MARATHON 12 Inch Analog Wall Clock with Auto Back Light and Non Ticking Silent Sweep (Black & White - Commercial Edition)

The clock works okay but the picture in the product listing would lead you to believe that the hands will be bright and easily visible in Night Mode. This is not my experience. If the hands are on the top half of the clock, they are barely visible (see photo).

The media could not be loaded.  I just received mine and very satisfied. To start with, the clock comes well packed in a nice box with 2x C batteries (for the light) and 2x AA batteries (for the clock movement). The corners are protected with foam and a peelable matte translucent film covering the high gloss finish of the clock's face.The clock is absolutely silent. Just beside the demo button located on the back side of the clock that enables you to test the light, there is also an On/Off switch in case you don't want the feature. When the feature is turned on, the clock uses its built-in sensor (located on the top) to turn on the light automatically when it becomes too dark to read the time. The light feature is very responsive, warm and dimmed enough to place the clock in your bedroom. Before purchasing the clock, I wondered if the light comes from different angles to provide an even lumination on all numbers but unfortunately, after seeing it in person, it's just small single LED cell that spreads the light from bottom to top, which means its somehow even, but it's just not like a G-Shock watch backlight even. I can't blame Marathon as this is also a smart way to hide the light source from being seen directly when looking upwards to read the time, that could be unpleasant and annoying. The second's hands movement is just beautiful and sweeps smoothly.This is my first day with the clock so I can't say much about the battery consumption or how good would the entire clock hold up. But It's obvious from the selection of battery types and how good the build is, that Maraton knows exactly what they are doing. The watch is sturdy enough to last for a lifetime.

Randomly started going fast/slow and not keeping time. expect a $70 clock to last more than 3 months. The company wouldn’t stand behind its product. Not impressed.

My prior Marathon wall clock would run way behind after a few years of ownership. I also had their bedside clocks, which had same issue. I asked support if they had any replacement or repair program, and they said no. So I took the plunge and bought another, because I liked the design. Well shipping took two weeks for some reason and then it arrived with second hand detached.UPDATE: It's been over three weeks since Marathon received my defective clock I mailed back to them and they still haven't refunded me, so had to involve Amazon Support to file an A-Z claim. Safe to say, I'm no longer buying anything from Marathon in the future.

I hadn't seen this noted in others' reviews, but be sure to remove the plastic film from the clock face. There is no indication of it being there, other than an odd mistiness or blurriness of the clock - this is especially visible at night.There is no tab or starter point visible, either - this relatively thick transparent film extends all the way to the absolute edge, and is applied so well that there are hardly any bubbles visible. However, it is meant to be removed, as it protects the otherwise quite vulnerable soft plastic covering the clock. Start from an upper corner, and it will slowly peel back.Once removed, the visibility and clarity of the clock are fantastic. I hate to admit it, but I left it hanging on my wall for a few days before looking at it one evening and deciding "something just ain't right" about how fuzzy the thing looked. Anyway, now it's fixed.I wish it were an atomic clock, but it seems to have at least standard quartz accuracy so far – which is to say, good enough for anything but industrial use.The smoothly-sweeping seconds hand is a bonus, but it’s hardly visible. Instead, I appreciate its silence – no more annoying “tick-tick-tick” all the time. Overall, it’s a nice clock that is priced about $20 too high. Watch enthusiasts will enjoy it though – it’s a great choice for a garage, den or workshop – in other words, it’s a man’s clock.

This clock has a smooth sweep seconds, no annoying chunk chunk chunk. The backlight works well in near-total darkness, but be sure you're using good quality batteries. I used Maxell brand (came with the clock?) and they leaked. A good American brand usually won't, and if it does, they will still repair or replace the device.One thing to note is that these clocks are not well compensated for temperature. It is my misfortune that the outside wall is the only good place to hang my clock and the time will drift as a result. In the ten or so days since we went off Daylight Saving Time, this clock has lost five seconds.Other than these small issues, these clocks do exactly what you'd exepect. They tell time well with a simple and easy to read design. You won't be disappointed if you buy one unless you're a lot stricter about timekeeping than Marathon is.

Pros:It keeps good time.It is easy to readThe light can be set to turn on automatically, or stay off. The light batteries (two "C" cells) are included, and separate from the clock "AA" battery.Not too bright, does not disturb my sleep, yet still easy to read with dark-adjusted eyes.Cons:Not many - but sensitivity is not adjustable, and it turns on the light even when the room is not that dark, wasting batteries.

This is my second purchase of this clock, so I have years of experience with one in my living room. I would have been happy with it if the only really notable feature was the silence, but in addition it's also very easy to read, the time is easy to change, and its automatic backlight is just bright enough to be useful, but not annoying. In short, it's a great clock.

Have had a few large wall clocks & loved the idea of self illumination for reading in the dark. My only slight frustration is the hour & minute hands are relatively thin so not so easy to read time if clock at a distance of say 12ft away which is in my bedroom. The light source comes from below the 6 position [only] & it's a struggle to read the hands from say the 10 to 2 positions. Might just be my eyesight but still love the look & prepared to compromise.

Great style and concept but poor timekeeping made me switch to Seiko.

Per ora non posso che essere soddisfatto! Il design, soggettivo, mi piace molto e non compromette la lettura del tempo. La qualità delle plastiche sembra buona, ben rifinito. Il movimento continuo dei secondi, l'illuminazione automatica (vediamo quanto dureranno le due pile torcia) ed il marchio storico, ne fanno una buona scelta!

Similar to others, the only problem is the readability of this clock from across the room. I put it into my home theatre so we can tell the time when the lights are very low. To me, it is less about the brightness or location of the single LED light and more about the amount of information on the clock face. If this clock had just the hands and numerals, it would be very readable at night. With the extra content around the face, the hands can become hard to see.

Very quiet. Very easy to read. We’ll built. Backlight is warm and off-white. Classic, simple elegance. Well packaged and came on time and much less costly than a major department store in town.