Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

I had the opportunity to be woke up only one time by this device in a pleasant "Oh the Sun is rising!" manner. I felt more awake and less exhausted then I typically do and was surprised at such a result. This is the only reason I am providing two stars for this product, instead of one. It almost... ALMOST convinced me that these sunrise simulation alarms are the way to go with morning routines. Reality of course, quickly became apparent for me, because after that one occurrence I haven't been graced by such morning serenity ever since. This is mostly due to the alarm clock quite literally failing to do it's job. I've lost count of how many times my alarm flat out never went off (or "lit up" rather) because the clock just dropped an alarm. I'd go to sleep with the mindset that my alarm was set for the correct time in the morning, and NOPE instead I wake up to my back up Google Pixel phone alarm because this device; put simply, is unreliable and cannot be trusted to wake you properly in the morning. Quite frankly the lack of quality control here is absurd. The touch buttons on this device are about 45% responsive. Enjoy spending 2 minutes setting a damn alarm because of this. Oh and the best part: If by chance you are a heavier sleeper and don't wake up to the initial 30 minutes of "sunrise" you a greeted by some of the most garbled, tin can, ear piercing sound effects you could ask for. I was promised song birds as one of the sound effects to be woke with. The reality is that they are the most ANNOYING bird sounds they could have possibly chosen. Far from pleasant, and the total lack of audio quality certainly does not help. I will admit, that 1 or 2 of the 6 total sound effects aren't THAT BAD... but again, this is 2018... There are speakers on old cassette players that sound better than this. This is one of the first Amazon reviews I've ever done, and I debated for awhile which one of these types of sunrise clocks I should go with. The Phillips Wake up Light appeared to be profoundly expensive. (100$ for an alarm clock with no battery back up? What century are we living in folks?) Anyway, I elected to go with the economical choice and decided to give hOmeLabs a try. Boy what a mistake that was. I would not recommend this alarm clock to anyone, unless I felt it would be a funny prank to ruin their current morning routine. I can only see a device like this bringing frustration in one's morning rather than peace and tranquility. Quite unfortunate, as I really wanted to believe these sunrise clocks were worth all the praise they are given. After my experience with this device, I am less certain, and even more skeptical to pursue alternatives. I will attempt a return, and if no luck there... it's straight to the trash with this hogwash.