In Japanese the word “Tokiji”
directly translates to “time numerals” and has been adopted by the watch design
team at Normal Timepieces located in Tokyo, Japan for their new retro styled
Tokiji digital watch. Created to offer users a new standard for digital
watches, the Tokiji is equipped with all the functions you would expect
together with an “enhanced, exceptionally vivid” display.
Pledges are now available from
£ 123 or roughly US$ 162 and worldwide shipping will start during July 2019. The
design team behind the unique digital watch explain more about its inspiration
and design.
“The seven segment digit was patented in 1903 for a
method of telegraphically transmitting numbers to be printed on tape. The first
digital wrist watch was an LED prototype in 1970. Perhaps this type of digit is
fading away as our interface design, and display technologies advance, but
let’s not forget how they have taken such a prominent place in the background
of our everyday lives. Our new Tokiji watch gives them the respect they
deserve. These vivid digits are generously spaced on a rich, black dial,
surrounded by a handsome, minimal case. “
“All digital
watches hide the frame of their liquid crystal display (LCD). This is usually
done by printing a masking window on the underside of the watch’s lens. What
always irritated us, is that the black of the LCD, and the black of the mask
are essentially the same. However, when they are overlapped, the light is
refracted, so they always look different. The window’s shape stands out, and is
not particularly related to the watch’s overall design. It is simply something
that the watch designer has to work around.”
