WATCH DICTIONARY
ANALOGUE WATCHES
An analogue watch is a watch that displays the time using hands.
ASTRONOMICAL WATCHES
Astronomical watches are watches which alongside the time display can also show things such as moonphases, planetary positions, celestial displays and perpetual calendars. Notable watches include the rather splendid Van Cleef and Arpels Midnight Planetarium, Christiaan Van Der Klaauw and Patek Philippe Sky Moon Tourbillon.
BIG/OVERSIZED WATCHES
An Oversized Watch is a watch which features a larger dial than most standard watches - they are normally 45mm+ in Diameter. Watch brands known for larger watches include Diesel, Invicta, Liv Watches, Richard Mille, TW Steele and U-Boat
CALIFORNIA DIAL WATCHES
A California Dial watch is a watch that features a mix of Roman numerals on the top of the dial and Arabic numerals on the bottom of the dial. The California Dial normally includes an inverted triangle at 12 o'clock and baton markers at 3,6 and 9 o'clock. The purpose of this mix of numeric styles and shapes was allow instant readability. This design was patented by Rolex in 1941 when they were making watches for Italian military divers. The divers needed a dial they could read at a glance and in low visibility conditions. Originally known as 'Error-Proof' or 'High-Visibility' Dials, the name 'California Dial' became a thing in the 1970s when some dial-restoring companies in California began restoring these dials in significant quantities, leading to people referring to the dial as a California Dial.
CAMOUFLAGE WATCHES
Camouflage Watches or Camo Watches are watches featuring camouflage patterns on the dial, straps and or cases. Available in a variety of colours such as green woodland, black, white and grey nordic or sandy desert, these are eye-catching pieces.
CARTOON WATCHES
A Cartoon Watch is a watch which features a cartoon character. Popular characters include Snoopy, Mickey Mouse, Sponge Bob Square Pants. Brands showcasing cartoon characters include Bamford, Bvulgari, Omega, Spinnaker, Swatch and Timex.
CHRONOGRAPH WATCHES
A chronograph watch is a watch that includes stopwatch functionality, allowing you to measure elapsed time.
COMPASS WATCHES
Compass watches, also known as tool watches are watches which alongside the time display also feature a compass function. Notable compass watches include the Citizen Altichron, G-Shock Mudmaster, Porsche Design / IWC Compass Watch, Seiko Prospex Alpinist, Timex Time and Tide, Bell and Ross BR-03 compass, Luminox Outdoor Explorer watches and digital compass watches.
DIGITAL WATCHES
A Digital Watch is a watch that shows the time in numbers on an electronic display rather than with the traditional two hands. There is a huge variety of digital watches available in various styles from retro to futuristic. Popular brands include Bulova, Casio, Hamilton, Seiko and Timex. Displays range from LCD, LED and E-ink to Smart Watches.
DIVE WATCHES
Dive watches are robust watches designed to withstand greater degrees of water pressure than regular watches. They normally feature a rotating bezel with numbers on to measure time elapsed (by aligning the 0 with the minute hand) and screw-down crowns to prevent water ingress. If you spend time in the water with a watch on, then a Dive Watch is what you should be looking for.
DOG WATCHES
Dog watches or dog-inspired watches are watches which feature dog designs on the dial. Watch brands producing Dog watches include Bamford, Happiewatch, Gucci, Hermes and Toff London.
E-INK WATCHES
An E-Ink Watch or Electronic Ink watch is a watch which has a display that uses electronic paper display technology. This is the same technology that is used in e-readers which allows easy readability even in direct sunlight. Power is used only when the display changes so the watches will stay charged for a long time. Hybrid E-ink watches are also available which feature a digital display alongside traditional watch hands.
An analogue watch is a watch that displays the time using hands.
ASTRONOMICAL WATCHES
Astronomical watches are watches which alongside the time display can also show things such as moonphases, planetary positions, celestial displays and perpetual calendars. Notable watches include the rather splendid Van Cleef and Arpels Midnight Planetarium, Christiaan Van Der Klaauw and Patek Philippe Sky Moon Tourbillon.
BIG/OVERSIZED WATCHES
An Oversized Watch is a watch which features a larger dial than most standard watches - they are normally 45mm+ in Diameter. Watch brands known for larger watches include Diesel, Invicta, Liv Watches, Richard Mille, TW Steele and U-Boat
CALIFORNIA DIAL WATCHES
A California Dial watch is a watch that features a mix of Roman numerals on the top of the dial and Arabic numerals on the bottom of the dial. The California Dial normally includes an inverted triangle at 12 o'clock and baton markers at 3,6 and 9 o'clock. The purpose of this mix of numeric styles and shapes was allow instant readability. This design was patented by Rolex in 1941 when they were making watches for Italian military divers. The divers needed a dial they could read at a glance and in low visibility conditions. Originally known as 'Error-Proof' or 'High-Visibility' Dials, the name 'California Dial' became a thing in the 1970s when some dial-restoring companies in California began restoring these dials in significant quantities, leading to people referring to the dial as a California Dial.
CAMOUFLAGE WATCHES
Camouflage Watches or Camo Watches are watches featuring camouflage patterns on the dial, straps and or cases. Available in a variety of colours such as green woodland, black, white and grey nordic or sandy desert, these are eye-catching pieces.
CARTOON WATCHES
A Cartoon Watch is a watch which features a cartoon character. Popular characters include Snoopy, Mickey Mouse, Sponge Bob Square Pants. Brands showcasing cartoon characters include Bamford, Bvulgari, Omega, Spinnaker, Swatch and Timex.
CHRONOGRAPH WATCHES
A chronograph watch is a watch that includes stopwatch functionality, allowing you to measure elapsed time.
COMPASS WATCHES
Compass watches, also known as tool watches are watches which alongside the time display also feature a compass function. Notable compass watches include the Citizen Altichron, G-Shock Mudmaster, Porsche Design / IWC Compass Watch, Seiko Prospex Alpinist, Timex Time and Tide, Bell and Ross BR-03 compass, Luminox Outdoor Explorer watches and digital compass watches.
DIGITAL WATCHES
A Digital Watch is a watch that shows the time in numbers on an electronic display rather than with the traditional two hands. There is a huge variety of digital watches available in various styles from retro to futuristic. Popular brands include Bulova, Casio, Hamilton, Seiko and Timex. Displays range from LCD, LED and E-ink to Smart Watches.
DIVE WATCHES
Dive watches are robust watches designed to withstand greater degrees of water pressure than regular watches. They normally feature a rotating bezel with numbers on to measure time elapsed (by aligning the 0 with the minute hand) and screw-down crowns to prevent water ingress. If you spend time in the water with a watch on, then a Dive Watch is what you should be looking for.
DOG WATCHES
Dog watches or dog-inspired watches are watches which feature dog designs on the dial. Watch brands producing Dog watches include Bamford, Happiewatch, Gucci, Hermes and Toff London.
E-INK WATCHES
An E-Ink Watch or Electronic Ink watch is a watch which has a display that uses electronic paper display technology. This is the same technology that is used in e-readers which allows easy readability even in direct sunlight. Power is used only when the display changes so the watches will stay charged for a long time. Hybrid E-ink watches are also available which feature a digital display alongside traditional watch hands.
FIELD WATCHES
Field watches are minimalistic watches that were originally designed for military use in World War I. Built from materials to survive harsh conditions, with high-legibility dials, often with high contrast and simple to use. Favoured now by outdoor enthusiasts, they are also sometimes known as GADA watches - Go Anywhere - Do Anything watches.
FULL LUME WATCHES
Full-lume watches have a dial that is fully coated with luminescent material which means the entire watch face glows in the dark. The luminescence is most often provided by daylight-charging Swiss Super-LumiNova and can have compounds added to make them glow different colours. Most commonly used are C3 (green) and BGW9 (blue).
FUTURISTIC WATCHES
A Futuristic Watch is a watch which steps away from the traditional round, two handed watch. They can feature interesting shapes or unusual display types such as LED, digital or E-ink. They can often be made from interesting and unusual materials.
GULF LIVERY WATCHES
This is a watch characterised by the blue and orange colours of the Gulf GT racing livery.
LED WATCHES
An LED Watch is a digital watch which displays the time through the use of Light Emitting Diodes. The first LED watch to be produced was the Hamilton Pulsar watch which was launched in 1970. LED watches featured a blank face and a flick of the wrist or a tap of a button displayed the time fleetingly as the time display was battery hungry. This type of watch was eventually replaced by the cheaper LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) watches which enabled a constant digital display and longer battery life. However, LED watches have made a retro comeback with notable watches such as Benly deisgn, Yema LED, Bulova Computron, Hamilton American Classic PSR and Tokyoflash Watches proving popular.
MAGNETIC WATCHES
Magnetic watches are watches which feature a steel ball which rotates around the dial to show the time. The steel ball is held in place by a magnet sitatuated behind the dial. These types of watches are available with two steel balls which show the time in minutes and hours or one steel ball which follows the single hand watch principle and shows the time in hours and minute increments. In some watches the ball will move freely until shaken to settle upon the magnet.
MANTA RAY WATCHES
A Manta Ray watch is a watch that has features that have been inspired by a Manta Ray. Watches of this type include the Circula Pro-sea Blue, the Edward Christopher The Manta and the Seiko Prospex Save the Ocean.
MELTING WATCHES
A Melting Watch is a watch which has a distorted dial which looks like it is melting. Produced as a non-conformist design statement, these watches are evocative of Salvador Dali's 'The Persistance of Memory' where the melting clocks denote the fluidity and changing aspect of time. Well known melting watches incude the Cartier Crash Watch, Exaequo Watches, Laphont Watches and Larvee Watches.
MOTORSPORT WATCHES
Motorsport watches also known as racing watches typically have function which enable precision timing, easy legibility, and durability, often incorporating chronograph functions and tachymeter scales for measuring speed.
MULTI-COLOURED WATCHES
Multi-Coloured Watches are watches which feature multiple colours on the dial or bezel or strap. Swatch produce a wide range of multi-coloured dial watches. Mr Jones watches also like the splash of colour and Rolex have recently launched their brightly coloured Oyster Perpetual and the Rolex jigsaw dial.
Field watches are minimalistic watches that were originally designed for military use in World War I. Built from materials to survive harsh conditions, with high-legibility dials, often with high contrast and simple to use. Favoured now by outdoor enthusiasts, they are also sometimes known as GADA watches - Go Anywhere - Do Anything watches.
FULL LUME WATCHES
Full-lume watches have a dial that is fully coated with luminescent material which means the entire watch face glows in the dark. The luminescence is most often provided by daylight-charging Swiss Super-LumiNova and can have compounds added to make them glow different colours. Most commonly used are C3 (green) and BGW9 (blue).
FUTURISTIC WATCHES
A Futuristic Watch is a watch which steps away from the traditional round, two handed watch. They can feature interesting shapes or unusual display types such as LED, digital or E-ink. They can often be made from interesting and unusual materials.
GULF LIVERY WATCHES
This is a watch characterised by the blue and orange colours of the Gulf GT racing livery.
LED WATCHES
An LED Watch is a digital watch which displays the time through the use of Light Emitting Diodes. The first LED watch to be produced was the Hamilton Pulsar watch which was launched in 1970. LED watches featured a blank face and a flick of the wrist or a tap of a button displayed the time fleetingly as the time display was battery hungry. This type of watch was eventually replaced by the cheaper LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) watches which enabled a constant digital display and longer battery life. However, LED watches have made a retro comeback with notable watches such as Benly deisgn, Yema LED, Bulova Computron, Hamilton American Classic PSR and Tokyoflash Watches proving popular.
MAGNETIC WATCHES
Magnetic watches are watches which feature a steel ball which rotates around the dial to show the time. The steel ball is held in place by a magnet sitatuated behind the dial. These types of watches are available with two steel balls which show the time in minutes and hours or one steel ball which follows the single hand watch principle and shows the time in hours and minute increments. In some watches the ball will move freely until shaken to settle upon the magnet.
MANTA RAY WATCHES
A Manta Ray watch is a watch that has features that have been inspired by a Manta Ray. Watches of this type include the Circula Pro-sea Blue, the Edward Christopher The Manta and the Seiko Prospex Save the Ocean.
MELTING WATCHES
A Melting Watch is a watch which has a distorted dial which looks like it is melting. Produced as a non-conformist design statement, these watches are evocative of Salvador Dali's 'The Persistance of Memory' where the melting clocks denote the fluidity and changing aspect of time. Well known melting watches incude the Cartier Crash Watch, Exaequo Watches, Laphont Watches and Larvee Watches.
MOTORSPORT WATCHES
Motorsport watches also known as racing watches typically have function which enable precision timing, easy legibility, and durability, often incorporating chronograph functions and tachymeter scales for measuring speed.
MULTI-COLOURED WATCHES
Multi-Coloured Watches are watches which feature multiple colours on the dial or bezel or strap. Swatch produce a wide range of multi-coloured dial watches. Mr Jones watches also like the splash of colour and Rolex have recently launched their brightly coloured Oyster Perpetual and the Rolex jigsaw dial.
OCTAGONAL WATCHES
Octagonal watches are watches which feature an 8 sided dial instead of the traditional circular shape.
PILOT WATCHES
A Pilot Watch is a watch that historically was designed specifically for Pilots. Originating in the early 20th Century - characterised by large easy-to-read dials with high contrast dials and markers and good lume for nighttime legibility.
RADIO CONTROLLED WATCHES
Radio-controlled watches are watches which contain small antennae to receive signals from radio-transmitters via low-frequency radio waves, ensuring accurate time and date at all times.
SKETCH WATCHES
A sketch watch is a watch that looks like it has been hand-drawn or sketched as a 2D image. Notable watch brands prodocing sketch watches are D1 Milano and Casio G-Shock.
SINGLE HAND WATCHES
A single hand watch uses only one hand to show the time. Some single hand watches have only hour markers, some have markers in 5, 10 or 15 minute increments. Some single hand watches have no markers at all. With a single hand watch, you can get a sense of time easily with one glance. Wearers of single hand watches like the ethos of living a more relaxed life, not getting stressed by the minute to minute. These watches are recreating history - early clocks and watches only had a single hand. Minute hands would not appear on watches until 1675.
SNOOPY / PEANUTS WATCHES
Snoopy Watches are watches which feature Snoopy, the famous dog from Peanuts, on the dial, caseback, strap, or other parts of the watch. Several watch brands have produced watches which feature Snooy including, Timex, Swatch and Omega. Snoopy watches have become a popular watch because of NASA. Snoopy became associated with NASA's space programme because NASA issued a 'Silver Snoopy Award' badge for outstanding achievements for people who contributed to flight safety and mission success.
SOLAR WATCHES
A Solar Watch is a watch which is powered through sunlight or alternative light sources such as electrical light or just daylight (although sunshine is quicker). It works by light passing through a transparent or semi-transparent dial and reaching a small inbuilt photovoltaic solar cell. The light is converted into electricity which is stored in a rechargeable battery which then powers the quartz movement. When fully charged a solar watch can run in total darkness for a period of time - from 2 months up to 2 years, depending on the power-saving capabilities.
SPACE WATCHES
A Space Watch is a watch that is designed for or has been inspired by space exploration.
SQUARE WATCHES
The first square watch, the Cartier Santos, was produced in 1904. Square watch production flourished in the 1920s art deco era and regained popularity again in the 1970s especially with the Tag Heuer Monaco featured in the 1971 Steve McQueen film 'Le Mans'. Square watches are regaining popularity again today with vintage inspired design and engineering, appealing to those looking for something a little different.
STEAMPUNK WATCHES
A Steampunk Watch is a retro / futuristic watch that is inspired by the Victorian era looking at the visionary steam-powered technology of the time. They blend 19th-century industrial design with futuristic engineering. Often featurng warm metal tones and intricate mechanical movements these watches are certainly eye-catching.
Octagonal watches are watches which feature an 8 sided dial instead of the traditional circular shape.
PILOT WATCHES
A Pilot Watch is a watch that historically was designed specifically for Pilots. Originating in the early 20th Century - characterised by large easy-to-read dials with high contrast dials and markers and good lume for nighttime legibility.
RADIO CONTROLLED WATCHES
Radio-controlled watches are watches which contain small antennae to receive signals from radio-transmitters via low-frequency radio waves, ensuring accurate time and date at all times.
SKETCH WATCHES
A sketch watch is a watch that looks like it has been hand-drawn or sketched as a 2D image. Notable watch brands prodocing sketch watches are D1 Milano and Casio G-Shock.
SINGLE HAND WATCHES
A single hand watch uses only one hand to show the time. Some single hand watches have only hour markers, some have markers in 5, 10 or 15 minute increments. Some single hand watches have no markers at all. With a single hand watch, you can get a sense of time easily with one glance. Wearers of single hand watches like the ethos of living a more relaxed life, not getting stressed by the minute to minute. These watches are recreating history - early clocks and watches only had a single hand. Minute hands would not appear on watches until 1675.
SNOOPY / PEANUTS WATCHES
Snoopy Watches are watches which feature Snoopy, the famous dog from Peanuts, on the dial, caseback, strap, or other parts of the watch. Several watch brands have produced watches which feature Snooy including, Timex, Swatch and Omega. Snoopy watches have become a popular watch because of NASA. Snoopy became associated with NASA's space programme because NASA issued a 'Silver Snoopy Award' badge for outstanding achievements for people who contributed to flight safety and mission success.
SOLAR WATCHES
A Solar Watch is a watch which is powered through sunlight or alternative light sources such as electrical light or just daylight (although sunshine is quicker). It works by light passing through a transparent or semi-transparent dial and reaching a small inbuilt photovoltaic solar cell. The light is converted into electricity which is stored in a rechargeable battery which then powers the quartz movement. When fully charged a solar watch can run in total darkness for a period of time - from 2 months up to 2 years, depending on the power-saving capabilities.
SPACE WATCHES
A Space Watch is a watch that is designed for or has been inspired by space exploration.
SQUARE WATCHES
The first square watch, the Cartier Santos, was produced in 1904. Square watch production flourished in the 1920s art deco era and regained popularity again in the 1970s especially with the Tag Heuer Monaco featured in the 1971 Steve McQueen film 'Le Mans'. Square watches are regaining popularity again today with vintage inspired design and engineering, appealing to those looking for something a little different.
STEAMPUNK WATCHES
A Steampunk Watch is a retro / futuristic watch that is inspired by the Victorian era looking at the visionary steam-powered technology of the time. They blend 19th-century industrial design with futuristic engineering. Often featurng warm metal tones and intricate mechanical movements these watches are certainly eye-catching.
TRITIUM WATCHES
A Tritium Watch is a watch which use small glass vials, filled with Tritium gas and coated internally with phosphor to create a glow to depict the time. How does this work? Tritium gas emits low energy radioactive beta particles which bounce off the phospor to create the glow. The glow will be a continuous glow for around 20 years. The glass tubes are hermetically sealed so the radiation cannot escape. If they are accidentally smashed, as Tritium is lighter than air, the gas diffuses almost instantly to safe levels in open or ventilated spaces.
WOODEN WATCHES
A Wooden Watch is a watch that features a dial and usually a strap that is crafted from wood. The best known wooden watch brand is Holzkern watches.
A Tritium Watch is a watch which use small glass vials, filled with Tritium gas and coated internally with phosphor to create a glow to depict the time. How does this work? Tritium gas emits low energy radioactive beta particles which bounce off the phospor to create the glow. The glow will be a continuous glow for around 20 years. The glass tubes are hermetically sealed so the radiation cannot escape. If they are accidentally smashed, as Tritium is lighter than air, the gas diffuses almost instantly to safe levels in open or ventilated spaces.
WOODEN WATCHES
A Wooden Watch is a watch that features a dial and usually a strap that is crafted from wood. The best known wooden watch brand is Holzkern watches.