/ Sleep Tech Reviews

Sleep Technology Reviews

Updated February 23, 2023

Methodology

Up-to-Date

Advances in technology have brought a new class of sleep products to the market. From wearable sleep trackers and smart alarm clocks to adjustable beds that automatically respond to snoring, today’s sleep technology performs a wide range of functions in order to help you get the rest you need.

Sleep technology can represent a significant financial investment, so you may be apprehensive about spending hundreds — or even thousands — of dollars on a product that claims to help you sleep better. That’s where we come in. Our team of testers has personally evaluated dozens of products that fall under the category of sleep technology. By testing everything firsthand, we feel confident in making product recommendations to our readers.

We’ll discuss various sleep technology products, what they do, where you can find them, and how much they typically cost. You can check out the links below to read our in-depth analyses of sleep technology products our team has tested and reviewed.

What Is Sleep Technology?

Sleep technology is a broad term that can apply to various products intended to help you sleep better that require software, electrical components, or smart apps to function. Examples include:

Sleep Trackers

Sleep trackers monitor how much you sleep, how long it takes you to fall asleep, how often you wake up or snore, and other metrics. You can use a dedicated wearable tracker, many of which take the form of rings or wristbands. Some smart apps for your phone or tablet also offer sleep tracking abilities.

Smart Alarms

A smart alarm clock is programmed to wake you up during the lightest stage of your sleep cycle. The intention here is to help you wake up refreshed and ready to begin your day, rather than feeling groggy or disoriented from waking up during deep or REM sleep. Some smart alarms feature lights to mimic the natural sunrise and sync with your circadian rhythm, rather than awakening you with beeps and other loud noises.

Sleep Headphones

While you could potentially use any pair of headphones for listening to music before bed, dedicated sleep headphones are usually designed to fit snugly in your ear and feel comfortable in any sleep position. A growing number of sleep headphones are wireless to remove the need for power cords.

White Noise Machines

White noise contains all audible frequencies and plays them simultaneously, resulting in a soft humming sound many people find relaxing and conducive to sleep. While some people are content to produce white noise with a bedroom fan, you can also invest in a dedicated white noise machine that plays all night. Some of these machines produce other soothing “colors” of noise, such as pink and brown, as well as nature sounds and relaxing music.

Smart Mattresses

We use the term “smart mattress” for any model with built-in sensors to track your sleep metrics. In most cases, you can download an app and review your data each morning after sleeping on the mattress. Some smart mattresses offer additional functions, such as active cooling and heating.

Temperature Control Devices

If you tend to sleep uncomfortably hot or cold, you may benefit from using a temperature control device that actively heats or cools your sleep surface. The same is true for anyone who resides in an area prone to extreme weather. Some of these devices draw in air from your bedroom, while others use a network of water tubes for heating and cooling.

Adjustable Beds

Adjustable beds elevate or lower the head and feet to help you sleep in the most comfortable position. In recent years, adjustable bed manufacturers have added technological components to further improve your sleep. Some adjustable beds track your data with built-in sensors, automatically raise the head if snoring is detected, and wake you up with gentle vibrations. Massage features are also common for today’s adjustable beds.

This is not an exhaustive list. As sleep technology continues to evolve and new types of products are introduced to consumers, our team will continue to test these products and help guide our readers toward purchases that will directly benefit them.

Review Methodology – Sleep Technology

Our team personally tests almost every product that appears in Sleep Foundation reviews, product comparisons, and commercial guides. We make rare exceptions for devices and products that we cannot realistically test. To evaluate those products, we rely on our team’s expertise and experience in the field of sleep science.

We conduct thorough tests of every sleep technology product in order to get a holistic overview of its performance and functionality. Since the sleep technology category is so broad, our testing process varies from product to product. That being said, we keep a few of the same factors in mind for each product.

Capabilities: We evaluate how well a sleep technology product performs its main intended functions. Our team also looks at special features that enhance your experience with the product. For example, a sleep tracker with limited tracking abilities and minimal features won’t earn the same rating as a different tracker with a wider range of capabilities and functions.
User-Friendliness: Using new technology can be frustrating. For this performance metric, our team sets up or installs the product and evaluates how easy or difficult this process is. If the device has a control panel or interface, we’ll also evaluate the ease of accessing various functions and controls.
Ease of maintenance: To evaluate a sleep product for ease of maintenance, we’ll review the cleaning, care, and storage requirements for keeping it functional. Our ratings are based on whether basic upkeep is time-consuming, and if you’ll need to pay extra for maintenance down the road.
Comfort: For wearable sleep products like trackers, we’ll evaluate how it feels to use the product. For example, wearing it during a series of daily tasks such as driving, eating, and exercising.