If nowadays smart home gadgets are more and more widespread, LaMetric Time stands as a desk handyman. It has the appearance of a bluetooth speaker, the functions of a smart display, and countless notification capabilities. Is it an alarm clock, a weather station, a news feed? Let's find out.
Apparently LaMetric Time would almost seem to have the appearance of a common bluetooth speaker or, at most, a bedside alarm clock. Upon opening the package, we admit, we were blown away by the lightness of the accessory. The cost of around 200 euros led us to think that, as a speaker, it had a more important specific weight. In fact, when turned on, we realized that LaMetric Time is not just a loudspeaker, but its functions go beyond all expectations.
It is a small black plastic rectangle, with three large buttons on the upper band, and with a particular display on the entire front face. Already a display animated by large pixels, which alternate over the entire surface, to provide the user with countless information. On the two sides, on the other hand, there are the volume keys and the one for switching on and off.
LaMetric Time, as we have defined it, is truly an all-rounder. It's a clock, an alarm clock, a weather station, a news reader, a notifier, a follower counter, and so on and so forth. For real.
First start
LaMetric Time is not autonomous. Or rather, to express its full potential it needs to combine with the companion app, available for free for iOS and Android. This will be necessary for the first start-up, for the configuration, and for a better management of everything that appears on the screen. The application on the smartphone allows, in fact, to set the various “faces” of the peripheral: each face has a function. The first, of course, is that of the clock, which provides information on the time, while many others can be downloaded from the internal LaMetric store. There is an app for the weather, for the stopwatch, the app that notifies received emails, the calendar app, the radio app, the one for controlling Philips Hue luchi at home, the one that provides the results of the latest games of calcium, the one that counts coronavirus infections, the one for the follower count on the various social networks, and so on and so forth.
This variety is certainly the strong point of this device. In short, imagine having a small control center on your desk, which can also act as a notifier for incoming messages on your smartphone. Yes, because beyond the various “faces” that can be installed, it is also possible to combine your smartphone, to ensure that the same incoming notifications on the smartphone appear on the screen. And again, the peripheral is compatible with the IFTTT automation platform, to create the most disparate routines: you can, for example, choose to show the title of the song every time your Amazon Echo plays one.
Obviously, the alarm function is not missing, while as already mentioned the device also acts as a bluetooth speaker. The quality of the speaker is good, certainly not suitable for an audiophile audience, but perfectly capable of achieving sufficient quality to listen to Spotify in the room. In short, as already mentioned, we are faced with a whole.
LaMetric Time is certainly a non-essential peripheral in the home, as are many of the smart gadgets available on the market, but at the same time it is a device that truly offers countless features. As mentioned, there is also the radio app, which allows you to listen to streaming radios with a simple touch. Just browse the market within the app to see how many additional functions you can install on this device: there is a face to show the data of a Netatmo weather station, the one that shows you the latest news from the world, and many more. .
The display, as already mentioned, offers a retro charm, with its full pixel style. It is a system that gives originality to the peripheral, and which at the same time makes all the data clearly visible on the screen, even when looking at the display from a distance. Definitely a design object, which is also well suited to modern environments, offering a real contrast with its vintage display.
It really seems the ideal peripheral for lovers of hi-tech gadgets, yet there are cons. Indeed, we have found only one, which unfortunately will not make it so attractive to most: the price.
Yes, this is the real sore point of this device, which despite being on the market for several years now, does not mention resizing its price list. On Amazon you can buy it for around 200 euros, or a little less, a certainly unjustified price, even more so if you consider that there are now so many smart displays available on the market, which have a much lower cost. It is true, this LaMetric Time offers functions that are not available on Google's Echo Show or Nest Hub, being able to act as a notifier, and having a much wider range of apps, but the price will certainly discourage most.
Another small “cons”, which however does not affect the quality of the peripheral, is the absence of an internal battery: the peripheral must be connected to the electrical socket for correct operation.
Conclusions
LaMetric Time is a non-essential gadget, but it will make an impression on your desk or on your bedside table. Not only that, it will put at your fingertips, indeed at a glance, an infinite variety of information, from the weather to the number of followers on YouTube, from online radios to world news, from sports scores to incoming notifications on smartphones. It is well made, and certainly has the merit of being an absolutely original peripheral even today. Too bad, really bad for the price, too high to reach a much greater number of users.
You can buy it on Amazon for about 200 euros, directly from here.
