Pegasi Smart Sleep Glasses 2.0: Review
In this post I am going to discuss a new product that I bought. The Pegasi smart sleep glasses, which are advertised as helping jet lag, insomnia and helping poor sleep. I have been wearing these for 9 days straight, and let me tell you this, this is a product well worth the price.
Introduction
What is it? It’s designed to help combat sleep disorders due to abnormalities in circadian rhythms as well as help you sleep better. The Chinese business Pegasi had launched their first generation of smart sleep glasses which was a simple, easy to use product that works by emitting light.
After a relatively successful start with the first version, the second version was released in the Summer of 2018. They tend to be better in terms of fitting, better battery life and sleeker in design.
How does it work?
At Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine scientists discovered new type of light-sensitive cell in our eyes back in 2002. We now know that the eyes not only help us see, but they also utilize light to allow us to adjust our internal rhythm.
Think back to when we were cave people, we woke up to light and when the sunset we retreated to our den/cave and wound down for the day and went to sleep. This is the relationship of light in a nutshell to our body clock. In this modern day we know that disruption of this clock (think jet lag) can affect concentration, energy levels and mood.
Certain types of light have different effects at different times of the days. Blue light or green light in the morning helps to stimulate us, but also can affect us later on in the day (hence the recommendation to avoid computers and phones). Therefore, by controlling the amount of light we are exposed to at certain times of the day, we can adjust our body clock to the more appropriate timing.
This was actually already used as a treatment (with success), but it was difficult due it keeping you stationary whereas this allows portability. That’s why their advertisements focus on how you can prepare food, check emails and do other things whilst using these glasses.
First Use
Upon opening the package, it is a very sleek device. I like the black color and it fits nicely. You have to charge it before use and it comes with all the usual packaging, including a USB port for charging. It also folds and a box is provided to help store it if you so wish. At the top part of the frame is where the light emits and on the right side of the frame that extends to the ear, is where the on/off button is. The slot to charge the glasses is actually quite well hidden and at times difficult to open up.
Once you switch it on, you can walk around as you like, the light is not too bright and usually they time for 30 minutes before switching automatically off. Considering it is mid November and the sunrise is usually after 7am and I wake up as early as 530am, using these glasses first thing in the morning has been great for regulating my circadian rhythm. I now, get up straight away and put them on. I wouldn’t use them however, when you need unobstructed views, which is why walking (the penny pinching doc doesn’t drive!) to work is probably not advisable. It is very important that you follow their instructions with regards to timing of the light, as using it at different times can disrupt your rhythm.
In the 9 days that I have used it, the battery life is brilliant, and I haven’t had to recharge it yet.
Does it work?
Absolutely, well for me at least. The last few winters I have struggled with the early mornings in the dark and my mood (although always subjective) has been better and that post lunch dip in energy has gone. Although I can’t attest completely, I feel my sleep is better quality and I fall asleep at a set time every evening. I also feel that I start feeling tired at a more predictable time in the evening and starts the bedtime routine.
Pegasi App
There is also an app which they recommend to use. The app can be set up to the glasses via Bluetooth and it can help monitor battery life and also adjust the “strength” of the light emitted and therefore the duration of light therapy. I personally haven’t used this, as so far I have noticed good results with the current settings. There are also questionnaires that you can answer to help with the quality of the sleep but I have not tried that yet. It could do with a bit of work as there still seems like there could be things to improve on, like how to use with shift work or jet lag.
Cost
Now the whole point of this blog is where to save money and is it worth it! Absolutely it is, your health and your sleep are one of the crucial things to enjoying life. I got lucky with a 30 dollar amazon coupon (I bought extras for my family after the first week) which drops the price to $189. I used the Discover credit card, as this quarter is great for Target and Amazon so I got another 9 dollars off due to 5% cashback. I would recommend getting this quickly, although maybe there will be a Black Friday special worth even more, before this coupon goes away.
Verdict
I highly recommend this if seasonal affective disorder is something that can affect you in the mild sense but remember medical problems always should be checked by a qualified medical doctor. I also think this can be used for jet lag (the PPD- penny pinching doctor- loves to travel). I plan to use this with the website jet lag rooster to help my next few trips where I will be crossing timezones.
Featured photo courtesy of Pegasi website