Tied to the broader range of Beo home theater product, the BeoTime is a bit minimalist, even by B&O's standards—it's basically a stylized aluminum stick. But, as I'm sure the salesmen will be eager to tell you, it does so much more than an aluminum stick! On top of telling time, it can wireless switch B&O audio and video products on and off with alarms or sleep timers. Menus are navigated with the large center button, the snooze switch is the device's accelerometer, which triggers when the device is moved, and the alarm can be totally disabled by depressing the metal plunger protruding from the device's end. Time, alarm time and alarm source info are displayed on a set of low-res panels.t's a bit disappointing to find out that a $375 single-function device is powered by AA batteries (included!), but Bang and Olufsen says each set will last a year. Besides, if you're wealthy enough to own the full battery of B&O equipment necessary to fully take advantage of the BeoTime, you've probably got some manner of battery-changing servant. Available in August. [Bang and Olufsen]

Sadly, the source site doesn't allow embedding, so I've assembled a series of screen grabs to try and capture the raw violence I saw in the original video. The same video, coincidentally, you can catch in the accompanying link. [TechEblog]

The design is pretty simple. You set the alarm, then you make you breakfast selections, and go to sleep. When you wake up, you'll have some toast, water or juice at the ready. Provided you haven't knocked everything over with your arm after a failed attempt to find the off button. [Yanko Design]

[Gizmodo Clocks, Alarms]

So here's how the thing works. You stick the wedge under the door just enough so that the door doesn't push the metal piece down too far. And when someone does open the door, it will hit the adhesive-pad secured Wedge, push the metal piece down, and sound off a buzzer at 110db.

Ok, so maybe this won't do a lot for you if some black ops badass actually kicked your door down (and he won't), but at least you'd know when your mom opened the basement door so you could stop doing whatever it is you're doing. Its available now for as low as $5 some places. [Wedge Alarm via Toolmonger]

This will lead to bad habits and missed days of work, sure, and not to mention additional anger issues on top of what you're already suffering from, but it feels good. And that's all that matters. [Matthias Lange via OhGizmo]

As a product, the Moshi is pretty focused. There's no radio or MP3 support, and the alarm and voice command options are limited and unchangeable, though there is a pleasant "Sleep Sound" ambient noise function. The concept of an alarm clock that requires an ongoing, if simple, conversation to function properly is enough to justify its reasonable $50 price, and endorsement by the World Blind Union would seem to indicate that it's not a complete gimmick. Feature demos and purchase page are at the source link. [Moshi via Crave]

Bonus Question: What gadgets do you store in your car?

Poll results from "Do You Really Need a $1000 Laptop?"

Yes: 16%
Yes, but only because I am unwilling to sacrifice on the OS: 20%
Yes, but only because I like to have the best of everything: 21%
No: 41%
Other 2%

You can pick up your own for $35. Or you can opt for and industrial level waking device. [Toyo Trading via CrunchGear]

HappyWakeUp runs through your normal alarm clock and won't delay the alarm any later than you have it set for. Rather, it's meant to wake you if you're in a lighter state of sleep 20-30 minutes before your wake up time, and could actually make getting up easier. [HappyWakeUp via Computerworld via Raw Feed via Wired]

Originally designed to help Alzheimer's sufferers remember things, of course their potential appeal is much wider. The 1mm thick devices are made using similar circuit printing techniques as used in musical greeting cards, so they're pretty low cost at about $2 each. They're reusable, and you won't have to worry about battery life since they apparently last up to a year.

The designers hope they'll be on sale in 2009. Better put a note up to remind you to look out for them, then. [Telegraph]

The Room Tech Lamp has a touch sensitive domed head, which allows the user to turn the light on, as well as select from a variety of colors simply by touching it. Additionally, the lamp has a speaker built in that can be hooked up to your MP3 player. The Room Tech duo are due out in September and will retail for £39.99 ($79) each.

Given Gizmodo writers mostly work from their beds, the biggest chore in the morning is turning on the light; we're just too lazy to pull the blinds up. Frankly, how we got by without the Room Tech series is quite beyond us. We're already in line. [Pocket-lint]

We'll rate each product with Z's, with five Z's (ZZZZZ) being a complete relaxation-inducing miracle, and one Z leaving us frustrated and tired.
1. Pzizz: Available in either software-only ($29.95) or in a attractively-designed mp3 player ($147), Pzizz talks you into sleep or a nap, but frankly, the voiceover announcer was just distracting. Akin to hypnosis, he coos you into slumberland with a duration you can set, telling you to wake you up at the end, after which an alarm sounds. He seriously says: "Thoughts are just thoughts and not reality," while so-called soothing music plays. Worst of all, he kept mentioning my body, pronouncing it "baw-dee." Maybe with the voice turned off, some sleepers might find the new-agey music soothing, but for me, uh, no. Too distracting. Rating: Z [Pzizz]

2. NeverLate Executive Alarm: I never considered sleeping to be a group sport—until I got married. This sophisticated $59.95 clock/radio can handle even the most complicated sleep schedules for two people. You can set seven different daily alarms, different times for different days of the week, and separate alarms for your special someone. It lets you plug in your music player via aux input, and you can augment its weak speakers with your choice of powered speakers out of its headphone jack. It's even sporting a USB port in the back, but alas, only to power devices such as those USB humping dogs; no data transfer. Its reverse backlight was too bright even on its dimmest setting. Even so, if you have complicated schedules, are a power napper or need complete control over your life, this is the clock/radio for you. Rating: ZZZ [American Innovative]

3. Roku SoundBridge Radio ($250) I've tried all kinds of clock radios and alarm clocks, but none are as unobtrusive as this Roku SoundBridge Radio. It does great things, such as connecting via Wi-Fi to your PC and streaming audio from there (but no AAC tunes you bought from iTunes), or playing Internet radio stations from all over the world. But its best feature by far is its ability to slowly fade out its music when you go to sleep and ease into the music the next morning. That, combined with niceties such as kickass sound and a super-easy-to-use on-off/volume control, makes this a big winner and sleeper's friend. If it just had Sirius or XM satellite radio, it would be perfect. Rating: ZZZZ [Roku Labs]

4. Sleeptracker Pro: If you don't mind wearing a watch while you sleep, try this. It works with an on-board motion sensor, and by using proprietary algorithms it can tell if you're sleeping deeply (what researchers call "delta sleep"), or at a lighter stage. You assign it a 20-minute window to wake you up in the morning (or choose up to 90 minutes with this new Pro model), and it picks a time in that window when you're sleeping your lightest to wake you. At the end of that cycle, if it hasn't detected a light sleep cycle within your designated time window, it goes ahead and either awakens you to a vibrating alarm or a noisy one, your choice of one or both. We tested it on two subjects here at our Midwest Test Facility, and both found that it woke both of us up when our bodies were most ready for it, resulting in a more refreshed return to consciousness.

This past month, Sleeptracker introduced this Pro model we tested ($179), and you can now download each night's sleep data onto a PC. It can only store one night's data at a time, so you'll need to download that onto your PC each day. With the included software, you can then see how well you slept last night, statistically speaking. Check it out:

Notice in the six sleep sessions shown here (we tested it for 12), the hash marks indicate a light sleep phase, and the spaces between those marks are the deep sleep phases. We found it fascinating to see how well we slept all graphed up in front of us like that. That's right, the one who gets up at 6am is me, and all because of you fine readers. On one of the days, i got up at 6 but set the alarm for 10, and the result was wakeful dots added about every 8 minutes while I was working. So there it is, proof that I am indeed awake while writing!

This Sleeptracker actually works, picking just the right time to wake us up every morning. I also liked its quiet vibrating alarm, waking me up without disturbing my lovely wife. And, it's a kick to see exactly how well you slept, downloaded into your PC (sorry, no Mac version yet). No, the Sleeptracker's tricks can't totally make up for getting just six measly hours of sleep, but it made me feel way better than waking up to the SCREEE-SCREEE-SCREEE of ye olde clock/radio. Rating: ZZZZZ [Sleeptracker]

Hybrid Alarm Clock [Yanko Design]

Why not make this a real product? Instead of just limiting your donations to organizations you hate (or like), you could have the product set aside funds each day for your retirement. Or if you're less forward thinking, into an account that you can use to purchase gadgets once you've collected enough cash.

Make this product, ThinkGeek. – Jason Chen

Product Page [ThinkGeek]

Take your pick of a 12-or 24-hour display, load it up with two AA batteries, and impress your friends with this upscale design by Flemming Bo Hansen for $99. – Charlie White

Rosendahl Alarm Clock [Think Geek]

About a week ago we had another momentary power outage. Knowing that the end of daylight savings was fast approaching, I spent the extra 10 seconds to save 10 seconds later, thinking my clock might update automatically. It did not. So why does my alarm need a date at all? For its own peace of mind? So it knows to call its mom on her birthday? WTF? I realize not everyone celebrates this joyous event, but most of us do.

Anyone else out there have a stupid gadget that should auto update, but doesn't? Anyone hate that I incorrectly said "savings" instead of the technically proper "daylight saving"? Anyone just hate posts about clocks? – Mark Wilson

photo

This is made possible thanks to the motion sensor in the new MacBook: the villain grabs it, moves it, and the MacBook goes crazy and starts screaming and slapping its own head. Our villain yelps in surprise and drops your MacBook to the ground, where it breaks into a $3,000 pile of junk.

It's early days, with some obvious gotchas: the mute button, for example. As a first line of defence, however, it could be a boon for students and anyone else who doesn't want to have to lug their machine with them every time they want to get a coke or spend a penny.

iAlertU video [ialertu.com]