Sleep Time: Cycle Alarm Clock

This is a fantastic app that very reliably lets you set an alarm while giving you a real time indicator of how much sleep you’ll be getting. The log, when consistently used, gives you a good indicator of how much sleep you get over a certain period. While it’s a nice idea to sleep with it in your bed because of the accelerometer keeping track of your tossing and turning, I find it to be kind of restricting when I charge it while I sleep, as well as being a temptation to browse the Internet instead of sleeping. If you’re like me, and knowing the ins and outs of your REM cycle aren’t a big deal to you, when on a side table the alarm works just fine. The song gently raises in volume, isn’t jarring, and isn’t a ring tone that will ruin your day if someone’s phone randomly rings with the same chirp. (Is that just a me thing? Because I’ve definitely had that happen in years past.) My only qualm is that it can be a bit annoying to have to circle via touch a time clock to get to the time you’d like, down to the minute. I’d love a manual function that lets me just input a time, but that’s just a nitpick. I have a slight hand tremor, and yes, while it seems a bit whiny, sometimes I’d like to wake up at 8:15 and not 8:12, thank you very much. Three minutes makes a difference! Other than that amazing app.

Forget the other apps and go straight to ARGUS! I've tried them all & this app has changed my life and given me the tools to create a personal sleep hygiene. I've been dealing with chronic illnesses for several years now, prescription meds make it difficult to rest and antibiotics have terrible side effects. I've tried several sleep tracking apps & I love ARGUS because it integrates with other apps I use. I like the layout & the feedback. I set it immediately when I get in bed and like to know WHEN I get in bed, and I love the tags I can customize before each night's rest. Because of this app I've realized I have a "sweet spot" for sleep and it's 6 1/2 hours. I also have figured out that this only applies to my quality sleep when I go to bed before 11pm. If I sleep longer I'm not necessarily more rested - it's usually a flag for an infection. I have a chronic illness so this is incredibly useful data to me so I use it pretty religiously. I love that it integrates with my other ARGUS programs, and prompting me to take my heart rate upon rising is a wonderful bonus tracker.

I really love this app. I have the free version, but I don't really miss the pro features. I still set a backup alarm, but I've always done that no matter what primary alarm I used. It automatically turns the volume on your phone all the way up, and even if your phone is on silent, it will go off at full volume in the morning. This is great, because there have been times with other apps when I'll accidentally leave my phone on vibrate so the alarm won't go off in the morning. It also doesn't use that much battery, so I don't have to plug it in at night. If I charge to at least 70% before I go to bed, the battery life lasts me all night and through the next day. I cannot speak for the accuracy of the program, I just like that it monitors how often I sleep and wakes me up more gently. I really like it, and would recommend it!