Chronos 03Wearable technology looks like it is here to stay, regardless of how some of us semi-luddites feel we don’t need it. So if we are going to strap notification devices and fitness trackers to our bodies, do we want to do it through new devices, or as add-ons to what we already wear. The Chronos wearable is betting on the latter, and is currently taking pre-orders for their device intended to augment your existing watch.
Lew and Huey is a brand that I look to when I want to talk about the potential success of the crowd funded marketplace. The brand began on Kickstarter, with multiple watches launched on that platform, all well received. I put the brand in the category of “friend of the site,” and they are always happy to send us information on upcoming watches and then lend us review copies when they are available. I first wrote up the Phantom in April, and now I have a chance to take a two of the three options out for a test drive.
If you are a regular reader, you may have noticed that we have pivoted a bit away from crowdfunded watches in the last few months. We will still cover projects that intrigue us, but we are more selective about the campaigns we highlight these days. That said, this crowdfunding round up is highlighting five watch project currently running on Kickstarter.
I know we keep saying that we are going to limit our coverage of minimalist quartz watches, but it seems that the limit on what can be done with this simple formula has not yet be met. Take the Santis and Berg Vertice, a two hander that uses Eastern Arabic numerals for the chapter ring. Here is a watch design that truly is hard to find on the market, at least outside of the Middle East, and something that should appeal to quite a number of people.
Here in the States, we’ve got a little holiday going on known as Thanksgiving Day. So, for those of you getting your turkey-induced food comas on, enjoy your day, and enjoy it responsibly (especially if that watch above is on your wrist).
Earlier this year I was attending an alumni event and the subject matter turned to watches (how I turned it there I don’t recall). One of the group asked what I would recommend for her to get her boyfriend as a gift. My first question was how much money she wanted to spend. When she said roughly $1,000, I immediately recommended a Weiss. Her question also got me thinking about how I could organize the 2015 holiday gift guide. So for this iteration, I will recommend my favorite watch (or watch related gift) in each of several price ranges. Chances are, if I like it, especially if it under about $1,500, we have covered it in the past, since that is the kind of people we are; but there may be watches here (especially at the high end) that have not graced our pages.
Welcome to Watch Video Rewind, our (generally) weekly round up of watch related videos we feel are of interest. This week, I thought I would focus on some of the smartwatches out there that are not being produced by the phone/tech giants, but are rather being created by watch companies.
Thank you for taking the time out of your day and stopping by to check out our regular Saturday feature, Watching the Web, where we take a little bit of time to highlight interesting watch related articles and watch reviews we find on other sites across the web. We then take a little time to promote our own popular articles from the last week or so. Today, I wanted to point you to reviews of the Bovet Sergio Pinanfarina Split Second Chronograph 45, the URWERK EMC Pistol, and the Junghans Meister Pilot Event Edition. From our site, the most popular posts over the last week or so have been the reviews of the Vejrhøj Nautic, the Manchester Watch Works Tatoskok, the Oris Divers Sixty-Five.
Sometimes, you just have to go with the tag that the marketing campaign uses, and I will admit, “Back into the blue” is lifted straight from Oris’s press kit. But it fits, doesn’t it? This pretty diver, with retro cues and a light blue chapter ring pays homage to the original Oris Divers Sixty-Five, while staking itself out as a modern diver.
Even though I personally have not handled a lot of watch winders, I find them fascinating. Basically, they are a purpose-built machine that serves only to keep another very purpose-built machine (your watch) in running and ready-to-wear condition. As with all things watch-related, there are a range of prices you can find for these, with very inexpensive ones that are probably noisier than they are worth, all the way up to some massive ones that are basically a piece of furniture or a safe. Then, we have a sort of comfortable middle ground, where pricing is in the range of a good mechanical watch, with materials and motors that are worth the price. That is where, it seems, we will see the new Benson Watch Winders Black Series residing.
