Introducing: The Christopher Ward C1 Worldglow...
The C1 Worldglow in action...
Whilst Christopher Ward may be better known for their no-nonsense, high-quality sports watches, they are also doing some pretty eye-catching stuff in the category of dress watches! Whilst all of their dress offerings, some of which you will see below, are gorgeous, none of them are as jaw-dropping as their latest release...
A few examples of the existing dress watch offering from Christopher Ward...
Building on the success of their C1 Moonglow, which is incidentally their best selling dress watch, the C1 Worldglow adds luminova to the dress watch category and their world time range! Whilst this is something that may seem slightly controversial to those dress watch purists... This in my opinion makes the watch a perfect all-around wear. It is dressy enough to be worn in a more formal setting, but could equally be worn with jeans and a t-shirt!
As you can see, the lume on this watch is incredible...
The standout feature here is of course the dial. This is another example of Christopher Ward's pioneering use of dial technologies. On the Worldglow, the Superluminova is not just painted onto the hands but is also painted onto the intricate world map on the dial. This neon-like glow allows you to see every detail of the dial in the lowest light conditions.
The watch is powered by the Christopher Ward JJ03 automatic, a modified version of the Sellita SW330. This gives the Worldglow 42 hours of power reserve and is considered one of the best GMT movements available. People are quick to jump on brands that use ETA or Sellita movements. But this truly is one of the standouts movements available, and considering the price of the watch, which I will come onto later, this is an incredibly good choice for this piece.
Despite being 43mm, which some may question as being too big, I think Worldtimers such as this are one of the few watch categories where having this much real estate on the dial makes total sense. When you have a full map of the world and 24 different timezones to interact with, especially in instances where the wearer may want to change to a different timezone instantly, legibility is key. Having not yet handled the watch; although a hands-on review will be coming soon, the impression is that the long accentuated lines and alternate finishing of Christopher Ward’s signature Light-catcher™ case will ensure that this piece wears comfortably on the wrist, as well as being easy on the eye. Having recently handled their Trident Pro 600, and having been blown away with the case finishing in particular, I have no doubt that this will be exactly the same story.
The cool feature about the worldtime function on this piece is the selection of the timezone. The operation happens from the sole crown at the 3 o'clock position. Simply rotate the crown and the red 'city-selector' slice will move to whatever timezone you need! Not only does this add a playful splash of colour, but it also looks brilliant contrasted against the bright blue lume in low light!
I think this watch is a home run from Christopher Ward... On paper and in photos it seems amazing, and I cannot wait for the piece to land on my desk for a hands-on review! Christopher Ward CEO Mike France said "I've loved all our Worldtimer watches, but the C1 Worldglow is the most exciting worldtimer we've launched so far" and went on to say "This ‘glow’ category is definitely something we’re beginning to own. Quite simply we want to be bolder and braver than everyone else, and creating a new category is a perfect example of that” and even without seeing it in the metal yet, I am minded to agree with you!
The watch is available as of 11 am GMT this morning (January 28th 2021) and is available at £1,750 on a strap, and £1,800 on a mesh bracelet. Please click here to discover both these watches and pick one up!
Felix Arnold
Editor & Co-Founder