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This is fascinating. What do deaf people normally do in lieu of alarm clocks?
by ahoy 13y ago
This is fascinating. What do deaf people normally do in lieu of alarm clocks?
- andyjohnson0 13y agoI believe vibrating or very loud alarms are commonly used. http://www.amazon.co.uk/s/?ie=UTF8&keywords=alarm+clocks+for+the+deaf http://www.amazon.co.uk/s/?ie=UTF8&keywords=alarm+clocks+for...
- MatthewWilkes 13y agoBright light ones seemed quite popular in the deaf flats at my university.
- andyhmltn 13y agoGreat idea. OP: Why not allow the app to use the camera flash as well? I (am not deaf) would prefer to have it on my desk so it can actually listen rather than under a pillow where I'm more likely to knock it out of reach
- alexvr 13y agoThanks. Everyone seems to want a visual cue as well. I'll definitely look into using the flash!
- primitivesuave 13y agoMy girlfriend is partially deaf in one ear, so sometimes she will oversleep if she is lying on her good ear. A while back I built her an Arduino-powered alarm clock that uses a servo to repeatedly poke her with a foam finger (those big hands you wear at football games). It was a shoddy prototype, but the cool part was it synchronized with her iCal calendar. So, to answer your question, some [partially] deaf people use a makeshift Arduino robot that is duct taped to the wall next to their bed.
- mbateman 13y agoPlease tell me you have photos and documentation for this.
- gms7777 13y agoOh my goodness, that's brilliant. My boyfriend is partially deaf and also the heaviest sleeper I've ever met, and oversleeps pretty regularly even with the loudest blaring alarm I've ever heard, a wake-up light, and a vibrating alarm under his pillow. As a relatively light sleeper with normal hearing this combination nearly gives me a heart attack every morning, while he barely rolls over until I hit him enough times to actually wake him up and turn his alarm clock off, but if I'm not there he tends to oversleep a lot. To answer GP's question, some partially deaf people use grumpy significant others as an alarm clock. But I might have to look into a similar robotic setup.
- mietek 13y agoI love it. Fantastic. Please share some project documentation.
- ozh 13y agoI have a deaf friend: she puts her cellphone under her (thin) pillow to feel vibration instead of hearing sounds
- dbloom 13y agoiOS has a built-in accessibility setting to flash the camera LED for alerts and calls: http://www.cnet.com/how-to/ios-5-tip-how-to-enable-led-flash-alerts/ http://www.cnet.com/how-to/ios-5-tip-how-to-enable-led-flash... (Anecdotally, I don't actually know any deaf people, so I don't know how effective this is as a way to wake people up...but some of my friends who have perfectly good hearing use this feature because they prefer it to having their phone make loud noises for calls and notifications. So it's good for that, too.)
- zevyoura 13y agoI've seen this feature touted before, but I don't get it. For 99% of my use, my iPhone is either face-up or in my pocket, making this useless since the camera LED is hidden. If it's face-up, I can already see the alert, including the actual content of the notification.
- gojomo 13y agoI often have my phone on a nearby surface, table or chair. Even if face down, my case maintains a slight clearance letting enough of the light out to be noticed at a distance. I believe person who initially showed me this feature kept her phone in a open-top handbag. Again, whatever the phone orientation, the reflected bright notification flickering would often be noticeable. The notification flashes are somewhat negative distractions in dark places like a car at night, or theater, if the phone has been left on lap or seat. Also, it may sometimes give third parties the mistaken impression you're taking photos when you're not.
- roberthahn 13y agoI use a vibrating alarm clock. It's a regular alarm with a wire going to a bed shaker (a 3/4" high disk with a vibrating mechanism inside - much like the ones in game controllers). The shaker is located between the mattress and box spring under my head. Sometimes it startles me awake, which is an unpleasant feeling, but it works for me all the time. And, given that we have a foam mattress, the buzzing is absorbed enough for my wife to easily sleep through it.
- sizzle 13y agoNever heard of this product, can you link me please? It's what I've always wanted
- burntwater 13y agoThere are a number of such products, the most popular are probably from Sonic Alert - http://www.sonicalert.com/Alarm-Clocks-s/1819.htm http://www.sonicalert.com/Alarm-Clocks-s/1819.htm I recently discovered Bellman & Symfon, a Swedish company that has some very attractive (naturally) products. Their vibratating/flashing alarm clocks integrate with wireless smoke detectors. I can easily get a stand-alone strobed smoke detector in just my bedroom, but that doesn't help if the other end of the apartment is in flames. http://www.bellman.com/en/our-solutions/fire-safety-solutions/ http://www.bellman.com/en/our-solutions/fire-safety-solution...
- sizzle 13y agothanks for the reply, I will try one of these out
- roberthahn 13y agoThanks for replying, burntwater!
- roberthahn 13y agoThis is the one that I have: http://www.headsetexperts.com/clarity_601_p/601.htm http://www.headsetexperts.com/clarity_601_p/601.htm I've had mine for years; I'm surprised they're still making it - I've gotten used to the 'cult of the new' lifestyle that seems so prevalent. :)
- aestra 13y agoBed shaking alarms http://www.walmart.com/ip/Clarity-Alarm-Clock-With-Bed-Shaker-And-Lamp-Flasher/10715040 http://www.walmart.com/ip/Clarity-Alarm-Clock-With-Bed-Shake...