Braun Alarm Clock ET66

At a flea market I found a Braun alarm clock: a small rectangular box with a round face, a single alarm hand, and 2 physical buttons on top. Its clarity is a reminder of how much information modern devices try to cram onto a screen. White face, black Helvetica numerals, and a second hand that moves in a smooth sweep rather than ticking, making it silent. Dieter Rams designed the original in the 1980s. The proportions, corner radius, weight of the hour markers, spacing between elements, have been refined to the point where nothing could be added or removed without making it worse. It runs on a single AA battery and tells me exactly one thing: the time. Setting the alarm means pulling a small lever on the back and rotating the alarm hand with a dial. The wake-up sound is a pleasant buzz rather than aggressive beeping. It doesn't glow, connect to wifi, or offer weather, news, or notifications. On my nightstand in the dark, I can read the luminous hands without turning on a light.