Is your life complicated enough? These are the best value watch complications that deliver serious bang for your buck
Yes, maybe you use your watch mostly to tell the time. But how about the joys of using a good old chronograph to time your bike ride to the shops. Or flying into another time zone with a GMT on your wrist (it will happen again one day). Let’s tempt you with the best value watch complications taken from our NOW magazine watch buying guide. After all, time-only watches are all well and good, but sometimes a bit of extra functionality doesn’t hurt. Dan Henry 1937 Dress Chrono Dan Henry is possibly the world’s most generous watch collector, sharing his collection of incredibly rare and sought-after pieces in the form of his own eponymous microbrand. The 1937 Dress Chronograph, available in four different colour and dial configurations, is inspired by a range of art-deco examples from the 1930s. Keeping classic-friendly dimensions at 38mm, the watch also has the wallet-friendly VK61 mecha-quartz Seiko movement. Price: $375 USD Baltic Bicompax 002 Vintage-inspired and value-driven, this is a chronograph with a classic and compact design. Setting the tone, the high domed acrylic crystal and case echo distinct 1940’s vibes. Inside, the handsome sector dial showcases two distinct finishings, the outer chapter ring is…
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Surely this is a marriage made in motorsport heaven? Your inner petrolhead might be increasingly dormant at a time where there’s an increasing emphasis on soulless electric cars and less of the freedom and speed that motor racing traditionally symbolises. If so, consider this watch your re-awakening. To paraphrase TAG Heuer CEO Frédéric Arnault, TAG Heuer and Porsche share an attitude with both brands in constant pursuit of high performance. Certainly the connection between TAG Heuer and the German masters of speed, is a strong one – just think of Steve McQueen wearing a Heuer Monaco while racing a Porsche 917 in the film LeMans. The name Carrera, of course, is also deeply associated with both brands. It originated from the gruelling road race the Carrera Panamericana and served as the inspiration for Porsche’s most powerful engine following a famous win in 1954. In 1963, however, the name was also adopted by Jack Heuer when he launched the speed-infused Carrera chronograph. Today, at long last, the two brands are officially united with this new racing-inspired watch, the TAG Heuer Carrera Porsche Chronograph. First Impressions The design of the new 44mm TAG Heuer Carrera Porsche Chronograph has clear vintage inspiration, but…
When you observe the collective offerings across conglomerate brands, many of the watches you find are familiar takes on the same old formats and profiles. This has opened some room for micro-brands to rise and introduce watches with more striking aesthetics – bringing refreshing and distinct timepieces to market that often deliver incredible value for the consumer. One such up-and-coming brand, CODE41, are quickly making a name for themselves by making complex case designs with heavily re-worked and regulated movements at highly accessible price points. Now they’ve released a new chronograph in two head-turning variations: the CODE41 NB24 Chronograph Creator Edition. According to CODE41: “The NB24 encapsulates the story of our ambassador Nigel Bailly and his dream of taking part in the 24 Hours of Le Mans. When this young paraplegic driver shared with us his passion and determination in 2017, we were immediately drawn in and decided to accompany him in his adventure. After three years of relentless work, Nigel will take part in the 24 Hours of Le Mans in June 2021, thus proving that nothing is impossible.” The case(s) The CODE41 NB24 Chronograph Creator Edition is available in two case materials: grade 5 titanium and a high…
Maybe you love the smell of neoprene in the morning. You explore the ocean’s depths on such a regular basis that your Facebook friends barely recognise you without your mask on. But chances are that if you own a diving watch, it’s rarely (if ever) used for the purpose for which it was intended. And as for that helium release valve? Well, that’s guaranteed to stay redundant for the rest of its watertight days. That’s totally OK, too. A diving watch isn’t just a good option for aquatic types familiar with the discomfort of shoehorning themselves into a damp wetsuit for their second dive of the day. That’s because a diver is a true all-rounder of a timepiece that offers durability, luminosity and, would you believe it, even water-resistance. But the diving bezel – the outer ring of metal or ceramic marked with numbers to measure how long you’re underwater – has plenty of real-world applications, too, that don’t involve getting your feet wet. 1. Cooking perfect pasta As the Italian film director Federico Fellini said: “Life is a combination of magic and pasta.” It’s hard to argue with that, too. Unless, of course, you overcook the pasta. Committing that…
Sharp design mixed with a distinct British aesthetic is a winning combination that has earned Farer a solid following among knowing enthusiasts. The brand was established back in 2015 when they made a proper mark on the microbrand scene with their colourful Universal series. Now they’re back with the Farer Exmoor field watch with its crisp olive-green design that’s a breath of fresh air in a category of mostly monochrome tool watches. Farer has built a reputation as a small brand with an emphasis on vintage inspiration, often slim of design with fresh colours and bags of personality to spice things up and take them to another level. What distinguishes Farer from the microbrand pack is a British sartorial take on the simple, mechanical wristwatches we love, from dress watches to chronographs, infused with a quality that belies the price point. In particular, their use of colour consistently excites. In their quiet way Farer may have set new standards for accessible watchmaking with a twist, like British tailoring for the wrist (Farer, you may use that rhyming slogan for a small fee!). Structurally, the olive green dial Exmoor is the archetypal field watch. It’s a great example of a solid…
Things are back in full swing at Time+Tide HQ this year, but the Coronavirus pandemic isn’t done with the watch industry yet. This week we got the announcement that Watches & Wonders (formerly SIHH) would go ahead this year, in a “phygital” format, which sounds like an unpleasant medical condition, but is actually a term fresh out of a marketing dictionary for a blend of “physical” and “digital” experience. That means Watches & Wonders in 2021 will take the form of a virtual show online for the 38 participating brands in the second week of April, before taking material form in Shanghai a few days later, featuring a reduced 15 brands. This is something of a middle ground, that strikes the right balance between a purely online week of launches and the potentially risky in-person events that we all miss so much. But my preference would be for a much more fun sounding “digical” event, that brings to mind an online calendar application, or perhaps a digital calorie counter. Regardless of what we call the event, it does raise the question: will we see a new collection launch from Rolex, a little over six months after the brand updated their…
We can all debate what are the best daily wearers, but if the term is based on robustness and reliability there is arguably nothing better than a G-Shock. The Full Metal series elevates the offering from resin cases and straps, to a full stainless-steel build – even titanium in the more premium editions. So far we have seen stainless-steel versions in steel, gold-plated, black, black grid, and aged black tones, but this year we have the most bold and colourful version yet: the G-Shock Full Metal “Rich Red”. While the ion plating of the watch is billed as “Rich Red”, to my eyes it actually has a slight purplish hue to it. In fact, if it were aged in the same manner as the aged IP version in black it would remind me of the patinated Rolex GMT Master bezels that turned from red into bright fuchsia. At any rate, the case is 43.2mm in diameter, 49.6mm lug-to-lug, and 12.9mm thick with a water resistance of 200 metres. It’s a good size and highly robust like the other Full Metal watches we have seen before. The backlit digital display is home to a wealth of information and complications which include…
I will be perfectly honest, ever since starting to write about watches, my sincere wish has been to meet up with the Time+Tide team at Basel, SIHH or even some far-flung Far Eastern destination. But then, KER-CLUNK! It was as if a giant hand pulled down a large POWER OFF handle, the lights dimmed and it all went eerily quiet. COVID-19 signalled the temporary end of watch fairs. Yet thanks to the determination of Jean-Christophe Babin at Bulgari and various other horological powerhouses that pulled together Geneva Watch Days, things didn’t end as glumly as they might have. The GWD sent a signal to the world that we might be looking at a new future of watch fairs that are up close and personal (well, as close and personal as you can get with a mask on ). Now Watches and Wonders have announced their 2021 dates and it’s “phygital”! Yes, Watches and Wonders, the extravagantly monikered version of SIHH, is now back according to the press release (phygital is a cross between physical and digital, apparently). Five main brands are on board for the 2021 Watches & Wonders Geneva digital show: Rolex, Tudor, Patek Philippe, Chopard, and Chanel. They…
Now that 2021 has arrived, a return to normality seems to be lurking on the horizon (fingers crossed). We still have some work to do around the world, but with a vaccine in circulation it is fortunately no longer a matter of “if” but “when”. In anticipation of these brighter days, Omega is getting a jump-start on the fun to come when the Beijing Winter Olympics arrives next year. To celebrate the 30th year of being official timekeeper of the games, Omega is introducing their Omega Seamaster Diver 300M “Beijing 2022” Special Edition. The watch is every bit the modern Seamaster watch we have come to know and love, but with a few subtle twists that really tie the watch to the Winter Olympics. The stainless-steel case is still 42mm in diameter, 50mm lug-to-lug, and 13.7mm thick. It maintains the 300 metre water resistance expected of the collection, with a screw-down crown and Reese’s peanut-butter cup style helium-escape valve. Interestingly though, like the Nekton Seamaster released last year, Omega has opted to pair the Special Edition watch with a grade 5 titanium bezel with a 60-minute diving scale in positive relief. The sun-brushed blue ceramic dial features the same laser-engraved…
Digital watches are generally overlooked by the tastemakers of the horological elite, but we don’t think that’s really fair. Not only do they provide an interesting way of communicating the time that is easier to read (just ask your child), but they’re also a little more unusual and cut through the sea of analogue watches that we are used to seeing everyday. Because while you obviously have a range of digital watches that tell the time via an LED screen, there are also some seriously cool mechanical digital watches. So with that in mind, we thought we’d take a look at some of the best digital watches of 2020, which range from a few hundred dollars to a few hundred thousand dollars. CASIO G-SHOCK DW5600 NASA LIMITED EDITION There’s no shortage of watches clinging onto a legacy of space travel, but if any of them would be relevant in a modern world, then it would be a G-Shock. This limited edition DW5600 is clinically eye-catching, with its pure-white case and integrated rubber strap, smoothing over the usual bulk of G-Shocks. Pops of colour with the NASA logo and US flag complete a package fit for any space cowboy. Ref No.…