Over three thousand years ago, humans began to start tracking time by using sundials. Based upon the shadows that the sun made on a dial plate, people could now tell what time it was. Until a mechanical clock was invented in the 1300s, the sundial was the most popular way that humans kept time. After another 600 years or so, humans then started using a different kind of clock—a digital clock.
The first digital watch was created in the early 1970s, but the fabulous fashion accessory was prohibitively expensive until the 1980s. It was then that manufacturers were able to cut the cost of the digital watch, producing them on a massive scale in order to satisfy rabid demand from the public.
It would take until 2016, however, for ancient sundial technology to meld with digital clocks. Perhaps not surprisingly, the digital sundial popped up on one of the world’s most popular online marketplaces—Etsy. By working with natural shadows, the digital sundial creates a digital readout of time.
Since it is based upon the movement of the sun, this product possesses the same drawbacks as that of its ancient predecessors; it can’t tell time at night. With an aesthetic appeal that is unsurpassed, however, that small detail shouldn’t get in the way of the digital sundial becoming very popular.
