Dr. N.
The question of whether the date window in a watch is useful or not is a long-debated and controversial question.
In the past, the wristwatch was the only means available to man to monitor the passage of time: not just the hours, but the days and months.
Having a watch with a date and a paper calendar was the only way to know the day of the week. But today, with the availability of pocket-sized electronic calendars like smartphones, the wristwatch with date display may seem like an anachronism.
So, date display yes or date display no? What is the best choice for a wristwatch? Let's find out together.
The date display: the history
The date is one of the most common complications in watchmaking. Integrating a date display into a wristwatch is a result that has been achieved gradually.
In 1915, Hammerly introduced a complication with date and day of the week. However, the idea did not take root immediately, for reasons of readability. Watches from this era are rather compact in diameter, usually measuring 32 to 34 millimeters. A date display inserted into a watch of such modest dimensions ends up being difficult to read, due to the compactness of the date wheel and the smallness of the numbers inscribed on it.
The date watch saw its first widespread diffusion only in the mid-twentieth century, when Rolex introduced the Datejust instantaneous date display - in 1955, to be precise -, capable of changing the date at the stroke of midnight, a more visually pleasing method. compared to the slow progression of the date window between 11 pm and 2 am. The diameter of the Rolex cases of the time is still rather compact, due to the fact that the style of the time imposed small diameters, so the numbers appear small and difficult to read: this is the reason why it was introduced, as a subsequent addition to the design initial of Rolex Datejust, the magnifying glass cyclops which still characterizes the production of the Casa della Corona.
Finally, the date window finds its appropriate place in watches with a large diameter, i.e. above 38 millimetres, which became common use after the XNUMXs. These timepieces allow a larger diameter date wheel to be inserted into the movement, on which larger numbers can be drawn.
The date display: strengths and weaknesses
The usefulness of the date display is evident first faction: allows you to know which day of the month you are on, with a simple glance. In combination with a paper calendar - or with a specific watch complication, but this is not what we are dealing with here - it also allows you to immediately know the day of the week.
The defect of the date display, beyond the subjective aesthetic question - according to purists, it affects the formal cleanliness of the dial, to a greater extent if it is combined with a magnifying glass on the glass like the cyclops di Rolex – essentially lies in the need to adjust the date if the watch is put on the wrist after a long break. While a solotempo only requires being loaded and set to the time, you lose a few more seconds if you also have to synchronize the date window.
But the main reason for doubt about the usefulness of the date display is the spread of mobile phones similar wearable computing tools. Their presence makes the presence of the date display superfluous, as the day of the week can also be consulted from the mobile phone.
Does the date display still have a future?
The objection that the date display would be superseded by mobile phones and smartwatches actually makes little sense. In fact, wearable computing devices can also replace the indication of the time, not just that of the day of the month.
As regards the threat represented by IT tools towards mechanical watches, we have already had the opportunity to say that today, a mechanical watch is purchased because one appreciates its complexity and refinement, because one chooses a potentially unlimited object in its duration, to be handed down to future generations, not simply to look at the time, a purpose which quartz watches also perform well.
