Having quality sleep will have a big impact on your overall productivity the next day and your health in the long run. Studies have shown that 50 to 70 million Americans have a sleep disorder.
The same research goes ahead to show that 48% of people in the USA snore while sleeping. These statistics clearly show that only a small fraction of people in the USA actually have quality sleep.
There are a couple of factors that affect the quality of your sleep. Some of these are related to your general physical, mental and emotional condition. But a good number of them are related to the quality of beddings you use.
No matter your health and emotional condition, it will be hard to have quality sleep if your beddings are not comfortable. When it comes to beddings, most people normally give more attention to stuff like the mattress, bedsheets, and bed cover.
But they forget the pillow which holds the neck and heads the entire night. Having the right pillow will not only give you comfort but will also save you from waking up feeling pain in your neck and back. With innovation and technology, pillows have been made smart. Yes, pillows are now smart!!!
Expert Reviews
iSense Sleep Smart Pillow
Just like its name, the major focus while designing this pillow was to help people who snore while sleeping.
It’s another anti-snoring product from 10minds, a company that focuses on producing anti-snoring gadgets to help people get more quality sleep.
Its smart system of snoring detectors and airbags work hand in hand to detect and stop any form of snoring. You can buy this smart pillow from Amazon here.
The Key Feature of the Anti-Snoring Smart Pillow include the following:
This smart pillow has snoring detectors that detect snoring and then trigger the pressurized airbags to deflate hence changing your head position that in the end stops the snoring.
The airbags in the pillow are 4 in number and they deflate or inflate depending on your head position. The smart pillow also comes with a user-friendly mobile app that you can use to configure a couple of settings like sound sensitivity.
You can also view your sleeping data and sleeping recommendations from this same app. The pillow’s body is designed in a way that easily absorbs sweat and dissipates heat at night.
The electronic devices in the pillow are powered by a lithium-ion metal battery that can be recharged using a USB type-C. The whole package of this smart pillow weighs 8.2 pounds.
Pros
- It has one of the most effective snoring detectors
- It has a mobile app for configuring settings and viewing your sleeping data on the go
- Its padding absorbs sweat and also dissipates heat from your body
Cons
- It is expensive compared to most of the smart pillows in the market
- It is relatively heavy compared to the ordinary pillows
Conclusion: This anti-snoring smart pillow from 10minds is one of the best that I can recommend to anyone looking for an all-around smart pillow. Its accurate snoring detectors and the padding’s ability to absorb sweat makes it suitable for hot sleepers.
This smart pillow is however quite costly compared to other smart pillows in the market. The high price is justified by its sophisticated and highly effective snoring detecting system. But all in all, this smart pillow will give you the comfort you need from a pillow and also save you from the snoring.
ZeeQ Anti-Snoring Smart Pillow
ZeeQ is a smart pillow produced by REM-Fit. A company that is known for manufacturing health-related gadgets.
It’s one of the cheapest smart pillows you can get in the market and it will likely suit most of your smart pillow needs. If you have snoring problems or you take long to get sleep, this should be one of the smart pillows you can consider.
With an app and Amazon Alexa support, you will be able to view information about your sleeping habits and recommendations on what to do to improve the quality of your sleep.
You can purchase this smart pillow either from your local beddings store or from Amazon.
Here are some of the features of this smart pillow:
The most important feature on this smart pillow is the snoring detector. When it senses that you’re snoring, it turns on certain sounds and vibration that will force you to change your head position that will, in the end, stop the snoring.
Eight built-in speakers within the pillow will play suitable sounds to enable you to sleep faster. The pillow also has a sleep tracker that monitors your sleeping habits like motion and snoring decibels. This pillow also supports a mobile app or Amazon Alexa that communicates with the electronic devices in the pillow to get your sleeping information.
All the electronics in this smart pillow are powered by a Lithium Polymer battery and the total weight of this pillow is 7 pounds. The total shipping weight with all the smart pillow accessories is 10.25 pounds.
Pros
- Less expensive than other smart pillows
- It supports a mobile app and Alexa which makes it easy to access your sleeping data on the go whenever you need it.
- You can customize the comfort level you get from this pillow
Cons
- The pillow is a bit heavy compared to traditional pillows in the market
Conclusion: ZeeQ smart pillow is one of the cheapest you will get in the market but still get almost all features that you would wish to find in a smart pillow. The major downside about this pillow is its weight which is almost twice that of the ordinary pillows. But if you are the type that doesn’t have to keep moving the pillow around, then the weight of this pillow shouldn’t be something to worry about.
Smart Pillow Ultimate Buyer’s Guide
So, what is a Smart Pillow?
A smart pillow is one that has some electronic gadgets embedded inside the pillow with the aim of giving you comfort and also to monitor your sleeping behavior. The electronics are put inside the pillow is a way that won’t make you feel like you’re having some electronics under the pillow.
The major components in a smart pillow include speakers, Lithium-ion rechargeable battery, snoring sensors, and a timer. These may vary depending on the brand and model of the smart pillow.
With thousands of brands now getting into the production of these pillows, there is now more competition. This competition has led to better innovation and lowering of prices as companies come up with more ways of making the technology used in smart pillows a bit cheaper.
This is all good for the customer, but the only challenge an ordinary customer will face is deciding which smart pillow to buy especially when they’re buying one for the first time.
But worry not, because in today’s article I will take you through everything you need to know before choosing the right pillow. So, sit down and go through these factors one by one.
Battery life
When choosing a smart pillow, this is one of the factors that you should never compromise because you wouldn’t wish to have a pillow that needs to be plugged in every now and then. The best smart pillow should be one that doesn’t make you feel like you’re resting your head on an electronic device.
You need a pillow that will look like the ordinary pillow but also give you that extra comfort courtesy of the electronics that are embedded inside the smart pillow. A battery that needs to charge now and then will surely not give you this comfort.
When buying a smart pillow, you should consider getting one with a battery that can last at least one week before charging it. With such a battery, you may even choose to travel with your smart pillow without having to carry the charger along with you.
Quality of the speakers
Most of the smart pillows have small speakers embedded inside the pillow. The role of the speakers is to produce sounds at a comfortable volume that will send you into deep sleep more easily.
On most smart pillows, you will have the option of turning off the speakers if you don’t need the sounds. The quality of sound that comes from these speakers is something you need to pay attention to.
Because a speaker that produces bad sound may not give you the desired results you would want to get from a smart pillow. The best way to choose these speakers is by looking at the manufacturer of the speakers.
Some of the smart pillow speaker brands that have been highly rated by customers include; PILO, sound Oasis, and Sangean. There are a couple of others but these are some of the best.
Snoring detectors
These detectors are able to sense that you’re snoring by detecting the decibels of the sound coming from your mouth and nose while you’re sleeping. Once they detect that you’re snoring, they produce a couple of sounds that will be waking you up slightly so that you stop snoring.
Sometimes the pillow also produces a slight vibration that will make you change position which also helps to stop the snoring. The most important thing here is making sure you do not wake up completely.
A snoring detector that wakes you up completely will not have done a good job. So, while choosing a smart pillow, you need to choose one that has a snoring detector because not all of them have it. If you don’t have a snoring problem then you may choose to ignore this.
Does the Smart Pillow have a Sleep Tracker?
A sleep tracker is a chip that is embedded in the pillow and it tracks how you sleep by sensing your movements while sleeping. Constant movement is detected as a sign of discomfort where as being in one position for a couple of hours is detected as good sleep.
It’s this chip that sends data to the mobile application that later analyzes this data to come up with the details of your sleep that are shown on the app.
App Support
Most of the smart pillow companies have mobile applications that pick your sleeping data from the sleep tracker in the pillow. This data includes your sleeping cycle, the motions you make during the night, and your snoring levels.
All this data is used to give you a sleep score. So, your target will always be to improve this score and it can only be done by having better quality sleep. The good thing is that some of the applications give recommendations regarding how you can improve your sleep score.
While choosing a smart pillow, it is important to know the features of the app for that particular pillow. You also need to know whether the app supports the operating system of your device because not all smart pillow apps support both android and iOS devices.
Padding Thickness
A smart pillow should not only be smart but also have the good features that the ordinary pillows have. The padding thickness of your pillow should be big enough in order to properly house the electronic devices without you having to feel them.
Padding thickness also determines the level of comfort you get while sleeping. The more the thickness, the more the comfort you will get. So, while choosing your smart pillow, always choose one with a reasonable level of padding thickness that will give you the comfort you need to have quality sleep
General Comfort
With smart pillows, you can customize how you need comfort. Some of the smart pillows come with temperature sensors that will sense your temperature and adjust the overall pillow temperature based on your body temperature.
There also some that are good at removing any form of sweat from your head and neck so that you don’t feel the stickiness that is caused by sweating. This kind of comfort is what you need to look for while choosing a smart pillow to buy.
Another factor to consider is the size of memory foam cubes in the smart pillow. The size of these cubes should be moderate in order to give you comfort. Some people actually prefer pillows with big memory foam cubes. So, simply choose a smart pillow with foam cubes that give you comfort.
What’s your budget
Smart pillows are way more expensive than ordinary pillows with some costing as much as $300. The price mainly depends on the brand and the features that the pillow has. So, while going to buy your pillow, know the amount of money you’re willing to spend on the pillow.
It’s from this that you can choose the pillow that meets your needs but also within your budget. You also need to note that an expensive pillow does not necessarily mean it’s the best for you.
With the level of comfort you’ll get from sleeping on a smart pillow, it’s obvious that they provide you much better sleep than the ordinary pillows. However, it should be noted that choosing a wrong smart pillow is as good as having your ordinary pillows and, in some cases, worse.
You need to be keen while choosing the one you need. You should also know yourself and your body because the features of the smart pillows benefit different people differently. So, it is important you know what your body needs for proper sleep and then base on that to determine the smart pillow you need.
To get what you need, look through the factors we have discussed above one by one, and choose those that make sense to you. Based on your budget, choose the pillow that has the most relevant features to your needs.
