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Backfill · 2022

#194 of 357

E-Ink Alarm Clock Display

seq 1
TastemakerHeritage/craft discoverytechdesire
form elegancewellbeing self care
Basic NeedsNoticingActionGroup Security4/9
ImagePress/product shot

Press/product shot: a small square E Ink alarm clock on a wooden nightstand showing the time in crisp black digits on a light gray screen, a glass of water and a book beside it.

180 words

The alarm clock on the nightstand at the hotel where I stayed last weekend had an E Ink display instead of an LED screen. At 2 in the morning when you open your eyes to check the time. The difference was significant because the E Ink surface reflected the ambient light in the room rather than blasting blue light into your retinas. Numbers were sharp and high-contrast, black on a light gray background, and the display did not flicker or emit any glow. Meant it was readable in daylight and invisible in complete darkness unless you pressed a side button that activated a brief backlight. The alarm settings were controlled by 2 physical buttons, no app, no Bluetooth, no WiFi, just a clock that tells time and wakes you up. Simplicity felt radical after years of using my phone as an alarm. I want this clock for my own room because the phone-as-alarm-clock habit means my phone is the last thing I look at before sleep and the first thing I look at when I wake up. Replacing that with a dedicated device that does nothing except display time would eliminate the temptation to check notifications at 11:30 PM. Small, about 4 inches square with a matte white housing that looks like a small picture frame, the clock uses almost no power, and the battery lasts about 8 months before needing a USB charge. I looked up the brand when I got home and found similar clocks for about $40 to $60. At that price, these clocks deserve more shelf space than manufacturers are giving them.