Tokyoflash's Heko watch: the perfect gift for fashionable cryptologists
By Ross Miller 
posted February 3rd 2009 12:04PM
posted February 3rd 2009 12:04PM
We've always been a fan of watches with unconventional ways of telling time, and Tokyoflash's Heko is no exception. The top and bottom rows each have four LEDs aligned for their analogous analog positions -- 12:00, 3:00, 6:00, and 9:00 -- and two lights in between to indicate one-hour / 15-minute intervals, respectively. The four diodes in the middle are used when the minutes aren't a multiple of five. For example, in the picture above we've got (from left to right) 1:37, 1:43, and 10:13. More instructions are available on the product page. Made from solid stainless steel and weighing in at 140 grams, it's available for 9,800 yen ($109) and comes with white, blue or multi-colored LEDs.
too busy trying to tell time to make a witty comment.
I'll take a stab at it. Thousands of years from now, when life ceases on this planet, aliens will find this watch. They will base all their knowledge of us on this watch, a picture of the Flock of Seagulls haircut, dog sweaters, and the Elephant Man.
I have a theory that engadget can't tell the time on these pictures either and they just took some guesses in order to fuck with us.
Warning: By the time you've actually actually read the time, you've already lost 6 hours.
Awesome!! i wud love to have one...
too bad this isn't a binary watch. screw the LED positions, i just want my powers of two.
i want it
Its conceptual and its some unique but its ugly as hell.
Criptic, way better a Predator's clock
http://customize.org/thumbnails/large/26933.jpg
i do not want it.
i cannot for the life of me figure out how to tell the time on that thing. the explanations aren't helping, either.
"hey, what's the time?" - "uhh, 3 red lights and a green one. beats me."
The picture at the link makes more sense... On the top there is a total of 6 buttons, 4 in a diamond like in baseball and 2 in a line in the middle going left and right. The four at the corners of the diamond are the 12,3,6,9 hours like on an analog clock. The two in the middle are 1 hour increments. So if the top one is lit, and 2 of the ones in the middle are lit is 2:00 (12:00 +2 hours) if the bottom one is lit and one in the middle it is 7:00 (6:00+2 hours).
At the bottom you have the same arangement, except the top of the diamond is :00 minutes, then the right side is :15, buttom is :30 and the left is :45. The two lights in the middle of the diamon show 5 minute increments and in the center of the watch between the two diamonds are 4 lights with 1 minute increments. So if bottom of the diamond and 3lights in the middle of the watch are lit it would be :33 after the hour.
Hope that makes some more sense... the description on the article here isn't that good :)
Schda, thank you so much. I'm glad that's the real way to read the watch, because the way Engadget described it was completely erroneous and made no sense. As in, why one would have 8 lights to describe 4 possible times, yet that they wouldn't have to be symettrical-
"The top and bottom rows each have four LEDs aligned for their analogous analog positions -- 12:00, 3:00, 6:00, and 9:00 ."
Uh... incorrect. Lol.
me want one....
You might as well just wear a battery-powered thing that has randomly blinking diodes. You'll always have your cell phone for time-keeping! Personally, I used to be a big timepiece fan. As of 2009 though, I'm joining the ranks of cell phone time keepers and have abandoned the habit of wearing a wrist watch. I've found my day goes much faster at work - now that I'm not always aware of the time. And if I want to know the time, it's everywhere; my computer, my cell phone, my work phone's display, the security pads on the wall in the office, the temperature pads on the wall in the office - heck, even the new parking meters have a digital time display!
Hehe...I kinda went the opposite way this year. The GF got me a nice Eco-Drive for Christmas so now I wear a watch all the time. But I am constantly reaching in my pocket to check my phone for the time. I love the watch and I look at it a lot...just not for the time.
If the only function of watches would be tellin time only 10$ quartz timepieces would be sold.
If people pay enormous prices to own a mechanical , handcrafted watch obviously they want something else from it than the exact time.
I got my Breitling Aeromarine Superocean Chrono as a gift , but I really love it and somehow even if a 10 bucks Timex from Wal Mart is probably more precise I'm not ready to make the exchange.
Normally I can figure out how to tell the time on TokyoFlash watches...
this one, even with the downloaded manual and explanation, still over my head...
From the very same people who bring you the "Pimp" brand of watches:
http://www.tokyoflash.com/en/watches/pimp/p2pusher/
It's unusual, that's for sure. I had to look at the product page to figure out how they got 10:13 in the last one.
I'm in.
I refuse to learn how to read it, though.
How cool would that be, women fawning all over you, begging to be told, 'what time it is,' and you, flippantly denying them, and using an inordinate number of commas...
"I'm sorry. If you can't tell time, I can't date you... No, wait! I was just kidding! Really, you're my kind of girl!"
Anyone that has a watch that tells the time in a stupid indecipherable fashion is a dick.
I guess I'll be sticking to http://zedomax.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2007/12/led_binary_watch.jpg
What the owner's manual says:
HOW TO READ THE TIME:
1. Stare at LEDs on watch for 2 minutes.
2. Pull out cell phone from holster, pocket, etc.
3. Read time on cell phone.
Man this is just as hard as those watches that use two "hands". Stick with the original and the best ...Digital.
The first two times I believe are 9:37 and 9:43 respectively. The 12H LED is not lit, just the 9H LED.
It's a cool watch, I'd wear one.
This threw me off too but I checked the manual and first first two are definitely not at 9. The LED is positioned over the 2nd minute counter (middle bar of the watch) which in the documentation represents one of the +1 hour LEDs. The 9 hour LED is positioned over the 1st minute counter.
So the 12 hour indicator is probably used to distinguish between AM / PM. In this case it's 1:37AM, if the 12 was lit, it would be 1:37PM (1337 if you will).
1. I don't think the time on those watches is valid. Looks like some sort of photoshop error.
Think of it as three displays. The top and bottom displays are a led representation of a round clock face
12
9 X X 3
6
the light can either be on at 12/3/6/9
Since there aren't LED Lights for times in between, like between 12 and 3, the two LEDs in the middle will show the number of to add.
So for each middle light on the upper display, this adds one hour. For each middle light on the upper display, this adds 5 minutes.
Then, the 4 big lights in the middle row will show offsets between the 5 minute intervals
So to properly show the times exampled
- = LED off
0 = LED on
1:37
0
- 0 - -
-
0 0 - -
-
- 0 - -
0
1:43
0
- 0 - -
-
0 0 0 -
-
- 0 0 -
0
10:13
-
0 0 - -
-
0 0 0 -
0
- 0 0 -
-
my ascii art got messed up by this sites formatting,
anyway, follow the read link for a better visual on how to tell time.
It's not as complicated as engadget "cryptically" tries to make it.
if time = money
then secret time = secret money
This should be put on standard IQ test (if it hasn't already).
Annnnnnd purchased...Who cares if I can't tell the time, this looks awesome.
Good call! I'm getting one too...this thing is pretty super sweet. Even if I look like a d*ck wearing one.
When all cell phones break in 2012 I'll be the only one who can tell time (albeit slowly)!
I get it now. The way engadget explais it makes it confusing.
"The top and bottom rows each have four LEDs aligned for their analogous analog positions -- 12:00, 3:00, 6:00, and 9:00 -- and two lights in between to indicate one-hour / 15-minute intervals, respectively."
This is where it gets messed up. The two lights in between indicate one-hour and 5 minute intervals, not 15 minute. Noting that correction, it makes sence when trying to figure out the time on those watches.
Yea, I get it too. The engadget explanation was confusing, but the image on Tokyo Flash's website was not. I think it's kinda neat.
Too expensive for something I'll probably never wear. :(
Is the site slashdotted... er... I mean... engadgeted?
Wow, ridiculously funny toy for über geek.
I have to say this looks a lot harder to read binary watches.. and not as pretty either.
http://www.ledwatchstop.com/store/images/sm102w2_led_watch_1.jpg
Damn these fugly watches trying to reinvent the wheel. Yes it can be learned, but i refuse to do so, much less read the instructions on how to. "Hey, lets add 10 new letters to the alphabet!"...Ah, No.
To each his own.
For that price i have seen Fossil watches that look better, and serve their purpose.
Its actually pretty simple to understand, if you go their web site, there is instructions that explains everything in a very simple manner. Ex: First watch shows 9Hr and 37Mins - go figure... I am actually thinking of buying a watch like that at the moment...
1) 9:37
2) 9:43
3) 10:23
That's what I make those times.
Cheese
Got mine today! :D