Absolutely deserves MORE than 5 Stars!!!
I didn't think I would be this passionate about a clock! I rarely write reviews but this might be the coolest purchase I've made in a long, long time!!!<br /><br />I seriously love this thing and highly suggest purchasing it (worth every penny!!!)! I did a lot of research on these Nixie clocks and here's my thoughts (it's a long review but I hope it's helpful!):<br /><br />The design of this is superior for 3 big reasons.<br />1) Its tubes can be replaced (unlike many others that are cheaper), making it a MUCH better investment long-term.<br /><br />2) The tubes themselves last longer than many others (it intelligently cycles the cathodes more often ie - showing the date every minute etc). It is a very thoughtful design that's meant to maximize tube life and longevity. My tubes were from '81 USSR. Also, the blue LEDs are bright and very intuitive to set brightness levels.<br /><br />3) I ordered a few other clocks from other companies and the build quality on this completely blows the others out of the water. Past Indicators has a design for basically every aesthetic- old school cyber punk with wood and brass, more modern concrete with varying degrees of wear and metal fitting types, also some funky urban art ones. You can really pick the one that works best for you and your setup. Honestly the color of the tubes works great with the different designs (ie- the orange lights reflect the brass and gray concrete absolutely PERFECTLY). All the build materials are superior quality.<br />Aesthetically I prefer more options in natural finishes (simple, natural slab of concrete and brass with no extra treatments- it's very classy and versatile where the tubes are the center of attention!)<br /><br />4 (bonus thought) - The owner of the company Anton is an absolutely A+++ seller, businessperson, and artist (in my opinion). He contacted me after making the purchase, and showed me about 12 different units I could choose from (they're all very unique with their own personality). Shipping was fast, but processing from US customs took a couple weeks. Awesome that it's sent direct from Russia though, and the wait actually felt a bit like waiting for Christmas!<br /><br />5) My constructive criticism: it is expensive (I strongly feel it is worth it and believe it's important to support productive, creative, and positive people like Anton). Also, it is cheaper to purchase this on their own website, and there are more models to choose from there than on Amazon. Check that out first before buying. Honestly, I would just buy directly from them in the future.<br /><br />Lastly, different Amazon listings of these Past Indicator clocks are shipping from different places, either Russia or US.<br />There's tradeoffs so be sure to check. If it's shipped from the US you will get it quicker and returns will likely be MUCH easier (rather than mailing it back to Moscow). Mine came from Moscow because I specifically picked mine out.<br /><br />Closing comments:<br />I'm American but my family is from eastern Finland and Ukraine, all bordering Russia! So for me it is important to have something in my workspace that reminds me of my family's past and history. Blending that with wicked awesome old-school Nixie tube tech, in a thoughtfully engineered modern package, brings me immense joy whenever I look at this on my work desk.<br />Also Anton and high quality entrepreneurs like him in Russia have won my respect and deserve support. They are creating superior products that reflect the best of their country. I truly wish more products like this existed.<br /><br />If you want an extremely high quality Nixie clock, buy this and enjoy!!!<br />(apologies for the long rant, but I feel this piece of art warrants the long review and I hope it was helpful).<br />Cheers!
Rating: 5 stars