The consumer market for devices that quantify sleep is quickly evolving. We conducted a review of the consumer technology available for sleep disorders, including its potential and limitations to screen obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). There are many commercial devices claiming to objectively measure sleep, but only a few are tested rigorously in research. We critically review the technology available, including its overall ability to provide objective measures of sleep (total sleep time (TST), sleep efficiency (SE), sleep latency (SL), wake after sleep onset (WASO)), and to estimate apnea-hypopnea indexes in OSA patients. Although consumer devices performed similarly to standard actigraphy, they still overestimated TST and SE, and underestimated WASO and SL. Biomotion sensors and mattress-based devices showed potential for use as an OSA screening tool. However, research in the sleep-disordered breathing (SDB) population is limited, needs further external validation, and should be implemented in the course of multiple days.
