- Bedtimeeyes closed and a moon on the display
- Before wake-upyellow, 5, 15 or 30 minutes before (you choose)
- Wake-up timegreen with eyes open and a sun
- Bedtimea blue screen with stars
- Wake-up timea yellow screen with a sun
MELLA counts down; Groclock targets a time
MELLA has a nap timer you start with its NAP button, alongside its bedtime and wake-up times. The Version 2.0 manual lists 15, 30, 45, 60, 90, 120, 150 or 180 minutes.
Groclock stores separate wake-up times for the night and for a daytime nap. You switch on the night or nap mode, and the light changes at the time you set.
MELLA adds sleep sounds and an “almost time” light
MELLA has sleep sounds and an optional yellow “almost time” light 5, 15 or 30 minutes before wake-up. Groclock has no sleep sounds. Both can show a silent light or sound a separate alarm, and both let you change the light’s brightness.
Neither keeps its light on in a power cut
MELLA's CR2032 coin battery keeps the basic settings, but the display, light and sound go off until the power is back. Groclock freezes its time and settings when the power stops, then carries on from that frozen time when it returns, so set the time again.
MELLA comes with its wall adapter and a four-foot cable. Groclock comes with a 1.8-meter (about 6-foot) micro-USB cable but no wall adapter.
Which one
- Choose MELLA if naps start at different times each day, or you want sleep sounds and a yellow “almost time” light.
- Choose Groclock if the nap ends at the same time every day and you like stars at night and a sun in the morning.
- Neither keeps running in a power cut; after a long one, check Groclock’s time before you rely on it.
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LittleHippo MELLA
Version 2
Prices and stock are set by the retailer and change without notice. We print no price of our own.
Tommee Tippee Groclock
USB-powered version
Prices and stock are set by the retailer and change without notice. We print no price of our own.
LittleHippo MELLA on the maker’s own site
Tommee Tippee Groclock on the maker’s own site
At a glance
“Not in the manual”: the maker doesn’t mention it, so we don’t count on it.
| Feature | LittleHippo MELLA Version 2 Check price on Amazon | Tommee Tippee Groclock USB-powered version Check price on Amazon |
|---|---|---|
 How you set it | Set on the clock | Set on the clock |
| Switching it on | Runs by itself every day once the sleep trainer is on: look for a sun or moon next to the time, and press SLEEP/WAKE if it is missing | You switch the mode on at the clock |
| Change the times without Wi-Fi | Yes | Yes |
 Another grown-up in the app | Anyone can use the buttons on the bottom of the clock; there is no app to share. Show the next grown-up how to change the times and how the lock works: a slider on the bottom stops changes to the settings, while the volume, the display brightness and the hat still work. | Anyone can use the buttons on the clock; there is no app to share. Show the next grown-up how to change the times, how to switch the light on and how the lock works. |
 Runs on battery? | Needs to stay plugged in | Needs to stay plugged in |
 In a power cut | MELLA stops when the power goes off: its coin battery keeps the settings, but the display, light and sounds go off until the power is back. | It stops when the power goes off and its clock freezes, so after a long power cut the time is behind and you need to set it again. |
 Bedtime light at a set time | Yes | No |
 Nap timer | Yes | No |
| Nap wake-up time | Not in the manual | Yes |
 Weekday and weekend times | No | No |
| Several light or sound changes a night | No | No |
| Keeps working without Wi-Fi | Yes | Yes |
| What stops without Wi-Fi | Nothing: it needs no network. | Nothing: it needs no network. |
 Alarm sound | Yes | Yes |
| Sound machine | Yes | No |
| Silent wake-up light | Yes | Yes |
| Time display can turn off | Yes | Yes |
| Child lock | Yes | Yes |
| Subscription needed for the light | No | No |
| In the box | MELLA clock, 4 ft cable, AC wall adapter, Instruction manual | Groclock, 1.8 m micro-USB cable |
The makers’ pages
Details can differ between versions and countries. Every source we use