The Most Common Default Time in the World
Posted on June 1st, 2008 | Subscribe in a Reader | Subscribe by Email
Have you noticed that almost all display images of analog watches and clocks have their time set to ten minutes past ten (10:10)? Why is it so common all over the world? I see it on newspapers, magazines, billboards and even on websites? Any ideas who started this? Try searching for analog watch or analog clock in your favorite search engine (image search) and you will see that 10:10 is used by almost all clock and watch images.
So I surfed several websites and I noticed that Timex sets all their watches to 10:09:36, Philip Stein sets their time to either 10:10:40 or 03:40:10 (similar position to 10:10 upside down), Seiko commonly uses 10:09:42 on their watches and Timberland sets it at either 10:10:37 or 10:09:38 (Image on the right is a Timberland Men’s Glenwood Chronograph Orange Silicone Strap w/ Brown Dial. Check the product detail here).
So you see, 10:10 (or 10:09 on some) is the most common set time in the World. Whoever started it is still unknown. More updates soon.
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June 1st, 2008 at 9:44 am
I think this is the most common since the brand/logo is commonly above or below, near 12 or 6. So the arms don’t cover the brand.
June 1st, 2008 at 11:43 am
@Benj - Possibly true, but Timex Digital Watches also follow the 10:09:36 default setting.
June 1st, 2008 at 3:16 pm
ive seen watches using 10:09
June 1st, 2008 at 8:16 pm
@anton - maybe 10:09 is the most common
June 5th, 2008 at 10:49 am
I’ve heard there is two reasons for this:
1. The company logo doesn’t get hidden behind the arms.
2. The arms shape a V, either for victory, or as a quality sign
August 6th, 2008 at 12:20 pm
it is set that way for photography purposes