Digital board for a synagogue
A digital synagogue board shows prayer times, memorials, lessons and announcements on the TV, and the gabbai updates it from a phone. Ateret Yosef does this for free, with no signup, and the times keep running if the internet drops.
What the board shows
Times of day, Shacharit, Mincha and Maariv, Shabbat start and Havdalah, memorials in seven designs, Torah lessons, community messages, the year blessing, and a QR code. You choose which screens run, and in what order, including by day of the week.
How it works in the synagogue
An inexpensive Android TV streamer on the television runs the Ateret Yosef app. Enter the synagogue ID, pick a location and nusach, then manage it from a phone. After the first setup the times are calculated on the device itself.
Why not a whiteboard or a slideshow
A whiteboard is stale by afternoon. A slideshow does not know the times of day or the nusach. Generic signage software costs money and is not built for Shabbat, yahrzeit, or the Hebrew calendar. A synagogue board should calculate from the building coordinates, not from the city name alone.
What it costs
No subscription, no signup, and no credit card. The only paid add-on is Code Red alerts: a one-time symbolic payment per synagogue, because polling the Home Front Command has an ongoing cost.
Short answers
Is the board really free?+
Yes. No subscription and no registration. Code Red alerts are a separate, one-time add-on, and only if you ask for them.
Do we need a special screen?+
No. A regular TV and an Android TV streamer. No PC left running, and no hardware built only for synagogues.
Which rites are supported?+
Ashkenaz, Sefard and Edot HaMizrach, with three time boards: Astronomical, Or HaChaim and Kisse Rachamim.