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Talking Weather Alarm is great for summer travel and your nightstand
There is absolutely no shortage of alarm clocks for the iPhone, but I have recently tried and really like Talking Weather Alarm. Yes, it wakes you up to a variety of alarm sounds or anything from your playlist, but it also reads the local weather forecast to you and gives you a smattering of news headlines. The app has a light price tag of just US$0.99. Talking Weather Alarm is far preferable to those sometimes flaky hotel wake-up calls and the other iPhone alarms that get you out of bed but don't do as good a job of keeping you informed. The app has a variety of colors and clock faces, and it works in either landscape or portrait view. Leaving the app running all night can suck your battery, so it's a good idea to have your iPhone plugged in and charging. The weather info comes from Yahoo!, and uses location services to figure out where you are. News sources include providers from the US, the UK, Germany and France. The app comes with a variety of sounds (40) for alarms. They will ring even if your iPhone is running something else. If you want to use your own music, leave Talking Weather Alarm in the foreground. No app is perfect, and here are some of my suggestions for improvement. First, Yahoo! Weather is pretty inaccurate in my testing. The developer says he will add more sources for getting the weather. There are plenty of news providers and categories, like business and sports, but you can only choose one. I'd like to get brief news headlines, maybe some baseball news and some tech news. As of now, that is not possible. The computerized voice is certainly adequate, but like all similar apps, it suffers from some pronunciations that it has trouble parsing. If you touch the weather symbol on the app home screen, you will get a nice forecast, but it isn't wide enough to properly display temperatures above 99. Even with the caveats, this is a great little alarm app that will certainly improve. I still really like Night Stand for the iPad, but Talking Weather Alarm is great for both travel and sitting right next to your bed at home. If you want to try it, there is a free version that won't let you choose your own music or change clock colors. You may have your own favorite alarm clock app, so feel free to share it with us in the comments. %Gallery-126485%
Mutewatch now in production, set to silently manage your day by July (video)
We first caught wind of Mutewatch AB's eponymous sort of anti-watch -- a personal vibrating time management wristband, equipped with a hidden touch-activated LED display -- when it became available for pre-order back in August. It seemed unique, but back then we had no idea of how it looked in action or when we might finally get one strapped onto our wrists. It's a mystery no more, as the Swedish suite has just released a heavily stylized (and totally rendered) video showcasing the Mutewatch's various touch-enabled functions. Also in tow, a press release announcing retail availability in July. Although our cellphones can do pretty much the same thing as this spendy $259 timepiece, we can't hide our geeky (and guilty) lust for one. You can check out the video for yourself past the break, but be warned: a moderate case of GAS -- Gadget Acquisition Syndrome -- may occur after viewing.
Clik Clok iPad 2 accessory: Be like Flava Flav
To wear what we feel comfortable calling the "Worst. Accessory. Ever," you need three things. First, more money than sense. Second, a desire to resemble a high-tech version of Flava Flav. And third, a firm belief that the magnets along one side of your iPad 2 are strong enough to hold on to this Clik Clok chain no matter how hard you rap. "Tired of having to carry your iPad in a bag?" wonders designer Pensa. "Or worse yet...in your hand? Looking for a convenient way to have your iPad with you at all times whether you are at work, out with friends, or working out? Have you ever looked down at your stylish giant clock necklace and wondered, 'HEY! Why can't this thing browse the internet, play music, and let me video chat with my friends?' " If you recognize yourself in this description or in the picture (nice hat!), then you need Pensa's gold, red or silver chain necklace that attaches to the magnetic points on your new iPad 2. Will it hold? Remember how worried you were it wouldn't stick to the fridge, and that worked out fine, right? And as soon as it's attached, the Clock app fires up automatically. Cool! The Clik Clok isn't in production yet, and there's no price set either, but Pensa describes the Clik Clok concept as "Ready for Kickstarter..." Luckily it also adds, "Hint...we are kidding." Still, ask nicely and I'm sure Pensa would make you one to go with your hat. [Via Likecool]
Harry Winston's Opus Eleven watch: mechanical masterpiece / bank breaker (video)
It's been a while since we gave Harry Winston's Opus watch any play, but some timepieces are just too lavish to pass up. Case in point: the Opus Eleven, designed by temporal taste-maker Denis Giguet of MCT. Aesthetically speaking, it's probably a touch too steampunk for some, but the way it tells time is straight up fascinating. Giguet points out the movement enlists 566 parts, a good deal of which are exposed in the main face -- the center piece displays the hour, while the upper right disc shows off the minutes. Now, it might look like a relatively minimal watch for Harry Winston, but its case is made of 18k white gold and sapphire crystal, and the Opus Eleven's definitely got a Winston-worthy price tag, ringing in at about $250,000. So if you've got a quarter of a mill just laying around, this is a definite contender for that stack of cash. Want to see all those tiny pieces in action? Check out the video after the break.
More iPhone clock problems reported
Apple continues to deal with problems with the clock on the iPhone -- this first cropped up back in November, when clocks were turned back an hour to standard time. Some issues were still popping up in January, and now this weekend, as clocks were turned forward for Daylight Savings time in the US, some users were still having issues of varying kinds, from clocks changing when they weren't supposed to, to alarms not going off when set up correctly. Some users are even reporting the time changing just fine, and then inexplicably switching back -- one of my friends had a problem like that with his first-generation AT&T iPhone last night. Unfortunately, since most of the information on the issues is anecdotal, it's hard to pin down exactly what's happening, but it seems to be something going on between the phone's software and a connection to the local provider's time information. Most of the issues are being fixed by flipping Airport Mode on and off (to re-establish the cellular connection) or even just restarting the phone. Alternately, you could just set the time yourself manually, though having a phone that sets its own time is obviously a lot more convenient. At any rate, it looks like Apple is continuing to deal with this ongoing issue. Do make sure to check your phone and get it right -- you wouldn't want to miss Pi Day today, after all.
Apple's iPhone / iPod touch daylight saving time woes continue
If a broken clock is right twice a day, Apple's is off twice a year these days -- once each time Daylight Savings Time needs to be calculated in territories that depend on it. iPhone and iPod touch users are reporting on Twitter and the official Apple forums that the Clock app is been demonstrating all kinds of erratic behavior -- regardless of phone model or AT&T / Verizon pedigree -- with some alarms going off early, others late, and plenty of others working perfectly. Amusingly, still others report that DST adjustments occurred in places that don't recognize DST at all: "My iPhone 4 had the wrong time this morning - in Phoenix," reports user M Gnu, "We don't do DST, but iPhone apparently thinks otherwise." Since DST went into effect on Sunday in the US, many didn't notice issues until this morning, but even eagle-eyed iPhone owners could have a nasty surprise as one Engadget reader reports: "My iPhone 3GS changed time correctly yesterday, but for some reason over night it reverted back an hour, thus leaving me an hour late for work." There doesn't seem to be a single easy fix, but affected users report a variety of ideas might work -- restarting the device, changing the Time and Date setting away from Automatic, calling the iPhone with another phone, or turning on and off Airplane Mode. How's your iDevice hanging? Let us know below. %Poll-61642%[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
Timescape Sci-Fi watch makes you work for the time of day, looks good doing it (video)
If you're like us, you don't mind working that grey matter to tell the time, especially if the watch your wearing looks and acts like something ripped from the U.S.S. Enterprise. The Timescape Sci-Fi watch, thus named for its cryptic time telling interface, sports a chrome exterior and uses a series of blue LEDs to illuminate a rectangular grid, giving you unique temporal readouts. Each line contains a series of dots representing minutes or hours, with the vertical lines displaying hours, the first three horizontal lines showing five-minute increments, and the last row offering exact minutes. Sound complicated? Well it is, but sometimes looking good takes a little work -- you think Uhura rolls out of bed looking like that? The Timescape Sci-Fi watch is now on sale exclusively from Gadgets and Gear for $70, but if you just like staring at shiny flashy things, we've got a video of the timepiece after the jump.
Motorola Xoom overclocked to 1.5GHz, eats Quadrant and Linpack for breakfast (video)
Hold on to your hats, gents, because things just got real -- that's a Motorola Xoom in the picture above, clocked at a blazing 1.504GHz. While we highly doubt that's a new world record of any sort, the dual-core Tegra 2 inside seriously screams at that clockspeed, scorching Quadrant to the tune of 3105 (remember this?) and delivering 47 MFLOPS in Linpack. Oh, and in case you're curious, this achievement wasn't some random hack. It was perpetrated for our collective benefit by the master of SetCPU himself, and you'll find full video proof of his accomplishment below and instructions at our source link. Got root? Then you're on your way. [Thanks, Adam B.]
Visualized: the Power Mac G4 clock (update)
What do you do with that once state of the art Power Mac? Well, you could always empty the case and add a "cheap clock mechanism," in the words of our friend Justin -- who emailed us some pictures of his latest creation this morning. But don't forget the Mighty Mouse pendulum: that's what really won us over. Hit the source link for more glamor shots. Update: We just received an email from Justin, who inexplicably left out one crucial detail: this thing plays the Mac startup tone on the hour. Super geeky, or super annoying? We'll let you decide for yourself (although we suspect it's a combination of the two).
Apple TV clock mod makes up for the lack of an iPad clock
Do you have an old first-generation Apple TV lying around collecting dust? Would you like to turn it into something useful and attractive? TUAW reader Antonio Worrall had purchased a second-generation Apple TV, and his old unit had gone to "join the choir invisible," so he decided to put the deceased box to good use. It was his first mod, and we think it looks pretty good. And of course, it makes up for the lack of a native clock app on the iPad... You can view some other snaps of the Apple TV clock on Antonio's iDisk here. I'm just glad that I finally have a use for my old Apple TV, too.
Lunchtime Clock mod offers false promises to beleaguered office workers
We've seen a lot of DIY clock mods in the past, but the Lunchtime Clock has to be the most useless. It's great in theory: the thing speeds up 20 percent starting at 11AM and slows down twenty percent at 11:48AM. So, at 11:48AM the clock reads noon, and by 1:00PM it's back in sync, giving you an extra 12 minutes to digest that chili dog you so hastily sucked down before returning to work. Here's the catch: watches, cellphones, and computers also tell time, and if you work in an office where you've got to fake it to get an extra 12 minutes with your chili dog, you can bet your boss isn't trusting ye olde wall clock. So, before you go tinkering with your office timepiece, thank the heavens you've been blessed with an hour long lunch break to begin with. We hear the guy at the chili dog stand only gets 15 minutes.
McIntosh MCLK12 wall clock sports fancy face, massive price tag
Ever wonder why you can't find a clock that looks more like a 1970s amplifier? If you answered yes to that question, and don't mind throwing down wads of cash for novelty timepieces, then McIntosh's MCLK12 is right up your alley. The makers of high-end audio gear have produced a clock that's in keeping with their classic look and price point -- it costs $2000 and uses blue-lit amp meters to tell the time (hours on the left, minutes on the right). We have to admit, the MCLK12 looks pretty sweet, but really, whatever happened to promotional t-shirts?
iHome iA63 motorized spinning iPhone alarm clock hands-on
In addition to its slick new AirPlay speaker systems, iHome's here at CES with its usual array of iPhone alarm clocks -- and the craziest by far is the new iA63, which offers a crazy motorized dock that pivots your phone from portrait to landscape at the touch of a button. Why you'd be watching anything from an iPhone from so far away that you couldn't spin things yourself is an open question, but hey -- for a list price of $99 we'll take all the extra motors we can get. Video after the break. %Gallery-113297%
iPhone alarm still not working for some, here are a few solutions
It amazes me that for all the amazing technology and innovation out of Cupertino, they can still manage to screw up a simple alarm function on the iPhone. Chris wrote about this issue on New Year's Eve, but it appears the Clock app is still having trouble setting off one-time alarms as of today. Naturally, Apple hasn't said much, aside from a blip to Engadget about "awareness" and a sort-of fix (set a repeating alarm instead). There's a raft of angry customers on the Apple discussion boards, however, and my personal Twitter feed lit up this morning with people I know who were hit with the bug when they relied upon their iPhone to wake them up for work. What to do? In my case I don't have time to go buy another alarm clock today -- which is ridiculous anyway considering the tech in the iPhone. I'm heading to CES tomorrow morning, and I'm quite nervous about waking up on time. So I've set up an account with iPing to send me a wake-up call on my iPhone (and yeah, it's free but the message will likely have an ad -- small price to pay for convenience). I've also purchased two alarm apps -- one for my iPhone and one for my iPad. In my case I bought Clock Pro HD (US$3.99) for iPad and Awaken for my iPhone (US$0.99), which we've reviewed before. Mashable has a few recommendations as well. A simpler solution is to set a repeating alarm instead of a one-time alarm. However, I have seen reports of repeating alarms failing as well. Some suggest you should delete all alarms and set a repeating alarm, or alternatively set a countdown timer for the hours you'd like to stay asleep -- but it appears there is no easy answer. Apple's claim that it'll start working "beginning January 3" rings untrue given my own anecdotal evidence and this report from International Business Times. It's a mess, honestly, but we're hopeful that alarms on the iPhone begin to function properly tomorrow. Or maybe Apple will issue an update addressing the problem. Or maybe we're all just waking up wrong. Update: I managed to get a non-repeating alarm to fire off when I deleted all my previous alarms and set the new one. I'm still relying on all of my other alarm apps, just in case.
Analarm vibrating watch wakes you, not your spouse or the neighbors (video)
At some point, every day, it's time to wake up. If you're lucky you roll out of bed whenever the spirit moves you. For the rest of us there's some sort of prompting involved. At some point you've probably felt the rage of being awoken early by someone else's alarm, a problem that the Analarm watch nullifies. It's a simple concept: a vibrating watch with an alarm. Set your time and it buzzes to let you know when to get up, a feature we sorely wished the WakeMate had. Seemingly that's all the thing does, other than tell time of course, which makes its £290 ($450) price seem slightly egregious, especially considering upcoming products like the Lark Up wristband pledge to do the same for just $99.
iPhone alarms still not working, worlds crashing left and right
Hey, you -- it's January 3rd. You know, the day you're supposed to return to work / school / life. And the day you're supposed to catch a flight you've had booked for three months. And probably a day that you're supposed to accomplish lots of other tasks. Unfortunately for you, you actually believed that your iPhone alarm would fix itself when today rolled around, but based on hordes of complaints seen on Twitter and Facebook, said fix is still hibernating. And thus, you're still sleeping. Even here at Engadget HQ, we've seen iPhone 4 handsets not wake us as promised (on non-recurring alarms), so who knows when Apple will step up to the plate and address the issue. In the meantime, go ahead and set up a recurring alarm while gently crossing your fingers and toes. Or, you know, buy a battery-powered alarm clock off of your grandmother. [Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
iPhone alarms may fail to activate on New Year's Day
If you're using your iPhone or iPod touch as your primary alarm clock, it might be time to reconsider. In 2010, Apple had well-publicized difficulties with the switchover to Daylight Saving Time. Alarms failed to go off at their proper times, causing thousands of people in the Southern Hemisphere to wake up an hour early and many more thousands in the Northern Hemisphere to wake up an hour late. Now yet another bug has struck Apple's Clock app in iOS: single-use, non-repeating alarms fail to go off at all after New Year's Day. Just like the Daylight Saving Time bug, living in New Zealand has given me the opportunity to test this bug ahead of time. Strangely, a single-use alarm scheduled to go off at 7:00 AM today went off on time, but now single-use alarms don't work at all. Only alarms set to repeat at least once during the week will work properly. 9to5Mac suggests that the problem will clear up after January 3, and our testing confirms that -- in a couple of days, the alarms are back to normal. This bug in the Clock app is somewhat less insidious than the Daylight Saving Time bug, which affected repeating alarms. With this New Year's Day bug, you'll still be safe if you've got a repeating alarm set during the work week. Only single-use alarms will fail to go off. I've tested this with alarms created in 2010 and alarms created in 2011, and it makes no difference; all single-use alarms now fail to activate until after 1/3. I've tested this on an iPhone 4 running iOS 4.2.1 -- your experience may differ if you have a different iOS device or software version. Considering how many things Apple's managed to get right in iOS, it seems really odd that, of all things, it's the Clock app that keeps getting mucked up. Let us know in the comments if any third-party alarm clock apps are experiencing the same issue (though I doubt it). In the meantime, if you've been using your iPhone or iPod touch to wake you up in the morning, it might be a good idea to invest in a cheap standalone alarm clock -- or take off work until Monday.
PSA: iPhone alarms not working come New Year's Day 2011
We're not exactly sure of the cause of this fancy new issue affecting Apple's super cool iPhone line of cellphones, but apparently you've got trouble come 1/1/2011. According to an explosive stream of frustration-filled tweets on the Twitter microblogging service, when the clock strikes midnight, one off alarms will cease to sing out. The issue sounds eerily similar to recent Daylight Savings Time trouble we witnessed back in November, although we saw both repeating alarm and single alarm failures. So how can you fix this potentially life-ruining problem? Well until Apple patches its OS -- and it's currently unclear if this is just iOS 4.2.1 or earlier versions as well -- you can simply create a recurring alarm at the time you need to be woken up, and then disable it once your dreams are completely ruined. We're taking a deeper look into the issue and have contacted Apple -- if we get more news, you guys will be the first to know. In the meantime, feel free to commiserate in comments, and... happy new year? Update: 9to5 Mac says that the bug will get fixed all by itself once the calendar hits January 3rd. We haven't confirmed this, but if it turns out to be the case, that's pretty good news. In less good news, the issue seems to be affecting iOS 4.1 and 4.0.2 as well. Update 2: Apple responded to us on the issue, though they didn't offer any surprises: We're aware of an issue related to non repeating alarms set for January 1 or 2. Customers can set recurring alarms for those dates and all alarms will work properly beginning January 3. [Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
Ziiiro Gravity and Mercury watches coming soon to a wrist near you
They're here, well, almost. Two attractive and legible alternatives to the over designed watch, Ziiiro's Gravity and Mercury, are now available for pre-order. No, they can't tell you if it's snowing out like Fossil's Connected, and they won't bump your 2010 year in review playlist like an iPod nano watch, but they do tell time like no other -- quite literally. The Gravity and Mercury have taken Ziiiro's lofty goal of stylish utilitarianism from concept to reality. The watches function without any of the markings of standard analog timepieces, instead using a continuously rotating combination of two rings to make temporal distinctions. The tip of the inner ring represents the hour, while the tip of the outer ring denotes minutes, and a fading gradient tracks the passage of time. Ziiiro doesn't let form override function, but it doesn't skimp on aesthetics, either: Mercury, which touts a stainless steel band, comes in four different color schemes, while Gravity boasts a patent pending bracelet strap (a silicone-metal combo), available in six colors. Both watches also feature pop-out faces, allowing for a variety of Swatch watch-style face-band pairings. However, while they're both readable and fashionable, these low frills watches don't come cheap: prices range from €100 to €143, or about $130 to $175.
Moine-Garde offers finely rendered watch apps for indiscriminate Android owners
Moine-Garde recently came to our attention, and we were quite frankly amused by its offer of "fine virtual timepieces" -- if only because, in this context, "fine" and "virtual" would seem to cancel each other out. But like the best websites and catalogs catering to the wealthy, social climbers, or the just plain gullible, this company is not just selling Android apps, it's selling a lifestyle. Some of our favorite item descriptions: EX-01 Homme ($15) Entering the boardroom at 8:30 AM - everyone awaits a decision. Mentally going over the broader picture. Calmly sitting down at the end of the table. Placing the phone quietly on its black glass surface. Time: 8:31. Let the meeting begin. F-01 M'elle ($7) Strolling down Rue Saint-Florentin. New dress: Check. Artichokes: Check. Hometown Crémant: Check. All is ready. Thinking about his smile on the last date. Loving the scent of vanilla from the bakery across the road. 7:10 PM. Incoming text message: "Chéri - Can't wait to see you tonight." M-01 Jaune ($3) Finally got around to reading Fritz Neumeyer's essay on Mies Van Der Rohe. 3:05 PM, Sunday afternoon - Coldplay in the background. Sitting comfortably with a tall glass of Chablis. The patterns of rain on the terrace windows are simply amazing. Page 122. M-02 Verte (Coming soon!) 12:30 PM, Singapore. Lunch break at the School of Art & Design. On the rooftop enjoying a Katong Laksa. Green as far as the eye can see. Remembering a Murakami sentence. Watching a plane go by. How time flies. Have to return to the lecture. Guess that's ok. At this point you're probably asking yourself if this is all a joke, or if these guys are serious -- and to be honest, we can't tell either. But we do know this: $15 is quite a lot to spend on a watch app, even if it does display hours, minutes, and seconds. PR after the break.
