Welcome back.
Last time, we talked about the philosophy behind 2.0: building spaces, not just features. We took a first look at Parallax, which uses depth and layers to make the time feel like it’s sitting inside the scene.
Today, we want to show you our second theme: Digital.
When we started designing the Digital theme, we looked at how most digital clock apps work. Usually, a digital clock theme is just a special font layered over a nice wallpaper. The clock and the background are two completely separate things. You can swap the image, but the clock always feels like a sticker placed on top of it.
We wanted to do the exact opposite. We wanted the clock to feel like it was already a part of the background.
Bringing the scene to life
To achieve this, we started looking for backgrounds that naturally had a digital clock in them—a computer monitor, a bedside alarm, an audio deck, or a large display on a city wall.
Then, we did something a little different. We erased the static, painted-on time from the original images. In its place, we brought the digits to life.
Because the time is now actually running, the scene isn't just a static photo anymore. It feels alive. It ticks. It changes.
The goal here is simple: Realness.
We didn't want the clock to break the illusion of the space. We wanted you to look at your screen and feel like you are actually sitting at that desk, in that room, watching the time pass.
A moment on the street
One of our favorite backgrounds in this theme is a large-scale shot of a curved glass wall at night.
There's something very cinematic about this one. The massive, glowing numbers in the background, the silhouette of the person walking by, the subtle grain of the city night.
When you choose this space, the time on the glass updates perfectly in sync with your real time. It feels less like a background image, and more like you are standing on that street corner, looking at the building across the street.
Note: The themes shown here are still in development. Final visuals may differ slightly at launch.
What's next
We still have two more themes up our sleeves. But we’re going to keep those under wraps for now — you’ll get to discover them for yourself when 2.0 goes live.
Next week, we’ll be taking a look at the revamped Timer and Stopwatch. We think you’re going to like what we’ve done with them.
See you then.
Have a thought, a question, or just want to say hi? Email me at [email protected] — I'll write back. You have my word.