Welcome back to our regular weekend feature, Watching the Web. In this series, we take a look back at interesting articles from across the wider web of watch sites, as well as highlighting some of the most read articles from our own sites. From our friends in the world of watch writing, we have a crowd-funded smart watch, the sale of Glycine, a crazy dial color from Armida, and some votes for the ugliest watches out there. From our own pages, we have our review of the new NTH Subs, Vario Straps, and the latest from Brew Watch.
This article on the Ticwatch 2 is a bit older (it’s from the end of July), but it’s still an interesting read about a curious watch. At $200 for an Android Wear smartwatch may sound almost “normal” these days, but the Ticwatch has some interesting things going for it. First off, it’s backed by Google, and it’s coming out via Kickstarter. Why is that? Well, it was developed for the Chinese market, and crowd-funding was the easiest way to get it to an international market.
As we’ve seen, watch brands get sold off and bought up fairly regularly, leading to large conglomerates that produce a variety of brands. The latest sale of Gylcine, then, should not have attracted a whole lot of attention outside of the press release. Well, that is, until you see who bought them – Invicta. Yes, the same brand that prizes form over function now holds the keys for this storied brand. Will things change? Well, Glycine says no, and aBlogtoWatch is taking a cautious, but hopeful, stance. Check out the full run-down here.
When it comes to the indie watch brands, and particularly divers, you almost come to expect some funky designs, or things getting mixed up with case materials. When it comes to the dials, though, we are generally treated to a regular palette. Not so much with this Armida A7 that is being reviewed over at The Time Bum. This steel beastie ostensibly has a blue dial, but it definitely looks to have a bit of a teal take to it. Check out the full review for the rundown on this bright – and affordable – diver.
Finally, I could not resist sharing out this article from Quill & Pad about some suggestions for the five ugliest watches out there. While calling things ugly or beautiful is often a very subjective thing, this list put together is a pretty solid survey of some downright ugly watches (I’ve heard of automotive inspired, but making a watch look like a radiator grille? That’s a step to far!) Check out the full listing, and feel free to chime in below with what you’d vote for in this race.
Now, let’s turn back to our own pages, and some watches that are much more visually pleasing. First up, it was not a surprise that Victor’s review of the new NTH Subs took off like wildfire. I’ve spent time with some other variants, and I agree, these are solid designs with great execution. Fortunately for you, Victor is a bit more versed in the history of these designs than I am, and gives us all a run-down and comparison to the originals. Even if you’re not thinking about picking one up, I dare say you’ll learn something by reading his review.
Next up, we have my review of the Vario Straps that also coincided with a giveaway. While these are a bit different from the ballistic nylon straps that most are used to (not the least of which, because they’re not nylon), they are some rather colorful designs, which makes them perfect for a bit of warm weather fun on your wrist. Are they for everyone? No, probably not, but for those who find them scratching an itch, they’ll certainly be pleased.
Rounding things out, we have John talking about one of my favorite beverages – coffee. Well, talking about it in the sense of covering the latest release from Brew Watches. It’s an interesting (and quite compact design), and I cannot get enough of that inverted peanut butter cup crown.
Did you know that John Biggs’ book, Marie Antionette’s Watch, is free to read with Kindle Unlimited, or you can buy a paperback from Amazon. Oh, and even if you don’t have a Kindle, you can always read via their free apps or their cloud reader (check those out here
). The book is also now on Wattpad. You can even check out a snippet of the book.
Want to be more than just a visitor to our little corner of the internet? How about pledging some support for us over on Patreon. There are some compelling funding levels (including site redesigns and removing ads, and getting a copy of the Marie Antoinette book), but really, we just want to ensure we keep this lean ship running and the lights on. You can check out John’s latest post right here. This is a fun thing we get to do on the side, and we want to keep bringing you the content that you have come to rely on from us, and work to make it even better.
We are approaching the end of the month, so I am going to remind you to enter our monthly give away. This month, we have a Klaus Kobec Taj Mahal. in order to win this dress watch, you have to follow our 2 step process, so head over to the contest page and get your entry started.
We also want to put the call out for wrist shots of our reader’s favorite (or at least favorite of the moment) watches. Put together an email of your wrist shot and tell us a little about the watch and why you love it. If you happened to be introduced to it through our site (or won it through a give-away), even better. Just make sure the image is a JPEG and at least 800 pixels wide. And as always, if there’s something you think we should be covering, feel free to drop us a line. If you bring something up that we end up writing about, we’ll be sure to tip our hats (electronically, if not literally) in your general direction.
