Sleep Time: Cycle Alarm Timer Reviews

by Amanda Denise Garza

As many people have stated, this alarm 'used to be' so great! I definitely agree! It WAS so great. But recently, like many others, my alarm has not been going off. Or sometimes, it'll go off a few times and then stop. When I set my alarm, I lock my phone and turn the "do not disturb" option on. I'm not sure if it's because I lock my phone before I go to bed (so that I don't get woken up by notifications) or what, but whenever I receive notifications during the alarm sequence, it automatically shuts the alarm and the vibrations off. I've been REALLY late to school, because if I Receive any notifications the alarm stops going off, and then I end up waking up on my own to realize it's already almost noon!! PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE FIX IT! I love SleepTime so much!! But this is really causing a big problem for my daily routine!!

by Kal414

Picture this, you fall asleep on the couch while watching the nightly news. You wake up at midnight, the whole house is silent, and you head into your bedroom as quietly as possible so you don’t wake your significant other. You successfully change and lay down without bothering anyone and open SleepTime to set your alarm, you pick the time and start your sleep session, all is well! Then a video advertisement for some bubble pop game is blaring with music and background noises and there isn’t even an x on the screen to close out of it, your just pressing both corners praying it will close and shut the eff up. Now not only are you terrified because it scared the 💩 out of you, now your significant other wants to strangle you because you woke them up with a terrifyingly loud noise.

I 100% understand that apps need to advertise to keep their products affordable, and I’m ok with that. However, if you think of how and when SleepTime is being used can you set it up so that all videos are defaulted to mute? Or the ads are soothing and want to help you fall asleep instead of dramatically spike your heart rate? Your app is great and I’ve used it for years but I’m sick of the heart attack inducing promotions when I’m trying to fall asleep!

by Wendeebird

I absolutely HATE SleepTime. My work has a Virgin Pulse program where e can earn money for tracking things like exercise and sleep. This is the only sleep app that is compatible with the program. If you have the free version, it’s a pain in the neck to set every night. I have to go through 2 or 3 ads and it’s not easy to bypass them, so I end up accidentally visiting the ads website because the way to exit out is a tiny, tiny x in all different places. Then, many times it just just stops tracking your sleep, so there is no alarm and no credit for points. I am also a night shift person and I don’t slept well during the day. So, if I am not in what SleepTime determines is deep sleep or light sleep it will not give you credit for being in bed for 7 hours or more. Same thing if my husband is having a restless night. His movement in the bed will be enough to have SleepTime say I’m not sleeping and I don’t get my points. Then, I though well maybe the paid version is better. But... then I saw how much it is and for a sleep app it’s expensive and I HATE the free version so much, that I can’t bring my self to pay for it. Virgin Pulse needs to have a better sleep tracking app than this and I have already told them as much.

by Shejumps

2017: Compelled to update bc this has gotten worse due to the bait and switch ad tactics. Good luck getting to the main screen to set this. If you are willing to launch and app, click through 2-3 screens AND then figure out how to extract yourself from the never ending ad campaign with no escape good luck.
Good app function if you can get to it. Incredibly poor user interaction snd monetization. Go find something, anything else. The shenanigans are not worth it. Your standard alarm on your phone is enough to wake you up. Any other sleep app that 'measures' sleep stages has the be less of a hassle than this.

Too bad they can't figure it out.

2016: The functions of SleepTime are good but the last update has made it ridiculous to set.

I was considering purchasing the premium version for the storage but not after the last update. Now they want you to log in or buy the premium version. If you can locate the button to skip this process among the clutter them you get served up a completely irrelevant ad. You then have to wait for the ad to finish (which it sometimes never does) to click out of it. If you can't click out and attempt to close SleepTime and reopen it it usually crashes at least once before you can attempt the whole process again.

I've been using SleepTime for a year but am looking for a new one because of the nonsense. There are other sleep app options with less in your face unrelated advertising and no ridiculous logins.

by Larabrynn

Let’s start with the “free” app costing $1.99. That’s not free. They push their subscription a bit too hard, making it challenging to just use SleepTime . The ad screens are hard to close! Also, as you go to bed and set the alarm, an ad for a mobile game pops up. I’m trying to go to sleep! That’s just careless on the developers part. It’s evidence that they don’t actually care about your health if they want to encourage you to play games unless you pay them.

Finally, SleepTime is unreliable. Several times I’ve gone to bed and the alarm never goes off. SleepTime crashed! Twice, I’ve received a phone call after I went to bed, which I declined from my watch, which then resulted in SleepTime crashing.

All of these factors don’t make me want to pay you a crazy $9.99 per month. The only reason I use SleepTime at all is it is the only app that works with my company health program for sleep tracking. Otherwise, I’d delete it immediately.

by Caity Mac

I really want to love SleepTime, but it’s got some serious issues. First off, I’m also rather annoyed that a sleep app has a blue background, as blue triggers your brain to wake up (because sky, etc), not something you want as you’re setting your alarm and going to bed. If you’re going to make a sleep app, at least learn the basics.

And then there’s my eardrums. If you have the habit of listening to podcasts or music before bed and you forget and let your alarm before stopping it, suddenly the audio go to max and blasts out your ear drums. I get that SleepTime needs to be at max volume, but can you not work in a warning or awareness of audio playing?

All around I don’t use SleepTime nearly as much as I would if it weren’t for the above issues.

by Trusty Rug

I'm sure SleepTime is a godsend to anyone looking to improve their quality of sleep, to find what works, or to even promote a healthier lifestyle through exercise and sleep. I just can't get on the right track. The last two nights have been an easy 7-7.5 hours of sleep, only to have my back-up alarm (thank god) wake me up, feeling like a train hit me in my sleep. Not only that, but SleepTime makes me think I have a secret nightlife that I'm not aware of, with several "awake" moments I don't recall. Thankfully, the premium is $10. I wished I would have burned the $10 for premium instead of purchasing this. But, if you like shiny apps, and have $10 just burning a hole in your pocket, and think just maybe SleepTime will work out, get it. If you're craving some decent Arby's and have a friend, do that instead.

by Miranda395

So I wanted to get an app like this to see or make sure I wasn’t waking up in the middle of my rim cycle so I can actually wake up feeling ready for my day. I tested it out when I took a nap one day and I didn’t see any issues with it. BUT, I do not like how you need to put it your pillow in order for it to work. I do move a lot in my sleep so I would probably knock it off one night BUT the main reason is our phones have so much radiation! I put my phone on airplane mode and leave it in on the other side of my room when I go to bed. Sleeping with your phone near your head, or anything with radiation is SO BAD FOR YOU! SleepTime is asking me to do exactly what I hate lol.

I wish you could somehow set your sleep timer and have it ask you how long it usually takes to fall asleep so it could make an estimated guess to know when I fell asleep? But that doesn’t sound likely or accurate lol. SleepTime works and is neat but I will not put a radiation device by my head while I sleep all night lol. No thank you

by IneedaNicknameforserious

In short -It's a nice idea and is kinda fun to have. BUT I wouldn't recommend use as a main alarm (or main health tracking device if you need reliable data).

Lots of updates. But SleepTime can get pretty glitchy with not allowing alarm time to adjust, which obviously is important if you want to wake up on time. The sleep tracker isn't super accurate, but it's decent if you want to know just how many hours you were out...which is legitimately the only reason I've kept it this long.
The heart rate monitor has never shown mine accurately. SleepTime also has a lot of extra health content that you don't have access to unless you buy premium or another of their developer's app. Takes up quite a bit of space especially once you start logging some days of sleep.

by Ameristar

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.

by Chrisian55

I’ve been using SleepTime for about 4 years now. I like being able to see the quality of my sleep and to set my alarm this way. Obviously I like SleepTime , having used it for so long. However, I have a couple of issues that have been recurring and are annoying enough to cause me to write a review. First, when trying to set the alarm at night sometimes (about once per week) SleepTime will freeze or my screen will go black and I have to adjust the angle of my phone to get it so that I can tap start. It sometimes takes 5 or 6 “adjustments” before it works. The second issue happens less frequently but is equally disruptive when trying to go to sleep. An ad will play with full volume even though my phone is turned to silent. It’s startling and not a feeling I would think an app developer for sleep would want to leave their users with as they settle down to sleep. It would be great if these two issues (assuming others also encounter them) could be fixed.

by Rjbalaska

I was an early adopter. I loved sleep time. Then I started getting ads. Then I started getting 'upgrade and pay for it or we'll make your life miserable "every time I open. I started getting rate us. I started getting a lot of other crap besides the basic program. And they changed the way the sleep program looked. I've gotten used to that but I don't like it as well as I like the original. I really love this program. I think it's a great program. But I don't like being blackmailed into buying something I don't want. If you said to me give us five bucks for the rest of your life and we'll give you the basic program you had in the beginning I would buy it in a minute and then you would leave me alone but as it is I get frustrated every time I use this program especially when you keep asking me to rate it so now I have--leave me alone!!!

by 400glizzy

SleepTime is a slightly better way to wake up than abrupt, exactly-timed alarms on your phone or clock. It’s marginally obnoxious when it comes to the sheer amount of ads, but they don’t interfere with the functionality of SleepTime so its easy to ignore.

This is helpful if you sleep in a room with others and your alarm continually wakes them up too. It’s starts very quiet and gradually gets louder, so it should wake up the other person less often. It helped when i was in a dormitory back in college.

But tbh, if you have really bad battery life already, the benefit from SleepTime prolly isn’t worth it. Otherwise i totally recommend SleepTime.

by Tweety789

~ I cannot check my heart rate after I wake up because the camera strobes a couple times and then cuts off.
~ I can't control the volume. I liked that I was able to control how loud the white noise is when the pre-alarm goes off. Now it just blares at full volume no matter what. Sometimes the white noise doesn’t work at all and I use a different app for that now, but this apps volume still makes the volume of the phone blare when the pre-alarm goes off so, same problem.

I’m not complaining, I love SleepTime. I’ve had it for years and I love Argus and all you do for health monitoring, but just a friendly reminder from a loyal customer to please make sure all your apps are up to date.

by Lovinthisgame73

I really love SleepTime. 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!

by Big_City_Lights

When I wake using SleepTime that times with my sleep cycles, I am not nearly as mad at the morning or groggy compared to using a time based alarm. SleepTime is easy to use and adjust to your needs. I appreciate that it's free, because it is SO much better than another free sleep cycle alarm app I tried!!
I usually leave my phone on the charger when using SleepTime and slide under a corner of my pillow. Previously I was concerned it would detect my spouse's movement, but have never had an issue.

by Joeydata

I am using the free version. I love SleepTime and it's integration with the Argus app. The three features I would like to see (unless I just can't find them or they are a part of a premium version) are: ability to edit hours (SleepTime thinks I'm sleeping when it's just me laying in bed for 2 hours after my kid woke up screaming - I did not get 8:54 hours of good, quality sleep), a sleep quality rating (even if SleepTime says my sleep was of good quality, how rested do I feel?), and recording of audio (am I snoring, talking in my sleep, etc. - anything that might indicate truly restless sleep).

by Goodcarmagirl

I have loved this ap and used it as my primary alarm for more than a year. Since the upgrade three times in one week the alarm portion was turned off accidentally causing me to not wake up on time. I will now have to go back to using a different program which is sad.

I love the new look, and the questions to help me track and the overall awareness of my sleep wellness has increased significantly. When you get to see how long you slept and. What the efficiency of your sleep is it helps me prioritize getting the sleep I need to be healthy

I'll miss this ap. but can't worry about if it is running or not.

by 🇺🇸🍕

Been using it for years, and it’s always worked amazing, never crashes... data seems really accurate, although my only complaint about an otherwise awesome app is that the sleep analysis starts counting your hours of sleep from when you set the alarm, so in the morning, (especially if you were tossing and turning and didn’t fall asleep right away) the amount of hours it says you slept won’t be so accurate. However, it does show how much of that time you were in deep and light sleep, so I just add those two to calculate my actual hours of sleep. All in all, it’s a great app, with a lot more than just sleep analysis. Love that it can check your heart rate, that you can listen to your music, and has many more features as well!

by DmitryVolodk

Thank you for such a fascinating sleeping app with the great methodology of tracking sleep quality! There is one more amazing improvement can be done: please creat an app for Apple Watch to be able to place the charging phone at night far away from the head because any charging phone creates strong electro-magnetic field. And it’s better to avoid being in the center of the electro-magnetic field while sleeping. Avoidance of the field will bring an ultimate sleeping quality and will place azumio above serious competitors of Sleeping Analysis Systems.