We wear wristwatches to check the time attentively. However, since the emergence of advanced electronic gadgets, they became an accessory rather than a necessity. Still, many avid fans are dedicating much attention to collecting various timepieces.
If you’ve been looking for a specific watch or wanting to be one of the aficionados out there, this article is for you. Listed down are some of the fundamental information about the types of watches you should know.
Chronograph Watches
Historically, King Louis XVIII of France initiated the making of this type of watch. The said king wanted to check the time during horse races accurately, so he put one (perhaps many) of his subjects to design what would become known as the chronograph watch nowadays.
Chronograph watches can be easily recognized by its button and crown located on its right side. Most of the time, it has a typical look of a watch with three smaller inset dials and subdials. Its bezel is either labeled with the months of the year or the entire sixty seconds. All in all, it’s one of the watches that provide inch-perfect time.
Its precision is one of the reasons why it’s used in different fields too. For instance, medical professionals use chronographs in tracking respiration or heart rate. Another, sailors also use another kind of chronograph that’s specialized in keeping tabs on the tides. You might want to have chronograph watches every time you need to accurately time something.
Digital Watches
Many centuries after the invention of chronograph, digital watches were first designed. It was an extremely sought-after item in the 1980s. Despite its age, digital watches remain popular in the current market and are still evolving.
The only difference of it from analog watches is the way it displays time. Digital watches utilize a quartz crystal-based oscillator’s vibration, which, in turn, translates into electronic signals. As a result, time in numbers will be seen on the screen. If you’re into inexpensive yet modern looking watches, you can opt for digital watches.
Luxury Watches
Anyone who wears a watch made by hand in the late 20th century is already a wealthy person. Meaning, any watches can be considered a luxury watch in the past. It can be considered as a status symbol long ago. With the advancement of technology, however, the cost of watches had been lowered after some time.
At this time and age, what’s considered as luxury watches are crafted by famous designers. Obviously, as the name suggests, they cost an arm and a leg. Their prices can cost as much as a million dollars or more. Here are the top luxury watch brands these days:
- A. Lange & Söhne
- Audemars Piguet
- Blancpain
- Breguet & Fils
- Cartier
- Girard-Perregaux
- Gucci
- Jaeger-LeCoultre
- Patek Philippe
- Rolex
- Vacheron Constantin
- Versace
Dress Watches
Luxury watches can serve as dress watches. However, the idea behind the dress watches is that it’s designed simply with no extra embellishments or flourishes, only to tell time. Many people even consider simplicity as elegance, rather than being plain. The simpler the design, the more it looks stylish and versatile, as well. Its simplicity can make it the best accessory for any attire, be it casual to formal outfits.
Dive Watches
As the name suggests, dive watches are designed to function on the wrist of a diver while staying underwater. It’s both resistant to water and water pressure. The rotating bezels on dive watches are utilized to track a diver’s remaining air supply.
Dive watches have water resistance for as deep as 500-1000 ft. Other recent designs can even go for greater depths. You might want to challenge yourself and try diving. If so, don’t forget to purchase a dive watch for beginners.
Triathlon Watches
Like dive watches, triathlon watches are primarily intended for people who will indulge in the said competition. Triathlon is an athletic competition that’s composed of three events, including running, swimming, and cycling. That made water-resistance as a crucial feature of this kind of watch.
Other triathlons opt for GPS systems for timing purposes. It plays a crucial role during cycling and running. Most of these watches have a special type of band that wouldn’t fall easily and at the same time, can be easily replaced from wrist to a bike’s handlebars.
Recent triathlon watches are now becoming more fitness and health-focused, as well. Features like electrocardiography (ECG) monitoring, heart and pulse rate checker, blood pressure monitor, and emergency SOS notifications are integrated into the current models of triathlon watches. If you’re not a triathlete, you can still use this watch as a fitness aid.
Takeaway
There are more varieties of watches in the market that you should know, from inexpensive, casual use to luxurious professional models. If you’re a genuine watch collector, you’ll learn more than this content. This list doesn’t end here.