Speaking Clock - United States

United States

In the United States, this service was typically known as the "Time of Day" service, with the term "speaking clock" never used. Occasionally it would be called "Time and Temperature." However, the service had been phased out in most states (California, Nevada and Connecticut still maintain service). AT&T discontinued its California service in September 2007, citing the widespread availability of sources such as mobile phones and computers.

For all area codes in Northern California, the reserved exchange was 767, and was often indicated by its phoneword, POPCORN. In other locations, different telephone exchanges are or were used for the speaking clock service. In these areas, the numbers were usually quoted with the -xxxx, -2525, -1212, or -1234 ending. For example,

  • 853 was the reserved exchange in Southern California.
  • 622 was the reserved exchange in Florida.
  • 637 (MEridian 7) is the reserved exchange in Boston and New York City.
  • 846 is the reserved exchange in Philadelphia.
  • 844 (TIm e 4) was the reserved exchange in Washington D.C., with the officially published number of TIme 4-2525. This clock was usually the most accurate of the clocks operated by the local telephone companies.
  • 936 (WEather 6) was used in Boston, Washington D.C., and Toledo, Ohio for weather information.
  • In Washington, the officially published number was WEather 6-1212.

Various other numbers were used in other localities.

  • In Wisconsin, the former Wisconsin Bell reserved the ending numbers -0123 in the dominant exchange for a city for time and temperature information.
  • (203) 777-4647 (203-SPRINGS), New Haven, Connecticut is still an active time of day service.

Many shortwave radio time signal services provide speaking clock services, such as WWV (voiced by John Doyle) and WWVH (voiced by Jane Barbe), operated by the National Institute of Standards and Technology from the United States of America. To avoid disruption with devices that rely on the accurate timings and placement of the service tones from the radio, the voice recording is "notched" clear of some of the tones.

The time as provided by WWV is also available by telephone, by calling +1 303 499-7111. WWVH (an auxiliary location in Hawaii) is available at +1 808 335-4363.

In addition, the United States Naval Observatory operates two speaking clocks: in Washington, D.C. at +1 202 762 1401 or +1 202 762 1069, and in Colorado Springs, Colorado at +1 719 567 6742.

The time as provided by Tellme (Powered by Bing) voice portal is available by dialing toll-free 1-888-247-2425 (say time when prompted).

Electronic speaking clocks and wristwatches are available, many marketed to the visually impaired.

Many telephone answering machines and similar devices include a speaking clock capability so they can announce the time when a message was received.

Read more about this topic:  Speaking Clock

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