Do you wake up every day feeling like you haven’t slept much? According to a recent editorial in the Annals, a journal by the Singapore Academy of Medicine, this could be happening to one in three Singaporeans, who currently aren’t getting enough sleep. Scientists, however, are saying that the key isn’t more sleep, it’s BETTER sleep.
This search for better sleep has begun a trend of ‘sleep tracking’ that helps you become more aware of how you sleep, and allows you to take certain measurements to ensure better and more efficient sleep every night. Yes, it is now possible from various apps or fitness tracking wearables, but this new Kickstarter Campaign, Sense, is definitely hitting the ball right out of the park.
Sense is a simple system that tracks your sleep behavior, monitors the environment of your bedroom, and reinvents the alarm. It comes in three parts: an orb-like device that sits on your bedside table (Sense), a round piece that clips onto your pillow (Sleep Pill), and an app on your phone.
Also, Sense takes the future in consideration by incorporating Wi-Fi and Bluetooth functions so that it can be controlled and monitored easily.
All these work simultaneously to produce a Sleep Score out of 100 based on how well you sleep, and tracks your sleep cycle to show you time-based information about how you slept. It even pinpoints the variables that intrude your slumber, so if a loud sound disrupts your sleep at 3am every day, you would know to invest in some earplugs.
For example, if your room is pitch black, 10 points will be added into your Sleep Score because you are sleeping in a dark environment which is more ideal. However, if your sleep is intermittently disrupted by dogs barking or car alarm sounds, then 20 points will be deducted from your Sleep Score. Therefore, you will be able to evaluate your sleeping conditions and deal with the existing issues.
Another handy aspect of Sense is that it has a Smart Alarm which uses the Sleep Pill to sense when you begin to naturally stir from your sleep. A normal alarm is manually set by you, the Smart Alarm, however, wakes you up according to your natural sleep cycle so that you can wake up before you doze off again and wake up later feeling more tired. And no, you can’t just sleep through the alarm sounds because there is a powerful speaker that will play the alarm sounds to wake you.
As of now, Sense has successfully broke through the $1,000,000 mark and the campaign still has 23 more days to go.
The current kickstarter price of US$99 (for one Sense and Sleep Pill) may seem steep for a good night’s sleep, but consider this: sleep deprivation is known to contribute to health issues such as obesity, heart problems, and even increases the risk of transport and industrial accidents by 11/2 to two times. Sleep quality is also known to affect the quality of relationships between couples!
Sense is made available for international shipping and should be ready to ship in November this year. Perhaps it’s time to invest in some real sleep.
