Synopsis of the App: Sleep Cycle Alarm Clock analyzes your sleep and gently wakes you in the lightest sleep phase.
Price and Platform: Free. Apple and Android.
RDN Score: 4/5
Pros
Dark mode throughout the app puts the user in sleep mode.
Uses the phone’s built-in microphone or accelerometer to analyze movement.
Tap twice or pick up the phone to snooze the alarm.
Wake up gently in a window versus one set time.
Decide to wake to a vibration or choose from a variety of soothing sounds including warm breeze and sunrise.
Enable intelligent snooze to snooze until the end of your wake up phase.
View and track sleep graphs and analyses starting after the first night of sleep.
Sleep times and duration and graphs include data on wake times, as well as, when you enter deep sleep.
Alter and set weekend wake times.
Premium members gain access to additional sounds, charts, snore data and sleep quality inputs like daily steps, heart rate, working out, tea drinking, weather, and moon data.
App syncs with the Runkeeper app.
Cons
Must keep the phone in or near the bed for the analysis to work.
Allowing access to your phone’s microphone may bring up privacy concerns. However, though the app makers promise not to share sound data and offer an alternative method to analyze sleep.
1 month free, then $29.99/year.
Bottom Line: Sleep Cycle Alarm Clock turns your phone into a sleep-analyzing tool. It’s ideal for anyone who wants to learn more about and improve their sleep quality.
Marisa Moore, MBA, RDN, LD, is based in Atlanta and specializes in culinary nutrition, communications and consulting. She blogs at marisamoore.com. Follow her on Instagram and Twitter.
Synopsis of the App: Sleep Cycle Alarm Clock analyzes your sleep and gently wakes you in the lightest sleep phase.
