Earlier this week, Nintendo announced Alarmo, a Nintendo themed alarm clock. With the announcement came a very limited release at the Nintendo Store here in New York City so I decided to see if I could grab one. After tax, it came out to just under $109.

It’s an alarm clock that wakes you up using songs and sounds inspired by a handful of Nintendo games and uses motion sensors to make sure you’re getting out of bed.

Sounds great, right?

The first thing I noticed was that the clock itself felt lighter than I would have expected from an actual alarm clock. This is great if you plan on moving it around, but it made me wonder whether the material will hold up if it’s dropped or falls off a nightstand. 

I’ve dealt with wired clocks before and it’s actually quite common for the wire to get tangled and tugged as you’re getting in and out of bed, plugging things into the outlet, or moving things around on the same surface that the clock is on.

There’s one word in that last paragraph that’s also a red flag. Wired. The best way would have been for it to be battery powered. It could have used standard batteries or an internal battery that needs to be charged. 

But alas, it needs to be always plugged in for it to stay on. It’s not your classic plug either, it’s just your standard USB-C cable. Doesn’t even come with an adapter so you better hope that you have a spare. That came with your phone or wherever. 

But again, since it needs to be plugged in all the time, you will need an adapter that’s exclusively for Alarmo. That means you won’t be able to use the same adapter to charge your phone, power bank, watch, laptop, or anything else. Unless you plan on manually plugging the clock back in every night.

Once you have Alarmo set up and ready to go, it’s great at what it does. The selection of songs and sounds is very small but they’re good and get the job done. Set your alarm and the motion sensors will keep track of you as you’re waking up.

Just try your best to keep it at the same height as you. I have a small stand but it’s shorter than my bed, so I had to put two books on the table and then the clock on top of the books. 

I messed around with the alarm a few times. The music that plays when the alarm goes off is nice but I’m not really a big fan of the sounds that play when activated by the motion sensors. Sometimes they’re jarring, especially if you’re really close. 

That’s great if you’re one who needs that jolt to get yourself out of bed, but I personally prefer the calmer approaches like the vibration of a fitbit alarm. However, you can choose between a gentle mode and a more chaotic mode that gradually gets louder.

I also really liked the Zelda alarm, and the sleepy sounds are great. But do I like Alarmo as a whole? Probably not.

It’s $100 for a clock that can currently play a handful of songs and sounds. For context, your phone can do the same thing and there are many smartwatches that can do the same for around the same price. There are also an assortment of physical alarm clocks that you can buy for way cheaper.

The motion sensors are a really nice touch and it’s great that there will be additional alarms to download in the future. But as it stands right now, you’re paying $100 for a clock that has motion sensors, a handful of alarms, and the Nintendo licensing. 

Will be great for kids and those who are diehard Nintendo fans and collectors. But the average fan will most likely stay away, at least until there are more alarms available. 

This concept isn’t great. However, I do think that it’s a step in the right direction for Nintendo with this product. Very few people are still going to use an actual alarm clock versus a smartwatch or a phone.

Nintendo-fying an alarm clock is a fun gimmick but it’s still a gimmick, and one that doesn’t feel like something that will last. But if Nintendo were to take this concept and then work on it to make a simple watch and create something that would be comparable to a fitbit, that seems like the next step now that this has been done.

Personally, I hate what you get when buying Alarmo right now. It’s $100, is pretty limited until more alarms are added, and doesn’t even have the adapter. There few people who will enjoy this, but it opens the door for Nintendo in the future.

3.5/5