# Is there an OS X Widget or App for an alarm clock? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [February 14, 2010, 12:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-an-os-x-widget-or-app-for-an-alarm-clock/528946 "2010-02-14T12:58:34Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2010, 12:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-an-os-x-widget-or-app-for-an-alarm-clock/528946/1 "2010-02-14T12:58:34Z")
The clock that came with my Mac is just a clock. Keeps good time, but it doesn’t have an alarm or timer feature. I might be surfing and say, “15 minutes and then bed-time”, but then I wander into the SDMB, and start reading and posting, and at about 2 a.m. Mrs Piper comes down and says, “Aren’t you coming to bed??” So, a timer feature would be nice. One that I could set for a certain time or time period, and when it goes off, there’s a chime or something. Is there an App or Widget for that? ---
**Author:** ![Anaglyph](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ed8c4c/32.png) [@Anaglyph](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anaglyph)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2010, 2:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-an-os-x-widget-or-app-for-an-alarm-clock/528946/2 "2010-02-14T14:56:58Z")
Google [OSX+alarm+clock](http://www.google.ch/search?hl=de&source=hp&q=osx+alarm+clock&meta=&aq=0&oq=osx+alarm) ---
**Author:** ![mangeorge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d78d45/32.png) [@mangeorge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mangeorge)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2010, 3:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-an-os-x-widget-or-app-for-an-alarm-clock/528946/3 "2010-02-14T15:14:02Z")
I’ve had [tea timer](http://tea-timer.mac.findmysoft.com/) for years. It’s just a timer, and I use it for far more than tea. I like the Big Ben sound myself, but there are plenty of others. Peace, mangeorge Oh yeah, it’s free. ---
**Author:** ![Tamex](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ccd318/32.png) [@Tamex](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tamex)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2010, 4:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-an-os-x-widget-or-app-for-an-alarm-clock/528946/4 "2010-02-14T16:54:47Z")
I have one called [[URL=“http://www.apple.com/downloads/dashboard/calculate\_convert/minutes.html”] Minutes](http://www.apple.com/downloads/dashboard/calculate_convert/minutes.html) that does what you ask. ---
**Author:** ![TheFifthYear](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/958977/32.png) [@TheFifthYear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TheFifthYear)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2010, 5:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-an-os-x-widget-or-app-for-an-alarm-clock/528946/5 "2010-02-14T17:19:30Z")
I use [Apimac Timer](http://www.apimac.com/timer/). It does te alarm clock, count up, count down, and probably more. Pretty handy. ---
**Author:** ![tumbleddown](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e9bcb4/32.png) [@tumbleddown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tumbleddown)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2010, 5:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-an-os-x-widget-or-app-for-an-alarm-clock/528946/6 "2010-02-14T17:29:01Z")
The [ProdMe](http://www.apple.com/downloads/dashboard/status/prodme.html) Dashboard widget can do chimes every five, ten, fifteen, twenty or thirty minutes or on the hours, as well as serving as a regular alarm clock. It has a variety of sounds, some more startling/annoying/alarming than others. [Meditation Timer](http://www.apple.com/downloads/dashboard/status/meditationtimerwidget.html) is a very straightforward countdown timer, with a pleasing starting and ending chime, as it’s meant to facilitate meditation and yoga. But it holds the time you set, so if you want to give yourself, say, 15 minutes of recreational websurfing before bed every night, or do regular 6 minute intervals away from the computer to avoid RSI, you can just click the start button and there you go. [MP3 Alarm Clock](http://jbenjamin.org/Software/Software.html) is a very full-featured OSX app. The pluses here are multiple alarms for various days of the week, and you set it to use your own music, rather than alarm noises or the various system pings and booples. You can configure snooze times, messages to play, randomize the playlist of music that plays with the alarms, gradually increase the volume of playback for a more gentle awakening or nagging experience, and also gradually increase the _speed_ of music playback, so that if you ignore it for too long, you’re eventually listening to the Chipmunks. All three are free, and run on Jaguar -\> Snow Leopard. ---
**Author:** ![mangeorge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d78d45/32.png) [@mangeorge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mangeorge)\ **Post date:** [February 15, 2010, 1:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-an-os-x-widget-or-app-for-an-alarm-clock/528946/7 "2010-02-15T01:20:28Z")
I want one of each! 😛 ---
**Author:** ![mangeorge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d78d45/32.png) [@mangeorge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mangeorge)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2010, 4:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-an-os-x-widget-or-app-for-an-alarm-clock/528946/8 "2010-02-19T04:36:29Z")
Did you find the ideal app for your needs, **Northern Piper**? ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2010, 4:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-an-os-x-widget-or-app-for-an-alarm-clock/528946/9 "2010-02-19T04:45:51Z")
Ironically, the PiperCub has been waking me up in the middle of the night so often recently that I’ve not had the energy to try any of them out! Perhaps this weekend, if the Cub will take a proper nap. Thanks for the links, everyone. ---
**Author:** ![mangeorge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d78d45/32.png) [@mangeorge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mangeorge)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2010, 9:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-an-os-x-widget-or-app-for-an-alarm-clock/528946/10 "2010-02-19T21:42:32Z")
> [@Northern\_Piper](#): > > Ironically, the PiperCub has been waking me up in the middle of the night so often recently that I’ve not had the energy to try any of them out! Perhaps this weekend, if the Cub will take a proper nap. > > Thanks for the links, everyone. Enjoy the Cub while still a cub. Time goes by more like a F-15. 🙂