DGT

This article gives you some information about the history of the electronic clocks developed and produced by DGT since 1992.

This clock was developed to play Chess960 which was introduced by Bobby Fisher, and introduced in 2008. This is the only chess clock worldwide that autimatically generates the 960 starting positions of Chess960. The clock is in pocket size and foldable.

2007: The DGT 2010 Clock

The DGT 2010 was introduced in 2007 and received the status of `official FIDE chess clock`in June 2008 after tests by four top/level arbiters who concluded that the clock is in full accordance with all FIDE rules and regulations.

The DGT 2010 is the successor of the DGT 2000, which was the best selling digital chess clock ever with over 250.000 clocks sold world wide. The new model 2010 is improved on many points.

2005: The DGT Easy and DGT Easy Plus Clock

The DGT Easy and the DGT Easy Plus were introduced in 2005. The Easy Plus includes the possibility of delaying the countdown or adding extra time with each move. The DGT Easy is the digital chess clock for everybody and every game.

The Easy Plus clock combines high quality with absolute simplicity and is player friendly. The DGT easy is ideally suited for chess clubs, schools and home use.

In 2007 a new colour scheme for the DGT Easy clocks have been made available!

2003: The DGT XL Clock

The DGT XL, was introduced during the Dutch Team Playoffs in 2003. It is based on ten years of experience in the chess market. The clock has extra large displays, an option to display messages (great for internet chess), more timing methods, including an upcount method for use with Scrabble®, easier operation, a buzzer and it connects to the DGT electronic chess board too.

2001: The DGT DigiBlitz Clock

Especially for personal use, DGT Projects developed the DigiBlitz. With large displays, an optional buzzer, count down and count up timing methods, this model offers much for a low price. Not manufactured anymore, now we offer the DGT Easy Game Timer.

1998: The DGT 2000 Clock

The DGT 2000 introduced several minor improvements over the DGT Fide model, including more clear and robust displays.
As proven top-quality product, it is still being used in many tournaments all over the world. This model is replaced by the DGT 2010 and not manufactured anymore.

1996: The DGT Topmatch Clock

The DGT TopMatch Clock is similar to the famous DGT FIDE chess clock, with an added serial interface that allows it to connect to the DGT electronic Chessboard. This model is replaced by the DGT XL and not manufactured anymore.

1994: The DGT Plus Clock

The DGT Plus was developed in 1994 in special cooperation with the European Go Federation (EGF), for use in the European Go championship in Maastricht. The DGT Plus has the ability to make a sound at the approach of a time limit - a short buzz at 10, 5, 4, 3 or 2 seconds before 0.00, and a long buzz during the last second.

Why did the EGF ask for this feature? The standard Go tournament timing method byo-yomi has always required an arbiter with a stopwatch to stand by the board near the end of the game and announce the game's last seconds. This allows the player to keep concentrating on the board, rather than watching the clock (i.e., a standard chess clock). The DGT Plus makes this manual announcement unnecessary.

The DGT Plus's buzzer option is also useful in chess. Since the introduction of the Fischer and FIDE timing methods, players can approach the time limit many times during a game. The buzzer helps players make their moves in time without requiring them to look at the clock and take their concentration away from the board.

The World Chess Federation (FIDE) acknowledged the value of this feature. FIDE's new Laws of Chess, enacted by the General Assembly in 1996, state that an audible signal is allowed at the approach of the time limit.

The DGT Plus is replaced by the DGT XL and not manufactured anymore.

1994: The DGT Fide Clock

Since it was introduced in 1994, many DGT FIDE Chess Clocks have been sold around the world. The clock was created in cooperation with the World Chess Federation (FIDE), and is the only digital clock that fully conforms with the FIDE Laws of Chess.

The DGT FIDE clock was the first digital clock to be widely accepted in the chess community, although attempts to introduce an electronic chess clock had been made since the '70s. The DGT clock was succesful where others failed because it was developed from a chess player's point of view.

One example is the large lever on top. It's not only easy to hit in blitz or time-scramble situations, but it clearly shows which player's turn it is to move - from up to 20 meters away.

The DGT Fide clock has 12 timing systems suited for chess and many other games like xiangqi (chinese chess), go, scrabble®, checkers, etc. It is very easy to use, and electronically accurate. The DGT adds a new dimension of excitement to your game!

This model was replaced by the DGT 2000 in 1998.

1985: The first DGT

The first DGT clock was built in the mid-'80s by Ben Bulsink. At that time, he was a student at the Technical University Twente in Enschede, the Netherlands; now he is R&D manager of DGT Projects.
The clock was reviewed by the magazine of the Dutch Chess Federation, who called it "the perfect chess clock." There was one problem, however: The clock was handmade, and much too expensive for the average chess player. After only about 60 of these clocks were made, Bulsink moved on to a job at the university.
In 1992, Bulsink was contacted by chess teacher and organizer Albert Vasse, who would become DGT Projects' manager of marketing and sales.
In the book of the first Melody Amber tournament, Vasse read that the tournament's sponsor, Joop van Oosterom, wanted to use the Fischer timing system in the next tournament. Vasse and Bulsink offered to build the clocks for that tournament. They got the job.
With a mutual friend, Paul Arentz, Vasse and Bulsink investigated the options for mass producing an electronic chess clock. Arentz later left the company. After the positive reaction to the DGT at the Melody Amber tournament, the partners met with the board of the World Chess Federation (FIDE). This was at the start of the 1993 world championship match between Anatoly Karpov and Jan Timman. Two months later, at the FIDE General Assembly in Curitiba, Brazil, awarded a three year contract to DGT Projects to produce "the official FIDE chess clock."