Do you use your smart phone as your primary alarm clock?
October 12, 2024 9:29 PM Subscribe
My wife and I both use our phones as alarm clocks. I have two times saved in my phone alarm clock. She has 91, only three of which do not end in 0 or 5. We both think the other is doing it wrong. How do you do it, so we can get some data points?
The stakes are low, we aren't fighting about this, but I find it astounding. I set or reset my alarm when going to sleep based on when I have to get up, she thinks about when she needs to get up and then selects one of 91 saved options.
A little background, she likes things tidy and when we met one of my nicknames for her was "the straightener" which I borrowed from HERE.
So, hivemind, how do you use your alarm phone? I polled three people at work- one had 27 saved times. One had one. One said his wife woke him up.
The stakes are low, we aren't fighting about this, but I find it astounding. I set or reset my alarm when going to sleep based on when I have to get up, she thinks about when she needs to get up and then selects one of 91 saved options.
A little background, she likes things tidy and when we met one of my nicknames for her was "the straightener" which I borrowed from HERE.
So, hivemind, how do you use your alarm phone? I polled three people at work- one had 27 saved times. One had one. One said his wife woke him up.
I do it like your wife. It annoys me if I need to set a new alarm time I somehow missed.
posted by frumiousb at 9:41 PM on October 12 [6 favorites]
posted by frumiousb at 9:41 PM on October 12 [6 favorites]
I have eighteen saved times. My phone wakes me up at 6:30 a.m. on weekdays, and not at all on weekends. The only time I deviate from this pattern is when I have a flight, or another unusually early appointment. Somehow, these exceptions have resulted in 17 extra saved times on my clock, which I have never felt the need to delete.
posted by Jeanne at 9:42 PM on October 12 [2 favorites]
posted by Jeanne at 9:42 PM on October 12 [2 favorites]
I say "Hey Siri, set an alarm for [time]"
posted by danceswithlight at 9:55 PM on October 12 [9 favorites]
posted by danceswithlight at 9:55 PM on October 12 [9 favorites]
I currently have 3 saved times. Two are times I often want to wake up and one is a random other time. If I needed to set an alarm I would use or edit one of those.
I know at least one of my kids has a zillion saved times they scroll through when setting an alarm, because we were talking about it recently. I find that utterly ridiculous. It takes like 2 seconds to set a new alarm. It's not faster or easier to scroll through a whole bunch of existing alarms. There's really no compelling reason to have any saved alarms at all, though I guess it can save you a couple of seconds if there are 2 or 3 different times you want to use repeatedly. If there are a lot of times you want to use repeatedly I think it would actually be easier just to have a single alarm and edit it every time.
posted by Redstart at 9:56 PM on October 12 [4 favorites]
I know at least one of my kids has a zillion saved times they scroll through when setting an alarm, because we were talking about it recently. I find that utterly ridiculous. It takes like 2 seconds to set a new alarm. It's not faster or easier to scroll through a whole bunch of existing alarms. There's really no compelling reason to have any saved alarms at all, though I guess it can save you a couple of seconds if there are 2 or 3 different times you want to use repeatedly. If there are a lot of times you want to use repeatedly I think it would actually be easier just to have a single alarm and edit it every time.
posted by Redstart at 9:56 PM on October 12 [4 favorites]
I have at least 91. Probably more. I would very much prefer one-time alarms to disappear after use, but Apple has other ideas. I use Siri to set / unset alarms because the iOS interface is unusable with this many alarms.
posted by qxntpqbbbqxl at 9:59 PM on October 12 [4 favorites]
posted by qxntpqbbbqxl at 9:59 PM on October 12 [4 favorites]
I have 2 alarms set for 10 minutes apart, Mon-Fri mornings. These are primary and backup alarms for work days. I change these 2 alarms as needed (some days I may get up 20 or 30 minutes earlier or later), and most of the time, they are the only two alarms to choose from. If I need an alarm for a weekend, a nap, or some other reason, I set it and then delete it once it's served its purpose.
posted by happy_cat at 10:00 PM on October 12 [1 favorite]
posted by happy_cat at 10:00 PM on October 12 [1 favorite]
I would very much prefer one-time alarms to disappear after use
Yeah, this seems like the ideal behavior to me. When I first got a smart phone this was what I assumed would happen and it took me a while to realize that every alarm or timer I set was being saved as if I was likely to want to use it again. I think they should disappear by default, with the option to save one for reuse if you want.
posted by Redstart at 10:04 PM on October 12 [12 favorites]
Yeah, this seems like the ideal behavior to me. When I first got a smart phone this was what I assumed would happen and it took me a while to realize that every alarm or timer I set was being saved as if I was likely to want to use it again. I think they should disappear by default, with the option to save one for reuse if you want.
posted by Redstart at 10:04 PM on October 12 [12 favorites]
Also... It really is amazing how different people are. If my partner had 91 alarms to scroll through every night, that would make me so uncomfortable. The opposite of tidy, it seems very cluttered. But here are all these Mefites proving there's more than one way to set an alarm!
posted by happy_cat at 10:05 PM on October 12 [8 favorites]
posted by happy_cat at 10:05 PM on October 12 [8 favorites]
My wakeup times vary a lot, so I don't save alarms, I just change whichever recent alarm looks most similar to the new one I need.
posted by one for the books at 10:13 PM on October 12 [12 favorites]
posted by one for the books at 10:13 PM on October 12 [12 favorites]
I currently have 8 alarms. I have 3 for regular wake up times on various days, and the rest of the time reuse whatever existing alarm has either hours or minutes closest to the needed time. Sometimes if the list gets too long I'll delete a few.
posted by lemonade at 10:14 PM on October 12
posted by lemonade at 10:14 PM on October 12
I currently have 38, but I removed several last week and added a couple new ones.
I have some that are the same time, but different sets of days, so I can turn them on and off separately. While most are before 11am, and there's a heavy group between 4:30-5:20am for my work days, I do have a few random ones later in the day. Plus one that is every Tuesday that I really wish I could set to every other Tuesday... it helps ensure I don't miss a formerly weekly/now every-other-week zoom appointment.
I used to just set one time, but I hate having to reset it - it's easier just to turn them on. Especially on work days, where even though I get up when the first one goes off, 99% of the time... it's that other 1% I'm afraid of, that the other half a dozen alarms are set for.
I'd love to be able to name groups of alarms, so I could turn them off and off in a bunch.
In the past, I've been known to use my phone's "alarm clock" for everything from a reminder to pay rent when I get home, to trimming the dog's nails, to calling someone, or even switching the laundry. The alarm clock gets my attention in a way that calendar reminders just don't.
posted by stormyteal at 10:16 PM on October 12 [3 favorites]
I have some that are the same time, but different sets of days, so I can turn them on and off separately. While most are before 11am, and there's a heavy group between 4:30-5:20am for my work days, I do have a few random ones later in the day. Plus one that is every Tuesday that I really wish I could set to every other Tuesday... it helps ensure I don't miss a formerly weekly/now every-other-week zoom appointment.
I used to just set one time, but I hate having to reset it - it's easier just to turn them on. Especially on work days, where even though I get up when the first one goes off, 99% of the time... it's that other 1% I'm afraid of, that the other half a dozen alarms are set for.
I'd love to be able to name groups of alarms, so I could turn them off and off in a bunch.
In the past, I've been known to use my phone's "alarm clock" for everything from a reminder to pay rent when I get home, to trimming the dog's nails, to calling someone, or even switching the laundry. The alarm clock gets my attention in a way that calendar reminders just don't.
posted by stormyteal at 10:16 PM on October 12 [3 favorites]
The idea of scrolling through 91 alarms is just reminding me about how though I like the new Zelda game, a big hiccup for me is that one of the most frequently used game mechanics involves scrolling through a ridiculously long list of options while on the battlefield, and I'm pretty sure I've got more than 91 options in that list, and it's annoying. The comments have been enlightening for me, though - how people even got to that many alarms, I didn't realize one-time alarms would be saved because I rarely use them, I just change the time on my default alarm for one time and it automatically goes back to the default time the next time after.
As for alarms on my phone, I have two, but I really only use alarms for wakeup. I've got my normal weekday morning one with a default sound, and then I've got one labeled CATCH YOUR PLANE, with the Lunar Whale song from FFX, since I'm usually on the first plane out in the morning when I have to travel.
posted by Pandora Kouti at 10:20 PM on October 12 [1 favorite]
As for alarms on my phone, I have two, but I really only use alarms for wakeup. I've got my normal weekday morning one with a default sound, and then I've got one labeled CATCH YOUR PLANE, with the Lunar Whale song from FFX, since I'm usually on the first plane out in the morning when I have to travel.
posted by Pandora Kouti at 10:20 PM on October 12 [1 favorite]
I just checked and I have four, though I only actually use one and just reset it as needed.
posted by klausman at 10:30 PM on October 12 [1 favorite]
posted by klausman at 10:30 PM on October 12 [1 favorite]
I have 26 alarms, but (on an iPhone) started using the Sleep Schedule function in the Health app about a year ago as my alarm clock, because it has less jarring sounds and the alarm fades in. I like it much better.
Still haven’t deleted those 26 alarms, though. Never know when I might need an alarm to go off at 6:45, 7:15, 7:20, 7:30, 7:40…
posted by kite at 10:54 PM on October 12 [1 favorite]
Still haven’t deleted those 26 alarms, though. Never know when I might need an alarm to go off at 6:45, 7:15, 7:20, 7:30, 7:40…
posted by kite at 10:54 PM on October 12 [1 favorite]
Hahahahaha I have 67, not joking. The earliest is 4:50 AM and the latest is 10:08 PM somehow. I am also the tidy person in my relationship. 🤷♀️🫠 I guess I’m a fast scroller?
posted by charmedimsure at 10:55 PM on October 12 [2 favorites]
posted by charmedimsure at 10:55 PM on October 12 [2 favorites]
My process is: if there's a time close to the one I need, choose it. Otherwise, I make a new one. I currently have 46 alarms in the list. This feels efficient to me because adjusting the time or making a new alarm is more of a hassle than scrolling through a sorted list.
posted by panic at 11:04 PM on October 12 [2 favorites]
posted by panic at 11:04 PM on October 12 [2 favorites]
In fact, on iOS, the process of setting a new alarm involves tapping to bring up a pop-up, waiting for the animation, scrolling through two sorted lists (one for the hour with 24 entries and the other for the minutes with 60), then another tap to set. Scrolling through a single sorted list and tapping once to select an existing alarm is going to be faster than this up to a pretty substantial threshold.
posted by panic at 11:10 PM on October 12 [2 favorites]
posted by panic at 11:10 PM on October 12 [2 favorites]
No saved times. On my iPad.
Never used the alarm on my phone and generally do not carry my phone around.
posted by jamjam at 11:13 PM on October 12
Never used the alarm on my phone and generally do not carry my phone around.
posted by jamjam at 11:13 PM on October 12
Four, and one of them is the designated "reset as necessary" alarm. (I probably need a fifth, because I keep resetting the fourth to my Sunday morning yoga wake-up time). Feels saner than a bunch of times I probably need once a year if that. Just because I took a 6am ferry on vacation doesn't mean I'll make a habit of it.
posted by I claim sanctuary at 11:27 PM on October 12
posted by I claim sanctuary at 11:27 PM on October 12
31, and some of them are duplicates. All end in 0 or 5.
posted by shock muppet at 11:33 PM on October 12
posted by shock muppet at 11:33 PM on October 12
I only use my (Android) phone when traveling, but when I do, I only have one saved time and I set it every night as needed. Always to a multiple of 5 because that's the easiest to set.
At home I have an actual alarm clock, set it every night as needed, but never to a multiple of 5. Usually I set it 19 minutes before my first scheduled meeting in the morning, so typically ending in :11 or :41.
posted by equalpants at 11:45 PM on October 12
At home I have an actual alarm clock, set it every night as needed, but never to a multiple of 5. Usually I set it 19 minutes before my first scheduled meeting in the morning, so typically ending in :11 or :41.
posted by equalpants at 11:45 PM on October 12
...Reading some responses above, I'm curious whether iPhone vs. Android makes a difference here.
Kind of stunned to learn that on iPhone you have to scroll through lists to set hour/minutes? On Android you're given a picture of a clock face, and you touch once to set hour, then touch again to set minutes, then touch "OK". It's super fast.
posted by equalpants at 11:53 PM on October 12 [6 favorites]
Kind of stunned to learn that on iPhone you have to scroll through lists to set hour/minutes? On Android you're given a picture of a clock face, and you touch once to set hour, then touch again to set minutes, then touch "OK". It's super fast.
posted by equalpants at 11:53 PM on October 12 [6 favorites]
scrolling through two sorted lists (one for the hour with 24 entries and the other for the minutes with 60)
OMG, that's terrible! On Android you tap to bring up a picture of a clock, tap the hour you want, then the picture instantly changes and you tap the minutes from the 12 choices (00 through 55), pick AM or PM (AM is set by default), then tap OK. (If you don't want a multiple of 5 for the minutes, you tap a keyboard icon and then type in the number you want, so that's slightly slower. I have never felt the need to be that precise, though.)
With Android I feel like if you have more saved times than you can see on your screen at once, it's probably going to be at least as fast to create a new alarm as to scroll through your list.
posted by Redstart at 11:54 PM on October 12 [3 favorites]
OMG, that's terrible! On Android you tap to bring up a picture of a clock, tap the hour you want, then the picture instantly changes and you tap the minutes from the 12 choices (00 through 55), pick AM or PM (AM is set by default), then tap OK. (If you don't want a multiple of 5 for the minutes, you tap a keyboard icon and then type in the number you want, so that's slightly slower. I have never felt the need to be that precise, though.)
With Android I feel like if you have more saved times than you can see on your screen at once, it's probably going to be at least as fast to create a new alarm as to scroll through your list.
posted by Redstart at 11:54 PM on October 12 [3 favorites]
I have 18 and my latest one is 7:45 pm. I probably only use 2 (one for weekdays and one for weekends) but I don't like go through and delete the ones I only need once.
posted by muddgirl at 11:56 PM on October 12
posted by muddgirl at 11:56 PM on October 12
(also I'm on android too and TIL if you click the alarm clock face instead of dragging it snaps to the 5 minute hash, that saves me so much fiddling)
posted by muddgirl at 12:13 AM on October 13
posted by muddgirl at 12:13 AM on October 13
When I worked, I had one alarm for weekdays to get up, which was set at a fixed time. Now that I am retired, I have a morning alarm that I either turn off (and get up when the dogs wake me), turn on, or change to a different time if i need to get up early(ish) for a specific event. I have one alarm set for a late evening time for 7 days a week because I was forgetting to take a nighttime medicine before bed. I have another alarm for noon one one day a week, because I wanted to monitor my blood pressure on a regular basis. That is currently turned off, because I was on vacation and not near the equipment to do that, but it will be on again soon. All of those use the same sound file for the alarm noise. I have one 'special' alarm that I modify as necessary for unusual alarm needs, turned off until I need it. That uses a different sound. I, personally, would be bugged by having 91 alarms that I need to make sure are off or on - not saying it's wrong, just not a good user interface, in my opinion, but it's a subjective thing.
Not asked, but I use the timer function with yet another sound, when I want to do something or be reminded of something 'X' minutes from now - rather than setting an alarm for the time 'X' minutes from now.
Android phone, if it matters
posted by TimHare at 12:18 AM on October 13
Not asked, but I use the timer function with yet another sound, when I want to do something or be reminded of something 'X' minutes from now - rather than setting an alarm for the time 'X' minutes from now.
Android phone, if it matters
posted by TimHare at 12:18 AM on October 13
34 alarms here - but like others I’d class that as an indicator that I’ve capitulated to Apple’s rather silly design and not cleared things up; you choose your battles.
The trick iOS seems to be missing would be to set a sunrise/ sunset dependant alarm that would very with time of year. Waking up just before sunrise often seems like the healthiest thing to do.
posted by rongorongo at 12:41 AM on October 13 [4 favorites]
The trick iOS seems to be missing would be to set a sunrise/ sunset dependant alarm that would very with time of year. Waking up just before sunrise often seems like the healthiest thing to do.
posted by rongorongo at 12:41 AM on October 13 [4 favorites]
I have 4 alarms that I use regularly throughout the day and a fifth one up top that I change as needed. I'd add more if there were other times I found myself using a lot, but I dont think I'd like more than 10 or so. I used to forget to delete a bunch of one-time alarms and it felt like clutter to have to scroll (then again, they weren't arranged in any rational way so I'm sure that didn't help).
Android phone, generally very organized
posted by Eyelash at 12:57 AM on October 13
Android phone, generally very organized
posted by Eyelash at 12:57 AM on October 13
I've got one enabled, and three configured. One for workdays, one for holidays, and I'm not sure why I have a third. 91 feels excessive, but I guess if the alternative is using iOS's ungodly time picker...
posted by pwnguin at 12:57 AM on October 13
posted by pwnguin at 12:57 AM on October 13
[Note, I lead a strange schedule.]
I have four alarms set: 9:50a (which I generally get up, get the phone, turn it off, and go back to sleep), 11:11a (when I actually get up), 11:59a (at which time I need to be done with my makeup and start drying my hair if I want to leave for my usual client time), and 12:23p, the time at which I need to start brushing my teeth after gobbling lunch, gathering my things, and heading out for the day. Only the 11:11a is set for every day; the others are set only for weekdays, whether or not they're turned on.
When I'm traveling or my schedule is weird, I may add up to three or four others, but the above four are permanent. If I had a dozen (or 91) I wouldn't be able to fine the right alarms quickly to turn them off (or open one eye and turn them off).
posted by The Wrong Kind of Cheese at 1:20 AM on October 13
I have four alarms set: 9:50a (which I generally get up, get the phone, turn it off, and go back to sleep), 11:11a (when I actually get up), 11:59a (at which time I need to be done with my makeup and start drying my hair if I want to leave for my usual client time), and 12:23p, the time at which I need to start brushing my teeth after gobbling lunch, gathering my things, and heading out for the day. Only the 11:11a is set for every day; the others are set only for weekdays, whether or not they're turned on.
When I'm traveling or my schedule is weird, I may add up to three or four others, but the above four are permanent. If I had a dozen (or 91) I wouldn't be able to fine the right alarms quickly to turn them off (or open one eye and turn them off).
posted by The Wrong Kind of Cheese at 1:20 AM on October 13
I have just one alarm set: 5:00 am, every day. If I need another one (if I’m taking a nap on Sunday, say) I create it and then delete it once its done.
posted by Roger Pittman at 1:38 AM on October 13 [1 favorite]
posted by Roger Pittman at 1:38 AM on October 13 [1 favorite]
I have three saved times, which I edit as needed. One is "get up in the morning", one is "get up from afternoon nap" and one is "don't miss this evening call".
posted by Rhedyn at 1:49 AM on October 13
posted by Rhedyn at 1:49 AM on October 13
My iPhone had 43 alarms before I deleted them (except my sleep alarm.)
All 43 alarms were created by saying:
Hey Siri, create an alarm for _____a.m./p.m.
Siri: Done.
Every now and then, I delete all my alarms by saying:
Hey Siri, delete all of my alarms.
Siri: Do you want to delete all of your alarms?
Yes.
Siri: I deleted all of your alarms except your Sleep alarm which you can edit in the Health App.
posted by DB Cooper at 2:22 AM on October 13 [1 favorite]
All 43 alarms were created by saying:
Hey Siri, create an alarm for _____a.m./p.m.
Siri: Done.
Every now and then, I delete all my alarms by saying:
Hey Siri, delete all of my alarms.
Siri: Do you want to delete all of your alarms?
Yes.
Siri: I deleted all of your alarms except your Sleep alarm which you can edit in the Health App.
posted by DB Cooper at 2:22 AM on October 13 [1 favorite]
I wrote:
The trick iOS seems to be missing would be to set a sunrise/ sunset dependant alarm that would very with time of year. Waking up just before sunrise often seems like the healthiest thing to do.
On a quick check "Siri, set an alarm for sunrise tomorrow morning" - does the right thing - and you can do something more eleborate by setting shortcuts - to set the recurring alarm for 15 minutes before sunrise for example; thanks for making me check!
posted by rongorongo at 2:24 AM on October 13 [2 favorites]
The trick iOS seems to be missing would be to set a sunrise/ sunset dependant alarm that would very with time of year. Waking up just before sunrise often seems like the healthiest thing to do.
On a quick check "Siri, set an alarm for sunrise tomorrow morning" - does the right thing - and you can do something more eleborate by setting shortcuts - to set the recurring alarm for 15 minutes before sunrise for example; thanks for making me check!
posted by rongorongo at 2:24 AM on October 13 [2 favorites]
I have 0 saved times. I don’t know why I do it this way except that having a big list stresses me out and that’s worth having to set it anew each time.
posted by lokta at 2:27 AM on October 13 [1 favorite]
posted by lokta at 2:27 AM on October 13 [1 favorite]
I have about 30. I like weird minutes like 5:57. It makes me less stressed than 0 or 5 for no good reason.
I have alarms for when to make sure my kid has texted that he got home from school, to leave to pick him up from piano, etc. etc. and so they have different days. Then I have some leftover ones from Siri that were set to remind me to flip laundry (sometimes I use a timer, sometimes an alarm), leave for parent-teacher night, etc. Is your wife coordinating a lot of family things?
posted by warriorqueen at 2:31 AM on October 13 [3 favorites]
I have alarms for when to make sure my kid has texted that he got home from school, to leave to pick him up from piano, etc. etc. and so they have different days. Then I have some leftover ones from Siri that were set to remind me to flip laundry (sometimes I use a timer, sometimes an alarm), leave for parent-teacher night, etc. Is your wife coordinating a lot of family things?
posted by warriorqueen at 2:31 AM on October 13 [3 favorites]
Until a few hours ago, I had a million alarms because I almost always just use Siri to make set an alarm which makes a new alarm unless there is one with that time already. I used to use the visual interface and doing that I’d reuse alarms and change their time. Afaik the only way to bulk clear the alarms (on iOS) is to ask Siri to do it which i do every month or two, and happened to do a few hours ago.
posted by aubilenon at 2:37 AM on October 13 [1 favorite]
posted by aubilenon at 2:37 AM on October 13 [1 favorite]
I do use the phone as my primary actual alarm clock, and I just have two alarms, because I don't like alarm noises: "Wake up," and a bit later, "if you didn't wake up before, you really gotta do it now."
For stuff other than waking up, I use silent Reminders -- they pop up and I have to either choose to dismiss them (item "completed"), or put them off for an hour or whatever.
posted by taz at 2:58 AM on October 13
posted by taz at 2:58 AM on October 13
141 alarms here hahahaha. I blame Siri. I use the wake up alarm feature and just spin the dial if I need to adjust that one. But all the other alarms are because I work from home and multitask with house chores sometimes. That often results in me forgetting meetings so looking back at the list, I obviously told Siri to alert me like 10, 5, 3 or 2 minutes before every possible meeting time that starts with a 0 or 5 and well, here we are. Thanks Apple, now that I read this thread I hate it! Just scrolling through the list now I want to cry and laugh simultaneously. I never use it to choose alarm times, the UI is absurd and offends me.
posted by oxisos at 3:37 AM on October 13 [3 favorites]
posted by oxisos at 3:37 AM on October 13 [3 favorites]
I usually have siri set my alarm. I also very rarely need to set an alarm (typicslly only to catch an early flight or similar). As a result, my alarm is similar to your wife’s - lots of random times. I do clear it up on occasion, though.
posted by backwards guitar at 3:39 AM on October 13
posted by backwards guitar at 3:39 AM on October 13
I have seven, which fits exactly into a screen’s worth. Five for setting various wake up times with a single tap, two set around the afternoon and evening to be adjusted for whatever random repeating event is currently happening. I use the timer for odd one-off reminders less than a couple hours away.
posted by lucidium at 3:58 AM on October 13
posted by lucidium at 3:58 AM on October 13
I have three saved times. I also add one offs regularly. But when there are enough one offs to scroll off the screen, I delete them.
posted by Stacey at 4:03 AM on October 13
posted by Stacey at 4:03 AM on October 13
I have two I keep resetting. They go off within 3 mins of each other - one wakes me with a nice, soothing song, one with metal….the idea being that I get one opportunity to drag my carcass out of bed somewhat pleasantly and if I miss that I get something I don’t want to snooze to. The irony is that I snooze both…
posted by koahiatamadl at 4:37 AM on October 13 [2 favorites]
posted by koahiatamadl at 4:37 AM on October 13 [2 favorites]
I have one saved alarm on my iPhone 15. If I need to wake up earlier, I change it for that one time only. If I want to get up later (some weekends and days off), I keep the regular time and just turn it off when it rings and let myself sleep for however long I need to.
It sounds like people use their alarm for more than just waking up in the morning though? That never actually occurred to me as a possibility, haha.
posted by maggiemaggie at 4:37 AM on October 13
It sounds like people use their alarm for more than just waking up in the morning though? That never actually occurred to me as a possibility, haha.
posted by maggiemaggie at 4:37 AM on October 13
It sounds like people use their alarm for more than just waking up in the morning though? That never actually occurred to me as a possibility, haha.
It is only this year that it occurred to me to ask Siri to set me timers for things like cooking, I was setting myself alarms. Also, reminders to get ready to leave the house or whatever it may be….
posted by koahiatamadl at 4:41 AM on October 13
It is only this year that it occurred to me to ask Siri to set me timers for things like cooking, I was setting myself alarms. Also, reminders to get ready to leave the house or whatever it may be….
posted by koahiatamadl at 4:41 AM on October 13
To my great surprise I have 15 saved alarms. When I read this question I would have guessed only a couple. And I don’t use my phone as my main alarm clock! So this is just from times when my wake-up had to vary from our usual weekday time!
And yet, strangely, I don’t feel at all inclined to remove them.
posted by hilaryjade at 4:42 AM on October 13
And yet, strangely, I don’t feel at all inclined to remove them.
posted by hilaryjade at 4:42 AM on October 13
scrolling through two sorted lists (one for the hour with 24 entries and the other for the minutes with 60)
OMG, that's terrible! On Android you tap to bring up a picture of a clock, tap the hour you want, then the picture instantly changes and you tap the minutes from the 12 choices (00 through 55), pick AM or PM (AM is set by default), then tap OK. (If you don't want a multiple of 5 for the minutes, you tap a keyboard icon and then type in the number you want, so that's slightly slower. I have never felt the need to be that precise, though.)
On iOS you can actually also type the time - the interface doesn't make it obvious, but if you click the scrolled lists it becomes a numeric input field where you can directly type in the time.
If your phone uses 12-hour AM/PM time you will have to pick AM/PM; if your phone uses 24 hour time then you just type it in and it's done.
How does the Android visual time picker work if your phone is set on 24-hour time? (I am curious because I am very annoyed when apps on my phone are not coded to respect my phone's 24-hour time settings.)
To answer the original question -- I no longer use my iPhone as my alarm clock at home (I don't keep it in my bedroom, to help with my sleep etc.) but I still use it as such when I travel, and I used it as such for many years. I have 94 alarms, for which:
- None are duplicates
- Only 3 are not multiples of 5
- Ranging from 04:10 to 21:20, although skewed towards the morning as you might expect
posted by andrewesque at 5:10 AM on October 13
OMG, that's terrible! On Android you tap to bring up a picture of a clock, tap the hour you want, then the picture instantly changes and you tap the minutes from the 12 choices (00 through 55), pick AM or PM (AM is set by default), then tap OK. (If you don't want a multiple of 5 for the minutes, you tap a keyboard icon and then type in the number you want, so that's slightly slower. I have never felt the need to be that precise, though.)
On iOS you can actually also type the time - the interface doesn't make it obvious, but if you click the scrolled lists it becomes a numeric input field where you can directly type in the time.
If your phone uses 12-hour AM/PM time you will have to pick AM/PM; if your phone uses 24 hour time then you just type it in and it's done.
How does the Android visual time picker work if your phone is set on 24-hour time? (I am curious because I am very annoyed when apps on my phone are not coded to respect my phone's 24-hour time settings.)
To answer the original question -- I no longer use my iPhone as my alarm clock at home (I don't keep it in my bedroom, to help with my sleep etc.) but I still use it as such when I travel, and I used it as such for many years. I have 94 alarms, for which:
- None are duplicates
- Only 3 are not multiples of 5
- Ranging from 04:10 to 21:20, although skewed towards the morning as you might expect
posted by andrewesque at 5:10 AM on October 13
I use an android phone as my primary alarm clock.
I have 2 saved alarms; one set for everyday, and one set earlier for 2 weekdays I need to get an earlier start.
When I need to set a different alarm, I usually just adjust one of those 2 saved alarms, and then change it back when done. I do sometimes add a new one and delete it after use.
posted by the primroses were over at 5:13 AM on October 13
I have 2 saved alarms; one set for everyday, and one set earlier for 2 weekdays I need to get an earlier start.
When I need to set a different alarm, I usually just adjust one of those 2 saved alarms, and then change it back when done. I do sometimes add a new one and delete it after use.
posted by the primroses were over at 5:13 AM on October 13
Android. Had five and just deleted all but 2; the rest were recent one off alarms for a flight and naps. I often use a separate sleep app that by default sets one time alarms for 'goal duration' and sunrise and tracks my sleep because it's tired to my migraines. I also keep an old alarm clock for when I do my 0600-1800 shifts; it's so old the buttons are all janky re: physically resetting it so it's reserved for that one most fixed time.
The idea of having to scroll through a list of alarms is very not appealing to me. Correlate with desktop icons or open tabs?
posted by cobaltnine at 5:25 AM on October 13
The idea of having to scroll through a list of alarms is very not appealing to me. Correlate with desktop icons or open tabs?
posted by cobaltnine at 5:25 AM on October 13
I have an iPhone and am ADHD AF, with a bunch of physical and digital piles in my life, so I guess I'm violating expectations by having two active alarms and two dormant alarms.
Active: 8:30am as M-F work wakeup time, which can get tweaked to 8:20 or 8:40 as needed. I also have an 11:55am alarm for Wednesday only (veggie shopping reminder).
The two other alarms are one-offs that can be adjusted and turned on for an extra early wakeup time or as a reminder of something unusual, such as a delivery deadline.
I can't image having 14 or 38 or 91 alarms. It just doesn't map to my needs and would probably cause my head to explode.
posted by maudlin at 5:38 AM on October 13
Active: 8:30am as M-F work wakeup time, which can get tweaked to 8:20 or 8:40 as needed. I also have an 11:55am alarm for Wednesday only (veggie shopping reminder).
The two other alarms are one-offs that can be adjusted and turned on for an extra early wakeup time or as a reminder of something unusual, such as a delivery deadline.
I can't image having 14 or 38 or 91 alarms. It just doesn't map to my needs and would probably cause my head to explode.
posted by maudlin at 5:38 AM on October 13
I only have three. I usually set two alarms during the work week (one for a backup in case I turn the first one off instead of hitting snooze). I have three because I had to set an alarm this morning (yuck) to do schoolwork. I don't usually use the alarm on the weekend if I can help it so I'll delete the third when I go back to work on Tuesday. Occasionally I'll set reminder alarms throughout the day, but those get deleted.
I had no idea that some people kept all those alarms on their phones and scrolled through them. It seems to me like it would be easier to just set a new alarm, but it is also annoying that the iphone automatically saves each new alarm.
posted by I_carried_a_watermelon at 6:07 AM on October 13
I had no idea that some people kept all those alarms on their phones and scrolled through them. It seems to me like it would be easier to just set a new alarm, but it is also annoying that the iphone automatically saves each new alarm.
posted by I_carried_a_watermelon at 6:07 AM on October 13
I think you are all insane!
My alarms are sorted by purpose and coded by sound. So I have Wake Up, Time To Go, one for time to take pills or do another time sensitive every day early day task, one for time to do a cooking task eg start dinner prep, and one shiny new one for a twice a week commitment.
I set and reset the times as necessary. The ones that change based on purpose eg Time To Go are set to one time, the ones that are the same every day for long periods are set to repeat. Apple user.
posted by cabbage raccoon at 7:11 AM on October 13 [1 favorite]
My alarms are sorted by purpose and coded by sound. So I have Wake Up, Time To Go, one for time to take pills or do another time sensitive every day early day task, one for time to do a cooking task eg start dinner prep, and one shiny new one for a twice a week commitment.
I set and reset the times as necessary. The ones that change based on purpose eg Time To Go are set to one time, the ones that are the same every day for long periods are set to repeat. Apple user.
posted by cabbage raccoon at 7:11 AM on October 13 [1 favorite]
If it’s different than my recurring alarms, I set it to a specific time, which gets saved in my phone. After 10-15 have built up I delete all but the recurring ones. Repeat this process ad infinitum.
posted by brook horse at 7:49 AM on October 13
posted by brook horse at 7:49 AM on October 13
I currently have four saved alarms: one for school days when we need to get up early, one slightly later morning for when we can sleep in a bit, and two during different times of the day that I've used while napping (neither has been used recently). They are all set for 0s or 5s on the dial.
posted by audi alteram partem at 8:04 AM on October 13
posted by audi alteram partem at 8:04 AM on October 13
How does the Android visual time picker work if your phone is set on 24-hour time?
I just changed to 24 hour time to find out. The clock shows two concentric circles of numbers for the hour: 00 through 11 and 12 through 23.
posted by Redstart at 8:06 AM on October 13 [4 favorites]
I just changed to 24 hour time to find out. The clock shows two concentric circles of numbers for the hour: 00 through 11 and 12 through 23.
posted by Redstart at 8:06 AM on October 13 [4 favorites]
My kids just counted their alarms. One has 95 and one has 100. One of them has multiple 7:00 am alarms scheduled for various combinations of days of the week but said the only one she ever uses is the unscheduled 7:00 am one. I asked, "Why don't you just delete the ones you never use?" and she said, "I'm sure I'll use them again someday." The other kid nodded and said, "Mm-hm."
posted by Redstart at 8:30 AM on October 13
posted by Redstart at 8:30 AM on October 13
I have about seventy, mostly at random times like 10:08 am. On the iphone, setting a new alarm or changing an existing one is more clicks than just quickly scrolling a list and clicking on one that is close to the time I want. The list costs nothing, and is sorted and tidy. I don't have a problem with it.
Also, I like one of the tones in the classic list (Harp), and abhor all the others. Choosing Harp involves a couple of extra clicks when you're setting a new alarm (and the possibility of forgetting and ending up with Radar or something - the horror!).
posted by bluesky78987 at 9:14 AM on October 13
Also, I like one of the tones in the classic list (Harp), and abhor all the others. Choosing Harp involves a couple of extra clicks when you're setting a new alarm (and the possibility of forgetting and ending up with Radar or something - the horror!).
posted by bluesky78987 at 9:14 AM on October 13
I have about 20, but they all end in 0 or 5. A possibly important data point here: I have ADHD.
If my app made it painful to have that many, I probably wouldn't, but over time as I've become accustomed to turning the right ones on and the wrong ones off for any given situation, and as my watch has started alerting me even to the turned-off ones, I find it helps with some of my time-blindness after I'm awake.
There is no "wrong" unless she is waking you up when you don't want to wake up. People do what works for them, and sometimes people also do what works for their anxiety.
posted by Lyn Never at 9:23 AM on October 13
If my app made it painful to have that many, I probably wouldn't, but over time as I've become accustomed to turning the right ones on and the wrong ones off for any given situation, and as my watch has started alerting me even to the turned-off ones, I find it helps with some of my time-blindness after I'm awake.
There is no "wrong" unless she is waking you up when you don't want to wake up. People do what works for them, and sometimes people also do what works for their anxiety.
posted by Lyn Never at 9:23 AM on October 13
I use the "Sleep / Wake Up" mode on my iphone, which is typically set to "no alarm." If I think I'll need an alarm for the next day, I'll go in and change it for the next morning only, choosing a specific time that meets that day's needs, usually around sunrise if possible.
I use "reminders" or timers instead of alarms for anything other than waking up.
I don't have kids and make my own work schedule, so I realize this would not be a good system for most people, but you asked.
posted by lampoil at 9:40 AM on October 13
I use "reminders" or timers instead of alarms for anything other than waking up.
I don't have kids and make my own work schedule, so I realize this would not be a good system for most people, but you asked.
posted by lampoil at 9:40 AM on October 13
I have 33 saved. Some are fixed common options, but if I want a time that’s not among them I tend to update one that is close. I have a sequence of 5 that I always turn on before bed to get up on weekdays, and off again in the morning. I have been diagnosed with obsessive-compulsive disorder.
posted by atoxyl at 10:08 AM on October 13
posted by atoxyl at 10:08 AM on October 13
I have 250 alarms. Like I said upthread, I use Siri to interact with the alarm app, so I never need to scroll through the list. Siri can set, unset, and check the status of alarms. And count them, too (hey siri, how many alarms do I have?)
I switched from Android to iPhone five years ago and I dearly miss the far superior alarm apps available on Android.
posted by qxntpqbbbqxl at 10:13 AM on October 13
I switched from Android to iPhone five years ago and I dearly miss the far superior alarm apps available on Android.
posted by qxntpqbbbqxl at 10:13 AM on October 13
I have one alarm. One. I modify it as needed. If I have to get up really early for a flight, I might set a second one so I have a back-up. I might also add a second one if I need to do something at a very particular time of the day (e.g. call someone at 3:30 -- although I'm honestly more likely to use Reminders for that. (I'm an iPhone user.) If I end up with two alarms for those special cases, I delete it as soon as I'm done. The idea of having 91 is immensely stressful to me!
posted by leftover_scrabble_rack at 10:26 AM on October 13
posted by leftover_scrabble_rack at 10:26 AM on October 13
I have 2 saved but I really only use the wake-up time connected to my go to bed time through Apple Health(?). I don’t have a strict time when I need to get up (wfh, meetings don’t start til 9 am in my time zone and I typically wake up at about 730 without an alarm).
I set special alarms if I have to get up to catch a plane or attend an appointment and then I delete them.
posted by jeoc at 10:28 AM on October 13
I set special alarms if I have to get up to catch a plane or attend an appointment and then I delete them.
posted by jeoc at 10:28 AM on October 13
For reasons unknown I create a new one every day rather than re-start and old one, so I often have like 50 alarms. I clear them out randomly.
posted by tristeza at 10:32 AM on October 13
posted by tristeza at 10:32 AM on October 13
I have about 15 alarms right now but none of them are for waking up because I use the Sleep setting in the Health app (iPhone) for my weekday alarm and I get up the same time every day. Weekends my dog wakes me up, and if I need to wake up outside of those normal times I’d set a manual one-time alarm. The idea that some of you adjust your wake up time by 20-30 minutes here or there is so wild to me! That’s too much executive function/math and I find it much easier to get up at the same time every day and have a more leisurely breakfast or take a longer walk with the dogs on days I’m not commuting or don’t need to get moving as early.
Most of the alarms in my phone are from things like medication reminders for me or my pets, cooking reminders, other random shit like that. I don’t delete old alarms until the list gets ridiculous, and I will scroll through and pick an existing alarm if there’s one that matches the time I need.
posted by misskaz at 10:43 AM on October 13
Most of the alarms in my phone are from things like medication reminders for me or my pets, cooking reminders, other random shit like that. I don’t delete old alarms until the list gets ridiculous, and I will scroll through and pick an existing alarm if there’s one that matches the time I need.
posted by misskaz at 10:43 AM on October 13
I wake up without an alarm most days. I have 15, most of which end in 5 or 0, though not all. I reuse them fairly often, but all of them were set for specific events. At some point, I learned that you can name them, and now I can't delete the ones with names (esp the one that was named "now you know something new" when a friend taught me how to name them.
I am a crouton-petter.
posted by dizziest at 10:48 AM on October 13
I am a crouton-petter.
posted by dizziest at 10:48 AM on October 13
I have a few different standard ones for the different start times at work. It's different if we're on 12-hour shifts, 10-hour shifts, or regular 8's. So I can just select the pre-calculated one rather than think backwards, ok, if I want to get there at X, then I have to leave the house by Y, so... etc. It's done already.
For the more-usual case, I have a "get up if you want" alarm that gives me plenty of time to make and enjoy a cup of coffee, get ready leisurely, and maybe pre-read some things in advance for work. Then I have a "no shit, get the F up" alarm for shower-dress-take the coffee with you in the car.
Sometimes when I know I'm especially exhausted and worry I'll sleep through, I have two no-shit alarms, set 13 minutes apart. So at least if I keep groggily hitting snooze without actually evaluating if I have time for that, the times don't line up and the alarm periodicity doubles.
And one extra for random one-offs like catching a plane. I just reset that one every time.
posted by ctmf at 11:35 AM on October 13
For the more-usual case, I have a "get up if you want" alarm that gives me plenty of time to make and enjoy a cup of coffee, get ready leisurely, and maybe pre-read some things in advance for work. Then I have a "no shit, get the F up" alarm for shower-dress-take the coffee with you in the car.
Sometimes when I know I'm especially exhausted and worry I'll sleep through, I have two no-shit alarms, set 13 minutes apart. So at least if I keep groggily hitting snooze without actually evaluating if I have time for that, the times don't line up and the alarm periodicity doubles.
And one extra for random one-offs like catching a plane. I just reset that one every time.
posted by ctmf at 11:35 AM on October 13
One time I set ten different alarms one minute apart, to defeat any snoozing temptation. It worked after the second alarm though.
posted by ctmf at 11:43 AM on October 13
posted by ctmf at 11:43 AM on October 13
I'm not a rise-and-shiner so I have to have multiple alarms starting ahead of my no-shit-have-to-get-out-of-bed-now deadline, acting as basically a pre-set snooze. So I have like maybe 5 or 6 of those saved though typically I only have 3 turned on (the others are for less-regular wake-up times that do periodically recur). But then I also have a handful (maybe another 4 or 5) alarms that are saved but typically turned off, and I reconfigure those for one-offs or unusual wake-up times. The first set are typically set to run on the days of the week when I need to get up at specific times, while the latter set is not set for recurrence so they just run once after I turn them on.
posted by axiom at 11:45 AM on October 13
posted by axiom at 11:45 AM on October 13
I have a couple dozen that all end in 0 or 5. My work schedule is 14 days on and 7 off with one of each devoted to travel so any process that works on weeks or months or daily doesn't work for me.
However I also heavily leverage the geospatial abilities of AM Droid rather than the built in alarm program so that any particular alarm only goes off if I'm within a few hundred meters of where it would be appropriate.
posted by Mitheral at 1:03 PM on October 13
However I also heavily leverage the geospatial abilities of AM Droid rather than the built in alarm program so that any particular alarm only goes off if I'm within a few hundred meters of where it would be appropriate.
posted by Mitheral at 1:03 PM on October 13
One saved alarm for waking up (in the Sleep app of Apple Health, so it's in both my phone and my watch). One alarm each for morning and evening medications. One timer I return to for toothbrushing.
posted by lhauser at 1:12 PM on October 13
posted by lhauser at 1:12 PM on October 13
I have 4 alarms. Rude Awakening, which is when I get up in the morning, and it rarely changes; Feed the Cats, which never changes; Generalized Anxiety, which I set for anything I need to do in the afternoon; and Night Terror, which I set for anything I need in the evening. I might set additional alarms as needed, but I delete them when I don't need them anymore.
For anything I need to be alerted to during waking hours that's less than 3 hours away I just set a timer. On my previous phone I could edit timer duration, but on my newer (despised) Pixel 7 timers are not editable so you have to choose an existing one or set a new one, which frustrates me to an irrational degree.
posted by under_petticoat_rule at 1:25 PM on October 13 [1 favorite]
For anything I need to be alerted to during waking hours that's less than 3 hours away I just set a timer. On my previous phone I could edit timer duration, but on my newer (despised) Pixel 7 timers are not editable so you have to choose an existing one or set a new one, which frustrates me to an irrational degree.
posted by under_petticoat_rule at 1:25 PM on October 13 [1 favorite]
I have one primary alarm that is set for work on weekdays, and usually a second alarm that I reconfigure as needed. The idea of scrolling through dozens of alarms confuses me.
posted by PussKillian at 1:31 PM on October 13
posted by PussKillian at 1:31 PM on October 13
I have 4 alarms currently.
2 are regular recurring ones that go off on normal workdays. 2 are left over from the last time I had to wake up at a specific unusual time, and one or both will be reprogrammed next time I have to get up at a specific unusual time. Occasionally I may add extra alarms for other one-off reasons, usually helping someone else remember to do something. If I have more than maybe 5 or 6 saved I get irritated by the clutter and clear them down to 2 or 3 again. I'm on Android.
posted by tomsk at 1:46 PM on October 13
2 are regular recurring ones that go off on normal workdays. 2 are left over from the last time I had to wake up at a specific unusual time, and one or both will be reprogrammed next time I have to get up at a specific unusual time. Occasionally I may add extra alarms for other one-off reasons, usually helping someone else remember to do something. If I have more than maybe 5 or 6 saved I get irritated by the clutter and clear them down to 2 or 3 again. I'm on Android.
posted by tomsk at 1:46 PM on October 13
I'm getting stressed just reading about the number of alarms people have saved. For morning wakeups, I have a sleep app that functions by showing you the time the alarm was set yesterday. If I need to change the time I do, but 99% of the time I'm either setting the alarm for the same time or tracking sleep with no alarm.
If I take a nap, I use the timer functionality instead. I have a "Quiet" setting for notifications on my phone that blocks any notifications from anything other than the timer, and then I set a 30 minute (or however long) timer to wake myself up.
posted by past unusual at 1:55 PM on October 13
If I take a nap, I use the timer functionality instead. I have a "Quiet" setting for notifications on my phone that blocks any notifications from anything other than the timer, and then I set a 30 minute (or however long) timer to wake myself up.
posted by past unusual at 1:55 PM on October 13
I use the Android Alarm Clock Xtreme App. I have 10 saved alarms. Some are "Every Day", some are specific days, some are weekend days. Some are Rx dosage related, some are Church/religious related. I am fully retired so I have the luxury of being able to adjust the night before each day's Wake Up alarm to what I have going on the next day (e.g., doctor's appointments, helping wife with something, etc.)
posted by forthright at 2:08 PM on October 13
posted by forthright at 2:08 PM on October 13
On android, I often press and hold power for Google assistant (used to do "okay Google"), then say e.g. "set alarm for 9AM" or "set alarm for 9AM to do stuff". If the latter, an alarm with message "do stuff" is created. As a result, I have at least 100 alarms in the list, including ones with the weird now incomprehensible labels (for example "Actually definitely this time, last chance" - though must have typed that). I basically never use the list though, because the voice is so much easier.
posted by lookoutbelow at 2:20 PM on October 13
posted by lookoutbelow at 2:20 PM on October 13
I have 2 saved alarms for wake up times on weekdays and weekends, but if I need to get up at a certain time other than those, or if I want to take a nap or something, I’ll just say “Siri, wake me up in 30 minutes.” Or , like I did last night, “Siri, wake me up at 4:30.” From context, Siri knew that I meant 4:30 AM.
posted by emelenjr at 2:33 PM on October 13
posted by emelenjr at 2:33 PM on October 13
Apparently when I make an alarm on my iPhone so I can wake up (from night sleeping or a nap), it makes the alarm permanent, so I have 31 alarms, which I counted because of this question. I don't ask Siri to set my alarm because I got in the habit before Siri was available.
posted by gentlyepigrams at 4:25 PM on October 13
posted by gentlyepigrams at 4:25 PM on October 13
The concept of an "editable alarm" has never even occurred to me until I read this post-I scroll to the necessary time, and hit the plus sign if it didn't exist. I count 19 alarms created via this method, including two at 5:30am and zero that are not on the quarter hour. The thought of setting an alarm for 6:08 or 11:23 and thus and so kind of gives me a tummyache
posted by Kwine at 5:52 PM on October 13
posted by Kwine at 5:52 PM on October 13
I have two slightly different weekday morning wakeup times, depending on if I am commuting to the office or WFO. I have an alarm set for weekdays at the end of my lunch break.
I'll set other alarms as a one time thing and delete after, generally.
I don't use a snooze feature, and I am annoyed with myself if I set an alarm and forget to disable the snooze function, because the snooze "button" is where the off "button" is, and I will be going about my business and the alarm will go off again.
weekends, no alarms.
That's just how I do it. I would never suggest it is the best or only way to do it.
posted by coppertop at 5:58 PM on October 13
I'll set other alarms as a one time thing and delete after, generally.
I don't use a snooze feature, and I am annoyed with myself if I set an alarm and forget to disable the snooze function, because the snooze "button" is where the off "button" is, and I will be going about my business and the alarm will go off again.
weekends, no alarms.
That's just how I do it. I would never suggest it is the best or only way to do it.
posted by coppertop at 5:58 PM on October 13
I recently pruned down the number of alarms, leave a bunch of present alarms for the morning and getting rid of almost all of the ones in the afternoon or evening which were basically one-time alarms that stuck around. (I use the iPhone0
However, the feature that really made a huge difference for me is that two of my alarms have LABELS. One is labelled "get to work by 9 am" and one is labelled "get up for zoom call at 8". These two cover most of my work days and it really reduces the cognitive load to think about where I have to be when and not have to work backwards to the figure out what wakeup time I will need.
posted by metahawk at 6:00 PM on October 13
However, the feature that really made a huge difference for me is that two of my alarms have LABELS. One is labelled "get to work by 9 am" and one is labelled "get up for zoom call at 8". These two cover most of my work days and it really reduces the cognitive load to think about where I have to be when and not have to work backwards to the figure out what wakeup time I will need.
posted by metahawk at 6:00 PM on October 13
Response by poster: Thanks for sharing everyone. A little more background: we are both gen X, early 50's, so we grew up having clock radio as primary alarm, where you can't have 91 saved times. I get the sense that younger folk, more used to smart phones and tech aware, have more saved times. Also, some of you have special times for catching an airplane, something we almost never do. But that for us is setting very early alarms for catching a boat.
My wife would probably agree she's a bit OCD, and in some ways our styles clash big time, but in other ways they mesh even bigger time.
posted by vrakatar at 6:07 PM on October 13
My wife would probably agree she's a bit OCD, and in some ways our styles clash big time, but in other ways they mesh even bigger time.
posted by vrakatar at 6:07 PM on October 13
I'm GenX. I have 62 alarms on my iphone. Most are set on 0/15/30/45, but there are some on 10/20/50.
I use 9 of them to keep us on track every morning between "wake up" and "get kids to bus stop".
All of my standard work meeting times are in there, plus an alarm 10 or 15 minutes before them as a heads-up.
Alarms to pick up the kids from various activities. Alarms to remind them of online classes at night. Alarms to remind me to call Grandma at 4:30 on Friday.
I've deleted a lot of one-time alarms, like the 3:30 am wakeup before a flight or the 10:30 pm "get kid from homecoming dance".
posted by belladonna at 7:19 PM on October 13
I use 9 of them to keep us on track every morning between "wake up" and "get kids to bus stop".
All of my standard work meeting times are in there, plus an alarm 10 or 15 minutes before them as a heads-up.
Alarms to pick up the kids from various activities. Alarms to remind them of online classes at night. Alarms to remind me to call Grandma at 4:30 on Friday.
I've deleted a lot of one-time alarms, like the 3:30 am wakeup before a flight or the 10:30 pm "get kid from homecoming dance".
posted by belladonna at 7:19 PM on October 13
I have one that I reset as needed (not very often). I don't care what exact number it ends with because I'll hit snooze (9 minutes) several times unless I know I got to get going right away, which isn't often. I'm 60.
My spouse has many, many alarms, but I've never counted.
I am the tidy one by a large margin.
posted by perhapses at 7:44 PM on October 13
My spouse has many, many alarms, but I've never counted.
I am the tidy one by a large margin.
posted by perhapses at 7:44 PM on October 13
I get the sense that younger folk, more used to smart phones and tech aware, have more saved times.
For the record I'm Gen X and your age. I remember clocks that chimed on the fifteen minutes. My piano teacher had Westminster chimes. :)
I think it's funny that people are worrying about how many alarms others have stored. I promise, it's just a few more ones and zeros. It's been a neat question.
posted by warriorqueen at 8:47 PM on October 13
For the record I'm Gen X and your age. I remember clocks that chimed on the fifteen minutes. My piano teacher had Westminster chimes. :)
I think it's funny that people are worrying about how many alarms others have stored. I promise, it's just a few more ones and zeros. It's been a neat question.
posted by warriorqueen at 8:47 PM on October 13
Yeah, meant to note I'm 52. I've had at least a double-digit number of alarms since the first time I figured out how to do that on an iPhone, which was when I gave up my clock radio (where I used all 4 alarms).
posted by Lyn Never at 11:00 PM on October 13
posted by Lyn Never at 11:00 PM on October 13
I use the Philips sunlight clock which has a single setting for mornings, and then I have Alarmy with about 20-30 alarms set for various times, and I also use the default iphone alarm clock for some other timings. I also have alarms on my work calendar and at home, routinely go between several alarms on three timers around my house and an additional talking timer app on my phone (1timer).
Once a week, usually Sundays, I will check my calendar and set all my various alarms for the week ahead.
posted by dorothyisunderwood at 12:24 AM on October 14
Once a week, usually Sundays, I will check my calendar and set all my various alarms for the week ahead.
posted by dorothyisunderwood at 12:24 AM on October 14
I have 46 alarms on my iphone. I use five alarms for work mornings: two to pre-wake me (70 mins and 30 mins before get up time), one meaning get up, and two extra in case I ignore the get up one, which I usually switch off without needing.
I am NOT a tidy person though!
posted by Samarium at 4:13 AM on October 14
I am NOT a tidy person though!
posted by Samarium at 4:13 AM on October 14
Wasn't expecting to have my mind blown this early on a Monday but there it is.
I have ZERO saved alarms. None. Zilch. I set my wake up alarm the night before except on weekends. End of story.
posted by tafetta, darling! at 7:43 AM on October 14 [1 favorite]
I have ZERO saved alarms. None. Zilch. I set my wake up alarm the night before except on weekends. End of story.
posted by tafetta, darling! at 7:43 AM on October 14 [1 favorite]
I have 175 saved. Not on purpose, it just kind of happened over the years. Some of them are at the same time with different labels. They are pretty much around the clock. I'm Gen X. I will sometimes set an alarm on the hour, and then for three minutes after the hour in case the first one didn't wake me enough. I have used it as reminders to wake up from naps, to take certain pills, to take the garbage out. Some days I take a shower and some I don't so I get up at different times. I have had different jobs with different wake-up times. TO remind me when to clock in, clock out. So many different reasons. Some are weekend alarms, some are weekday.
posted by batonthefueltank at 9:50 AM on October 14 [1 favorite]
posted by batonthefueltank at 9:50 AM on October 14 [1 favorite]
I don’t have everyday set alarms so I just set one when I need it and periodically delete the whole lot of them when they creep up.
posted by TWinbrook8 at 2:00 PM on October 14
posted by TWinbrook8 at 2:00 PM on October 14
I have 26 saved times at mostly fifteen-minute intervals. I'd rather set three alarms than hit snooze even once--I find the snooze button a dangerous habit--and I don't delete previous alarms I've set. Why bother? I may need it later!
posted by epj at 3:02 PM on October 14
posted by epj at 3:02 PM on October 14
My iPhone is indeed my alarm clock. I have seven alarms:
Wake up
Failsafe (for when it's super important I wake up on time)
Leave soon
4 hour check/replace cat food
5 hour check/replace cat food (if it still looked OK at the 4-hour mark)
Pull cat food inside (before dark, for the kibble I leave out for hungry visiting cats; my cat is indoors only)
Call Dad every Sunday
All except the last one have their times set as needed. Some may not be set at all on a given day. Sometimes I add a one-time-only alarm. I'm retired, so my schedule can be quite variable.
posted by jeri at 10:40 PM on October 14
Wake up
Failsafe (for when it's super important I wake up on time)
Leave soon
4 hour check/replace cat food
5 hour check/replace cat food (if it still looked OK at the 4-hour mark)
Pull cat food inside (before dark, for the kibble I leave out for hungry visiting cats; my cat is indoors only)
Call Dad every Sunday
All except the last one have their times set as needed. Some may not be set at all on a given day. Sometimes I add a one-time-only alarm. I'm retired, so my schedule can be quite variable.
posted by jeri at 10:40 PM on October 14
Geriatric millennial with one (1) alarm on Android.
I'm the tidy one in the household (or control freak, as my partner would say). I thought one or maybe maximum three alarms were the norm and found the first answers in this thread WILD.
This looks like a great addition to YouWHAT on the MeFiWiki!
posted by lioness at 1:37 AM on October 15 [1 favorite]
I'm the tidy one in the household (or control freak, as my partner would say). I thought one or maybe maximum three alarms were the norm and found the first answers in this thread WILD.
This looks like a great addition to YouWHAT on the MeFiWiki!
posted by lioness at 1:37 AM on October 15 [1 favorite]
I've got random alarms from midnight to 9AM.
00:00
02:30
03:00
03:30
04:00
04:15
04:45
05:00
05:25
05:30
05:45
05:50
06:00
06:30
06:45
07:00
07:15
07:30
08:00
08:30
09:00
The 7AM one is the one that would normally be on, but even that's off these days. I guess I'm just waking up on time because of my spouse and cat.
Looking at this list kind of hurts me but it's more hassle to individually delete the alarms than it is to scroll down in the event I need to set one.
posted by any portmanteau in a storm at 4:22 PM on October 15
00:00
02:30
03:00
03:30
04:00
04:15
04:45
05:00
05:25
05:30
05:45
05:50
06:00
06:30
06:45
07:00
07:15
07:30
08:00
08:30
09:00
The 7AM one is the one that would normally be on, but even that's off these days. I guess I'm just waking up on time because of my spouse and cat.
Looking at this list kind of hurts me but it's more hassle to individually delete the alarms than it is to scroll down in the event I need to set one.
posted by any portmanteau in a storm at 4:22 PM on October 15
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posted by fluffy battle kitten at 9:34 PM on October 12 [1 favorite]