Best Clock for Your Home Buying Guide

Find the Best Clock for Your Home - Buying Guide

Why Should You Buy a Clock?

Although you may not view a clock as being a necessary purchase in the age of the smartphone, a clock is still a classic accessory to have in your home.

When you have a clock on your wall or end table, it shows your guests that you value punctuality. Clocks are also still very convenient. If you have an important meeting scheduled, you can simply glance at your clock to make sure that you won’t be late, rather than fumbling for your smartphone.

Additionally, clocks are available in many varieties, colors, and styles that can enhance the appearance of your home, while still being functional. A beautifully designed clock has the same appeal that a painting would have. The difference between the two is that a clock is a practical piece that serves a purpose in your home beyond décor.

Things to Consider Before Buying a Clock

First of all, you should consider the purpose. Naturally, the primary purpose of a clock is to tell time, but with the new technologies available, you may no longer be dependent on a clock to tell you what time it is. If you are interested in buying a clock for décor purposes only, you may want to look at decorative antique clocks to place on your mantel, or you may possibly want to go all out and invest in a grandfather clock.

Now, if you want to purchase a clock for practical time-telling purposes, think about the room in your home where the clock would be most useful. For instance, if your children aren’t waking up on time for school, a children’s alarm clock would probably be best, but if your partner is continuously burning dinner by leaving it in the oven for too long, you would want to choose a kitchen wall clock.

Next, you should consider the styles and features. Even if you are just looking for a basic wall clock or alarm clock, you will likely still want a color and style that matches your home décor. If your kitchen has been done in a rooster design, you may try to find a clock that depicts roosters, or at least one that is color coordinated.

Bedroom clocks are available in both battery-powered models and models that plug into the wall, so you will need to check and see if there are outlets near the location where you intend to place the clock. Of course, when shopping for alarm clocks, you will want one that sounds loud and annoying enough to wake you up in the morning. Additionally, you have the option of choosing between digital clocks and analog clocks, depending on your personal preferences.

If you are in the market for a standard type of clock to use as a practical time-telling resource, then there isn’t much need to save up or pinch pennies. While you can occasionally find bargain clocks for less than $20, you should carefully consider durability and reliability before jumping on this supposed deal. You certainly wouldn’t want to take the chance of missing an important meeting because your clock was wrong! While you should always try to stay within budget, it is worth it to spend a little extra money to invest in a clock that you can rely on.

Sure, you certainly don’t need to put a huge amount of thought into buying a clock. It’s not a major purchase like buying a house or car, but you do still need to consider the style, price, durability, and reliability of any clock prior to making the purchase.

Features and Benefits of Clocks

There are a few features to look for when you are buying a clock. The ideal clock for your home depends upon your individual needs and preferences, so you will want to choose a clock that best suits your lifestyle.

• Easy to Read Clocks: While there are some clocks that show smaller digits and may even include minutes and seconds, readability is an important feature, especially when it comes to choosing a clock for children, the elderly, and the visually impaired. You may want to select a clock that has a digital read-out or larger numbers for easier readability.
• Clocks with Radios: These were extremely popular clocks when they first came out, but due to advanced technologies, most people no longer bother to listen to the radio on their clock. However, you may still be interested in a clock with a radio if you would prefer to awaken to your favorite radio station instead of annoying buzzing.

  Additionally, there are some benefits to owning a clock, believe it or not. Of course, decorative clocks are classic pieces of home décor, but the functionality of clocks can increase your family’s performance at work, home, and school.

• Increased punctuality: If you have clocks throughout your home, you will always know what time it is, which will improve your punctuality. Clocks increase your likelihood of making it to work, school, and appointments on time.
• Improved Time-management: It is easy to lose track of time when you are busy completing tasks, or browsing social media. Effective time-management is a key skill to have when trying to increase productivity. While you can always keep a day planner, it is easier to adhere to it when you pay close attention to the time.

Are you convinced yet? Although you have access to the time on your smartphone, it doesn’t completely make up for the benefits offered by owning a clock. Smartphones get damaged or misplaced, whereas clocks are stationary pieces.

People have the tendency to check their emails, text messages, and social media each time they pull out their smart devices, but a clock will keep you running on schedule without dampening your productivity with distractions.

Consumer Trends with Clocks

Surprisingly, the market for clocks and watches continues to grow steadily despite the new technologies available. Since more people have recently started to work from home and many students are either being home-schooled or taking online classes, punctuality and time-management are becoming more important to consumers.

The clocks that were once accumulating dust on the mantle are now freshly polished and functional. Business people who are working remotely are buying clocks for their home offices. Parents are hanging clocks in their living room to keep their children on top of their schoolwork.

Yes, clocks are definitely trending in the market today and projected to have continued growth in the market. Clocks are genuine and timeless pieces that don’t seem to ever go out of style, at least not in the foreseeable future.

Types of Clocks

There are plenty of different types of clocks that you can choose from. They come in all shapes, sizes, styles, and colors. Here are a few types of clocks that you may want to consider:

• Wall Clocks and Analog Clocks: An analog clock doesn’t necessarily hang on a wall. The term analog simply means that there are numbers surrounding the face of the clock, rather than digital readouts. An analog clock could be on your wall, desktop, or nightstand. Wall clocks are the most popular type of analog clock. These clocks can be hung on the wall of your office or home.
• Digital Clocks: Digital clocks are often used as alarm clocks. Many models are even glow-in-the dark, which makes nighttime readability possible. These clocks are also a great choice for children who are learning to tell time.
• Grandfather Clocks: These freestanding traditional clocks are classic and timeless décor, but they are also very expensive. If you are willing to make this investment, a grandfather clock will be enjoyed by generations.
• Battery-Powered Clocks: While most wall clocks are powered by batteries, you can also find clocks for your nightstand or mantle that run by battery. This feature reduces unsightly electrical cords and is especially beneficial if your outlets are already being used, or if there is no outlet near the clock.
• Mantel Clocks: Many decorative or antique clocks are designed for placement on your living room mantel, hutch, or bookcase. They enhance the room’s visual appeal, while still being practical and functional pieces.
• Maritime Clocks: These clocks provide a nautical appeal, and offer additional features that allow you to measure the weather and humidity. Of course, maritime clocks also display the time, but if you are interested in tracking the weather and can navigate the difficult read-out, you may want to invest in one of these multi-functional clocks.
• Pendulum Clocks: Another clock that is classic and popular is the pendulum clock. Newer models are small enough to fit on a tabletop, but you will need to place this clock on a flat surface in order for it to function properly.
• Cuckoo Clocks: The creative and unique design of the cuckoo clock has made it one of the more popular clocks in the world. Sure, it can become a bit annoying to some people, but you have to admit that the idea of a bird popping out and making a cuckoo call on the hour is absolutely adorable.

Final Thoughts

Although we may live in an age where we can tell what time it is simply by glancing at our smartphone or computer, clocks continue to be timeless and classic pieces to have in your home. There are many types of clocks that you can choose from depending on whether you are buying a clock for appearance or for functionality.

Clocks can increase productively and punctuality, and even contribute to improved time management skills. Their design and style combined with their practicality has resulted in their continued demand.

While there are features to consider when purchasing a clock, it isn’t the most difficult of decisions to make. As long as you select a style that you love and choose a model that is durable and reliable, you are sure to continue to get plenty of use out of your new clock…for generations to come.