Nixie Tube Clock - Boulder by Makenology

[Takka 13590]

Product on Amazon

 

I was in need of a new clock and felt like getting something more unique, so I checked out Nixie Tube clocks. This was the only one I saw on Amazon with good reviews, and a comparably reasonable price.

 

It displays time down to the second, which has so far been accurate, and it can also be set to display the date 50 seconds into every minute. It's oddly powered by 2.1 amp USB, which is kind of nice, and comes with a suitable AC adapter.

 

According to the seller, the tubes themselves have a warranty of just 3 months (however replacement tubes are readily available), while the base has a warranty of 1 year. The packaging and overall quality of the product seem very good, despite having it shipped directly from a seemingly personal address in Taiwan.

Likes

• Sleek design and modular tubes.
• Supports all time and date formats.
• Keeps time even without power for at least a couple weeks (didn't test longer).

Dislikes

• Impossible to figure out how to set without the manual, and even then it's not particularly clear.
• The buttons at the back for settings feel very cheap, with their extreme wobble and strong detents.
• One of the tubes experienced cathode poisoning and died after almost 3 months, however it was still covered under warranty and a replacement was promptly mailed to me.
• Accuracy of the timekeeping is comparable to a digital watch. Clock is roughly 1 second faster every day, adding up to about a 1 minute inaccuracy over 2 months.

[giraffe 803]

Looks neat.

[Krazychic 3324]

Ohhh it's a lot smaller than I thought but still pretty neat.

[Takka 13590]

Just now, Krazychic said:

Ohhh it's a lot smaller than I thought but still pretty neat.

I was surprised as well, but still quite like it.

[Risk 1833]

So crazy to see this kind of technology making a comeback due to aesthetics.

[Takka 13590]

Here's a closeup of the tubes:

 

 

It didn't come out in the picture, but there's an eerie blue glow around each lit digit.

[Pra3tor1an 1234]

I remember when I was a child, our TV had one of these to tell you the channel number! The remote was sonic and used to drive the cat mad lol

[Takka 13590]

Amazingly, this keeps time when without power for at least a couple hours (didn't test longer).

 

Must have a beefy capacitor in it? Quite an unexpected feature.

[WaeV 5049]

For those who want a nixie clock but are turned off by the expense, VFD (vacuum fluorescent display) is another technology that's only slightly newer than nixie tubes and is a cheaper alternative. It can look similar, but blue instead of orange:

 

 

There are a few different kinds:

 

[Takka 13590]

That second one looks pretty sweet.