Tech gadgets have helped us work more productively and play more. But they have also exacerbated a problem: poor sleep.

Obsessed with the number of “likes” you get on an Instagram photo or a Facebook post? Check. Do the devices keep you up at night with bright screens? Check. Do you keep sneaking glances at your smartphone for new messages, news and more? Check.

Even the mere presence of a smaller screen in the bedroom has been associated with shorter sleep. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which have declared sleep deprivation a public health epidemic, with one-third of American adults getting insufficient slumber, recommend “turning off or removing televisions, computers, mobile devices from the bedroom.”

But what happens if there is technology that actually helps you sleep?

That’s what I wondered when I heard that Bose, a well-known audio brand, had developed a pair of $250 earbuds to mask noise and help people doze off. The tiny wireless earphones, called Sleepbuds, fit snugly inside your ears and play soothing sounds, like the rustle of leaves or a crackling campfire, on a loop all night.