Smart Alarms that Wake You More Naturally (eg. in Light Sleep Stage)

[MikeHalsey]

I just got my Fitbit flex and I think it's fantastic.  If it monitors your sleep though it will have a good idea of when you're in deep (REM) sleep and when you're in lighter sleep.  You cycle between these two during the night on a pretty reliable pattern, and they're easy to tell apart as you don't move around while you're in REM sleep.  At least not as I understand things.

Could an update for the Fitbit modify the alarm feature please to wake you up as close as possible to your chosen time, but NOT during REM sleep?

This will allow you to wake more naturally, feeling refreshed, rather than how unpleasant it is when your alarm goes off in REM sleep.

Thanks, please all vote for this

Moderator edit: labels.

[lostcheese]

This would be great for the Force as well.  Seems like it could be done with a firmware update on the device alone or through the app on the phone over the bluetooth connection.

[rodhugo]

I could not agree more.  Something like the SleepCycle app on the iphone.  

[henio81]

i wrote to fitbit : I need this features on fitbit : intelligently tracks hours slept, light vs. deep sleep and waking moments and vibrates to wake you at the optimal moment in your sleep cycle so you feel refreshed. When put this on fitbit? It's depends that i will buy. Thanks

[chocksy]

I want this!

[francoisw]

I just received my Fitbit Flex and realized it does not have a smart alarm feature, only a silent alarm. This was the main reason I bought it. Please add this ASAP.

[schlagers]

I used to have the UP band and it had this feature. You would set a time to wake up and it would wake you up around that time when your body wasn't in REM.

[SunsetRunner]

There's a couple of major problems these "smart alarms" that claim to wake you at the optimum time:

1. Actigraphy (using an accelerometer to determine the sleep/wake state) cannot determine REM state.  Actigraphy is reasonably effective in measuring total sleep time and sleep efficiency, but determining sleep stages requires polysomnography which involves a lot more sensors (eg. electrodes stuck to your head). While it is true that there should be no movement during REM sleep, stillness can occur during REM & NREM sleep and even while being fully awake.
2. There is no scientific evidence to support the claims made by the "smart alarm" sellers that they can correctly detect the active sleep stage, let alone wake you up at the optimal time.

It might be good for Fitbit to stay out of this "snake oil" smart alarm business.

[BrownSamurai]

This was the one feature that kept me on the fence about jumping into a FitBit Force for myself (and my wife).  The "other" major band has this feature (which we really want), but the "pros" outweighed the cons and Fitbit won out.   I'd love to see this feature added!

[soulwaix]

I VOTE for the smart Alarm!!!! and for Europe release!

[unkn0wn]

Few days ago i was bought fitbit one and was very disappointed when know it does not support smart alarm. I think that is a major future fitness devices.

[TennesVB]

For other Fitbitters out there, if you value your sleep and your time, VOTE for this feature!!!

I love that the Fitbit Force can monitor your sleep and give you an idea of how many times you woke up and how often you were in a deep sleep.  With that in mind, I wore the Jawbone UP for about a month and really liked the Smart Alarm feature. It was able to take my sleep patterns and determine when to wake me up to get the most bang for my buck (In sleep).  It silently wakes you an average of 15 to 30 minutes earlier than your Specified Alarm time if you happen to be coming out of REM or deep sleep cycle.

If your Specified Alarm time is coming up in the next say, 30 or 45 mins (User sets this window), the device wakes you up early (sometime within this window, not earlier) if it believes you have come out of REM or deep sleep and are only in light sleep. This often gave me AN ENTIRE HOUR of my day back and I still felt as good or better when I rolled out of bed then if I slept the extra 30-45 minutes.

It is proven (or I am very convinced) that waking up from a light sleep is much more rewarding than waking up from a deep sleep or REM sleep.  Additionally, 7 and a half, or even just 7 hours can be just as refreshing as 8 hours if you are woken at the right time in your sleep cycle. 

I was rather surprised when I couldn't find the setting for the Smart Alarm Window for the Fitbit. 

PLEASE add a Smart Alarm Feature to one of your next software upgrades!!!

FYI, I returned the UP and traded up to the Force because the battery life was horrible (in fact it would die unexpectedly) and my model didn't have wireless Bluetooth syncing.

[SunsetRunner]

Yes please!

Bluetooth sync, battery life and overall quality made me choose Fitbit Flex over the Jawbone Up. Sleep-cycle-alarms was the only reason I ever considered the Jawbone!

Please make my choice a good one, by adding a similar feature!

[uxinspector]

Totally! Really looking forward to seeing this feature. This was one of the main advantages of the Jawbone device.

You already capture this information, it's quite feasible to make it smarter.

Thanks!

[JLWilk]

Agree- this would be a great feature!

[JLWilk]

Agree!

[Silverfire]

Fitbit could work in tandem with the sleep cycle alarm clock app (That is great!) It has more in depth sleep tracking and better reports. Having these apps sync would be amazing! As a NOT morning person, the "smart alarm" has really changed the way I start my day, and am still using sleep cycle as my primary alarm. The force alarm is my backup alarm 🙂 

[steppintime]

I agree this would be cool.  But I do wonder what would be involved in implementing this (eg, would it be able to work without syncing, but just based on internal logic within the device?).

I have a Fitbit One, so I would want any implementation to include that device. 

Edit:

Just realized this is a duplicate of a much longer thread: Alarms that wake you more naturally

[steppintime]

Related thread: Smart Alarm wakes you optimally, based on sleep cycles

[EM87]

This is the only key feature which is really missing!

[Jeddak]

Make alarm sensetive to periods of sleep! I want to be awaked during period of  "fast dream"

[Jeddak]

Fitbit One too!

[Pocketsidewalk]

I'm using the Fitbit Flex and would love to see this option. Fitbit has the data, so it seems like this wouldn't be too difficult to add.

+1

[MatthewFitbit]

As has been noted in the comments here, this is a duplicate of another idea, located here. I recommend contributing your votes and comments to that established thread, to show your support for this suggestion.

Thanks for the feedback on this popular topic!

[meidlin]

Just received my Fitbit flex today, and this is the first and practically the only feature I would like on the fitbit flex. 

I personally am willing to sacrifice battery life for this feature. 

What is the status on this? I saw that this was originally posted on December 2013.. Is this a software feature which can be intorudced with the current hardware, or will we need to wait for another product? 

I'd be willing to wait if we have a time frame coming up, but if not, I might have to unfortunately migrate my fitbit and my 2 of my parents' to the Jawbone 😞