The Official Speedcubing Desk on Your Screen with a Cube Timer
In competitive speedcubing, a split second is the difference between making the podium and missing finals. Serious cubers do not time their practice with phone stopwatches because official World Cube Association (WCA) regulations require specific hand-release mechanics, random state scrambles, and strict 15-second inspection windows. Having a dedicated cube timer mirrors an authentic Stackmat competition setup right in your browser.
Running a Solved Round on This Online Cube Timer
Follow the standard WCA competition workflow using this cube timer:
- Apply the Scramble: Hold your 3x3 cube with the Green face in front and White face on top. Follow the 20-move scramble sequence displayed at the top of the cube timer.
- Start 15s Inspection: Tap the Spacebar (or tap the timer box on mobile). The 15-second inspection countdown begins, with audible beeps at 8 seconds and 12 seconds reminding you to get into solving grip.
- Hold to Arm: When ready, press and hold Spacebar. The prompt shows HOLD... in amber, then turns bright green (READY!) after 0.3 seconds.
- Release to Solve: Lift your hands off the keyboard to launch the timer. The millisecond clock counts your solve in real time.
- Stop the Clock: When your cube is solved and dropped on the desk, tap the spacebar or screen to stop the cube timer.
- Log Penalties: If your top layer finished misaligned by more than 45 degrees, click +2s; if unfinished, mark it as DNF.
Understanding Your Ao5 & Ao12 Averages
In speedcubing, a single fast time can be an accidental PLL skip. That is why this cube timer calculates your Average of 5 (Ao5) and Average of 12 (Ao12). It discards your fastest and slowest outliers and calculates the mean of the rest, giving you a true benchmark of solving consistency and finger-trick efficiency.