Google Clock’s alarm failed so I found 5 better apps to wake me up

There’s a reason Google Clock isn’t called Google Alarms. Although it offers a number of time-keeping and convenience features, from a timer and stopwatch to world clock and integration with music services, it takes sleep a little too easy for my liking. And boy, do I love sleeping!

I shouldn’t blame an app for my shortcomings, but I would argue that an app should help me overcome them. Having Google Clock set an alarm isn’t enough for me – I need an alarm clock app that grabs me by the shoulders and wakes me up. Or, you know, challenge me with an alarm task.

Naturally, I’m looking for a viable Google Clock alternative since Android’s default Alarm Clock app isn’t working for me. Here are the options I encountered.

I always like to put open-source apps first, and chrono Perhaps the best example of a well-built alarm clock app that takes advantage of Google’s Material Design while offering much more than the default app.

Right from the start, Chrono gave me multiple ways to keep it alive, ensuring it wouldn’t be deactivated by my phone. I appreciate this level of control.

Creating new alarms is simple, with customization options for deeper changes. With this option, I can adjust the schedule, sound and vibration options, snooze settings, and even add a tag to my alarm. The latter really helps when editing alarms for public holidays versus normal weekdays.

However, the most important is the functions section. Chrono lets me choose between four types of tasks that must be completed before the alarm goes off. This includes match problems, retype text, sequence and memory. These can all be customized in difficulty and stacked on top of each other if I’m in the mood for a real challenge. I would say that using one is probably more than enough. While testing the retype text option, I failed the first response, and then the app prompted me to enter a new sequence. I spent about a minute to complete this task. It was annoying, but eventually I woke up, and that’s really the goal, right?

Chrono lacks some options I would like to see in an alarm app, namely the ability to scan NFC tags or QR codes as functions. This would force me to get up and simply return to sleep instead of solving the problem. However, it is a great alarm clock alternative that looks like the Google Clock while still offering far more features than it does.

When Wear OS was known as Android Wear, and smartwatches didn’t offer built-in sleep monitoring, I used to sleep as android To track my sleep. It was a reliable app at the time, but how has it changed since then?

It’s safe to say that Sleep As Android is still different from any other Android alarm clock app on this list. It’s like a sleep health center that aims to address poor sleep hygiene as much as possible, while also helping you wake up in the morning. It provides a wealth of sleep information, including actual scores and “community” scores based on populations of other people using the app in specific countries. However, this doesn’t help me wake up in the morning. So does Sleep as Android work here?

Well! It includes an incredible number of features specifically designed to get me out of bed, ranging from simple math equations to selfie verification to a truly overwhelming number of tasks (called captchas in the app). There are other more varied options like Zombie Walk, Laugh Out Loud and counting the sleeping sheep on the screen. You can also unlock more captchas by downloading a standalone add-on, which will make it impossible to lock your phone with various anti-fraud measures. However, I wouldn’t dare leave this option turned on.

One of the main features of Sleep As Android is the Smart Wake Up option that wakes me up within an optimal window of 30 minutes around the alarm I set. It’s a feature that companies like Fitbit have since adopted, and it does a good job — when I don’t need to wake up at a precise time, that is.

While Sleep Edge has the most annoying and longest onboarding experience in Android, a UI that I don’t find as attractive as Chrono, and a premium unlock demanding the breadth of its features be used indefinitely, it will definitely wake you up from your deep sleep.

This app tells its main features along with its name, but nfc alarm clock It was a pleasant discovery for me. While Chrono and Sleep as Android can feel heavy and bloated, NFC Alarm Clock is lightweight and emphasizes the alarm aspect.

It offers a clean and tidy UI with customizable colors and customizable default alarms. I really appreciate the app allowing me to create a comprehensive default alarm template from scratch. Then, of course, the app also lets me disable the alarm using an NFC tag. This is a great feature, as I can place the NFC tag where it makes the most sense. Stick it in the bathroom, over your coffee machine, across the room or on your home desk if you work from home – the options are endless.

Beyond that, the NFC alarm clock doesn’t offer much in the way of innovation. But really, I don’t need my alarm clock to push the envelope — I just need it to wake me up. NFC Alarm Clock does just that, and the best part is that it’s free and open source.

Alarmy Bills itself as “the most powerful loud alarm clock app for heavy sleepers,” but it instead sells itself short. It’s an excellent alarm manager, allowing me to set multiple morning alarms and, interestingly, habit alarms for regular reminders like medication.

The alarm feature set includes a variety of smarts, one of my favorites being the wide selection of classical music sounds. There is something about Nocturne Op.9 No.2 that gently wakes me up in the morning, instantly lifting my mood. What’s more interesting is that like Sleep Edge Android, Alarmy also packs a wake up check feature that issues a notification some time after the alarm that requires intervention. If I don’t tell the app that I’m awake, it will ring again.

Of course, the most important alarming feature is its wake up mission – what other apps refer to as a task or captcha. Alarmy has a ridiculous selection of these, and some are really unique. Household Item Hunt is exactly what it sounds like, forcing you to run around the house taking pictures of common items. This, though annoying on a Monday morning, is oddly funny on any other day. Find colorful tiles, squats and other options are also available for those who like mental and physical challenges in the morning.

Then there’s the Morning tab, which offers a weather forecast, tips for achieving specific sleep goals, and a box with inspirational quotes. I wouldn’t mind seeing a little more of this section, including a “On This Day in History” section, perhaps a recipe, or other interesting information. If I’m going to pay for Alarmy, I might as well use it as a Daily Hub alternative.

Alarmy is ruined for me because of its annoying Pro Trial nags, but I can’t deny that it has woken me up every time I’ve used it. The effect of squats occurs in the morning.

Finally, I wanted to include something different in this list, and sun alarm That’s all. It lacks the complex task-completion mechanic of other alarm apps on this list, but it does let me set alarms for astronomical events, like sunrise, golden hour, solstices, and lunar events.

Although I don’t necessarily use the Sun Alarm to wake up for work, it’s the perfect weekend alarm, especially in the winter when the sun rises very late in the morning. It’s also great for travelers and photographers who want to stay ahead of the morning light without having to manually check in and set reminders for these changing times.

When setting an alarm, I can choose what action the alarm takes, from using the default tone to playing a specific music file from my device or reading the event label.

There are many more Android alarm clock apps besides the ones I mentioned above, so let me know which one you trust to get your day off to a great start.