While smartwatches get a lot of press these days, not everyone loves them. Here then are 13 interesting, un-smart watches for those chrono-geeks among us.
The Nixon Passport is the perfect watch to take on a trip around the world. The watch’s main feature is a rotating bezel you can use to select a different timezone, allowing you to know at a glance what time it is back home or in some far-off land of your choosing. Full disclosure: this is the watch I take with me whenever I travel. ($400).
In astronomy, the nadir is the opposite of the zenith, the point directly below a given location that points in the direction of gravity’s pull. This watch remains true that concept—the hands point inward to a spot under the center of the lens, the core of time. ($135).
Show your colors with this chronographic replica of the Star-Spangled Avenger’s escutcheon. ($30).
It’s a watch you wear on your finger. To get the time from this quirky marriage between ring and watch, just turn the top ring and the current time will light up for a few seconds. Available in both blue and orange LED displays. ($350).
Simple and elegant, the Q&Q SmileSolar never needs winding and has no battery to replace. Simply charge it with the power of the sun and it’ll keep accurate time for up to three and a half months. Plus it’s made with recycled materials. ($40).
The dials on the Ressence Type 3 all float in a thin layer of oil, which makes it look like you’re wearing a bubble of water on your wrist. The hands constantly spin around the watch face as they keep time, sort of like moons orbiting around a planet. You can see the watch hands in action with Ressence’s Interactive Time Simulator. ($37,000).
Hidden behind this watch’s concealing shutter is a tiny maze. The object is to move a little ball, Perseus-like, through the labyrinth to reach the center. Great for meetings. ($13,800).
In his Elements, Book I , ancient mathematician Euclid set forth Proposition 1 which states that on any given finite line segment, one can make an equilateral triangle, and this geeky watch demonstrates that postulate twice each day when the second hand (the equilateral triangle) lines up with the circular hour and minute hands. ($43).
Breitling Navitimer Cosmonaute
The Navitimer Cosmonaute was the watch that astronaut Scott Carpenter was wearing on May 24, 1962, when he orbited the Earth three times in the Aurora 7 capsule—and the first wrist chronometer to travel in space. ($9,000).
If you want all the convenience of wearing an Apple Watch but just can’t seem to let go of sporting a luxury chronometer, then the Pinnacle is the watch for you—chronometer on top, Apple Watch (included in the price) on the bottom. ($9,300).
Alternatively, you can get the same effect for a fraction of the cost ($210 for the strap alone) with Sinn’s Dual Strap System.
Seiko X Giugiaro Design Spirit Smart
This is a replica of the watch Ellen Ripley wore in Aliens (the Seiko Giugiaro 7A28-7000, originally released in 1983). This reissue comes in five different styles, but the matte gray (SCED035) looks most like the watch in the film. ($300).
Show your allegiance to the First Order with these classy Star Wars-themed watches from Nixon. Emblazoned with the Imperial logo at the 12 o’clock position and on the silicone band, plus a cool Stormtrooper-inspired design etched on the caseback. Available in two designs, Stormtrooper White and Imperial Pilot Black ($200).
Omega Seamaster 300 “Spectre” Limited Edition
This is the watch Daniel Craig sports as James Bond in the Spectre film. Features a classy lollipop second hand and broad arrow hour hand as well as an engraved 007 gun logo on the strap holder and the Spectre title treatment on the caseback. Also worth mentioning, the watch is resistant to magnetic fields up to 15,000 gauss—perfect when going up against nefarious overlords bent on world domination. ($7,500).
If you’re an admirer of geeky watches, be sure to check out 13 Geeky Watches for Discerning GeekDads and 13 More Geeky Watches for GeekDads.
Watch icons CC-BY–3.0 by artworkbean, Jake Dunham, Matt Caisley, Danny Sturgess, Vectors Market, and Simon Child via the Noun Project.
