Turn Your Old iPhone into a Smart Alarm Clock

05/15/2025 Technology & Electronics

Upgrading to a new phone often leaves the previous model gathering dust. While trading it in is an option, consider the alternative: transforming your old iPhone into a powerful and personalized alarm clock. This offers several advantages over using your current device or a basic alarm clock.

Why Use an Old iPhone as an Alarm Clock?

A discarded phone, even an older model, possesses significantly more processing power than most dedicated sleep machines or smart alarms. Turning it into a dedicated alarm clock avoids the distractions of notifications from your daily-use phone, leading to a more restful sleep. By repurposing existing technology, you're also adopting a more sustainable approach to electronics consumption.

Preparing Your Old iPhone

Begin by removing unnecessary apps from your home screen. Apps like Instagram, games, and photo albums should be hidden. You'll need to retain essential apps including Clock, Music, Shortcuts, Health, and Settings. The goal is a minimalist interface focused solely on alarm functionality.

Setting Up Your Alarm

Set your sleep schedule within the Health app before configuring an alarm in the Clock app. For your alarm tone, choose a downloaded song; avoid Lossless or Dolby Atmos formats for optimal compatibility. You can personalize the sound to your preference, and if you want to further enhance your sleep experience, you can create personalized soundscapes using the next steps.

Adding Ambient Sounds for a Better Sleep

Apple Music and the Accessibility features provide options for ambient sounds. You can create a customized playlist of relaxing music in Apple Music (note that Shortcuts doesn't support Spotify). Utilizing Shortcuts and Automations, you can create an automated sleep routine that plays your playlist along with built-in white noise. Remember to create separate Shortcuts and Automations to turn the background sounds off after a specified duration.

Standby Mode and Battery Optimization

For iOS 17 and later, StandBy mode transforms your phone into a nightstand clock while charging. This requires the device to be placed horizontally in a stand. To further optimize the device's longevity, set a charging limit to 80% to prevent battery strain. This extends the life of your old device which serves as a dedicated alarm clock.

Conclusion

Repurposing an old iPhone as a dedicated alarm clock offers a practical and environmentally friendly solution. With a bit of setup, you can create a customized alarm experience far beyond what a standard alarm clock provides. Not only that, you get a better and more consistent night sleep, free from unnecessary distractions of your main device.