The raised markers around the dial, in combination with two ball bearings, allow you to tell the time by feel, not just visually. The Bradley Timepiece was designed by Hyungsoo Kim who received the inspiration to come up with the watch when he was in a lecture hall at Massachusetts Institute of Technology in September 2011, as a visually impaired neighboring student asked him for the time. The Eone Bradley Timepiece is designed for you to tell time by touch, or by sight. Around the edge of the watch would be another ball bearing that will rotate so that you know what hour it is. What it does have, however, would be a groove that is located in the center where a ball-bearing rotates in order to mark the exact minute. Numbers too, are unsurprisingly, missing from the face of the timepiece. Just how does the Bradley Timepiece actually work? For starters, this timepiece would arrive with a stark, circular titanium face, and there are no hands whatsoever for you to view. The thing about the Bradley Timepiece is this – it happens to be purchased mainly by sighted people instead. Well, the Bradley Timepiece happens to be an exception to the rule, where this watch was specially designed for blind people, and it has been named after a Paralympian gold medallist who lost his ability to see in Afghanistan. The Eone Bradley timepiece is affordable, comfortable, looks boldly refreshing and is overall a watch that I was excited to review the moment I first saw it earlier this year when meeting with the brand at the Hong Kong Watch & Clock Fair 2015. there are surprisingly few timepieces for the blind out there, and eone really has a fantastic opportunity in this, not just to make a beautiful product-which this is-, but to make something that really helps people.It is not as though the blind or visually impaired do not have a way to tell the time, it is just that watches for them are few and far in between. I'd say this is a good Version 1.0, and it makes for a stylish accessory for the sighted, but it needs practical refinement to be an everyday watch for the blind - and it *absolutely* needs these refinements. i'm sure there are at least half-a-dozen design alternatives to avoid a blind person on their hands and knees searching for tiny screws in the carpet under the table. or maybe something other than screws - maybe the entire back rotates to lock or unlock, with inset finger holds or a slightly knurled edge.

i would suggest captured screws and a slightly larger snap-in-place gasket. the front of the watch may have been designed for the blind, but the back of the watch was definitely not.

changing the battery requires dealing with four extremely tiny screws and a ring gasket that comes off with very little effort.

i suspect someone just thought the idea was cool.Ģ. if there's any benefit to these elements being magnetic, i have absolutely no idea what it may be. honestly i find it a little bizarre that these elements are designed to be magnetic in the first place, they can easily be fixed in place without compromising waterproofing, motion, or aesthetics. the magnet holding the hour and minute bearings in place is fairly weak, and they're easily dislodged with normal braille-reading finger pressure. The overall design and quality are excellent, but there are two problems, and if i'd known about them in advance, i probably would have reconsidered purchasing this watch.ġ. Completed by an adjustable, stainless steel mesh strap and an all-black matte finish, the Bradley Element offers cutting-edge design and quality materials all in one timepiece.

Bradley timepiece eon