The market today has abundant anti-snoring options available which are either very uncomfortable (not to mention visually repulsive), or ineffective. The tons of options include chinstraps, anti-snore pillows, nasal sprays and mouthpieces to name a few and each one comes with its own set of restrictions.
Most anti-snore pillows encourage you to sleep in certain positions to work effectively, but they do not provide any restrictive method to ensure that the person sleeps through the night in the same position. It would not work unless if the sleep gypsies move or sleep on their bellies.
The mouthpieces can make you sore and drool. They are not meant for people with dentures and are not the easiest to clean either.
The technology advancements have certainly improved the features these devices come equipped with, but none of these solutions are smart solutions, non-invasive or meet one-solution-fits-all requirement.
The Nora Smart Snoring Solution has taken the anti-snoring solution to a whole new level with its unique design. It is a completely non-invasive and comfortable solution that is easily portable and works for everyone who is looking to improve sleep and stop snoring.
What is Nora?
Anti-snore pillows aim to position the head and neck at the right angle while sleeping, so that it can help reduce airway blockage and make breathing effortless and noise-free.
Its innovative design consists of a 3-part system –
- An egg-shaped sonic-sensor, called the bedside, that sits on your nightstand and detects snoring
- An inflatable pillow insert to move your head
- An iOS Smartphone app
Before going to bed all you need to do is keep the sensor on your nightstand, the pillow insert into your favorite pillow and plug in the adapter.
Nora will stimulate your throat muscles when you start snoring, without disturbing your sleep and restore the natural position of airway to allow clear passage of air.
How does it work?
Once the sensor detects snoring, it activates the expander in your pillow insert inflates to gently adjust your head position.
When you are asleep, your throat muscles tend to relax and collapse, which causes the narrowing of airway. When you breathe in this sleeping position, the soft tissue in the throat vibrate causing the nocturnal symphony, i.e. your snoring sound. As the sleep continues, the narrowed air passage increases the pressure in the airway further and makes the breathing more labored, and increases the volume of your snoring further.
Now, as the head moves slightly with the inflation, it stimulates your throat muscles from the relaxed position and causes tightening. This results in reopening of the air passage allowing you to breathe normally.
Once the sensor detects that there is no more snoring, it stops the expander from shifting. If through the night it detects the snoring again anytime, it restarts the process until morning.
The companion app provides insightful details into your snoring and sleep patterns along with the impact of Nora and audio recordings of your own snoring sound as a proof to believe. While the system is functional without the app, it provides an added advantage of tracking the pattern.
Features
This smart pillow offers everything we ever wanted in our anti-snore device –
- Works fine with any pillow whether firm or soft.
- Supports all sleeping position as the padded insert goes inside your pillow and runs through the length, no matter whether you are a side-sleeper, back-sleeper or belly-sleeper it works just great.
- Non-invasive as you do not need to wear or clip anything on your body.
- Absolutely silent and does not disturb you or your co-sleeper. Even when the pump inflates the insert and causes you to shift your head, it does it all without feeling the slightest change.
- Smart with the companion iOS app (Android app is said to be on the way)
- Portable with a travel bag and rechargeable batteries
Is it for me?
The solution addresses the physical symptom of snoring, i.e the narrowed airway and stimulates the throat muscles to go back to their original position to allow eased breathing and stop snoring. This improves sleep and reduces stress. This purpose is solved by Nora, regardless of the underlying problem of snoring which could range from age related issues, to drinking problem.
If you are looking to sleep undisturbed while suffering from snoring or mild sleep apnea, this solution is right for you. However, you need to consult a doctor if you are suffering from severe form of sleep apnea and might need a medical aid.
Pros
- Easy to use and simple setup
- Comfortable and seamless experience without disturbance or intrusion.
- Can order online
- Rechargeable batteries with two weeks of battery life after single full charge.
- Can be used with your
- 30-day return policy
- 1-year limited warranty
Cons
- Expensive at $290 in comparison to anti-snore pillows but good value for money and much cheaper if you are a considering CPAP machine.
Conclusion
I’d recommend Nora to a friend who is suffering to snoring and struggling to find the right device to get undisturbed good night’s sleep.
However, one should remember that this is a sleeping aid, and does not treat the root cause of the snoring problem or apnea. So it is always best to consult a doctor to treat the problem, while you stop snoring with Nora. It does not have any harmful side effect and fits one and all, so you can consider as a step towards the right direction while you find a more permanent solution.