Alarm Clock by doubleTwist, a feature-rich and stunningly beautiful alarm clock app
by Paul Wilks
Apr 13, 2012 8:09 AM –
Install
Alarm Clock by doubleTwist is a feature-rich and stunningly beautiful alarm clock app. From the creators of AirSync and doubleTwist Player this new application adds visual luxury to waking up every morning.
Price: ~$1.99
Tested on: HTC Desire HD
Content Rating: Everyone
Pros & Cons:
Pros
- Stunning UI!
- Easy to use!
- 2 clock modes!
- Wake up with sounds or music!
- Sleep Cycle!
Cons
- Uses a lot of memory for just an alarm clock.
- Needs doubleTwist player for playlists and songs.
Features:
Alarm Clock by doubleTwist is a simple alarm replacement app and I think two things attracted me to it initially. Firstly, it’s made by doubleTwist who have a pedigree in making cool and useful apps. doubleTwist Player is a hugely popular all-in-one media app that has proved to be intuitive, useful and good looking. AirSync lets you sync your music collections- even iTunes- to your Android device seamlessly. While obviously a different kind of app, Alarm Clock brings with it a rich UI and some innovative features that work really well.
The other reason this interested me was the user interface. As a reviewer I get to try out lots and lots of apps and more recently I’ve noticed developers working harder and harder at improving the look and feel of their Android apps. Apps are becoming smoother, richer, and far more fun to use. With Ice Cream Sandwich, I think users should be able to demand fluid and responsive interfaces in order for apps and ROMs to compliment each other. For examples of this, check out TED, N7player, 1Weather, Any.Do, Lightbox Photos and Hipster- the developers really get it; functionality is vital, but so is UI for many users. Alarm Clock by doubleTwist does this for the alarm clock/productivity genre of apps. It’s beautiful and works a treat.
UI aside, it’s very easy to use. Immaculately intuitive, it will work just like your native alarm function. Additionally, you can utilise a night-clock feature if you want to and the app includes two styles: digital flip clock and rich analogue. Both look so incredible it’s difficult to choose between them.
I think like a few alarm clock apps nowadays, you can select to wake up via sounds or music. The app comes with a slew of typical alarm sound effects from the retro beep noises to friendlier sounds to wake up to like ‘Sunshine Forest’. Additionally, you can wake up to a music playlist of your choosing, or a specific song. Personally, I like getting up to Radiohead’s No Surprises- perfect waking up music! The downside to this feature is that you have to download doubleTwist Player- which is a bit of a shame, it should really be able to just access your music without it.
On the subject of niggles, it uses quite a lot of memory for what it is. Surely an alarm clock should just quietly rumble in the background, but you might have to consider having your device charging during the night (if you don’t already) in order to not lose battery. I did try this out and while it didn’t run down my battery too much, it was noticeably more than my usual alarm. I guess that’s the sacrifice you have to make here.
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Alarm Clock – Main screen
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Alarm Clock – Analogue clock
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Alarm Clock – Gorgeous digital flip clock
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Alarm Clock – Add alarm
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Alarm Clock – Set alarm time
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Alarm Clock – Sleep cycle
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Alarm Clock – Settings
Usefulness:
Most features; setting an alarm, night clock, choose between sounds and music, etc. are pretty staple for most alarm apps; 3rd party or native. One feature that stands out with Alarm Clock by doubleTwist is the Sleep Cycle feature. Here you essentially tell the app when you’re going to sleep and it’ll wake you up when you’ve had enough slumber. This is perhaps a great idea if you regularly feel sluggish during the day, the idea is the app will tell you the best time to wake up based on the brain’s sleep cycles. Now, I’ve not seen any research on this, but I guess it’s worth a try if you have sleep problems, and it’s a cute feature to add.
Ease of Use:
Some people are incredibly particular about alarms. Many folks set two or three alarms every morning to ensure they wake up (and not just hit dismiss, roll over and go back to sleep!). Other people are happy to just quickly set their alarm last thing at night and be done with it. Alarm Clock by doubleTwist suits both all kinds as it is not only easy to set, but has a raft of extra features included, such as multiple alarms and different settings.
Frequently Used:
It’s an app you have to pay for, so with that commitment, probably every single day. Well, maybe not the weekends huh?
Interface:
The interface, for me anyway, is the stand out feature. It’s simple yet lush to use and looks superb. The night clocks also look great, definitely check them out.
Tags:
Alarm Clock,
Android App,
Android Apps,
AndroidTapp.com App Review,
Clock,
DoubleTwist,
doubleTwist Player,
Music,
sound effects,
wake up
Categorised in: Personalization, Tools
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