'Rise Alarm Clock' for iOS Named Apple's Free App of the Week

JackieInCo said:

Thank you for backing me up by trying it. There will be many many people upset who relied on this app to wake them up and it will fail because they forget to open it and leave it running over night.

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This bug is unique to the app, then. I use Alarm Clock Pro and, though it has some visual bugs (elements sometimes overlap each other), it never has an issue with making noise. It'll even sound off in the background.

As a developer, the multitasking APIs in iOS 7 leave me wondering what more you could possibly want, other than having two apps usable and on screen at the same time. iOS 6, and I think 5, too, had adequate APIs for simply making sounds without the app being visible.

ArtOfWarfare said:

This bug is unique to the app, then. I use Alarm Clock Pro and, though it has some visual bugs (elements sometimes overlap each other), it never has an issue with making noise. It'll even sound off in the background.

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It's not a bug in the app. During the demo that was on the iPad Today show (Leo Laporte) Sarah got the warning that the app must be open and running for the alarms to work.

JackieInCo said:

It's not a bug in the app. During the demo that was on the iPad Today show (Leo Laporte) Sarah got the warning that the app must be open and running for the alarms to work.

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Well I've set the alarm, then opened up another application and locked my phone. The alarm still went off, with snooze option from lock screen.

What model of iPhone do you use?

Kilamite said:

Well I've set the alarm, then opened up another application and locked my phone. The alarm still went off, with snooze option from lock screen.

What model of iPhone do you use?

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I don't have the app because it's worthless to me. There are reviews all over the internet over the past two days talking about this very thing. I posted a link above that has comments from people who have experienced this.

Set an alarm for two hours from now. Close the app and exit from it by removing it from the task bar. Open another app and let it sit for those two hours and turn on do not disturb as well. See what happens.

Ok, downloaded this onto my iPad. Set the alarm for 12:25 which was just a minute ago, exited out of the app and removed the app from the task bar or recently used apps whatever you want to call it.
Do Not Disturb was not even on.


No alarm went off. This is a limitation in the way the OS doesn't allow true multitasking just as I said a few posts up.

Kilamite said:

Well I've set the alarm, then opened up another application and locked my phone. The alarm still went off, with snooze option from lock screen.

What model of iPhone do you use?

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That did not happen at all to me. iPhone 4S running iOS 7 beta 5.

This app, while opened, was scheduled to go off 5 minutes later. I locked my screen, nothing. I got notifications on screen but no noise. Turned off and on DND, turned off and on vibrate, etc. Nothing.

GoCubsGo said:

That did not happen at all to me. iPhone 4S running iOS 7 beta 5.

This app, while opened, was scheduled to go off 5 minutes later. I locked my screen, nothing. I got notifications on screen but no noise. Turned off and on DND, turned off and on vibrate, etc. Nothing.

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That's right. It's the way the OS does not allow apps to continue running after they are closed. The app has to be open and running for the alarm to work.

Doesn't closing it from the task bar kill pretty much any multi-tasking abilities (other than push)? So that's a very poor way to go "See! It doesn't work!"

Rajani Isa said:

Doesn't closing it from the task bar kill pretty much any multi-tasking abilities (other than push)? So that's a very poor way to go "See! It doesn't work!"

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No, it proves that the app is useless unless you have it running overnight.

The app would quit running on its own if it is closed anyways so having it in the task bar is pointless as well. Remember how they said that those apps quit working after awhile anyways?

JackieInCo said:

No, it proves that the app is useless unless you have it running overnight.

The app would quit running on its own if it is closed anyways so having it in the task bar is pointless as well. Remember how they said that those apps quit working after awhile anyways?

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As a developer, I'm telling you that's a bug in the app, not iOS. iOS allows many lightweight tasks to take place in the background, amongst them, making noise at a scheduled time. If it's failing to make the noise, it's because iOS sees it trying to run code that's disallowed in the background and is killing the task.

Ok tried it again, this time setting the alarm and pressing the home button to minimize the app. Left it running in the task bar and pressed the sleep button and at 12:45, no alarm sounded.

Rajani Isa said:

Doesn't closing it from the task bar kill pretty much any multi-tasking abilities (other than push)? So that's a very poor way to go "See! It doesn't work!"

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I didn't realise that's what they meant by 'closing' the app - I thought they meant that closing the app by just pressing home, not actually quitting it completely.

I don't see what they are complaining about - bunch of folk being anal about having to have every app quit completely.

Waste of time

For starters, you can only add ONE song from your music library to the alarm list. If you try to add another, it replaces the one you already had.

Strike one.

Next, alarm and snooze intervals can only be set in 5 minute increments...i.e. 10:05, 10:10, etc., or snooze for 5 minutes, 10 minutes, etc. While this would not cause me to be late for anything, why so limited? My other alarm apps let me set things to the minute.

Strike two.

Set the alarm, confirmed my song was the chosen alarm sound, and it even played the song, despite me having the sound turned off on the phone. Turned on "vibrate with alarm" option. Exited the app and locked the screen. The alarm went "off" when it was supposed to, but all I got were pop ups on the lock screen in 30ish second intervals, and one quick vibration with each, as if an email had come in. No music played and no extended vibrations. Other alarm apps will still fire the alarm even if the app isn't kept open, and even if sound is turned off on my phone (though they may not play my song, just one of the stock alarm noises).

Strike three...deleted app.

Kilamite said:

I didn't realise that's what they meant by 'closing' the app - I thought they meant that closing the app by just pressing home, not actually quitting it completely.

I don't see what they are complaining about - bunch of folk being anal about having to have every app quit completely.

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I exited out of the app and left it running in the task bar and it still didn't work. There are going to be lots of people late for work on Monday morning who think this will work. They are thinking they can set it now and use their device all weekend and go to sleep Sunday night and wake up Monday without having the app running. This is why it's a fail? What's hard to understand about it?

Iphone 5 with 6.1.2 and while jail-broken, currently don't have any tweaks on it.

Opened Rise, set the alarm, home-buttoned out, opened several apps, and hit sleep and set my phone down.

it went off on time, and after hitting snooze, and the snooze worked too.

EDIT: I did see a note about it needing to be left running, but apparently that only applies if you run Do not Disturb.

JackieInCo said:

I exited out of the app and left it running in the task bar and it still didn't work. There are going to be lots of people late for work on Monday morning who think this will work. They are thinking they can set it now and use their device all weekend and go to sleep Sunday night and wake up Monday without having the app running. This is why it's a fail? What's hard to understand about it?

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It's clearly only affecting some people because it is working fine for me if I close the app but leave it running in the task bar.

I'm on an iPhone 5.

Try the Sleepcycle or Sleepbot apps. They slightly tweak the wakeup time based on your sleep cycle pattern. You'll wakeup easier.

In short, DND should never prevent an alarm from triggering. I am fine with the lowly little stock alarm.

Supa_Fly said:

PS: does iO7 allow you to collapse mail sub-folders/folders yet? At the moment I'm not sure if any current/modern smartphone OS does.

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Nope, betas 1-5 of iOS 7 have not had this feature.

Maybe they're doing it all wrong

People may not realize that one has to swipe to the left to turn the the alarm on, once they set the time. Then when they press the Home button to exit the app, a badge appears on the icon to confirm that an alarm is set.

That's what worked for me.

app $ucks
you can't set it to only turn the alarm on some days of the week

Calendar alerts?

Isn't the calendar alert simple enough to use?

JackieInCo said:

Ok, downloaded this onto my iPad. Set the alarm for 12:25 which was just a minute ago, exited out of the app and removed the app from the task bar or recently used apps whatever you want to call it.
Do Not Disturb was not even on.


No alarm went off. This is a limitation in the way the OS doesn't allow true multitasking just as I said a few posts up.

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I'm quite puzzled by all of this. Yes, this app has some short comings (alarms not playing sounds when DND is active), but it seems fairly functional, and it is an interesting interface. Also, I've tried every combination of trying to get the alarm to not sound, and I've been quite unsuccessful (except with regards to the fact that it won't play sounds when DND is active). Just now, I set an alarm, pressed home, brought up the task bar, killed Rise from the task bar, then waited. After four minutes of waiting, lo and behold, the alarm went off. So, it seems that there may be something wonky with your device, JackieInCo. Or, perhaps...

DerrickEver said:

People may not realize that one has to swipe to the left to turn the the alarm on, once they set the time. Then when they press the Home button to exit the app, a badge appears on the icon to confirm that an alarm is set.

That's what worked for me.

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I hadn't thought of that. Maybe they're not using the app properly.

JackieInCo said:

Try it. If I set the app on my iPad and then close it, the app will not work when it is time for the alarm to go off. The app has to be open and running. The only apps that can run in the background are Apples built in apps.

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After setting the alarm, open multitask then open the program/app you want to use. It started ringing while I was writing this...its not rocket sience is it? you have to tell the unit to multitask...just do not use the home button that turn the alarm off.

GoCubsGo said:

What do you mean?

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if the phone is asleep, when the alarm app goes off it doesn't automatically launch the app and take you to the screen you need to be on. You just get a notification.

Same with things like skype. It should have the option to pause what you are doing it jumps straight into skype if someone calls.