Are they though? Other than this watch/the moonglow and the Bel Canto (which I have on order, so I am not a CW “hater”), I have always felt that the brand plays things pretty safe. I’ve heard them referred to as “premium vanilla”. Good quality, good prices, but nothing else they put out really excites me. Even the popular Twelve feels like the latest watch to jump on the integrated bracelet hype train.
They also have a true super compressor (whereas pretty much every other super compressor out there just looks like one), and their in house SH21 movement (120 hour power reserve via double barrel mainsprings, COSC spec). So that and the ones you listed make four pretty interesting aspects from a technical/design perspective. When most companies are just slapping sellitas into cases I’d say that’s something yeah.
I’m not a buyer for a lot of their stuff, but I do think they do more interesting work than a lot of brands in that price window.
I guess I was thinking more in terms of their designs. In terms of the tech, I feel like CW does things just to show that they can, in a sense. “Hey look I can make a 'x”, too!"
Super compressors are a relic for a reason; they aren’t made any more because they don’t need to be. Simply having a high quality seal has basically made super compressor technology relatively obsolete.
Likewise, my personal opinion is that any power reserve over 3-ish days is a gimmick. Either you wear your watch more or less daily, or it’s in a rotation and even a week of PR would likely not suit you. I guess technically there’s the “stop wearing Friday and it works on Monday” argument, but most upscale movements have a sweet spot in the 2-3 day PR range.
Even this watch, Zelos, Omega, others have already done aventurine dials. As cool as it is, it still feels like CW is saying “hey, me too!”
I guess I’m just playing devils advocate. I like the brand. I guess I was hoping for a bit more from the announcement though.
I love vanilla and would love to get premium vanilla ice cream at my local supermarket but unfortunately I have to order it online, that’s CW. I really liked the looks of the PRX they had at Macy’s but it felt cheap and my Seiko 5 didn’t feel premium so I got the Trident.
![[Christopher Ward] New C1 moonphase](https://alien.top/pictrs/image/fc4343bc-ecfa-4d11-916a-ca66757e6409.webp){kind=link}
Are they though? Other than this watch/the moonglow and the Bel Canto (which I have on order, so I am not a CW “hater”), I have always felt that the brand plays things pretty safe. I’ve heard them referred to as “premium vanilla”. Good quality, good prices, but nothing else they put out really excites me. Even the popular Twelve feels like the latest watch to jump on the integrated bracelet hype train.
They also have a true super compressor (whereas pretty much every other super compressor out there just looks like one), and their in house SH21 movement (120 hour power reserve via double barrel mainsprings, COSC spec). So that and the ones you listed make four pretty interesting aspects from a technical/design perspective. When most companies are just slapping sellitas into cases I’d say that’s something yeah.
I’m not a buyer for a lot of their stuff, but I do think they do more interesting work than a lot of brands in that price window.
I guess I was thinking more in terms of their designs. In terms of the tech, I feel like CW does things just to show that they can, in a sense. “Hey look I can make a 'x”, too!"
Super compressors are a relic for a reason; they aren’t made any more because they don’t need to be. Simply having a high quality seal has basically made super compressor technology relatively obsolete.
Likewise, my personal opinion is that any power reserve over 3-ish days is a gimmick. Either you wear your watch more or less daily, or it’s in a rotation and even a week of PR would likely not suit you. I guess technically there’s the “stop wearing Friday and it works on Monday” argument, but most upscale movements have a sweet spot in the 2-3 day PR range.
Even this watch, Zelos, Omega, others have already done aventurine dials. As cool as it is, it still feels like CW is saying “hey, me too!”
I guess I’m just playing devils advocate. I like the brand. I guess I was hoping for a bit more from the announcement though.
Every single analog watch is a relic
I love vanilla and would love to get premium vanilla ice cream at my local supermarket but unfortunately I have to order it online, that’s CW. I really liked the looks of the PRX they had at Macy’s but it felt cheap and my Seiko 5 didn’t feel premium so I got the Trident.