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Rating:  -
Well I have to say that the second guy that reviewed this clock must really be a coma patient, because if this thing doesnt wake you up, then nothing will.
I am a very deep sleeper. I can sleep through earthquakes, kids, and every other alarm clock known to man. I was habitually late when it came to getting up in the morning. I have have slept through my alarms on most occasions and when woken up, had never even heard them. To put it another way, on a scale of 1 to 10, on how deep one can sleep, I'm a 10.
At one time when I was single, and had no one else to consider, I had a home theater system with a built in alarm function. I would set it to about half volume and set it on a hard rock CD. This would be so loud that I would on occasion fall out of bed, and most times be scared when it went off. If I had a heart condition I would be dead, thats how loud. This is the first and only alarm clock that has come close to giving me that same feeling when it wakes me up. It has a very distinct and random tone, very reminiscent of R2-D2, and it is very loud. To top it off he will run and hide, although this is not what has forced me to get up, it has been the alarm sound itself.
When I first purchased this alarm and tried it out, I allowed it to run and it went to the middle of my California king. I couldnt reach it to shut it off. If this had been a real situation I would have definately been wide awake. Since I have actually begun using it though I have found that I have not given it a chance to run, because as soon as it hits the floor I am on it and awake, as it scares me awake.
The only bad thing is that it runs on batteries, which for me only seem to last a couple weeks. That being said, since I am always on time now it seems like a small price to pay. Would have been a better design if it had built in rechargeables and sat on a dock most of the time.
All in all I totally recommend this Clock.
Rating:  -
This clock is not for anyone with a heart condition or gentle constitution. Clocky went off, clanging and whistling some some mechanical banshee, and I nearly jumped out of my skin, clinging to the ceiling by my fingernails like a cartoon cat.
Perfect.
If you're starting to habituate to your present alarm clock, press the snooze button to often or find the process of waking up pales in comparison to anything the Marquis de Sade could come up with, then this is the clock for you.
Rating:  -
Here's the good:
-The alarm is extremely loud, jarring, and unpredictable. There is NO way you could ever sleep through it.
-The controls are easy to use.
-It's smaller than I thought it would be, so it fits easily on the nightstand.
-When given the right opportunities, it really does "run off" and cause you to get out of bed.
The bad:
-The button you use to turn off the alarm really TURNS OFF the alarm. If you don't remember to hit again, your alarm will be OFF and won't go off the next morning. So, shutting off the alarm turns it off completely. I got caught by that once or twice. :-(
-Clocky is kind of stupid and doesn't have a large variety of programmed paths. Mine always tries to take a left after jumping off the table and ends up bonking into stuff under the bed uselessly until I turn it off or snooze. It stays easily within my reach. If I put it on the floor after I hit snooze the first time, it tends to do better.
-I'll have to see if after extended use the alarm really drives me (or my fiance) crazy.
Rating:  -
INTRO:
So, So Alarm Clock / Generally Not Worth It / I Don't Recommend It
I bought this product from J&R on Amazon. I would not recommend it because it was NOT effective at waking me up--it is about as effective as a regular alarm clock (except it costs $50). I would personally not re-buy this product and thought it was a waste of money. The other reviewer who gave it 5-stars along with a "Perfect" review doesn't seem like a real, genuine user of the product (and probably has an interest in selling it)
POSITIVES:
--It is very elegant and well designed (cosmetically but not necessarily mechanically)
--The ring tone sounds like a small robot (unlike the traditional alarm clock buzz)
--Very simple to use
--The blue backlight is very nice
--It is the only alarm clock I have ever seen that lets you decide how many minutes you want between snoozes, you can pick 0,1,2,3...9 minutes in between snoozes (most alarm clocks are factory fixed at 9 mins, some are 4 mins, some are 7 mins, but this is the only I have seen that lets you decide)
NEGATIVES:
--Uses 4 AAA batteries (AAA batteries run deplete faster than any other battery type. The energy in an AAA battery is one third that of a AA battery, so the costs add up pretty fast)
--The battery compartment is closed and opened by a screw which is extremely difficult to open and close (I am very good tools, but found this screw to be very difficult to close and open; I finally resorted to not screwing it once I got it open; instead, I use masking tape to keep the battery compartment door closed because the screw mechanism is very poorly designed).
--The movement is not all that I expected. It doesn't travel the room or anything as I was expecting. It doesn't move any great distance. It basically drops itself from the nightstand and moves around in different directions within 1.5 ft radius. It generally doesn't go further than 1/2 yard. Although its movements do grab attention, they are easy to ignore if you in bed and sleep right through it.
--If you are used to the convention "hold Time Button down" or "hold Alarm Button down" and set it, you will get confused with this because its innovative system requires you to push the alarm or time button once, then release quickly, and then set the time. If you keep holding it down (like 99% of other alarm clocks), it won't set time.
CONCLUSION:
It is a very elegant looking alarm clock (if you are willing to pay $50). Its effectiveness it not much than a regular alarm clock. If you already have a nice regular alarm, you don't need this. You pay $50 for nice cosmetic design but not for function or practical utility or application.
Rating: -
I've acquired quite a collection of alarm clocks over the years in the search for the perfect one. And while Clocky isn't perfect, it is definitely the best one I've seen so far.
1. The alarm tone is adorable and (most importantly) somewhat random. Unlike the traditional Casio or Timex alarms, which sound like fire alarms, Clocky sounds like R2D2 going crazy. I hate all alarm clock sounds with a passion, but somehow I haven't been able to fall in hate with clocky. That sound is just too darned cute (and somewhat random, which helps).
2. The actual running around functionality is a little gimmocky but effective. The thing is, clocky doesn't run until after you've snoozed once, so you have incentive to get up (this can be configured from 10 to 0 minutes, thus effectively immediately buzzing and running). But overall, it works. Clocky runs until he gets stuck on a wall or a discarded bit of clothing, and makes a bunch of noise. You've got to figure out where he went and drag him back.
While I had imagined some sort of light hop to the ground, Clocky actually lands on the ground with a resounding thud. It does have 4 batteries in it. I once accidentally put clocky on the dresser over my bed, and woke to a 3 pound alarm clock falling 4 feet onto my chest. While this little thing feels hugely sturdy for an alarm clock, I can't imagine clocky would be too happy long term if you put it up more than 3 feet off the ground and had hardwood floors. Still, It's probably more safe to throw across the room than most alarm clocks.
3. They've also fixed a lot of the little problems with most clock interfaces. For one the buttons are easy to press and interact with. Changing the time isn't a tedius experience, as the key repeat rate is much faster and more responsive than most clocks. Otherwise, it's press a button, get a response, with a clean and simple UI. The only unintuitive function was setting the snooze time (hold down the alarm time), but otherwise the UI is beautiful.
There are two problems, though they don't quite detract enough to drop the a full 5 star score.
1. The button to turn off the alarm is simple and easy enough to press that the first few weeks I found myself pressing it accidentally every now and then, thus turning off the alarm.
2. If you have a cluttered landing site, Clocky may turn himself off as he jumps. If he lands just right (or, well, somewhat right) he'll hit that aforementioned button himself, and shut down.
Overall, of the 12 alarm clocks I currently own, Clocky is the only one I still use on a daily basis. If you hate conventional alarm clocks, I recommend trying this one. So far for me it has been great.
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