I just bought a WWVB Radio Controlled Clock. Anyone know how much adding the circuitry to the cost of the clock would be? I would guess less than 5 dollars. Probably closer to 2 dollars.
You would think all digital clock radios would come with this built in.
$2.00 is probably about right.
Well, which is it?
Is it a Main Accent, or is it a Maine Accent, or is it a Mane Accent?
I go for number 3.
Doh! Premature postification, it happens to all men at some time or other but as I get older it seems to happen more often. "Maine" of course. 8-)
TDD
I would like to be able to walk into a store and buy a radio controlled clock radio. They are available, but I haven't been able to find one at any of the regular suspects. For that matter there aren't really very many wall clocks. Most of the regular suspects have "Atomic" wall clocks, but they have digital displays, not nice big faces with second hands. There are a few of them out there, but not as many as I expected to have showing up when I first found out about them.
Bill
Why would you want to "radio control" the hands n a clock? They aren't going to do your housework for you anyway as they don't actually leave the clock.
Get a big digital atomic clock. They work wonderfully, providing you are close enough to a time beacon it uses.
Bill
The service should also broadcast the date. This would be very handy for reprogramming DVD recorders, TVs and answering machines that lose time\date settings due to power outages. It is not so much getting the time to the exact second, it is the convenience of not having to set the time at all.
If the low ball estimate of 9 cents for the technology is close, everything should come with WWVB.
Can't speak for your clock in particular, but have seen GPS receivers that just use the GPS signal for a time base.
ISTR that GPS time is just as accurate.
daestrom
My 'Atomic' branded analog clock (with sweep second hand) is a PITA, eats batteries, and 2-3 times a year has an attack of the vapors and starts resetting itself randomly, I have to force-reset it 2-3 times before it synchs up reliably. Good thing I only paid five bucks at a garage sale. No biggie, I have 3-4 shortwaves that can hit WWV except when sun is high in the sky.
The time code broadcast on WWVB includes the date and a DST flag. If you have a properly set up synchronized clock then it is all automatic, all you have to do is start it and set the time zone.
Bill
I haven't had that problem. But I do have one that is kind of flaky with DST. When we change to or from DST the clock changes just fine. When I get up in the morning it has the correct time. Then when I look at it along in the evening it has gone back to the old setting. The next morning it will be right again, until the next DST change.
Of course I also have one of the same model, which I bought after that one that doesn't know about the DST flag on the time code. It changes according to the old DST times, so it is an hour off about 5 weeks a year. I have to change the time zone so it will be right during those periods.
Bill
Yeah, I would think the mechanical clocks would be a bit more tricky than the digital version.
The WWV seemed like a good idea to keep my VCR from always flashing
12:00. I fixed mine with electrical tape. :)
The large face analog WWVB clock keeps time reasonably well. When the battery dies enough the second hand will get stuck between 40-50. And I can read it from out on the deck.
The digital time-date-temp WWVB clock is often 40 minutes fast. That's the kind of error that gets me because it's not so wrong that I notice it right away. Until last year, the date would also be wrong with the year (sometimes just the year) set to 09. Since this year when the date is wrong the year is 18. Something about nines. And 40.
mMust be a two-bit system!
The third bit would be the 4 x 10 minutes bit.
LOL
The digital time-date-temp WWVB clock is often 40 minutes fast. That's the kind of error that gets me because it's not so wrong that I notice it right away. Until last year, the date would also be wrong with the year (sometimes just the year) set to 09. Since this year when the date is wrong the year is 18. Something about nines. And 40.
m
It knows where you live... ;-)
That's what I'm talking about. The "atomic clocks" are synchronized by a radio signal form the NIST's broadcast station in Boulder Colorado.
Bill
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