Philips - SmartSleep Deep Sleep Headband (Large) - Gray

My fiancé doesn’t get enough sleep. She works long hours and then spends her evenings taking care of our family. She’s the first one up in the morning and the last one to bed at night. So, there is a lot that rests on her shoulders. As a result, she doesn’t get the most amount or the best quality of sleep. When I heard about this device, I thought it might be able to help her with sleeping deeper, longer so that she was more rested throughout the day. There were several observations I made about the headband as we tested it. First of all, it requires that the user wear it overnight. Therefore, you have to be comfortable with having something on your head while you sleep. My fiancé was a bit worried about this requirement at first, but when she tried on the headband she said it was actually quite comfortable. The fabric that is used is really soft and it ended up being a really nice fit for her head. It has some cushioning in a few places which make it feel like an extension of your pillow. The next observation we made was that the headband charges using Micro USB. Even though this option provides a less expensive connection, I sort of feel that it’s an older technology and I would much rather see USB-C used on newer devices. That said, Philips does include a Micro USB to USB-A cable and a power adapter that plugs into a standard outlet along with the headband. The cable is woven and flat to help prevent tangling. The instructions note that even though the headband has some charge out of the box that the user will need to charge it for a few hours in order for it to have enough battery life to make it through the night. This made for a small speed bump in our user experience. At it turns out the headband has just enough battery life for one night’s use. Therefore, you have to charge it every single day in order to use it at night. It would be nice if this device had at least two nights worth of charge available in my opinion. The next thing we noticed was that you have to manually sync the data from the headband to the app on the phone. It’s a quick and easy process, but it’s something you have to remember to do every day in order to get the greatest benefit from the device. When we synced the data from the headband and found that my fiancé had earned a high sleep score of 95 out of 100. This was calculated by the time asleep, any deductions for sleep stages, and any sleep boost she might have received from the headband. We happen to have a smart bed that also helps to track sleep data so we compared her score from the night she used the headband to the night directly following and found that her score was only a couple of points different. She actually experienced more restless sleep on the night she used the headband than the night she didn’t. On a few additional occasions, she reported that a reading wasn’t recorded or the headband slipped off of her head. One unfortunate side effect of using the headband for deeper sleep was oversleeping the next morning. My fiancé ended up sleeping right through her alarm. She did wake up just in time to get ready for work and get my daughter to school on time, but it was a rushed morning. As a result, she has been nervous about using the headband on nights when she has work the next morning. She said she felt a little better rested than normal, but it wasn’t a huge difference. We’ve only had the headband for a couple of weeks so it’s hard for my fiancé to make a full determination of how it’s helping (or not helping) her throughout the day yet. While I like the concept of this device, and so does my fiancé, but the expense is quite high and since some of the steps are ones you have to complete manually, so it’s a little bit of an inconvenient device to work with.

As most 40 somethings in America I get tired and drowsy during the day while I am at work. I was looking for something to help me increase my quality of sleep at night. I can get to sleep easy enough but wasn't getting that deep sleep I use to have when I was younger. I have to admit that I was a bit skeptical about this smart sleep headband, but after using it for a month I am convinced that it has helped me get better sleep. I wasn't sure what size to get, but going with the large was a good call for me instead of the medium. I think the medium would be good for a woman. The headband is easily adjustable. You will definitely need to download the SleepMapper app to get all of the information on your sleep patterns. It feels very comfortable on your head but there is a slight nuisance putting on the sensors behind your ears every night. Within 3 to 4 days I felt and could see on the SleepMapper app that I was getting much deeper sleep with the headband. The only reason why I gave this product 4 instead of 5 stars is that I am mainly a side sleeper and the integrated speakers press down on my ears and would sometimes cause me to wake to readjust them. The app is really easy to navigate and gives you very accurate information. The longer you use it, the better information you are able to get from the app. Overall, if you are looking to increase the quality of your sleep then I recommend that you consider looking into getting this Phillips Smart/Deep sleep headband.

First off, I ordered an extra large and the headband was too small. The size adjustment in the back gives ample room for large melons but there is no adjustment in the front so the speakers that go over your ears were always slightly in front of my ears instead of directly over them. This made it uncomfortable when turned on my side which is how I normally sleep. The sleep tracking app was interesting but beyond that, what good does it really do to know when I was asleep and how many times I woke up in the night, which according to the graph, was a lot. I never heard anything but the app told me the headband delivered a "sleep boost" anywhere from 8 to 30+ times every night which is supposedly a white noise or something with a message saying the boost delivered a corresponding % improvement in sleep quality. It seems a little bogus since it always lists this boost as an improvement even on the nights I slept the worst. I'm a bit of a warm sleeper and occasionally wake up a little damp on my head, neck and shoulders which complicates the use of the SmartSleep since as far as I can tell it is not washable. Another gripe is that location has to be enabled to use the app and connect to the headband. Why in the world is that necessary? Bottom line it's not overly comfortable, effectiveness is questionable, what it actually does while you're sleeping is a bit mysterious and you can't clean it. As stated previously, the sleep graph is kind of cool but I saw no improvement in sleep quality. That plus the rather high cost is a no thanks from me.

I was really excited to test this product out. I’ve been managing my sleep quite well but I always still wake up with very little energy, enter this headband. I tried it out for 2 weeks prior to this review so as I could start to see the results but, that did it happen. Out of the box was great, the unit is nicely made and very easy directions. The app is probably my favorite part it paired with the unit with no problem and it was fun seeing my sleep tracked but I feel there were some discrepancies with the results specifically around the time I get up. The headband feels comfortable at first not too tight but even after these few weeks it’s awkward to wear for me at night Especially the part that rests on your forehead no matter how I adjusted it. There are speakers in the ears used to send vibration noises or waves into your ears throughout the night like white noise to help you sleep which I thought would be the best part because I need white noise to sleep you barely notice the sounds but the earpiece itself in the headband is extremely uncomfortable when sleeping. Imagine sleeping your phone up to your ear every night that’s what it feels like for me. This devil has major potential but the discomfort I felt while wearing it really took away from the unit itself. I really didn’t feel a difference in my sleeping.

I followed the instructions over and over and over again and it doesn’t even do anything. It’s like modern day snake oil for sleep.

I was intrigued by this product from the get-go. I sleep around 6 hours per night usually, so being able to improve quality of sleep was a huge factor for me in trying this product. In the beginning of use, it was difficult to use this as it felt uncomfortable on my head. After about five or six days of use, that subsided as I got used to it. Now that I am used to it, it is fairly comfortable. Results: Awesome! I feel more rested in the mornings and do not wake up in the night (I have always slept fairly well, but occasionally had those tough nights). Now, it did take over a week of use to obtain these results, but if you stick with it you will be happy. The app setup and pairing was quite easy on my iOS device, no complaints there. The app is pretty cool and intuitive with a sleep score and details/breakdown of your sleep. One issue I encountered with the app was when downloading a firmware update to the unit - if your phone screen goes black (standby mode), the firmware update stops and it has to be restarted. Hopefully they resolve this in a future firmware update. All in all, a good product. Though it was difficult to get used to initially, I thoroughly enjoy it and believe it has definitely helped my sleep.

The Philips SmartSleep Deep Sleep Headband helped me to get a better night sleep. It comes in a couple sizes, and I used the large size. Using it was pretty simple. First, I attached one of the sensors from the pack of sensors that comes with the headband behind my ear. Next, I put the headband on and connected it to that sensor. After that, I turned it on and just fall asleep. It works by making tones that you don't really hear because they are sounding when you are asleep and are designed to elongate the deep sleep period of nightly rest. In the morning, I charged it and then viewed my sleep stats on the SleepMapper app on my phone. I found the headband to be comfortable and not particularly noticeable after a few days. I have used it for a little over a week now and I do feel more refreshed when I wake up. The length of my sleep hasn't increased much, but the sleep seems to do me more good. I also feel less sleepy during the day, which is a nice feeling. It did not make any drastic changes to my sleep, but I could understand how it could for other people. I would recommend this item to others; it made a difference for me! If you are thinking about purchasing this item, here are some guidelines from the instructions to see if the product could be right for you: • I am 18 years or older. • I typically fall asleep within 30 minutes of trying to fall asleep. • I typically sleep at least five (5) hours, but less than seven (7) hours a night on work or school nights. • I have not been diagnosed with a sleep disorder (e.g., sleep apnea, insomnia). • I don’t regularly wake up during the night and have trouble falling back asleep (>30 minutes). • I do not regularly use medications or alcohol to help me fall or stay asleep. • I do not have hearing impairment preventing me from hearing 80 decibels. A person’s slow wave amplitude naturally reduces with age. SmartSleep will not be effective if you have low amplitude slow waves which occurs after age 50. SmartSleep is recommended for people age 50 and under.

I was very interested to try this product out as I'm one to get limited amount of hours of sleep at night. I was hoping this would be a great device to improve the quality of that, but ultimately, I just couldn't get used to sleeping with it on. The unboxing and initial setup was fun. Powering on the device really lights up a dark room, so be careful not to turn it on pointed in the direction of any eyeballs. The light does turn off after 60 seconds. The device requires you to place a sticky sensor behind your right ear to help the headband collect an ECG Signal. The sticky sensors held their position well, but did leave behind trace residue that I could feel, even after showering some days. The headband wasn't crazy restrictive, but did feel slightly uncomfortable. The best position I found was laying on your back, but if you can get used to sleeping on a speaker module, you can sleep on your side as well. I felt side sleeping was risking the headband falling off though, and tried to sleep solely on my back. In all of my attempt at amazing deep sleep, I never did achieve "sleep boost" that the device was supposed to help with in the 2 weeks I tried this out. I found a few times waking up out of a dream sleep which is unusual for me, and a few nights ending up ripping the headband off a couple hours into the sleep and being disappointed in the morning that there wasn't enough sleep data collected. I was also surprised that you have to plug the device into a charger to get it to sync the data back to your phone. (Maybe this is a way to make sure the device gets charged for each night?) Overall, I loved the idea and premise behind it, but I just couldn't get used to it. For someone else wanting to take the plunge, I'd definitely give it a try, but make sure you're not a very sensitive, picky sleeper.