Seeing is believing.
The adage definitely applies to the Mojoptix 3D-printed digital sundial that digitally tells the time, as the day goes on from soon after sunrise to right before sunset. The unique product comes by the way of a French Etsy seller, who describes the complete designing process and how the device functions via an informative 15-minute video.
The device, which is essentially a wand with an embedded intricate pattern of holes that casts shadows to display the time, is pretty fascinating to see in action. Without the holes being strategically placed along the wand, the sun hitting it wouldn't be able to accurately cast shadows and display the correct time.
Adding to the originality of the product, to stabilize it, the digital sundial must be screwed to a glass jar and that jar must be filled with something to hold the sundial down, so it could stand its ground amidst windy conditions. The Etsy seller in the video has the jar filled with pennies to accomplish that.
The main drawback of the digital sundial is its limited to the sun's prime hours of course — about 10 a.m. through about 4 p.m. That and it only tells time in 20-minute increments, but that shouldn't be a make-or-break deal for potential customers.
The sundial is being sold on Mojoptix's Etsy page and the video can be seen below.
