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This alarm clock could finally kick your awful snooze-button habit

Have trouble getting out of bed? The Ruggie alarm clock floor mat on Kickstarter makes you sit or stand up to turn the alarm off, and it doesn't have a snooze button.

Anthony Domanico
CNET freelancer Anthony Domanico is passionate about all kinds of gadgets and apps. When not making words for the Internet, he can be found watching Star Wars or "Doctor Who" for like the zillionth time. His other car is a Tardis.
Anthony Domanico
2 min read
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Ruggie

When it comes to waking up in the morning, are you a frequent snoozer? Snoozing may give you that extra 5-10 minutes of sleep, but science says hitting the snooze button just ends up making you more tired.

Almost every alarm clock out there has a snooze setting that tempts you to go back to sleep for a few minutes, but a new Kickstarter project called Ruggie promises a clock that could jar you right out of your bad snooze habit. In fact, it doesn't have a snooze button at all.

The Ruggie is a memory-foam mat you place on the floor next to your bed. It has a built-in LED display that shows the time, and it plays a selection of standard alarm tones or soothing nature sounds to help wake you up. To turn the alarm off, you'll need to place both feet on the mat for at least three seconds, which means you'll either need to be sitting or standing up to disable the alarm.

Once you've done that, you're supposedly less likely to go back to sleep as your body will start to wake up naturally, especially since you have to actually get out of bed to reset the alarm. The controls for the alarm are housed in a hidden zipper pocket under the device, so you either have to get out of bed or pull the mat up into the bed with you to reset it.

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You can upload sounds to the Ruggie like your favorite wake-up music or an inspirational saying to be said out aloud once you disable the alarm. For instance, the company's promo video has a pretty-much-perfect wake-up message from Arnold Schwarzenegger: "Ready to kick some a**? Come on! You can do it! Do it now! Have a wonderful day."

The company has already raised more than $76,000 (about £52,000, AU$110,000), far surpassing its $36,000 goal (about £25,000, AU$52,000).

Those interested can order a Ruggie for $79 (about £55, AU$115), plus $15 shipping to the US or $20 (about £15, AU$30) to the UK and Australia. Orders are expected to make it to backers in September, provided the company doesn't run into any production issues.

Or, of course, you could just build your own DIY face-slapping alarm clock that won't let you sleep in, but I'd personally rather ease into being awake than wake up to a smack in the face.