Zeo Sleep Manager Pro, Black

Edit: According to the BBB, Zeo, Inc has gone out of business[...] (Via internet research) I called a company that recently invested in Zeo Inc, to confirm. They confirmed that it has gone out of business. They said it is possible that the product will be bought and sold again to consumers by another company. In the meantime, there is no customer support for repairs, apps, replacements, etc. The investor was very kind to give me one of his extra Zeos when I told him about my problem. It sounds like he only has a couple, so this is not a long term solution for Zeo users. I'm still giving this product two stars because it was a great product, but I recommend that you DO NOT BUY IT, as many users seem to need technical support, and it is no longer available. Also many of the web features are no longer available, and from talking to the investor it sounds like there will be little to no web support at some point in the future. Original Review (three stars): I loved my Zeo. I didn't have any problems with the headband, and it was comfortable. The tracking seemed accurate. The Android app was great and easy to use, the web tracking app was the same, and the coaching program was useful and enjoyable. Then, two weeks after I purchased my Zeo, it started running out of battery partway through the night... and within a few days, stopped working altogether. I communicated with customer service via email, and after some trouble shooting, they told me to send it in to be fixed or replaced. That was in November. In January, I contacted them to ask when my Zeo would be returned. They told me that they had already sent it, and their tracking information indicated I had already received it. I told them I had *not* in fact received it, and they told me they would look into it. (I have Amazon Prime and use it regularly, and have no problem with product delivery.) Then they disappeared. The next thing I got from them was a mass email telling me that they would no longer respond to customer support emails, but I was welcome to use 'the new Self Service Customer Support Center' online. So, I did at one point have a Zeo. It was very nice. But given the short period of time I was able to use it, I'm not sure the value for money was there.

Self measurement is important to me and of all the devices I use I think this one is my favorite. After only a few days you won't even notice the headband, and it does a great job of tracking sleep in ways actigraphy devices (e.g. Fitbit or Wakemate) cannot. For maximum effectiveness though, it is great to combine this with an actigraphy device (I recommend Fitbit over Wakemate since it is useful in so many other ways). One thing I noticed right off the bat is how well the Zeo matches my real sleep results. For example, when I recall having so many dream sessions I can see the graph and clearly see three REM sleep periods during the night. The mobile application is essential since this connects to a mobile device by bluetooth. I synchronize with my Nexus 7 tablet. You can view the sleep graph on the device, but much of the software is on the web and not usable by the mobile app. Also a bit awkward is if you want to view your data on another mobile device. You will have to pair your headband with that device too, then pair it back to the main one. I did this to be able to view my data on my Galaxy Nexus, even though it isn't the device I paired the headband with. This is a little strange. You should be able to just enter credentials and see your data. The device you paired with will automatically upload your data to the Zeo web application as soon as you redock the headband every morning. This is a big improvement over the bedside version, which requires you to manually upload a file from the SD card. This way, your data is always there in the morning so you can log your sleep journal before you forget things. The proprietary ZQ value actually does seem to correlate well to sleep quality. I find that when I sleep well I do indeed have a higher ZQ, and vice versa. Perhaps if there is any one flaw it is that overall sleep time is overemphasized, versus the time spent in deep and REM sleep. I also think it would be interesting if their software supported biphasic or polyphasic sleep and/or napping. None of those apply to me but I would love to experiment. You can get raw data yourself if you like, since the API is open. However this device does not provide live data. For that you need the bedside edition. If you want live data I think a NeuroSky is a better device, though. Now for the downsides. The web software needs some real work. It is a Flash application (bleh!) and has some of the same horrible UE decisions that any other Flex application will have. For example, they can track 26 facts about your day for every day, and use this to correlate things to your sleep quality. This is great, except their UI can only handle 7 at a time. To set the other values, you have to open a configuration dialog, untoggle the current 7 items, and check 7 new ones. Then save to see the new set of items of set those values. Then repeat. You will have to do this 4 times for every single day. You can also track arbitrary things, but only 3 per category, and you can't specify a name for your value. Zeo really needs to update to a modern, HTML UI with better UE. In the end, despite some flaws, this is still the single best device for sleep analysis by far. Every self tracker should have one.

We gave it to our daughter for Christmas because she has problem sleeping. Did not help her sleep better, but defined her sleep patterns which she feels is helpful.

If ever a product deserved a one star review, it would be this. I owned the Zeo sleep manager pro plus and originally loved the sleep feedback. I still love the feedback when it works. My first device broke and I received a replacement. A few months later, the pro plus stopped working again. I was advised (when you could still talk to a human at zeo) to purchase new headbands. I spent 50.00 for a new headband and the problem persisted. I gave up on the zeo pro plus. I did miss the sleep feedback information so when I noticed there was a new version called simply the sleep manager pro, I purchased it in hopes that it would be more reliable and easier to use. It is horrible!!!! It takes about an hour each night to try to get it to sync with my phone. I miss more sleep and become so frustrated that I sleep badly with this unreliable piece of junk. I tried to call Zeo during their normal business hours and just got a recording to email then or live chat online. The live chat just dumps you to email. In other words, Zeo does not want to talk to people who have purchased their faultly products. One of the problems is that a red light blinks constantly on the device. On the Zeo website , it states that if there is a red light blinking then you need to open the zeo application on the device. That is a joke because when the light is blinking the Zeo app IS open and it states that it is CONNECTED. Save yourself some money and a whole lot of aggravation and skip this product. I just noticed something. All of the 1 star reviews are from Amazon verified purchasers... NONE of the 5 star reviewers are.... Hmmmm???

Updated on Feb 15, 2013 to change rating to two stars and soften my verdict a bit. After all, while it is useless for me, others have had success with it. Following instructions, the first night I fastened the headband tightly. After awhile I developed one of the worst headaches I have ever experienced, so I loosened it until it felt somewhat comfortable and took an ibuprofen. Somehow I made it through the night and imported the sleep data. I didn't sleep well at all, and the data reflected it. Had to take three more ibuprofen tablets the next day to finally get rid of that horrid headache. The next night I slept much better, but when I went to import the data, the app claimed there was no data to import! Same thing happened the next night, even though I fully charged the wretched thing each day. I checked their website and it looks like there are a lot of issues with the device. I can only report my experience, which has been disappointing in the extreme. If you are sensitive to having something tight around your head, you might want to avoid this product.

The device itself works as advertised but storing the information and/or sending it to another storage point does not work... The Zeo.com function does not exist.... So with all that said the sleep manager will give you information about your sleep habits...

First night I wore it, I guess the headband was too tight, and it actually made me break out on my forehead. Next time I wore it, headband too loose & fell off. Not to mention that it's not very comfortable to sleep with a headband on, which can affect how well you sleep, so you don't get a true measure. In addition, I don't trust the readings because there are several times when I know I was awake in bed, but the readings indicate I was in a light sleep. I have since learned of an Apple-only iOs device, which is a wristband, that not only tracks your sleep but also your movement during the day. This looks like a better device to me. Wearing a wristband while you sleep would definitely be more comfortable! Not sure how reliable a reading from your wrist would be, though, so I couldn't say how accurate it might be. That device is called UP, by a company called Jawbone.

I purchased and tried this product for close to two weeks. I carefully followed the directions, but finally I returned the Zeo. For me it was too expensive a device to only work sometimes. I think the idea is great and wish it had worked but it didn't. I was never able to get two consecutive nights of data. The devise needs to have better user interface, I'd have it on plugged in and for some unknown reason it would just stop collecting data, plus there was no clear indication that it had stopped collecting data. Only in the morning when I'd try to evaluate the data was it clear that it hadn't been collecting data. I believe the technology behind the device is sound it is the interface or UX that failed for me. I'll keep watching this product and look for new releases and up-dates that might fix some of the problems - even a simple beep indicating that data is being collected and everything is working OK.