Name: Sleep Cycle Alarm Clock
Available for: iPhone
Cost: 0.79 €

Yes, this is a review for another iPhone app. I promised myself when I bought an iPhone that I wouldn't buy but a few basic apps, but Apple has made it so very easy to find interesting apps, and, well, here I am.

There has been quite a bit of research out there that says that a good night's sleep can help not only in losing weight, but in keeping it off. The theory is that if one is tired, then not only is one's willpower low, but the body can interpret the tiredness to mean that it needs to eat more. Anything, therefore, that can aid in getting a good night's rest is something that can also be an aid to losing weight and that's where this alarm clock comes in.

The aim of this alarm clock is simple: to wake you up when you are in a light sleep. This means that you wake up feeling refreshed rather than groggy. How does it do this? It sets up a 30 minute wake-up phase that ends at the time for which the alarm is set. During this 30-minute period, it will pick the time when your sleep is lightest to gently wake you up, so that you wake up feeling refreshed and relaxed.

OK, that sounds good, but how does it know when you are in a light sleep? The answer is that it uses the iPhone's accelerometer. What you do is put the iPhone face down on the upper corner of your bed while you sleep. By analysing the movement of the mattress, the program calculates what stage of the sleep cycle you are in - deep sleep or light - and uses that to determine when you wake you up. The only thing you have to remember to do is not cover the iPhone with blankets or pillows to keep it from heating up, and also to keep it on the charger during the night. It's really that simple.

But does it work? I was skeptical at first, but after having used it for 17 nights now, and I have to say that it works very well indeed. I do indeed wake up feeling much more refreshed in the mornings. Do you know the sensation of waking up completely naturally after having been able to sleep as long as you want? That's how this makes me feel in the mornings. I definitely wake up feeling as if I have had a Sunday lie-in.

Not only do I feel better in the mornings, but I have learned that I sleep more deeply than I had previously thought. The alarm clock keeps statistics, you see. In the morning, after I have got up, I can look at a graph that plots my movement at night, and thus, presents me with a model of my sleep cycles. I had always thought that I was tossing and turning all night long, when, in fact, I barely move for long stretches of time. I had thought that I wasn't a good sleeper because I had been waking up tired in the morning. It's amazing how little it took to fix that. It has helped me to lose weight, too. I just feel less hungry throughout the day.

My conclusion: if you have an iPhone, then buy this app. It's definitely worth it.

If you don't have an iPhone, then you should see whether there's a similar app for your smartphone. If you don't have a smartphone, you might wish to look into buying one of those lamps that gently wake you up by gradually turning on the light and playing soft, natural sounds. Of course, this last one won't know what state of sleep you are in, but it's still better than nothing. The point is to get your hands on something that will help you wake up feeling refreshed in the morning.

Yes, I like this a lot. It feels a bit weird putting your plugged-in phone under the sheets in the corner of the bed (under the sheets, presumably, to keep it from wandering off onto the floor) each night, but it definitely makes me feel better in the morning.