Wake up delight

The first thing I indulged myself with when I got my very first pay, was something I've been wanting for quite some time. I've always loved the idea of a wake-up light. I was very skeptical about their ability to actually wake people, but when I stumbled upon one in a time that I could actually afford to take the risk, I decided to give it a go.

(No time to read the full text? Skip to the conclusion at the bottom instead!)

I bought the cheapest one that was still from a well known brand, which meant I still had to cough up €80. The cheaper ones just look awful and I doubt they are powerful enough to wake you. I could be wrong though, haven't tried them yet.

I love the simplicity of my Philips one. It doesn't have a lot of functions, it's really nice to handle and I actually use every function I paid for. That's quite refreshing for technology nowadays (or do you actually use the stock features on your iPhone? Yeah, me neither...). In a few simple steps it was set up and good to go. I was glad to discover there's still a possibility to play sound along with the light, just to be sure it would definitely wake me. 

The first day I used it, I was surprised to see the light actually woke me up before the sound did. The light starts going on about half an hour before alarm time and gradually increases, like a sunrise. It's actually a really warm, natural light. It's so nice I even use it to fall asleep (there's also a sleep function where the light gradually decreases). I let it start at the lowest light setting, and then it goes out in about 20 minutes. It's so soft I easily fall asleep with it lid. I love it when I'm very tired but I still have to do things like put on cream or something. After I've finished, I don't even have to turn off the light anymore. (what? That can be very annoying when you're sleepy!)

Anyway, so the light wakes me up sometime before the "alarm" goes off. That means I wake up in a very natural way, not with a shock like when I used to have "Raise Your Glass" by Pink as an alarm and she started screaming "right, right, turn off the lights!" at me in the morning. I usually doze off for a few more minutes after the light wakes me up. When I hear blackbirds singing a few minutes later, I know it's actually time to wake up. The sound's so natural I caught my mom looking out my window one morning, wondering since when we had so many blackbirds in town. 

Overall it's made a huge difference for me. It doesn't really feel like I have to wake up. It just feels like my body decides to wake up by itself. You know how it can spoil a song forever when you've used it as an alarm? Well, I have absolutely no problem when I hear blackbirds singing. They make me think of my bed in a good way. 

the most expensive model with docking station

The Philips wake-up light I have costs about €80. There are two more expensive models as far as I know. The first retails at €110. The only difference is that it has 5 wake-up sounds and several colours. Don't know if I would use those, though. The yellow sun-like light is pretty! The most expensive model is about €130. It comes with a docking station for you iPhone or iPod and an app so you can operate the light with them. It also has 8 wake-up sounds. I like the idea of it, but I'm sticking to my "cheap" one, since I try not to take my phone upstairs at night and I certainly don't like leaving it right next to my head as I sleep (it stresses me out).

Conclusion: I knew I would like the warm light of this thing, I just thought it wouldn't wake me up. It does and in a great way. This is definitely not an alarm clock, because I've never woken up alarmed anymore since I've had it. I highly recommend this for all you stressed out people who hate the thought of waking up for another working day.  Great investment!

Lots of light,

Sloppy D.