Imagine a 60s movie scene set in a gorgeous airport, with women and men in beautiful clothes all going to fabulous destinations. And in the background, a beautiful Split-Flap board with its rotating flaps, flickering with a familiar clack sound announcing the arrival of an aeroplane to whisk you away to some exotic location.
Split-Flap boards are gorgeous and complex mechanical devices that heralded the arrival of flights and trains decades back. Like most mechanical devices, Split-Flap boards or Solari boards were prone to wear. The constantly moving parts were often stuck together or required replacements, making it difficult to maintain.
Over the years, most public split-flaps have given way to flashing LCD panels, which save on installation and maintenance costs, and display more info in a variety of colors. However, Split-Flap boards have several benefits over LED displays:
- Warmer ambience that calms customers and guests, instead of the glaring blue-light from LCDs.
- No power needed for Split-Flaps (especially if the display is static)
- Excellent visibility and contrast makes information more readable
- Flapping sound attracts attention if information changes. So guests don’t have to listen to the constant drone of a regular LCD TV.
- Look, feel and sound generates nostalgia
But this does not negate the fact that Split-Flap boards are difficult to maintain. Well, they were. Until we created the Split-Flap TV.
The Split-Flap TV Display is a contemporary version of the Split-Flap board. It combines the classic look and sounds of the boards with the easier-to-maintain simplicity of modern TV displays. Split-Flap TVs are used for a variety of purposes. They can be used as reception displays, show marquees, creative menu displays in restaurants, and most importantly, Split-Flap TVs can be used as countdown timers and counters.
In this article, we’ll show you how to use Split-Flap TVs for your bespoke countdown timers and counters.
But first, let’s explore what you can use Split-Flap TV timers and counters for.
Use Cases for Split-Flap TV Counters and Countdown Timers
Tick tock. Tick tock. Tick tock.
If you’re feeling anxious or excited, imagine how your customers will feel when you have a large TV counting down the days to your big sale!
Countdown timers are great when you want to create anticipation, they add a sense of urgency to any information and cause people to actually listen to what you want to say.
Need your guests/customers to take an action? Add a nostalgic Split-Flap TV countdown timer. This might be the time remaining until the end of a sale or a deadline for a free delivery promo package. Countdown timers can also be used to build anticipation before a show or a special program.
Counters on the other hand, show how many days have passed since an event. Split-Flap TV counters can display how many days have passed since the establishment of your business, or how long it’s been since an inspection. Displaying this kind of information builds trust and brand affinity.
Another clever use for counters is displaying the number of days since the last accident at a factory, or the number of cars sold.
How to Use Split Flap TV as a Counter
All you need is a shortcode to show real-time counter information on your Split-Flap TV. You don’t need any complex programming languages, just this:
#CNT#{Code}#{Date}#
For example: Typing #CNT#A#20220528:0000# will show you the number of days since the date specified in a YYYYMMDD:HHMM format.
Let’s break it down so you understand better.
- CNT is the instruction that tells the Split-Flap TV to start a counter calculation.
- A is the number of days your counter needs to count since the date specified. Check here to see what alphabets represent minutes, hours, and so on.
- The date portion starts first with the 4 digits for the year, then 2 digits for the month, and finally 2 digits for the days. Be sure to add a leading zero when the day or month is only one digit. For instance, June will be 06.
- The time part is displayed in 24 hours format. So use a value from 0000 to 2359 maximum.
How to Use Split Flap TV as a Countdown Timer
You can use the Split-Flap TV as a countdown timer to a product launch or even to the New Year! You can use a simple shortcode (similar to the counter shortcode) to show real-time countdown information on a Split-Flap TV.
Here’s the magic code below:
#CDN#{Code}#{Date}#
Let’s add some figures to that, so it’ll be clearer.
For example, if you inputted #CDN#A#20230101:0000#, your Split-Flap TV will show you the number of days till the specified date. That’s the difference between the counter and the countdown timer.
The counter tells the dates after an event, while the countdown timer tells the remaining time before an event.
Again, we’ll break this down into smaller bits:
- The first part CDN serves as the instruction for a countdown calculation.
- A represents the number of days. Click here to see other alphabets that represent the hours and minutes before an event.
- The date portion is expressed as 4 digits for the year, followed by 2 digits for the month, and finally 2 digits for the days — like the counter.
- Don’t forget to add a leading zero when the number of the day or month is only one digit.
- The time portion is expressed in 24 hours format. So use a value from 0000 to 2359 maximum.
Split-Flap TV Helps You Reimagine Your Timers and Counters
Don’t be vanilla. Spruce up your signage game with the modern yet nostalgic feel of the Split-Flap TV. You don’t have to buy a special TV either. We can easily install our software into your existing display, no programming languages required.
Be different. Be genuine. Get a Split-Flap.
For any enquiries or to make an order, please reach us here.
