Moderni zidni sat Still™

A clock is the one object in a room that makes a noise all day whether you want it or not. Second after second, you stop hearing it by four in the afternoon and hear nothing else at two in the morning. Still™ works the other way: the second hand glides and does not step, and the room stays quiet.

The movement is continuous-sweep quartz, not the stepping kind. A stepping movement jerks the hand forward once a second, and the click is the escapement landing. A sweep movement drives the hand in one unbroken motion, so nothing lands and nothing clicks. It runs on one AA battery, not included because the cell packed with a clock is usually half dead, and a fresh alkaline one lasts about a year.

The dial is behind tempered glass, not the thin acrylic of most wall clocks: it takes a knock, does not fog and will not scratch and yellow as acrylic does after two summers on a sunny wall. The numerals are separate raised pieces that stand proud of the face, so each casts a small shadow and the time is read at a glance and not with a squint. The frame is satin ABS, 4.5 cm deep, and the 25 cm clock weighs under half a kilo, so one nail or one adhesive hook holds it.

Three sizes for three jobs. 20 cm for a hallway, a desk wall or the space above a door. 25 cm is the one most people choose, readable from the sofa and small enough not to take over the wall. 30 cm for a kitchen or an open-plan room, where you read it from three metres away with your hands full.

Dust the glass with a dry microfibre cloth. If it needs more, breathe on it and wipe. Do not spray anything at it, because liquid running down the bezel can get behind the lens. Avoid solvents and any glass cleaner that contains ammonia, which dull the satin frame permanently. If the clock loses time, the cause is nearly always the battery and not the movement, so change the AA before assuming anything worse. Take the battery out if the clock is to be stored for more than a few months, because a leaking cell is the one thing that will ruin it.

Satin ABS frame, tempered glass lens, printed dial with separate raised ABS numerals, and metal hour, minute and second hands on a continuous-sweep quartz movement. Powered by one AA battery, not included. Verified sizes: 8 in / 20 cm, 10 in / 25 cm and 12 in / 30 cm across the frame, all 4.5 cm deep; the 20 cm clock weighs about 480 g. One keyhole slot is moulded into the back panel, so a single nail, screw or adhesive hook is all the fixing needed.