chronos chess clock

so i've been considering buying the touch chronos chess clock [http://www.wholesalechess.com/shop/chess_clocks/chronos_chess_clocks?sort=featured], had a question about the 'heat touch' sensativity. would it work using the actual chess piece to hit the button? meaning does it trigger off pressure as well, or does it just detect body heat?

No,you need to hit the clock with your hand. The clock can't detect when touched with a piece.

thanks, 

was afraid of that, well button style it is.

wish they still had the larger ones for sale, can't find them anywhere - not even ebay or amazon.

The smaller ones have the same functions and are easy to use, but I think the larger ones can store more time settings

Get this one.

http://www.uscfsales.com/chess-clocks-1/zmart-fun-ii-digital-chess-clock-with-black-case.html

They have the touch sensor too and are half the price of a chronos.

Salokir - Wholesale Chess got a few long Chronos II clocks in.  If you want one, I would recommend acting quickly.

http://www.wholesalechess.com/shop/chess_clocks/chronos_chess_clocks?sort=featured

I had some credit at the USCF store that I decided to use for a touch sensor Chronos GX. I might have gone for the pushbutton model but none was in stock and I don't assume DCI is going to put new merch into the market any time soon. They might, but I can't say I trust their "in a few weeks" announcements. I started looking at these clocks a few weeks ago and people are still scrabbling around for the last few units in the pipeline.

That said, the clock arrived the other day and I'm impressed. The Chronos GX is one sturdy beast with a great minimalist look and a punchy sharp display. I look forward to playing chess with it.

Two caveats: (1) The touch sensor is based on conductivity and the slightest brush against it with your fingers or hand will set it off.

(2) The manual is the worst documentation I have ever seen. There are no good alternate explanations on the web either. Your best bet is to go watch the Youtube videos which show some guy working the clock like an abacus to get the settings he wants.

Normally I would blame the interface, but in this case no. The Chronos interface, allowing that it only uses the three buttons, is fairly intuitive, once you get used to it.

Anyone who gets the Chronos should fool with it until they get the hang of it. Setting it by recipe -- hold this and click that, press twice, hold four seconds, etc. -- is looking for trouble.

i purchased a Chronos GX back in April of this year, and loved playing with it the only problem i had with it is the Damn thing quit working after using it in 4 Tourn. It was handled very gently and from everything i read it is going to be a nightmare to return it and get it fixed if i even get the thing back. So maybe i wasted $120 on it but i sure don't hope that is the case I am sending it back for repair and hopefully i get my clock back but i have no choice since right now all it is is a $120 paper weight.

Markle: Hope not. Fingers crossed!

I think the larger ones can store more time settings

The long ones, from what I can tell looking at the manual, come with more standard settings (i.e. pre-configured settings including some for shogi) but both only store twelve user settings.

An important difference between the short and the long clocks is that the short will only display four major digits, while the long clocks display six. Thanks to NubeDad for this distinction. It may be a more important than the number of standard settings.

Thanks i have my fingers crossed as well, i really liked the clock and i know that no matter what brand you buy you can get good ones as well as bad. I really hope everything turns out well, i would hate to swear off the Chronos Clock forever.At least i own about 4 different clocks so i still have one available for tourn. even if it isn't my favorite

Is that site to be trusted?  It has non-working link(s). eg.

http://www.wholesalechess.com/shop/chess_clocks/%%GLOBAL_ShopPathSSL%%/store/chess_clocks

I suggest the DGT 2010 (eg. opened not used one on eBay for $55 + S&H).

sftac

"just wouldn't turn on" suggests to me a power/battery contact issue (eg. older batteries that are starting to leak a bit, or battery terminals that are becoming a bit dirty and are overdue for a good cleaning).  Else, a loose connection in or just beyond the battery case/holder.  Though, I suppose it could be the off/on switch/button.

sftac

whitegs: Sorry to hear that, though it adds to my impression that the Chronos operation is on the fly-by-night side.

The story I keep reading, such as here, is that the Chronos clock is the SamTimer clock for scrabble but with the scrabble functionality disabled. However, Sam Kantimathi, the developer of the clock, has little interest in chess and is, apparently, allowing the chess side of his business to languish.

Maybe we would all be better off buying the scrabble clock instead. That side of the business looks alive and well. You can even get the clock in the much sought-after long style with pushbuttons -- $135 plus shipping. If you order from SamTimer it comes with a five-year warranty.

The SamTimer supports chess, though I can't find a manual to tell how well. My guess is that you can create any setting that you can get on the Chronos by  hand, but there are fewer pre-configured settings for chess.

He is looking for a Push Button, not Touch Sensor.

I personally hate the touch sensor because my hands and fingers can get really COLD and I hit any type of "Touch Sensor" -- including elevator buttons -- and they don't work. The scholastic crowd however like the Touch Sensors -- no  idea why. Give me a Push Button any day. Have two Chronos II Push Buttons -- one  for about 4 years the other about a year or so. No problems  with either. EXPENSIVE but well worth the money if you play a lot. Personally if I had a Scholastic player, I'd get the  ZMFII, they come in COOL COLORS, have a COOL LED display, have Touch  Sensors... and cost about  1/2 what a Chronos does. 

Actually, my clock is the SamTimer.

Then it's a mystery why Sam K. is running his business in such a slipshod manner. He's got a great product and raving fans, but poor follow-through.

He is the Steve Jobs of chess clocks, but he doesn't have to keep improving his product. Given the high prices his clocks command, he's got to have decent margins. He's in an enviable position for a small business owner.

There must be more to the story.

Apparently I got one of the last Chronos clocks from the USCF store.

The pipeline looks about empty. The remaining Chronos clocks on Amazon are going for $175 - $222. (I got mine for $110.) All the other online stores I checked are out of stock.

SamTimer is still selling the scrabble version of the clock for $135.

Good luck if you're looking.

I thought someone posted that Sam was out of the Sam Timer too?!?

Does anyone know what exactly is happening with the chronus clock? It's easily the best chess clock out there, yet it seems like it has been discontinued. 

From what I can tell the Chronos/SamTimer clocks stopped being manufactured last year. Since then almost all sellers have run out of stock.

There are a few clocks selling on Amazon for scalper prices ($222!). SamTimer has a few of the long clocks with pushbuttons for $139 in only blue and black.

I've looked through the web for explanation and found none. There was a vague assurance that their facility has been moved and they are about to resume production soon, but that was six months ago or longer.

My guess -- and it's only a guess -- is that the founder's health is bad and/or the family is fighting over the business.

It's a shame.

Last month I bought one of the last clocks the USCF Store had in stock and it's already died on me. I'm not happy.

But note the date on the optimistic WholesaleChess notice -- July 16, 2013. More than two months later and still nothing.

As to chipset problems, maybe, but in today's hi-tech world no chipset problem lasts more than a year unless there are other problems -- money, legal, competence, whatever.

Since then Zmart has put together a Chronos GX clone for about half the price.