You’ll rarely catch me without a watch on. A good watch is equal parts style and functionality, and pulling your smartphone out of your pocket whenever you need the time isn’t nearly as quick (or cool, for that matter). There are so many great watches out there that it’s easy to find one that’s right for you. If you can’t find something you like, just know that new releases in the watch industry never seem to stop coming, a testament to the passion of both watchmakers and watch lovers all over the world.
Christopher Ward Twelve X
Christopher Ward has one of the best reputations in affordable watch circles, and with the arrival of the Twelve X it has moved up the ladder in terms of pricing and sophistication. The first thing you notice is the stunning ultra-finished skeletonized Calibre SH21 movement that’s CNC milled from titanium and crafted in-house, something virtually unheard of at this price.The twin-barrel mechanical automatic movement provides a whopping five-day power reserve. It also happens to be COSC-certified, another prestigious timekeeping bragging right. It even comes with an integrated titanium bracelet with micro-adjustment for comfort.
Buy: $4495
Tag Heuer Formula 1 | Kith
Style cues from the '80s come back in a big way with the retrolicious and much-lauded Tag Heuer Formula 1 reissue, made possible by a collaboration with fashion icon Kith. The original 1986 debut was like nothing anyone had ever seen in watches. The colorful Swiss-made quartz watch from a prestigious brand took the world by storm, and Kith brought it back in both vintage and new colorways. Thankfully, it remains at 35mm in diameter but sports better materials and Kith-specific graphics. Note that these are limited editions.
Buy: $1500
Spinnaker Croft Pioneer Automatic
Spinnaker regularly proves you don’t have to spend a lot to get a good automatic diver. The Croft Pioneer builds on one of its most popular models with its most affordable iteration. The Croft Pioneer doesn’t scrimp on materials quality, either, because it employs 316L stainless steel for the case and solid three-link bracelet, scratch-resistant sapphire glass, Swiss lume, and a screw-down crown for a 100-meter water-resistant watch. The multi-layer dial comes in four colors, each one paired with a white chapter ring for contrast. The reliable Japanese NH35 automatic movement provides timekeeping duties with a 41-hour power reserve.
Buy: $270
Tudor Pelagos FXD Chrono Cycling Edition
The Pelagos FXD Chrono gets a special iteration with the new Cycling Edition that’s made for the brand’s cycling team as they enter the 2024 Giro d'Italia race. Every member of the Tudor Pro Cycling Team wears the watch. It possesses a tough, lightweight 43mm matte carbon case, a special black and red colorway, a fixed 60-minute bezel, and a biking-focused tachymeter scale. The movement is the in-house Tudor MT5813 COSC, good for 70 hours of power reserve. It’s a very interesting move from the typically diving focused Pelagos to a biking chronograph, and it works beautifully.
Buy: $5275
Hanhart Preventor9 S
This German watchmaker is all about classically styled pilot watches, and the Preventor9 is based on one of its own from the ‘50s. The stealthy black PVD-coated case measures 40mm in diameter and sports a matte black dial with a small seconds subdial at the 9 o’clock position. The minimalist minute track mimics the track on the small seconds subdial, and the cathedral hands ramp up the refinement. The second hand is slightly bent to make up for the visual curve created by the AR-coated convex sapphire crystal. Only 100 units will be made this year.
Buy: $1382
Farer Baily Moonphase
Farer is one of the cooler microbrands out of the UK. Its new Baily is a specialized moonphase watch that shows off a highly texturized, genuine green aventurine quartz dial set inside a brushed and polished cushion-style case. That stunning dial has been meticulously cut for effect and measures in at a mere 1mm thick. The amazingly realistic moonphase disc in the middle is hand-painted in Switzerland using applied Super-LumiNova that’s been hand-carved to look like the lunar surface. The movement is a hand-winding Swiss-Made Sellita SW288-1 Ma Elaboré Grade movement. All of this artfulness for the price is nearly unheard of. You can choose between 11 different leather straps or a fancy steel Milanese mesh bracelet. Only 200 will be made.
Buy: $1295
Formex Essence 39mm Space Gold
Formex is a niche Swiss watch brand that travels low on the radar but is beloved by sports watch cognoscenti. The new Space Gold meteorite dialed Essence 39 is truly unique with an 18k rose gold plated real meteorite dial that’s an industry first. There’s a signature beveled date window and gunmetal-finished applied indices and hands lumed with with Super-LumiNova BGW9. Each dial is crafted in-house, and it’s a standout for one of the brand’s most popular models. Underneath the riveted 39mm steel case is Formex’s COSC-certified Swiss automatic movement. The first one hundred models have already been sold, so make sure you grab one in the second batch that delivers at the end of the summer.
Buy: $1990
Unimatic U4S-BB
Unimatic goes dark this season with a trio of black watches across its model line. My favorite is the field-ready Modello Quattro ref. U4S-8BB. The 400m case, fixed bezel, screw-down crown, and pin buckle are coated with black diamond-like carbon (DLC) for toughness and visual stealth. The matte black dial gets SuperLumiNova GL old light radium framed with gold for a vintage look, capped off with inner AR-coated sapphire glass. The Swiss Sellita SW200-1-b automatic movement provides 38 hours of power reserve. It comes with a black TPU rubber strap and an extra black seatbelt Nato strap for those important under-the-cover of darkness moves.
Buy: $870
G-SHOCK MR-G MRG-BF1000 Frogman Titanium
The first all-titanium analog Frogman is a refined beast of a diving watch. This near-luxury do-it-all timepiece abandons the typical resin Frogman construction and opts for new levels of toughness with fluoro rubber buffers, DLC coating, a gold-plated retainer plate, and a red PVD-finished sapphire glass caseback that matches the dial’s chapter rings. The watch is equipped with Bluetooth, and the hour and minute hands come together as a single hand when in diving mode. On top of that, the titanium Frogman uses a dedicated smartphone app to show tide data around the world and even logs your dives, as well as other crucial data. Just don’t wear it if you have tiny wrists because this titanium monster's asymmetric case measures in at 50mm in diameter.
Buy: $5800
Nubeo Magellan 24H Automatic Retro Blue
If you can’t afford an ornate and pricey Richard Mille watch, the new Magellan model might just be your next best option. Nubeo just released the 24-hour subdialed version of its Magellan, and it’s an eye-catcher. The big 49mm case wears smaller due to the wrist-hugging curvature and the shrouded lugs. Its size is further diminished by the gunmetal case finish. Inside is a Japanese automatic movement underneath an intricate dial with skeletonized features and a blue and orange colorway. The integrated blue rubber strap matches the dial perfectly, as does the etched transparent caseback.
Buy: $780
