The document reviews four sleep tracking devices that automatically detect sleep patterns without user input. The Sense device stands out for its minimal intrusion and environmental monitoring capabilities, while the Basis Peak offers advanced sleep analysis. Despite differences in accuracy across devices, the author expresses concerns about data standardization and integration with health apps.

1. 1 night sleep tracking
Group Test: 4 “auto detect” sleep trackers
Maneesh Juneja
19th May 2015
@maneeshjuneja
Maneeshjuneja.com

2. Disclosure
•I have no commercial ties to any of the manufacturers
of devices in this test
•All devices were purchased with my own funds
Purpose of test
•Examining technology that claims to ‘auto detect’
sleep patterns. No user input required. No buttons to
press. No need to keep phone on at night.
•To compare and contrast the user experience & results
of using these 4 devices to track my sleep during 1
night

3. Devices used in the test
Top left: Basis Peak – worn on left arm
Top right: Mi Band, Microsoft Band (far right) –
both worn on right arm
Bottom Left: Sense (needs to be plugged into
wall socket, placed near bed, and connected
to home wifi)
Bottom right: Sleep pill from Sense that is
attached to pillow

4. A bit more about Sense
• No need to wear anything around your wrist, body or have a sensor
underneath your bedsheet – the least intrusive sleep tracking system
I’ve tried so far
• Sleep pill has a 1 year battery life & can even survive being washed in
the washing machine
• The data from the Sense device on bedside table automatically
uploads via your home wifi – no need to initiate a sync via phone app
• Sense system also alerts you to issues in your sleep environment
(humidity, temperature, noise, light)
• Once you’ve set it up, paired the Sense & the sleep pill, that’s it

5. Sense – beyond just measuring your sleep

6. Sense – checking the quality of my sleep environment

7. How much did each device cost?
Device Price Country of origin
Basis Peak £169.99 USA
Microsoft Band £169.99 USA
Sense* £76 USA
Mi Band £17.69 China
* I got this price as I backed the Kickstarter campaign in Nov 2014.
Current price is £86 from their website (assuming £1=$1.5)

8. Overall results
I went to bed at 12.34am, and woke up at 4.59am
Let’s see how accurate the devices are.
Note:
*I synced my MS band data with my MS Band app on my phone upon waking. Even 3 hours after doing that, my auto
detect sleep data is not showing in the app. Next slide may explains more on this issue.
Device Phone OS I used for app
Automatic detection of sleep
by device
Start time of sleep –
from device
What time I woke up –
from device
Time to fall asleep - from
device
Sense iOS Yes 12.29am 5.02am 0 minutes
Basis Peak Android Yes 12.39am 4.59am
4 minutes (inferred since
device says I slept from
12.39am)
MS Band iOS Yes Waiting for data* Waiting for data* Waiting for data*
Mi Band Android Yes 12.39am 4.42am 4 minutes

9. MS band – auto detect – waiting for data
• Other users report delays of up to 6 hours for this data to appear in
the app

10. Overall results – further data from app
The Basis Peak has the most advanced sleep staging analysis of all the devices, even
highlighting REM sleep. REM sleep is when people do their most active dreaming.
Interesting that the dirt cheap Mi Band has deep sleep very close to the deep sleep
reported by the much more expensive Basis Peak. Maybe a coincidence?
Strange that the Sense reports 0 minutes of deep sleep.
Device Light sleep Deep sleep Restful sleep REM Sleep Awake for Overall Score
Sense n/a 0 minutes n/a n/a 0 minutes 65 (Sleep score)
Basis Peak 55% (2 hours 23 minutes) 21% (54 minutes) n/a 24% (1 hour 3 minutes) n/a 41% (Sleep score)
MS Band *Waiting for data *Waiting for data *Waiting for data n/a n/a *Waiting for data
Mi Band 3 hours 41 minutes 1 hour n/a n/a 24 minutes n/a

11. Screenshots from each app

12. Sense

13. Sense

14. Sense

15. Sense – auto detect of when you got into bed is not perfect

16. Sense
Overall visual of my sleep
What does moving around
quite a bit mean?
Press a bar to see what type of sleep
you had ( wider bar = more time )

17. Sense – integration with Apple’s Health app is a big bonus

18. Basis Peak

19. Basis Peak

20. Microsoft Band
Waiting for data

21. Mi Band

22. Mi Band
Integration of
Mi Band with
Apple’s Health
app is
remarkable
given the device
is so cheap

23. Screenshots from web
dashboard

24. Basis Peak
Being able
to compare
last night
against my
average
is a useful
feature

25. Basis Peak
Nothing
looks strange.
If I showed
this chart to
my doctor,
would it be
useful?

26. Initial thoughts - 1
• Automatic sleep detection is still not perfect
• Need to determine why data from MS Band takes so many hours to
appear in the app – apparently, the auto detect data has to be
processed in the cloud by some algorithms, hence the delay
• The delay in the MS Band data appearing is annoying from a user
perspective
• Interesting to see Sense helping you monitor your bedroom
environment as well as tracking sleep
• Design of Sense (devices & app) simpler & superior to others

27. Initial thoughts - 2
• I’m concerned by the definitions of light and deep sleep – shouldn’t
there be standards across all devices and apps? Why does deep
sleep differ depending upon which device I use?
• Integration of sleep data into Apple’s Health app is very useful
(Sense & Mi Band)
• Concerned about accuracy of sleep data now that it’s integrated
with Apple’s health app – especially if one day linked to my medical
records/health insurer’s database/research study
• Could sleep tracking become more accessible via a low cost device
such as a Mi Band?

28. Initial thoughts - 3
• Sense system may not appeal to those seeking lots of data about
their sleep, but may have wider appeal for average consumer
• Sense is definitely the easiest sleep tracking system to live with
• However, Sense may not be great if you travel a lot, as the device is
plugged into the wall socket
• Further multiple tests needed to observe how insights from each
app develop once more sleep data captured
• Will need to test the ‘smart’ alarm functionality in future too
• Independent validation of data required

29. Adverts linked to changes in your sleep data?
If not sleeping pills,
what if it was a coupon
for a new mattress
from IKEA? Or a
coupon for late night
bars if you’re an
insomniac?
OR
Messages from your
doctor/health insurer
if your sleep patterns
change considerably?

30. How has this testing helped me?
• It’s made me much more conscious of how little I sleep as well as
the quality of my sleep
• I have blackout curtains but here in London, it gets light from
4.30am at the moment, so maybe I need to try going to bed earlier
• I drink coffee even as late as 5pm – could that be impacting my
sleep?
• Two actions for myself over the next week:
• Aim to be in bed by 10.30pm
• No drinking of tea or coffee after 1pm