Digital timers can achieve higher precision than mechanical timers because they are quartz clocks with special electronics. Integrated circuits have made digital logic so inexpensive that an electronic digital timer is now less expensive than many mechanical and electromechanical timers. Individual timers are implemented as a simple single-chip computer system, similar to a watch. Watch technology is used in these devices.

Traffic lights for vehicles usually contain three lamps: red, orange or yellow (officially amber), and green. In some systems, a flashing amber means that a motorist may go ahead with care if the road is clear, giving way to pedestrians and to other road vehicles that may have priority. A flashing red is treated as a regular stop sign. Although the word "yellow" is common parlance in the United States, the color of the actual lamp is usually only slightly more yellowish than the amber used in Europe.

Traffic lights for pedestrians normally have two main lights: a red light that means 'stop' and a green light that means 'go' (or, more correctly, 'proceed with caution'). There is usually a flashing phase (red in the US, green in Europe) that means 'complete your crossing'. In most locales in North America, the colors used are a red-orange ("Portland orange") for "stop/wait" and a bluish-white ("lunar") for "go." While the "walk" signal is generally a walking human figure, North American pedestrian signals usually show an upraised hand for "stop," while most other countries display a standing human figure. Some older American signals display the verbal commands "Walk" (lunar white or green) and "Don't Walk" or "Wait" (red-orange).

The use of these colors is thought to originate from nautical right-of-way. Usually, the red light contains some orange in its hue, and the green light contains some blue, to provide some support for people with red-green color blindness.

Traffic lights for special vehicles (such as buses or trams) may use other systems, such as vertical vs. horizontal bars of white light. In Portland, Oregon, the tram signals feature a horizontal white bar and an orange vertical bar.

In most countries, the sequence is green (go), amber (prepare to stop), and red (stop). In some systems, however, just before red changes to green, both red and amber are lit. It is customary for drivers to select neutral and/or use the handbrake at red lights; the additional phase is intended to give the driver time to select first gear or release the handbrake before the light turns green, but in practice is treated as an invitation to go before the green light is showing.

In the UK, New Zealand and Canada, amber officially means 'stop (unless it would cause an accident to do so)' but in practice, is treated as 'prepare to stop'. In Russia, Serbia, Austria, Israel, and parts of Mexico, the green light flashes for a few seconds before the amber light comes on. The single flashing amber signal is used in the UK, Ireland and Australia at Pelican crossings. Also it is used in Serbia to mark places where greater attention is needed (dangerous crossings, sharp curves etc.).

A stopwatch is a handheld timepiece designed to measure the amount of time elapsed from a particular time when activated to when the piece is deactivated. A large digital version of a stopwatch designed for viewing at a distance, as in a sports stadium, is called a stopclock.

The timing functions are traditionally controlled by two buttons on the case. Pressing the top button starts the timer running, and pressing the button a second time stops it, leaving the elapsed time displayed. A press of the second button then resets the stopwatch to zero. The second button is also used to record split times or lap times. When the split time button is pressed while the watch is running, the display freezes, allowing the elapsed time to that point to be read, but the watch mechanism continues running to record total elapsed time. Pressing the split button a second time allows the watch to resume display of total time.

Mechanical stopwatches are powered by a mainspring, which must be periodically wound up by turning the knurled knob at the top of the watch.

Digital electronic stopwatches are available which, due to their crystal oscillator timing element, are much more accurate than mechanical timepieces. Because they contain a microchip, they often include date and time-of-day functions as well. Some may have a connector for external sensors, allowing the stopwatch to be triggered by external events, thus measuring elapsed time far more accurately than is possible by pressing the buttons with one's finger. The first digital timer used in organized sports was the Digitimer, developed by Cox Electronic Systems, Inc. of Salt Lake City Utah (1971). It utilized a Nixie-tube readout and provided a resolution of 1/1000 second. Its first use was in ski racing, but was later used by the World University Games in Moscow, Russia, the U.S. NCAA, and in the Olympic trials.

The device is used when time periods must be measured precisely and with a minimum of complications. Laboratory experiments and sporting events like sprints are good examples.

The stopwatch function is also present as an additional function of many digital wristwatches.