Sometimes an application just cuts to the heart of life in the real world and proves a perfect match. aSleep Kids Edition is such a program – it’s designed for one scenario and one only, but it fulfills its role perfectly, getting your baby or toddler off to sleep reliably and with you in full control, with music, light and sensible power management.
If you’ve never had a child then you’ll probably have already skipped this review. If you’re still reading then you’ll know exactly why this application is essential. In fact, it works better than you could ever imagine, smarter than the smartest electronic baby music toy. You lay your son or daughter down to sleep, kiss them goodnight and then fire up aSleep Kids Edition. Its one set up screen is intuitive and quick to get going, remembering your previous settings. You tap (in order) ‘Timer’, ‘Start’, ‘Close’, ‘Play’ (see below for comments!) and the application does the rest, playing the lullaby of your choice at the volume of your choice for the duration of your choice, all the while (optionally) keeping the screen lit so that there’s a soothing light in the room for your child to be aware of.
Clever stuff. At the end of the set timer period, the application even fades the music out gradually (so that the child’s subconscious doesn’t register a change in environment and startle them into waking up again) and then closes itself, so that the iPhone’s battery doesn’t get fully run down.
It’s hard to fault an application which is already so fully formed, but a way of starting the timer and playing the lullaby in one tap rather than four would be a good enhancement to roll into an upgrade. The current system (detailed above) is unnecessarily cumbersome. One warning for use of this application though – it’s liable to send you to sleep faster than your child, so make sure you exit the room right after hitting ‘Play’!
For any parent of a child under 5 years old, this is a must-buy.