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random things I find interesting
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I’m not a radio, too!
By Antrepo Design Industry (not in production)
This clock is not in production, but hopefully it will be soon. I love this design - it is something between a linear radio tuner and a ruler. According to their official blog: “Antrepo Design Industry is now in a research process to find a partner company that will cover the costs of production (Both of them).” I’ve pestered ThinkGeek asking them to look at production too - hopefully someone will pick it up.
More photos after the break.
The Spirit of St Louis
By The Verdict
I’ll start by saying that £49.95 is way too much for what looks to be metal colored plastic and genuine faux wood texture. However, the segregated 7-segment amber LED display looks cool. That almost makes up for the abysmal design of the exterior and the terrible product name. It almost does. This could be a neat clock if it were just the face (minus the dial) and the radio function was removed. Encase the remainder in a solid metal box and then it would be worth that price. However, anything that looks like it came out of a JC Penny caltalog shouldn’t cost more than $20. Calling it a collectable doesn’t make it one.
http://www.expertverdict.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/Product1_17552_-1_41317_11051
Tima Watch
by Julien Bergignat
This is a neat watch concept by industrial designer Julien Bergignat. The display looks sharper than any e-ink based display I’ve come across but the strong formal elements in this rendering make up for any criticisms I can come up with :) Given the flexible nature of this medium, I don’t see why something like this would be difficult to produce. It is functiaonally a braclet with an e-ink display wrapped around it. If one with sufficient resolution can be produced for the hands, I think this woud be easily produced. If Esquire can do it - why not a watch manufacturer?
Esquire example after the break:
Epoch Clock
By ThinkGeek (OEM unknown)
I love this clock. It is nerdy on so many levels but manages to keep a good formal arrangement. Who says geeks can’t be designers?
The Epoch in this case refers to the Unix Epoch (AKA POSIX Time) of 00:00:00 UTC Jan 1, 1970. Basically, computers count time as an integer starting at that time. That integer is converted to HH MM SS by the computer and then displayed in a human readable format. This clock displays the raw vale for the time. Additionally, this clock can display time in hexadecimal, octal, binary or roman numeral formats. I still can’t read roman numerals so I don’t think I will be using that one too much….
The Pong Watch
By John at Maushammer.com
This has got to be one of the coolest watches I’ve seen in a while. It is quite a bit more advanced than the Nixie watch and, unlike the Tokyo Flash watches, the whole face is animated. The display plays a mini-pong game and the score represents the hours and the minutes. I don’t know what the battery life is like on this thing but even if it needed to be charged daily, it would be worth it! Check out the links below for more information. This is an amazing little gadget.
Video and Links after the break
Wow,
The Kickass Clocks and Kickass Watches series got some serious attention on this site. Thank you! Because I am addicted to seeing my web stats go up - here is Kickass Clocks Part Two:
Verbarius
By Ary Lebedev - $200
http://www.artlebedev.com/everything/verbarius/
Most clock write out the time in numbers. Verbarius writes out the time in words - in multiple languages. For example, “It’s either forty-five minutes past four, or fifteen minutes to five, or four forty-five, or a quarter to five.” I love this clock and don’t know how I forgot to put it on the original list.
Pong Clock
By Sander Mulder - $sold out
http://www.sandermulder.com/pong_clock.html
From the site:
In the old school Pong © TV game you could put the paddles in such a position, that the ball kept bouncing forever. Quite hypnotic, and it became the inspiration for this time-killer/clock….
While this game of Pong © randomly plays, the so called ‘players’ score the time. The left player scores the hours, and the right player scores the minutes, creating an unusual timepiece, ideal for those Friday afternoon moments.
The Pong © Clock displays the time, but you can also switch to game mode. This allows you to play a game of Pong © against the clock with the use of two buttons on the back !
Pong © is a copyrighted trademark by Atari inc.
Wooden Clock
By Unknown - $75-$150 (lots of immitations on eBay)
http://www.urbanjunkie.co.uk/product.php/574/0/wooden-clock
This click doesn’t win awards for any major innovation, just for good design. The clock face is hidden behind a thin piece of wood instead of red plastic like most digital clocks use. For better or worse, this would go great in an Ikea beadroom.
12ft GPS Wall Clock
By SparkFun Electronics
http://www.sparkfun.com/commerce/tutorial_info.php?tutorials_id=47
While this cock isn’t for sale, SparkFun goes in to great detail explaining how they built it and even provide the code you will need if you want to replicate the project. A GPS powered clock isn’t new to this list - the reason this clock is here is that it is twelve feet long.
CRT vector clock
By Chris Radek
http://www.timeguy.com/cradek/clocks
This has got to be the smallest CRT clock that I’ve ever seen. The inventor is a little shy on details but the presentation of this clock is simply astounding.
Chris - if you ever want to part with this clock, please contact me. Brian@ this domain.com
Time Table
By Ross McBride - not in production
http://normaldesign.net/normal/en/index.php#show.30
Unfortunately, this guy isn’t in production. And I don’t have room for something like this in my little apartment. I have no idea what this would cost but based on what I can find their other products going for and what similar pieces go for, I would have to imagine this would be in the $2,000 range :-/
5071A Primary Frequency Standard
By HP / Agilent - discontinued
Did you ever want your own atomic clock? You can actually find these on eBay for $2k to $10k. However, in most all cases, you will need to buy a new cesium source for the clock. I have no idea how much that part costs but I would imagine shipping radioactive material will command a premium on top of the normal UPS / FedEx charges. I think if I ever got a package like that at work it would make people suspicious. (But they already know I’m weird.)
Specifications
- Performance suited to advanced communications and tracking systems
- Frequency accuracy to 5 x 10-13
- Long-term stability better than 1 x 10-14
- Proven track record in military and commercial applications
- Easy to use with automatic start up and intuitive menu structure
Key Points
- Performance suited to advanced communications and tracking systems
- Frequency accuracy to 5 x 10-13
- Long-term stability better than 1 x 10-14
- Proven track record in military and commercial applications
- Easy to use with automatic start up and intuitive menu structure
Okay, that is it for now…
Check out Kickass Clocks Pt.1 and Kickass Watches
I got quite a bit of interest from the Kickass Clocks post so I thought I would do a follow up. Now, for the neatest watches in the world.
The Nixie Tube Digital Wristwatch!
By Jeff Thomas / Resonant Instruments LLC
http://www.amug.org/~jthomas/watch.html
This is the really little brother of the NixiChron clock. The fact that he managed to fit all of the components in to such a small packagaing - and fit four vacuum tubes in it is amazing. They require about 180vdc to power…your average AA battery puts out just 1.5 for comparison.
The Nixie Watch
By Cathode Corner - $395
http://www.cathodecorner.com/nixiewatch/index.html
This watch was inspired by the one above. It uses an entirely different design - tubes and power supply. It looks a little more like a watch than the above one but uses only two display tubes.
Negative
by Tokyo Flash - ¥16,900 / $170
http://www.tokyoflash.com/en/watches/tokyoflash/negative/
If you want to show your geeky side with pride, this is the watch for you! This is the first of the mass produced watches on this list. Tokyo Flash makes some amazing watches. They focus on innovative ways of displaying the time to make reading it unintuitive. If this watch isn’t for you, check out some of the other ones they offer.
Bling binary LED watch
By Todd Bailey - $?
http://blog.makezine.com/archive/2006/05/concept_bling_binary_led.html
This watch is for the DIY crowd and would probably appeal to the BOFH-type personality. You know, the guy who wants you to know that he is better at technology, computers, and anything else that uses electricity than you do. This watch isn’t for the casual enthusiast - no only do you have to build it, but it tells the time in bianary. Reading it takes a bit of practice but can become second nature to the true aplha-nerds
Synchronar 2100
By Roger Riehl - $?
http://forums.watchuseek.com/showthread.php?p=1366081
This was an amazing device. It was the first mass produced LED wristwatch and was designed never to need adjustment.
From http://www.soluhr.com/sync.htm
Independent inventor Roger Riehl designed the most advanced wrist timepiece devised up to that time. His goal was to built an extremely accurate timepiece that required no service, could withstand great variation of temperature, was shockproof, was waterproof to great depths, was visible in any lighting conditions, and had multiple functions. In short, his goal seemed to be to build the ultimate wristwatch that would simultaneously overcome all of the traditional challenges to the wristwatch.
Look for part two in the near future. Suggestions on what to include? Post them in the comments!
As they say in Monty Python: “And now for something completely different.”
I love unique clocks. Not grandfather clocks, not cheap $10 alarm clocks, I am talking about hand-made small quantity digital clocks. Without any more filler text, here is my list of favorite clocks:
CHRONOTRONIX Sylvia Clock
By Dieter Wächter - $399
http://chronotronix.com/start.php?navi=5&pid=15>xtid=99&lg=en
This clock is based on Vacuum Flourescent Display tubes. They are a seven-segment based display like most led clocks but these are quite a bit different. For starters, this clock costs nearly 100x as much as your normal department store clock. The digits have a beautiful cyan color and the design of the tube allows you to see the inner workings. Image and brief description are from Chronotronix
FEATURES
- Digit height: 0.6″ (15mm)
- 12/24h mode
- Date in configuration DD.MM.YY or MM.DD.YY
- Leading zero suppression: The leading zero can be blanked or shown
- Cross fading: different modes to fade the digits from one number to the next
- Alarm clock
- Power down mode: tubes and supply can be totally switched off for a user programmed period in order to save energy and increase life expectancy of the tubes
- 12VDC input voltage
- Time is battery buffered when no line power is available; battery will last for more than 10 years
- User settings are always stored
- Case made of massive cherry wood and shiny black anodized aluminum as used for high-end audio equipment.
The Scope Clock - Cathode Corner
By David Forbes - $999
http://www.cathodecorner.com/scra/index.html
The second version of the Scope Clock is currently in production and will hopefully be on sale soon. The display of the clock is a CRT display originally intended for oscilloscopes. All of the display characters are drawn as vector images, unllike the AVR based Scop Clock kit sold by SparkFun Electronics.
In the updated version of the Scope Clock, the housing has been completely redesign to fit in a much smaller cylindrical housing. I can’t tell for sure but it appears to still be based on the 3RP1A CRT. The time is set via GPS. You need to program the UTC Offset and DST parameters but once it finds a GPS signal, this will be the most accurate clock in your house!
Pixel
By François Azambourg for Ligne Roset - $2,500
http://www.ligne-roset-usa.com/Products/decor/accessories/Pixel_1519.aspx
I really wanted this clock. Bad. It is a little large - almost three feet in diameter but it is one of the most unique clocks I’ve seen in a while. It is made up of a honeycomb of about 300 frosted white LEDs. The image of the hands is made by turning off lights selectively.
NixiChron
By Jeff Thomas / Resonant Instruments LLC - (discontinued)
http://www.amug.org/~jthomas/nixichron.html
This is my clock. I am the proud owner of the last one made according to the creator himself. (It was also the cheapest one on this list…) The display in this clock is a Russian Nixie tube called an IN-18. This is a really odd display. There are 10 filaments inside of the tube. Each one is shaped in the form of a number. The tube is then filled with neon gas and a little bit of mercury to prevent cathode poisoning. When ~180vdc is applied to one of the numbers, it glows.
Six of the IN-18 tubes are used to display the time. Like the Scope Clock, the time is set via GPS but a built in clock keeps the clock going when a signal cannot be located. The tubes are some of the largest that were produced in quantity which adds a collector value to the clock. Since they do wear out, I have a second set stored in a hard Pelican case.
大人気LED CLOCK-DROP TYPE
By Karlsson (OEM unknown) - $150~$200 USD
I can’t find much information, at least not in English, about this clock. Up until about two weeks ago, all of the sites that sold this clock were in Japanese. Amazon JP sold this clock but most of that was in Japanese as well. However, in late October, I discovered that Giftmonger.com sells this clock! Unlike every other site, they do ship to the US and other countries outside of the EU.
The display is made up of square LED pixels. What makes this clock unique is that the digits scroll down. The new digit pushes the old one out of its place in a brief animated second. Below are a few photos of the clock from various sites.
PIN Clock
By Daka Design - $50
This is about the only clock on this list that you can easily find. Amazon.com sells it. The concept is simple - the display is made up of pins that extend to form a pattern in the shape of the digits. It is like a practical version of the toy that you played with as a kid. (You know, the one that you used to make hand prints in…that that is about it….)
And because it reminds me a lot of this song, here is “Only” by Nine Inch Nails.
Check out Kickass Clocks Pt.2 and Kickass Watches
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