Sleep Cycle for iPhone Picks the Best Time to Wake You Up

Recently, a colleague of mine tipped me off to a new sleeping aid for iOS. Well, not an aid exactly, but an app that measures your sleeping patterns, and analyzes the data to determine the best window of time for you to wake up. Called ‘Sleep Cycle‘, so far I’m having nothing but success, and good dreams.

The way it works is actually quite simple. After you pop open the app and set the alarm time, you plug your iPhone in and set it display DOWN on the bed next to your pillow.

What the app does from this position is use the built-in accelerometer to monitor your movement while you sleep. By monitoring your movement, it determines which ‘sleep phase’ you’re in… and in doing this, it picks the best time to wake you up, within a 30 minute window of the alarm time you initially set. So, you may be awoken up to 30 minutes BEFORE your set alarm time, but if you are, chances are you’ll feel rested and ready for the day.

While it’s still early days in my testing of this app, so far each time the alarm has gone off I feel stunningly awake and rested-up. This is a huge change for me. Getting out of bed is usually quite an ordeal for me, and I’ll linger beneath the sheets for 10 or 20 minutes, half-awake, like a zombie while I gain consciousness. Now, I’m not sure if this is all in my head, or just dumb luck, but so far I’m digging the app. By analyzing my sleep patterns, it appears to be picking the best time to wake me up… I’ve never felt better getting out of bed in the morning.

I encourage you to give it a try for yourself. Sleep Cycle is available for only $0.99 in the app store. In my books, it’s a buck well spent.

Sleep Cycle ($0.99) [iTunes link]

About The Author

James Falconer

James was born and raised in Winnipeg, Canada. Almost 15 years ago he started out in the 'real world' as a web and graphic designer. Through the years he has finely tuned his skills in SEO, internet marketing, conversion strategy, and project management. To date, he runs his own successful consulting business where he advises companies all over the globe. A co-founder of www.crackberry.com, and sole proprietor of www.mactropolis.com, James in recent years has become very active in the tech blogosphere. Online community building and strategy is fast becoming one of his passions. Watch for James' no frills attitude, unique perspective and to-the-point comments here on IntoMobile!

Bith

Well here’s a reason to not buy one of those foam mattresses haha.
Anonymous

I might give this a try. Every morning I wake up feeling like I didn’t even sleep or get any rest at all. I’ve been sleeping terribly and at this point, springing for the app is totally worth 99 cents just to try it out.
Anonymous

Awesome, get on Android and it’ll be going somewhere.
Anonymous

I’ve had this app for almost a year. It works wonders. I’ve been able to pull off 3-4 hours of sleep using this app. Combine it with Ambiscience Powernap and you’re on to some great sleep!
tabman

can anyone explain how this technique works: “use the built-in accelerometer to monitor your movement while you sleep”

Isn’t accelerometer only used to measure the phone movement itself ?
Something

Yea, this app is a waste of money, had the app running on the bedside table all night and I was supposedly moving….
Only one word to describe it, Gimmick.
JSD

It’s pretty good if you have sleep problems. This way, you can “quantify” with your dr.
Seancgraham

does it work on Ipod touch?
Seancgraham

does it work on Ipod touch?
Seancgraham

does it work on Ipod touch?
Seancgraham

does it work on Ipod touch?
James

Definitely give it a shot. The thing woke me up at 6:10 AM today, and I hopped right out of bed!
James

Definitely give it a shot. The thing woke me up at 6:10 AM today, and I hopped right out of bed!
some1

I wonder how many “good” sleeps it takes to get brain cancer???
Derek_asato

“…on the bedside table all night…”

I don’t know if the app works, but you used it wrong. The accelerometer measures when the phone moves. It doesn’t magically measure the motion of the person who owns it. That’s why you are supposed to put it on the mattress next to your pillow. It’s not going to detect anything on the table next to your bed.
Blah

You’re an idiot. Read again. He said it was on the bedside table “YET” it still said he moved. He’s pointing out the gimmickry of the app. It should not have recorded a movement at all if it was on the table.
Joe

“It’s not going to detect anything on the table next to your bed.”

But it did detect something and why he says it is a gimmick.
http://www.facebook.com/glenatkinson Glen Atkinson

Yeah, those people who say it doesn’t work are either people who haven’t actually tried it and are just trying to badmouth it for no reason, or they are using a bed that doesn’t work with it, such as those crazy foam mattresses that make you never move. My brother sleeps on a stack of 4 regular mattresses rather than a conventional bed and he can’t get it to work for him simply because of the nature of his “bed”, it moves around an awful lot.

It does work, there’s a lot of testimonials around.
Anonymous

Learn how to jail break your phone and get free appstore apps and cydia apps. Join us on IRC chat (www.mirc.com) Server Efnet chat channel = #iphone
http://www.facebook.com/SOULJAMMAN Ben Cullen

yes
bo

–airplane mode
bo

–airplane mode
Malcolm Smith

Yep, it definately doesn’t work with a foam mattress – I give up…
actually tested it

Yea, i tryed it today, i left it on the table and got nothing but a deep sleep graph,

Fucking retards probably left it on top of there vibrators….

Your a waste of money, get off the streets and actually buy the app before you write BS about it.
tested it

Your a fucking moron it doesnt record any movement i did it today,

Complete bunch of retards following the next one as they come…
Ask your parents for 1$ so you can actually buy the app, and test it kiddo.
manwithbrain

I picked up the app free, it works perfectly if you have more than 2 brain cells to rub together. We now compare sleep cycles at the water cooler
life of brain

Is there an app to help people think logically?