timers

Your grandma had a mechanical egg timer that dinged a bell. Your granddad had a stopwatch from his track-and-field days. You can still buy either new, but it's probably quicker and easier and certainly cheaper to download Cook Timer, a free desktop timer for Windows. That's great for the kitchen, you say, where you use your laptop for recipes. But what about out and about? What takes the place of granddad's stopwatch? Cook Timer, that's what. At 239.5 KB, it's smaller than some ringtones, and it has no dependencies so it's completely portable … Read more

Once you adjust to using a touch screen, other technologies can quickly seem clunky and outdated. Why mess around with buttons when it's so much easier to just touch what you want to change? That's the theory behind the TSM2 touch-screen timer and clock from CDN. Touch the screen, follow the prompts, and the timer counts up or down up to 100 hours. You can also stop and restart the timer quickly if you're juggling multiple food prep tasks.

The unit is made from food-safe ABS plastic and housed in a black and stainless steel casing that … Read more

There are many professionals who bill by the hour, and it's not always easy to keep up with the multiple projects and clients that can be contained in a single workday. Xpert-Timer is a simple way to record exactly how much time is spent on each task, taking much of the hassle out of timekeeping and billing.

The program's interface is attractive and well-designed. Graphic buttons with tooltips give users access to the program's major features. There's a comprehensive project management interface in which users can enter clients, projects, and tasks, as well as view and … Read more

I've made more than a few multicourse meals that required me to have my two timers out but I still needed a way to monitor another dish. The Maverick Professional Digital 3-Line Timer and Clock can keep track of three different cooking times at once, freeing you up to get back to cooking. It includes a stopwatch function and allows you to choose whether the timer should count up or count down to your specified time. The read-out is big enough that you can see it across the kitchen, and it features a beeping alarm to make sure you … Read more

Red Crab Cube Timer is a stopwatch application designed to time how fast it takes you to solve Rubik's Cube. Those who enjoy trying to solve the cube as fast as possible can use this free tool to add some flair to the timing process.

The program's interface is basic and easy to navigate but not very attractive. You can choose a plain background or one of 12 illustrated backgrounds as a backdrop for the timer, which appears at the center of the screen. All of the illustrated backgrounds have a psychedelic look that isn't particularly appealing, … Read more

Reliable Task Timer is an extremely basic program that allows users to track the time spent on specific tasks in a CSV spreadsheet. Although the program works, we've seen similar applications that offer many more features.

Reliable Task Timer's interface is extremely plain, consisting of a single screen with four labeled steps. Users first select a destination and file name for the CSV spreadsheet, enter a title and description for the task to be tracked, and then click Start Timer. When users have completed the task, clicking Stop Timer records the entry on the spreadsheet. Or at least … Read more

Job Timer promises an easy way to track billable hours. Its cluttered layout threatens to derail its good intentions, but its features and performance make it worth the effort.

The program's biggest hurdle is a messy interface that will have many users scratching their heads. With several fillable rows for billing amounts, a running clock, a financial tally, and more, the program almost has too much going on at once. Luckily, a trip to the Help file and a little experimenting will clarify most questions. The Start button initiates the timer, which operates like a stopwatch, with Start, Stop, … Read more

Quick Timer High provides an impressive collection of timers to aid with scientific experiments. While there's a lot to manage, the timers are simple to operate and will help store data.

The program's interface was a breeze to understand, even though we'd never used any scientific timers before. We were able to jump directly into using all the timers without consulting the program's basic Help file tutorial. Quick Timer High is laid out in 16 stopwatch-like timers. You can start and stop all at once or activate them individually with a click on a specific timer. … Read more

Marxio Timer provides a simple set of tools for creating a customized reminder system. With two distinct ways of perfecting a reminder, this program is easy and fast to set.

The program's interface is surprisingly simple to handle, thanks in part to the well-labeled single-screen commands. You can choose what type of alarm you want--options range from everything from traditional alarm clock sounds to sounds for computer shutdown. You can take a screenshot, open a specific program, and much more. Each was simple to choose and easy to understand, and none ever left us guessing its function. The second … Read more