Android App Lightning Bug May Cause Drowsiness

All my life, I’ve had trouble with tinnitus in both ears. It’s getting worse as I get older, so much so that I often have considerable trouble sleeping. When I got my fancy Android phone last year, I started looking for a noise generating solution in the Android Market.

Enter Lightning Bug, an app from 1908 Media. This seemingly simple noise generator takes the concept a step further and allows the user to customize the experience to a ridiculous degree.

What’s so special about Lightning Bug? Each sound is individually controlled in two ways. First, you get individual volume controls. For example, you can turn up the rain while putting the thunder in the distance and a train whistle somewhere in between. Second, recurring (as opposed to continuous) sounds have individual frequency controls. So if you’re in the mood for a heavier thunderstorm, you can increase the thunder frequency to a range of every 7–21 seconds, while dropping the train whistle to a range of every 30–90 seconds.

It doesn’t stop with just rainstorms and trains. Lightning Bug comes with a starter pack to give you an idea of what you’re getting. If you like that, you can upgrade with seven free plugins and six premium plugins to give you access to over a hundred individual sounds. Cost to fully trick it out with all available plugins is currently $6.45.

The variety of available sounds has surprised me. 1908 Media has gone all out with over 100 sounds so far, including six flutes, four wind chimes, five rain settings, and 15 gentle chord progressions. You can go old school with white, pink, and brown noise or sleep to sounds of the city with sirens, traffic noise, and the ever-present city drone.

Head to the beach with ocean waves, buoys for high and low tide, and seagulls, or go to the country with brooks, birds, frogs, and crickets. You can even use household sounds, including a dishwasher, grandfather clock, and fireplace.

What’s more, you can mix and match any of these to make a truly individual experience.

You may have figured out by now that I’m a fan of this app. In fact, the only money I’ve spent on Android apps so far is the $6.45 for the premium Lightning Bug plugins, and it’s totally worth it.

Usually, I turn Lightning Bug on and go to bed, but if you’re using the app for meditation, there’s an on-screen component as well. Still images and animation are both available, though I usually just go with a simple clock with the built-in weather report in the corner.

One concern I had when I started with Lightning Bug was whether it would sap my battery turned on all night, but 1908 Media dealt with that by including a sleep timer. After a period of time that you control, the sound slowly fades out and the app shuts down.

Happy as I am with the app, there are some issues that 1908 Media hasn’t gotten quite right yet. I’d love an option to save current settings, for example. My neighbor supplies the barking dog and squeaky ceiling fans drive me nuts, so having to scroll through those every time gets annoying. And while I love that they’ve offered sounds that will appeal to the global community (How else do you explain four didgeridoos?) , I’m surprised they haven’t included geese, ducks, and other common US birds in their plugins.

There are a few minor technical issues, mostly having to do with setting retention, but all in all, Lightning Bug is one of my must-haves. The creators have said it won’t be ported to iPhone, Palm, or other platforms any time soon, so for now, it’s a rare Android-only treat. Give it a shot and let us know what you think!