LightSleeper review
The LightSleeper is the gadget that promises to give you a good night’s sleep. But can tech really send you to the land of nod or would you have more luck reading an instruction manual to get some kip? Find out in our LightSleeper review.
We have to admit we were sceptical. We’ve seen enough novelty gadgets that help you sleep over the years, the most recent being a pillow with a tiny speaker built in. So it was with some trepidation we unpacked the LightSleeper and donned our PJs and sleeping hat.
The LightSleeper is small, so fits easily on a bedside table. It takes four AAA batteries, or you can plug it into the mains, which is handy, because as the manual reveals, using different or non-rechargeable batteries may cause them to explode. Which isn’t going to guarantee a good night’s kip.
So we quickly removed our own batteries, plugged it in, and flicked the On button on the back. Then all you have to do is nudge it to start. It beams a circle onto the ceiling, which moves slowly in a circular motion, the theory being your eyes follow it, soothing you like reading a book but without stimulating your mind. You can choose one of five brightness levels using the button on the front of the LightSleeper, and have the image pulsate or just stay solid as it moves.
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We were impressed. The pulsating mode works better, as after a couple of minutes we found our eyelids starting to droop more every time the spot faded. And we were out for the count a full eight hours, without waking once. It automatically switches off after 30 minutes too, so you won’t lose any sleep over your electricity bill. And if you’re still not under after half an hour, just tap the LightSleeper to restart it.
Then it broke. The beam still came out fine, but the LightSleeper had stopped moving. The effect was lessened a little, although it still didn’t take too long to drop off using the pulsate mode. But the regular mode just had us staring at a circle on the ceiling, which had no effect. We tried helping it along with an encouraging nudge, then pushed it into position, but that had it moving slowly then speeding up and then coming to a halt suddenly, like a learner drive unsure about the clutch. Not very soothing.
More annoying was the fact it broke after two nights. For £125 you’d expect at least a couple of years out of it. The LightSleeper is disappointing. We wanted to like it, really. It’s a good idea and looks at home in your bedroom. Instead it’s strictly for those who are only kept awake by how much money they have to count.
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