™ that does sleep cycle analysis. The app has an advanced wake-up optimization algorithm and stores a full history and graphs make comparison easy.
Name: Go To Bed
Availability: iOS
Price: Free
Details: This app uses the old adage of the importance of going early to bed and this is a sleep aid that reminds you when it is the time to sleep. What you need to do is feed in your ideal bedtime, and this app will remind you 30 minutes prior that your bedtime is approaching so that you can wind up all other activities and go to bed without the burden of unfinished work. Apart from timing reminders, you can also track your sleep with the app and sync your records to the Health app and ensure you sleep well. This app is a button in the Clock app and you can set it up on the specific days of the week you need it and also indicate how many hours of sleep you need. The app has several gentle sounds for alarms that you can choose as a wakeup tone.
Name: Pzizz
Availability: Android, iOS
Price: Free
Details: This app helps users to sleep by using a combination of music, words, sound effects and binaural beats. You will need to set a listening duration that can range between 10 minutes and 10 hours and the app generates a unique sleeping soundtrack from its library. You can customize the volume level, sound effects and vocal tracks to suit your need and the app has a whopping 10 billion possible combinations of audio elements so you can be sure to have something new each time. Pzizz history allows you to keep track of what you have listened to and the ‘Skip Dreamscape’ button allows you to stop sounds you do not like. The alarm options have more built-in alarms and you can also control alarm vibration. The sleep module has the facility to use comforting words while you sleep and the streamlined user interface and experience makes this app easy to use.
Name: Sleep Genius
Availability: Android, iOS
Price: Rs. 340
Details: Sleep Genius was designed using neurosensory algorithms to create sounds that guide your brain through the complete sleep cycle. The app is based on research used by NASA to help astronauts sleep. Select a relaxation or timed sleep program to begin. When it’s time to wake up, the app will use a gentle alarm to bring you out of your meditation, nap, or night’s sleep. This app has been developed after doing research to help NASA get its astronauts to sleep by helping users discover their perfect bedtime. Once set, the app says that it is ideal to go to bed within 15 minutes of your target bed time. The App will also wake you up gradually with a gentle 5 minute revive cycle scientifically created to help you wake to a soothing sound. The progressive alarm works in phases so if you set your alarm for 6:00 a.m., the revive cycle alarm will start at 5.55 a.m. and end at 6:00 a.m. The app has a Sleep Genius Relaxation Program that has been scientifically created to reduce stress and anxiety by calming both the mind and the body through acoustically modified music. The app also helps you take a power nap by using psychoacoustic music that is scientifically designed to trigger relaxation and an alarm gradually wakes you up too!
This story appeared in the July 2017 issue of Smartlife Magazine here:
