Harry Potter is a beloved part of many of our childhoods, and if you grew up with the books you likely wished they were real at some point in your life.
Well, while we can’t become spell-wielding witches and wizards, we can at least create a digital-yet-functional version of the Weasley family clock. That’s what Imgur user Relmicro did, and he did it using a simple Amazon Kindle Fire.
The clock has a nine hands, one for each member of the family, and instead of telling you what time it is, it points those hands to locations, telling you where different members of the household are. Locations on the clock include school, work, the store, home, and so on.
Relmicro actually built the clock as a gift for his wife’s birthday, and he was inspired by another recreation of the Weasley clock that made headlines a few months ago. That version was built using LED lights and kept track of each family member’s location using their smartphone.
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Sure, Relmicro’s clock may not use magic, but it still uses some technological tricks to work. Inside the device is an Amazon Kindle Fire, which basically powers the whole contraption. Relmicro drilled a few holes in the side of an old clock’s casing to let cool air in and to let sound out, as well as one hole for the Fire’s micro-USB cable. The background for the clock was created using Photoshop, and according to Relmicro this was the most difficult step, as he originally created the face for an iPad but then had to change the design for the Kindle Fire.
The clock actually tracks locations using a private Twitter account. Each family member’s phone uses GPS to sends certain tweets when it enters certain locations. So, for example, when a user enters within 500 feet of work, their smartphone might automatically tweet “at work,” which is what the clock will use to determine where to put its hands. And, since the account is private, you won’t be announcing to the world exactly where you are at all times of the day.
Unfortunately, the only way to get a Weasley family clock for yourself is to build one, but if you have a spare tablet lying around and a bit of knowledge of Muggle technology, it might be just the project for you.
