The Telemeter: 10+ Years of Refining Features & Increasing Precision
2025-09-21
Celebrating a decade of a deceptively simple tool that quietly reshaped how many of us measure the world, the Telemeter has traveled from kitchen-table experiments to a pocket-sized staple for observers, researchers, and educators. In this retrospective, we trace the instrument's feature and design evolution: a ten-year story of craftsmanship, practical science, and the stubborn usefulness of analogue thinking.
The Telemeter.
In 2015, I made the first Telemeter. The first commercially available models were printed on credit card stock and were rather crude in precision. We switched to laser-engraved acrylic two years later, after making the first brass and copper editions. I added the Quadrant in 2018, and in 2020, we moved to the now-standard white acrylic with black engravings. We added the piano scales in 2021, and an aluminum production version in 2022. At around that time, I added the surprisingly useful dot grid to the Telemeter Quadrant and finally got rid of the -- with the dot grid rather redundant (but beloved) -- shadow square. Adaptation of the dot grid was the result of the comprehensive descriptions of the functions of the Sine Quadrant and its subsequent move from rather academical to more practical use cases.
In 2025, I added explainer videos to the educational materials, with the playlist counting 12 short, hand-made animations each demonstrating core concepts in simple and sometimes entertaining ways.
Ten years of refining, adding features, writing tutorials, adding more features, and refining others. For some time now, the Telemeter is pretty much feature-complete[1] and the 6th edition of the ever more comprehensive manual is about to be wrapped up.
Using the Telemeter.
Humble but Mighty
The Wndsn Quadrant Telemeter is a double-sided, multifunctional instrument combining a Telemeter for measuring distances and angles on one side with a Surveying Quadrant for determining slopes and elevations on the other, making it indispensable for adventurers, educators, and professionals; its enhanced vision piano scale and integrated trigonometric functions enable accurate calculation of distances, heights, and angles for land surveying, navigation in challenging terrain, or classroom demonstrations; constructed from high-quality white acrylic, it is lightweight, durable, and pocket-sized for easy portability on any expedition; each purchase includes a quick-start pocketbook plus access to a comprehensive digital manual covering basic operations through advanced techniques.
Proven Track Record
We made and sold many thousands of Telemeters by now and can safely stand behind it as a proven instrument for research, training, and hard but precise use in the worst environments in the most remote corners of the world.
Join thousands of satisfied users, including emergency responders, educators, and outdoor enthusiasts, who rely on the Wndsn Quadrant Telemeter for its reliability and accuracy.
See also:
References:
- Every time I have declared feature completeness so far, I would find and add another feature a day later. So we will see about that. ↩