Philips SmartSleep Wake-up Light HF3531/01

I used to wake up abruptly every morning to the shrill alarm from my mobile phone, every alarm on there was loud and abrupt and this has been the case with other mobile phones too. I was looking at alarm clocks generally and then started reading reviews about wake up light alarms and how they actually prepare your body to wake up naturally through gradual low level light that simulates a sunrise. I was reading good reviews about these products and as someone who has blackout curtains I thought this could be something that would work for me. I found this particular alarm as it kept coming up in other peoples reviews. Although a bit pricey it’s not as pricey as some and you get some extra features with this too including FM radio which works well, a midnight light so you can tap it a couple of times if you need to get up in the night and you get a subtle light to help you see where you’re going instead of a bright dazzling one. You also get the choice of 7 natural sounds to add to your alarm which play at the point the alarm reaches its maximum brightness and then you can choose to tap and snooze the alarm and the sound switches off leaving the light on and then replays after 9 minutes. Some people may think 9 minutes is too long, you can’t change this either, but if you are someone who likes to snooze then just factor that in to the time you select when you actually set your alarm. You can have 2 alarms so maybe one for weekdays and one for weekends, or if you’re like me then during the week I need to be up at different times on particular days so it’s handy to have 2 alarms. I had read that some people had found this alarm difficult to set up, however once I’d got the hang of it it was fairly simple and the instructions are clear. There is also a test feature so once you have set it up you can test it to see how bright the alarm will be at full light and how loud the sound will be and then adjust as you need. Personally I set mine up at night so that in a dark room I could see how bright the alarm would get and also set the display light so it wasn’t too bright overnight, the display dims when it’s dark and brightens when it’s light. If you don’t like any light whatsoever you can turn the display off altogether and then just tap the alarm to see the time etc. You can even set a sunset duration so it will act as a lamp while you read etc and gradually dim over the duration you set and then turn off, this is a really nice way to prepare to sleep too and if you want you can add relaxing sounds to that or the radio but you don’t have to. Most importantly morning wake ups are now so much nicer! I don’t feel like I’m being dragged from sleep, my mood is nice and calm and I’m ready for the day. Love this alarm and will never go back to my shrill mobile phone. Would definitely recommend.

As someone who has struggled with the impact of reduced sunlight in the autumn and winter months, leading to what many refer to as winter-onset Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), I was on the lookout for a solution that could make my mornings brighter, both literally and figuratively. The decreased levels of sunlight during these seasons can disrupt the body’s internal clock and even affect mood due to changes in serotonin levels. This is where the Sunrise Alarm Clock has been a game-changer for me. This alarm clock is not just a device; it’s an experience. It gently starts a sunrise simulation 30 minutes before the alarm time, filling my room with a gradually brightening light that mimics the natural dawn. This feature alone has remarkably attuned my body’s internal clock to the rising sun, providing a more natural wake-up process. The most delightful aspect, however, is waking up to the sounds of nature. Instead of the jarring noise of a traditional alarm, I’m greeted each morning with the soothing chirps of birds. It’s a serene way to wake up, often so effective that I find myself waking up just before the alarm sound, in a much more peaceful state than I ever did with my old, annoying phone alarm. The realism of the sunrise simulation is astounding. It’s hard to believe how it replicates the actual sunrise so closely, casting a warm glow that gradually intensifies, making my room come alive with the new day’s promise. It’s a gentle nudge, rather than a harsh jolt, to start my day. Beyond its functional benefits, this alarm clock has had a profound impact on my mood and overall well-being. The gradual awakening aligns with my body’s rhythm, helping to combat feelings of depression that can be exacerbated by the lack of sunlight in the colder months. It’s a subtle yet powerful tool in maintaining a healthy balance in my serotonin levels. In conclusion, I couldn’t be happier with this Sunrise Alarm Clock. It has transformed my mornings from groggy and dull to peaceful and energized. For anyone who struggles with waking up, especially during the darker months, I cannot recommend this product enough. It’s not just an alarm clock; it’s a wellness tool that has significantly improved my quality of life. I would absolutely buy it again, and I encourage anyone seeking a more natural and serene way to start their day to do the same.

Improved my sleep and speed of waking up.

I would definitely class myself as not a morning person and historically I used to really struggle to wake up in the mornings because I would keep spamming the snooze button on my alarm and often oversleep. This in turn would then lead to a state of panic trying to rush to get up and get ready which was never a good start to the day! Thankfully, that was a long time ago now and I've been using daylight wake up alarms for several years which have made a massive difference. Up until now I'd been using a Lumie Starter 30 sunrise alarm which to be fair has been pretty good and not really let me down. My main gripe with that particular sunrise alarm was the alarm sound itself was quite a loud and aggressive beeping noise which defeated the object of being gradually woken up by the light! Also, this alarm had a filament light bulb inside it which meant the lamp got very hot after it had been on for a while. I'd been looking around at replacement wake up lamps for a while and noticed the Philips Wake-Up Light Alarm Clocks. I added it to my wish list a few months back but at the time I felt they were quite expensive and didn't know if it would be a worthwhile upgrade over what I already had. Recently the Philips Wake-up Light Alarm Clock model HF3531/01 (7 Natural Sounds & Radio Function version) popped up on Amazon's daily deals page considerably cheaper than normal and I simply couldn't resist and ended up purchasing one. After unpacking the alarm clock it immediately looked and felt leagues above the Lumie Starter 30 than it was due to replace. Just the overall weight and finish of the product appeared to have a much better build quality than the Lumie. Philips generally make good quality products and this seems no different in that regard. Plugging in and setting up the time and alarm was really straightforward and the instructions are easy to follow. The alarm has a lot of buttons on it (4 touch sensitive on the front, 1 touch sensitive button on the top section and 9 depressable buttons around the top/outside edge) so it is highly advisable to read the manual to understand what they all do. I generally like to figure things out myself and avoid reading manuals if I can but even I had to revert back to the manual after setting up the time on this one! This alarm has 7 natural sounds varying from birds chirping to relaxing melodies.. there's even one with a cow mooing in the background! With very little effort I was able to find a video on YouTube with someone demonstrating the different sounds this alarm clock makes - I would highly recommend checking that out if you are considering purchasing one. I guess a lot of these sounds may not be to some people's tastes and because they are also very subtle I suspect that really heavy sleeper's may not get woken up by them. There is a built FM radio on this particular model. I don't use that to wake up to but have used it a couple of times just to listen to the radio in the evening etc. It's only an FM radio though and for the price point it would have been really nice to have DAB radio on it as well. It has a USB charging port on the back which is useful for charging devices such as mobile phones. I don't leave devices charging overnight myself but the option is there with this clock. It's only a USB charging port though and cannot be used to stream music from your device etc. If I have one criticism with this device it's the buttons around the outside edge and top. Whilst it's nice to have lots of buttons to do various things it really ends up being a negative on this device, mainly due to poor placement than anything else. When the alarm goes off in the morning I want to be able to simply turn it off and get up. The problem with this alarm is that there are so many buttons and only one of them seems to properly turn the alarm off. If you touch the top of the alarm clock whilst trying to find the right button it ends up snoozing the alarm for 9 minutes.. Argh!!! I did this several times for the first few days and to be fair it was quite infuriating - especially because I know which button I needed to press when I'm 100% compos mentis! I managed to conjure up a bit of a janky solution to the problem which was to stick some small self-adhesive plastic feet on the turn off alarm and light buttons which means the buttons are now really easy to find first thing in the morning when I'm half asleep. I attached a picture with the buttons stuck on to demonstrate what I mean. It works but it's not great that I've had to to botch my new alarm clock to make it more morning-friendly! It's a great light up alarm from Philips but the button placement really lets it down. I'm really happy with it now that I've fixed the button issue for myself though. Pros: - Decent build quality and aesthetically pleasing to look at - Wake up to one of 7 natural alarm sounds or FM radio - Light ranges from dim red to VERY bright - USB charging port on the rear for mobile phones etc. - Light does not get hot after being on for a while Cons: - Expensive - A lot of buttons (perhaps too many!) which make the alarm difficult to turn off when you're half asleep - Radio is FM only and would have been much better if there was DAB too

Has a lot of customisation, being able to adjust the intensity of the light to suit, and and 7 different built in sounds such as birds and ocean waves, with decent sound quality. The graduation in the light when waking up from deep red to orange is really smooth, and aids in gently waking you up, which is especially welcome on these very dark mornings as it means you're not waking up to a pitch dark room. One mode I especially appreciate is that it also has a sunset mode to help you drift off to sleep, which is the exact reverse of the sunrise mode - the light gradually changes from bright orange to dark red to mimic the sun going down. Very soothing. Also has a built in night light which can be activated by tapping the top of the light twice to switch on the "midnight light" - essentially a red light to allow you to find your way around if you need to get up in the night, without needing to switch on a lamp or bedroom light and waking yourself up. Very useful indeed! Also has a built in reading light and USB for charging phone. Seems like Philips thought of everything with this :)

Over winter my wife and I found it difficult to get up on the dark mornings so we thought we would give a wake-up light a try. This ticked all the boxes, wake-up light, natural sounds, radio, display can be off 100% at night but it reality it's not all it's cracked up to be. 1. The radio is useless. I know it's FM not DAB but good luck trying to even pick up one of the strong nation stations in a good reception area (Radio 1 for example) 2. The display can be off at night but you don't get to choose to have it on during daylight and off during night hours. You either have it on or off. If you set it to off then you can see the time by tapping the unit but even when it's off there is still a feint glow from the device. 3. The natural sounds - I wasn't expecting to use these and I don't use them but they really aren't great. You can easily tell when they loop and they sound "fake". I've heard other manufacturers who have much more realistic sounds if that's what you're after. 4. You can set two alarms but you can't set the days. This is very frustrating if you want to have an alarm Mon-Fri but not at the weekends. You have to remember to manually turn it off on a Friday and turn it back on Sunday. The good - it works well as a wake up light! You set the time you want to wake up and it will gradually fade through a warm soft glowing sunrise through to bright white sunshine. If you set a 0730am alarm, the light starts around 0700am so you're fully awake by 0730am. It does this very well and illuminates a large master bedroom, it has more effect on the person sleeping on the same side of the bed as it but I wouldn't suggest getting one per side of the bed. How I use it - We set the light to come on and be at full brightness for 07:30 am and at 07:31 am we use an amazon echo dot to tell us the weather before playing the radio.

Bought this to help me wake up feeling more positive. The dark mornings make me feel a bit edgy and this wakes me up with a subtle warm glow with the added bonus of bird song (you can choose function). I love the fact that you tap it twice and you get a very warm night light, same to turn off. It has two alarm options you can programme (as in two different times and settings). It also has a simple radio which I am really enjoying as opposed to always using an app on my phone or sonos. I just press one button as I get up and that's it. You can choose lots of variables with how long you want the wake-up function to take, volume, light strength etc. It starts with a very soft orange glow and finishes with a brightish daylight type of light. This will not light up your whole room but if you have it on your bedside table it does help with waking up when it's dark. If you struggle at this time of year I think it's a real investment because it just makes waking up feel better and easier.

I bought this to combat the difficulty of waking up in the dark winter months here and it has so far been great. It's super easy to set up and I like that it has two different alarms so you don't have to constantly change the alarm time (but if you do want to, it's really quick and easy to change and takes 20 seconds...) The snooze function is great as it leaves the light on but kills the noise! I like the sleep function as well - the wave sounds are really soothing as I'm trying to get to sleep...and the gradual decrease in light is great too. I find that I feel more ready to get out of bed when I wake up and it really does give off a lot of light at full intensity. I use it as a nightlight sometimes as well, or as an extra lamp in my room when I'm getting ready in the morning. The only issue I have is not at all with the product but with my own stupidity...as I didn't think about the fact that my puppy would wake up with the light earlier and then try to wake me up too, so at first she kept waking me before the alarm! Something to think about if you have a pet who sleeps in your room!!