Sleeptracker Pro Watch with Sleep History Software
The new Sleeptracker Pro takes the original "sleep watch" concept and adds a new software component, allowing you to download your "sleep history" to a PC and track how well you've snoozed over time. The new Sleeptracker Pro watch has an updated look, too, although it's still a bit too goofy to be worn all day.
The reviews for the original Sleeptracker were surprisingly positive. Many people found that the Sleeptracker, which uses an accelerometer to gauge what sleep state you might be in and wakes you at the optimum moment of restfulness, actually did a pretty great job.
The Sleeptracker Pro system is $180, or $30 more than the vanilla Sleeptracker.
Product Page [Sleeptracker.com]
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We had taken an indepth look at the original version back in 2005. We'll be doing the same for this SleepTracker Pro.
For those interested in a closer FirstLook:
http://www.rainydaymagazine.com/RDM2007/RDMHomeOct2007.htm#SleepTrackerProFirstLook
I have the original sleep tracker. It's useless... the 'alarm' is so quiet you can barely hear it when you're wide awake, it doesn't vibrate or anything. Maybe they've improved it since then, but that was $150 for a really ugly watch that doesn't do anything for me... and they didn't have the satisfaction guarantee back then.
What I don't see on the site is any clinical data that shows what kind of correlation the accelerometer data from the watch has with a polysomnogram--a sleep study that measures brainwaves, EKG, chest and stomach movement (respiration), blood oxygen levels, nasal airflow, and so on.
In a rough sense, the watch measures how much you thrash your wrist about. That isn't one of the indicators used in studies of normal sleep, though they can measure arm and leg muscle activity.
The watch makes use of the fact that the body is in a state of paralysis at REM sleep, so monitoring of nasal airflow and so on is not necessary for the clock to have the intended function.