For most the sound of an Alarm ringing first thing in the morning is a shock. You set it the night before, for whatever time you would like to wake up, and yet you are still annoyed with it when it actually goes off at the time you requested.

If you are like me, then you will prolong the act of getting up by constantly hitting the snooze button - which gives you another few minutes before it rings out again. The irony is that I personally never go back to sleep as I wait in anticipation for the sound of the dreaded clock to go off yet again.

Clocks nowadays have very different sounds to wake you, but none of them in my experience are welcoming, my current clock has a very high intermittent bleeping sound - which drives me crazy each morning, but without it, I would not wake up, so ironically I do depend on the irritating sound it makes. Perhaps I need to look at alternative clocks that offer a better noise to wake up to?

Traditional mechanical alarm clocks have a bell on top that rings, but digital alarm clocks can make other noises. Simple battery-powered alarm clocks make a beeping sound whereas novelty alarm clocks can speak, laugh, or sing.

Clocks have definitely improved in time (no pun intended) and the features too have improved - these range from: built-in radios, nature sounds, dual alarms, CD players, iPod docking bays, sunrise simulators, programmable snooze etc.

The Digital Clock is probably one of the most popular Alarm clocks in use today because they can be very useful (they are usually fitted with in-built radios as standard and are usually inexpensive to purchase)

However the digital clock does have its drawbacks. Since they run on electricity and have no permanent memory, digital clocks must be reset every time they are moved or the power is cut off. This is a particular problem since a power outage during the night usually results in the clock failing to trigger the alarm in the morning.

To reduce the problem, later designs often incorporate a battery backup to maintain the time during power outages.

What does the future Alarm clock have in store for us?

Among annoyances caused by alarm clocks is sleep inertia, a feeling of grogginess that results from abrupt awakening. Progressive alarm clocks claim to solve this issue. They include sunrise alarm clocks, dawn simulators and progressive auditory alarm clocks.

Since an alarm clock is a part of almost everyone’s everyday life, sometimes it’s fun to have a cool alarm clock. If you’re going to have to get woken up in the morning, it might as well be by something that is fun, funny, or really wakes you up! If you’re going to sleep right through it, it’s not exactly a good alarm clock. The good news is there are a lot of cool alarm clocks out there, all that have different benefits.Do you fall right back asleep after you turn your alarm clock off every morning? There are alarm clocks that once they go off will start rolling around the room. You will physically have to get out of bed and chase it around in order to turn it off. By this time, you should be somewhat awake, and you won’t fall back asleep. If a regular alarm won’t wake you up, this one will by the time you chase it down!

Are you sick of hearing beeps in the morning? There are many alarm clocks that will talk, and tell you what time it is. They even come in different shapes and sizes. It may not be all that exciting, but at least if you hear a voice telling you what time it is, it might get you to wake up and get out of bed to start your day.

Do you want something subtle? There are alarm clocks that start off very quietly, and then slowly get louder as time goes on. This way you don’t have something screeching at you first thing in the morning - unless you don’t hear the quieter sounds of course!

Do you always seem groggy in the morning, and just can’t get out of bed? Maybe your alarm is going off while you are in a deep sleep. There is a really cool alarm clock out there that will track your sleeping habits, and wake you up when you are in a lighter stage of sleep. This way you will find it a lot easier to get up, and won’t be groggy and exhausted like you might be with a normal alarm.

As you can see, there are many different types of cool alarm clocks out there, so you are sure to find one that not only you like, but one that will actually wake you up in the morning! The sooner you are more awake and alert, the sooner you can get going with your day.

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