Bronze Interface, Interaction and User Experience Design · 2019
TTMM for Fitbit Versa Clock Face Apps
- A' Design Award 2019 Bronze Winner in Interface, Interaction and User Experience Design
- Awarded April 15, 2019
- CLIENT: Ttmm
- Estimated Number of Design Views: 24,727
- Verification code 607E8B73A2 · Verify this award
About TTMM for Fitbit Versa Clock Face Apps
TTMM clock face apps present time in a futuristic, abstract and minimal style. The collection of 40 clock faces designed for Fitbit Versa and Fitbit Versa Lite turns smartwatches into unique time machines. All models have color presets and complications settings that are controlled with a tap-to-change on screen feature. Some designs are additionally equipped with a stopwatch, a timer, an alarm or a torch feature. The inspiration for the collection comes from sci-fi movies and from the "Man Machine" and "Computer World" albums, composed by Kraftwerk.
Press Kit
- Unique Properties
- TTMM is a collection of 40 clock face apps designed for Fitbit Versa and Fitbit Versa Lite smartwatches. It turns Fitbit smartwatch into a unique time-machine. All the clock faces have color presets and complications settings that are controlled through a tap-to-change on screen feature. Some models are additionally equipped with a stopwatch, a timer, an alarm or a torch feature. There is also a special clock face called the Onettmm, with 30 different clock faces in one, which allows the user to quickly change between the designs to adapt to the required mood or style.
- Dimensions & Packaging
- Clock faces codes take up from 7Kb to 2Mb.
- Tags
- ttmm, Fitbit Versa, Fitbit Versa Lite, made4fitbit, ttmmaftertime, clockface, watchface, time, clock
- Production Technology
- All clock faces were designed in Adobe Illustrator. All bitmaps were edited in Adobe Photoshop. Programming was made with Fitbit sdk in Fitbit Studio software.
- Design Challenge
- The main challenges were to use fonts in proper weight and scale for them to be legible on a wrist-sized screen and to design the setting interface - the on screen tap-to-change feature - as a way to easy to adjust the display options: the complications or color presets. Moreover, to save the space for graphic icons or descriptions I came up with my own symbols to be used in the legend, such as: % for battery, . for steps, ... for distance, : for heart rate, * for calories, + for floors.
- Project Duration
- The project started in December 2017 and finished in March 2019 in Warsaw, Poland. The programming took place in France and in Poland.
- Operation Flow
- All the clock faces can be uploaded to Fitbit Versa through the Ttmm app (available for Android and iOS). With the app you can view the design, read the description, purchase and upload clockfaces and prepare a favorite models list to facilitate the swapping between clockfaces. After the upload the user can set colors, display design and complications with the tap-to-change on screen feature. This user friendly interface makes the customization of the clockface very fast and smooth.
- Research
- I made my own clock faces market observation and analysis. I used desk research and critical thinking methods, through which I discovered that there was very little original thinking in the design of the clock faces and that the Fitbit Versa smartwatch offers a good hardware environment for creating a new vision of time.
I found that the most of the projects available for the Fitbit Versa smartwatch are mare imitations of mechanical clocks and 80'ties quartz lcd-like screens or just replicas of clock faces of the popular brands. During the design phase I experimented a lot with inventing new designs which balance out between functional design and original form giving a new meaning of time. - Inspiration
- The inspiration for collection comes form three different areas: sci-fi movies, electronic music and the idea behind Tokyo Flash Japan. The movies that inspired me the most are: 2001 Space Odyssey, Blade Runner and Interstellar and the music that influenced me during my work was the album "Computer World" by Kraftwerk.
- Image Credits
- Fitbit Versa smartwatch Images by Fitbit, used under Fitbit Copyright License.
- Patents
- Ttmm name, logo and clock faces design © Copyright by Albert Salamon 2019.
Colors of TTMM for Fitbit Versa Clock Face Apps
Design Interview about TTMM for Fitbit Versa Clock Face Apps
TTMM's DNA is to define and invent new signs of the 21 century era and soft(ware)time in a new way.
Innovation, clarity and uniqueness - these are my the three fundamental design principles.
I was inspired by sci-fi literature and movies and by electronic music. For example the album "Computer World" by Kraftwerk is very substantial for me.
Innovation, clarity and uniqueness - these are my the three fundamental design principles.
I was inspired by sci-fi literature and movies and by electronic music. For example the album "Computer World" by Kraftwerk is very substantial for me.
I try to harmonize functionality, like legibility and friendly interface, with the unique character of the design and I always want to fill each design with some meaning. This meaning is also hidden in particular names.
I am going to redesign the best ones to add a weather functions and offer it in a subscription model.
This project took over a year. It was a development and an expansion of my previous collections designed for the Pebble smartwatch.
We are more and more submerged in a digital world and time has also become more digital. I just felt that this is a challenge for me, to design a "face of the time" in a contemporary way. I made the TTMM collection for people likeminded, people who seek simple, minimal and functional design. It is all my original idea.
For this moment this is only my product. I think that these designs are niche, so I will probably continue developing this project for a group of fans.
I like watches, and the Fitbit Versa smartwatch offers a good space (display surface) to show my idea of what clock faces could look like in the 21 century. I was just tired of looking at digital imitations of 20 century analogue clocks (like Apple’s Mickey Mouse with hands) or casio like lcd watches and wanted to have my own "watch interface".
Yes, there was NOOKA and TOKYOFLASH blogs - they show bold, avant-garde ideas of clock faces and watch mechanisms. NOOKA and TOKYOFLASH were a big inspiration and encouraged me to make my ideas real. My previous TTMM collection for Pebble acts as a fantastic library of ideas. I have been rethinking and redesigning them into a new the collection for Fitbit Versa.
I think that TTMM is creating a new group of customers and they come from every corner of the earth. Fans of TTMM are open minded and seeking a different ways and forms of expressing time. This is a very small group - but it is growing every day.
TTMM collection expresses my deep desire to be a human being - a person with very specific questions about TIME.
With this idea in mind the designs I make naturally gain a unique style and vision.
So TTMM uses a broad idea, not only adaptable for a watch face but also more symbolical or philosophical, encouraging people to THINK about TIME and what it means for them.
With this idea in mind the designs I make naturally gain a unique style and vision.
So TTMM uses a broad idea, not only adaptable for a watch face but also more symbolical or philosophical, encouraging people to THINK about TIME and what it means for them.
The name TTMM is a composition of a decomposition of Time.
I have merged two elements: TIME – a word and a HH:MM code.
The name mechanical pronunciation represents the progressive digitalization of our times.
The individual design names are related to the inspiration behind the design or are just abstract names.
I have merged two elements: TIME – a word and a HH:MM code.
The name mechanical pronunciation represents the progressive digitalization of our times.
The individual design names are related to the inspiration behind the design or are just abstract names.
Sketch, Adobe Illustrator and Adobe Photoshop
Most important is this personal, subjective style - sort of „aha“ enlightenment, which happens when a user discovers the meaning behind a specific clock face. Plus the easy-to-use setup and a personalized interfaces.
The whole design process I created myself, including sketches, the project, the documentation and testing of the final product. I have hired programmers (Gregoire Sage and Wiktor Hołubowicz) to write the code for Fitbit Versa clock faces. It was a fruitful collaboration.
The technology used by Fitbit (high resolution and 1000 nits screen) and sport functions provide a great space for experimenting and learning how to compose an attractive hierarchy for info and show different complications such as: steps, distance, heart rate, calories, floors, temperature and the weather icon.
Foremost I analize purchases to discover which of my designs people like the most.
This is sort of knowledge gives me clues on how TTMM should harmonize uniqueness and functionality to achieve success.
This is sort of knowledge gives me clues on how TTMM should harmonize uniqueness and functionality to achieve success.
The main challenge was not only to design great clock faces but also to present them in an easy-to-operate and easy-to-purchase way. That is why I decided to release a separate clock face store with the whole TTMM collection. This solution provides a simple and clear presentation of clock faces (without any unwanted distraction) and an easy way for using the clock faces on the watch itself.
It is natural for me to enter the competition where I can present my work to professionals and the public.
This is my 10th Design Award for TTMM.
This is my 10th Design Award for TTMM.
Firstly - I have experienced a great pace of change in technology, so everything I develop only lives for a very short period of time and quickly becomes history. Secondly - design vs production, development and promotion are all different and very important processes. They take more time than designing itself. So to achieve success you need to connect and balance all these processes, manage programmers and coordinate their work and make an intriguing and beautiful ad campaign to sell the product.
It is very hard to invent new ideas and to show time from a different perspectives and despite the years of experience and over 150 different clock faces created, this particular segment of design still poses a challenge for me and brings new discoveries and maximum satisfaction every time. I also dream about my own TTMM hardware watch, which would be a kind of legacy of my unique experience and talent - so I am eager to see what the future brings.
Grand Interview about TTMM for Fitbit Versa Clock Face Apps
Science fiction literature and films took up residence in my Unconscious. The spirit of simplicity, comfort and the modern future was present in the real images and physical sound effects of films and music (e.g. 2001: A Space Odyssey, the sound effects for Star Wars and the lyrics and timbres of Kraftwerk's instruments). My education in the domain of graphical interfaces came from the practical experience of discovering personal computers and synthesizers. As a teenager, I composed music on an Atari ST computer in Steinberg Cubase, controlling a Roland Juno-106 and Sound Canvas SC-55 synthesizer. I believe that the culture of designing interfaces for instruments and music applications subject to the limitations of display technology (small, monochrome screens) was at the highest level. This was a model to follow and my school.
I came up with this solution without even realizing it. It was due to two practical reasons. The limited screen resolution made it difficult to create legible and visually consistent icons that had to be the same height as a line of text, e.g. 10 px. System fonts, on the other hand, contained many additional unused characters. Up until now, an abbreviation such as Calories - CAL had been used to describe a specific type of data. This solution still took up screen space. So I came up with the idea of assigning my own symbols using the characters present in system fonts. This solution ensured the distinguishability of specific information, saved space and maintained the visual consistency of the clockface project. This choice was arbitrary and corresponded to my intuitive graphical reading of characters. For Dystance, I used the “…” character because in my reading it was a visualization of steps. I used “:” to denote Heart Rate because the heart has two chambers. I replaced Calories with the “*” character because I thought that it was the work done by the user that made it a STAR.
Looking at the simulations-imitations of graphical interface solutions proposed by programmers, these were banal solutions, e.g. pictures of dogs or cats, and apart from their questionable visual values, I disagreed with their primitiveness. They did not aim at the truth about TIME but were a way to attract the attention of potential customers. So I went on a mission to find visual solutions that would be in line with the TRUTH of TIME and the spirit of smartwatch screen technology.
When creating this solution, I used my own need. I wanted to be able to quickly and easily display the information I needed at a given moment without having to go through the clockface settings. I made it as simple as possible and additionally I combined similar types of information into groups, e.g. Calories, Active time, distance and day and month, week in the year or year. If the user understood this, then with just two taps he could reach the necessary information.
ONETTMM was an experimental project - a digital art object - a kind of digital abstract jewelry that the user changes depending on their mood. It also had an educational function by presenting different types of hour visualizations and the minutes always remained in the same place. This approach enriched the recipients. There was no such extensive solution for Fitbit devices.
International partnership forced me to be clear in documentation and description of results that applications must meet. Project implementation revealed differences in understanding documentation and characteristics of work of individual team members resulting from their experience. It was an interesting and revealing cooperation.
The most important challenge was to develop proportions between visual, artistic and functional values that are appropriate for each specific project. I think that a similar art of balance occurs when composing and preparing dishes, where there is a main character and supporting actors of flavors in a certain scenery of sauces or salads. A good piece of music also reveals the play of voices, melodic courses controlled by rhythm or percussion accents served on the basis of silence. In the end, the whole counts as a separate recognition of the components and their sum. Together-separately - this is the essence of art.
It's very difficult for me to answer this question. Technology is changing at a rapid pace. Will people need a handheld computer with a screen in a few years? Or maybe the screens will be on a larger scale and will be part of clothing? Some of the solutions of contemporary interfaces are heading towards voice interfaces. I think that TTMM projects are an important reference point in the field of designing interfaces for smartwabches screens. They are definitely a milestone in the culture of time visualization.
All the awards I received strengthened my belief that TTMM projects are Valuable and Important. This recognition and appreciation gave me strength and encouraged me to continue developing and working.
Originality, ingenuity, functionality, innovation and relevance to the contemporary times are the fundamental values that guide the development of the TTMM brand. New ideas and design solutions struggle with the currently dominant order, which supports the ease and primitive pleasure of not thinking. People today do not have time for real and critical reflection.