Sensorwake wakes you with a timed release of an aroma of your choice rather than a ringtone. Like an espresso machine, users choose their preferred scent by inserting a recyclable, 30-use capsule. When the alarm goes off, Sensorwake pops open a hatch and gradually releases fragrance until nearby sleepers wake up.
The brainchild of 19-year-old Guillaume Rolland, an engineering student from France, the Sensorwake was successfully crowd-funded last year to the tune of US$200,000, and Rolland is now taking pre-orders for retail units that will ship in the first half of 2016.
The device functions a little bit like a toaster, with reusable scent capsules inserted into a slot along the top edge of the clock. Each capsule lasts for “30 awakenings”, meaning you’ll get about a month out of a scent before you need to replace it.
At launch, there will be six aromas available via the Sensorwake website, with plans to sell them via retail outlets later (provided the product is enough of a success, we’re guessing).
Aromas are bundled in packs. There’s the delicious-sounding ‘Continental Breakfast Pack’, which comes with one Espresso aroma capsule and one Hot Croissant capsule. The ‘Enjoy the Break Pack’ includes Seaside (monoi, tiare flower) and Lush Jungle (cut grass, leaves). There’s also the ‘Vitalisation Aromatherapy Pack’, which offers a Chocolate aroma plus Invigorating Peppermint. Mmm!
Rolland claims that the Sensorwake is just as good as audio alarms, with internal testing showing his scent-based alarm wakes 99 percent of people in 2 minutes.
The Sensorwake comes with an insurance policy for any sleepers who aren’t roused by its primary feature. For extra-heavy sleepers or those with stuffed noses who don’t register the scent, there’s a backup audio alarm that’s triggered to go off if the aroma hasn’t woken you up within 3 minutes.
Would always use the coffee smell!