Cool Time

(Above left) The Nooka Zon: works much like an hourglass. Each mark represents a single minute of time. On the right, in black, is the Nooka Zirc: The 12 dots represent hours and the horizontal row counts minutes. The April issue of Vogue showcased 4 different Nooka watches in various spreads.

(Above and below) A line up of colorful neon watches for the youthful and adventurous.



(Above) The Nooka Zot-V also has some nifty features: a chronograph for timing your poker games, and an alarm to get you up in the morning. The 12 dots represent hours (months in date mode) and the row below counts minutes. Housed in stainless steel with an LCD display, the watch has an EL backlight, leather straps and a stainless steel buckle.


THE NOOKA WATCH IS ONE OF THE FIRST WATCHES I HAVE SEEN in quite a while where design and concept is paramount. Looking at the watches, you have to ask: is it easier to read than your standard watch? I guess that depends on how willing you are to acclimate yourself to it. Nooka says that once you’re used to the new visual paradigm, you may never go back to standard analog and digital time again. It is certainly one of those watches that will get attention. Want to impress a girl or business associate? Try wearing your Nooka watch.

So, how do you tell the time? Look at the watch above (the Nooka Zot-V) — the gray, elegant model. It shows the time to be 8:25.55 pm. Do you understand the system? Here’s how: the big, dark dots at the top of the watch show the hours; you’ll see that 8 of them are lit. The middle horizontal bar has 59 LED slots; the more of them that are filled in the more minutes of the hour has passed. The counter on the bottom left shows seconds that have elapsed. The dots on the bottom right show whether the time is AM, PM or whether you are setting in alarm; in this case the PM dot is illuminated. So, there you go: 8:25.55pm.

Nooka is the brainchild of artist and designer, Matthew Waldman. In 1997, Matthew had a flash-back to a first grade math class while staring at a large wall clock in a London hotel and was struck by how few options there were for time display. He then sketched his ideas for potential designs on a napkin and brought them back to New York. After working on the designs, he submitted them to his legal team, and indeed, they were unique enough to patent! Matthew Waldman is a creative director with over 15 years experience crafting corporate identities and design systems for a wide array of clients. His graphic design studio, Berrymatch, creates award winning videos and web work for clients in the U.S., Japan, and the UK. Matthew is also an artist and educator instructing at the Parsons School of Design and the New School University in New York City and producing the Fairy Labor Union art collection that can be viewed in fine art galleries around the world.

Now, with Nooka Inc., he turns his talents to develop groundbreaking products - starting with the world renowned Nooka timepieces.

© 2007-2008 Matthew Waldman. All rights reserved. Nooka is a registered trademark of Nooka Inc.. Designs are protected by US and World Wide Patents.