How did your bedroom environment affect your sleep tonight? It’s something we don’t often think about. That’s why we’re making our Cubes more aware about what’s causing you to wake up or become restless during the night. We demoed our Sleep update last week at Engadget Expand NY, and we also wanted to share some basic tips with you.

A common thing we kept hearing from visitors at Expand NY is that we all tend to spend a bit too much time in front of various screens before going to bed. A bad habit indeed! Too much artificial light in the evening can suppress the production of melatonin, the natural sleep hormone. Yet it’s also important to get enough light exposure during the day. Placing your work desk near a window is ideal, but going outside for a lunch walk on sunny days can also help.

Another common mistake we make is keeping our bedrooms too warm during the night. A warm bedroom might sound comfortable, but your body cools during the night, so you should keep your bedroom between 64°F – 72°F (18°C – 22°C) for comfortable sleep.

And while winter is coming to the northern hemisphere, you shouldn’t forget to open the windows regularly to let some fresh air in. Dry air is another common problem in cold winter months due to increased heating. Unfortunately, this prepares an ideal situation for spreading cold and flu viruses.

Finally, it’d be great if we could all sleep in a silent bedroom. But if you live in a noisy city like New York, that might not even be an option. You can however embrace noise by getting used to falling asleep with a smartphone app that generates the same background noise or simply by wearing earplugs.

You can of course keep track of everything in your bedroom environment by placing a little Cube on your nightstand. We have them in stock now, so they can be on your nightstand just a few days after you order your pack.