Intermatic TB121C Digital Tabletop Lamp and Appliance Timer
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Our Price: $22.79 Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Category: Tools See more product details |
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Tools and Hardware Reviews of Intermatic TB121C Digital Tabletop Lamp and Appliance Timer
Customer Review: Lamp Timer
Summary: 3 Stars
This replaced a very old non-digital timer that was no longer accurate. I found it a little difficult to set correctly but it is working very well.Customer Review: Nifty timer and lamp control
Summary: 4 Stars
Ever have a lamp on one of those dial timers in the wall that you wanted to turn on when the timer wasn't set to turn on? Shove some furniture around did you? Or perhaps you wanted to change when the timer went on or off? Find the little plastic pins did ya? Well this nifty timer beats those problems for you.
The timer plugs into the wall and your lamp plugs into the back of the timers wall plug. You wind up with this control pod that you can set in a convenient place for operating the timer, say the table next to the lamp. It has an oversized on-off button so you can easily turn the lamp on whenever you want to. Programming it can also be done from this convenient location. We have five of these now scattered about the house.
Two opportunities for improvement cost it 1 star (I'm a hard grader). The plug in the back of a plug is a bit tall so it can stick out from the wall more than usual. Behind a piece of furniture this isn't really a big deal, and it's not that much thicker than the boxy dial type timers. Also, to activate the batteries you have to pull a little tape out of the back. This worked on several of our units, but on a few I had to open the door and shuffle the batteries around to get it to work. Small point but something that could be better. Overall very pleased and would recommend this timer.
Customer Review: Quickly Uses Up 2 LR44 Batteries
Summary: 3 Stars
It seems a shame that Intermatic decided to minimize the initial cost of this product by powering the timer circuit/display with 2 LR44 batteries, which appear to last, at most, 3 months before they need to be replaced. Depending on where you shop, repowering the unit will cost $1 and up, so that you quickly spend equal the cost of the timer in batteries.
A product which included a power supply for the display and digital clock circuit which runs on the 110 V mains power being timed would have been far preferable.
Otherwise, this seems a well designed product.
Customer Review: Simple to use and it does what it's supposed to do. Easy!
Summary: 4 Stars
This was the only "tabletop" kind of timer I could find. It's great because you can easily change the timer on it without crawling down behind your couch or whatever. It's super easy to use, really straightforward, and has a big display. I really like it way more than my other ones that have a million functions I never use. So far so good (I've had it about a year).Customer Review: Simple, Effective
Summary: 4 Stars
The Intermatic TB121C digital tabletop timer has worked well as an enhancement to my alarm clock. My original intent for purchasing this timer was to turn on a full-spectrum light five minutes before my clock sounds my morning alarm. After having negative experiences with other wall-timers, I have been very happy with this timer's capabilities and reliability.
Unlike wall timers where you must get on your hands and knees to adjust them, the Intermatic allows adjustments while seated upright or even lying in bed, far away from the rats' nest of extension cords. The easy access allows for rapid confirmation of the settings as well.
There is only problem with the timer I have seen thus far. When you drop it, even a few inches, it closes the circuit momentarily. This pulse is very bad for certain electrical devices, such as my $400 full spectrum light box. Also, it is not designed for large inductive loads such as air conditioners. On the timer, the inductive load is only listed at 300 watts versus 1000 watts for a resistive load (i.e. light/electric heater).
A relatively simple device, the Intermatic TB121C does its job. I would be skittish in purchasing one, however, if there is any danger from a momentary closed circuit, which would turn on the intended light or appliance.
Pros
Visibility
Simplicity
Dual on/off settings
Cons
Inductive load limitation - 300 watts
No ground plug
Momentary closed circuit when dropped only a few inches