Review of the Abingdon Amelia

Travel makes a great inspiration for a watch. Take the TX 530 here (model number T3C474TX): it's got world map as a dial, 24 cities around the bezel, and a retro design from the days when flight was glamorous. New in 2009, the 'World Time Airport Lounge' is a vintage-inspired design with a brand new six-motor quartz movement.Let's look at the details:Stainless steel case, 44mm by 13mm, 90g on the leather strap.Hour, minute, second, date, and a fourth hand for time in one of 24 global cities (simply set with the buttons).Water resistant to 100m (330ft).Unusual domed sapphire crystal, done in the look of a classy vintage watch.Signed screw-down crown with etched TX logo.Simple handling of daylight savings time with switchable summer/winter indicator.Lumed hour and minute hand.Read on for the full review. The lugs are 24mm wide so the G-2S (and theG-2) can be easily fitted to a bevy of strap options. I fitted the G-2Sto the rubber strap that normally stays on my LM-2 and was veryhappy to find it comfortable and considerably lighter than thebracelet (if you get an OCEAN7 watch, I highly recommend that you pick up the rubber strap as anaccessory). The size and weight of the G-2S is unchanged, and the watch is still verylarge and noticeable with its 17mm height. Thecase has changed slightly as a helium escape valve has beenintegrated at 10 o'clock and the chronograph pushers have been changedfrom paddle style pushers to more traditional screw down pushers. Theinclusion of an HeV shows that OCEAN7 is positioning the G-2S as a serious full featured tool dive watch.

Review of the Casio PAW2000T

Simple but effective. Simultaneously, the winter/summer display at 4:30 moves to show season in the selected city.The dial rewards a close inspection. The embossed world map is a lovely backdrop, and the retrograde displays are offset by applied strips and inset below the dial, adding depth and subtlety to appreciate. The 530 sits well on the wrist with a sloped profile friendly to dress shirts and suits. It's a bit too formal to be a sport watch, but it pairs well with jeans on the weekend. It is water resistant to 100m, though, so it should survive anything short of diving if you're willing to replace the strap.My only peeve is the lume: there's just Both the main crown and the E6B crown are signed with the logo (etched, actually) -- a nice touch.Dials are available in three colors of mother-of-pearl, with white being the most legible in my opinion. The sheen is subtle enough that it almost looks like a flat white dial.The Miyota FS20 movement should provide years of reliable service with quartz accuracy, *** this a reliable and low-maintenance watch.Overall, our congratulations and welcome to a new company in an underserved niche: watches for women really haven't gotten nearly the attention that men's have, and aviation watches even more so. The Jackie and Amelia (review forthcoming) are both excellent watches which I recommend for the pilot in your life.not enough on the skeletonized hands, so it's pretty difficult to read in the dark.

Review of the Ocean7 G

Please read on for the full review. We wrote about Praesto last fall, and have been anticipating the Aviator quite keenly. Available in three color combos, I chose the blue dial over the PVD or plain bead-blasted versions. I'm pleased to say that is was worth the wait, and the result is wonderful. As expected, the blue dial is a vivid blue, and the orange contrasts on the propeller-style second hand and model text are nice accents. The dial is sunburst-finished, so as you tilt the watch the highlights move across the dial; quite hypnotic. As you can see from this picture, the anti-reflective coating is very effective which greatly aids in legibility. Praesto has promised to move to front-side-coating, as well, in future models, which is a bit easier to scratch but, even better for visibility. SuperLuminova lume on hands and dial.$360 for pre-order (still visible on their website -- soon to rise to $480).The hour hand reaches out just to the edge of the hour markers, and likewise for the minute hand. Nicely proportioned.(There's also the classic *** at 12 o'clock -- a bit smaller than usual.) Overall, I think Praesto has a winner on their hands with their first watch. It's got a an original, vintage-inspired style, nice movement, and high-grade construction. If you can still get the pre-order price, it's a screaming deal, and if you get the release price, it's still a very good deal indeed.Our thanks to Praesto for the review unit.

Review of the Casio Pathfinder PAW1500T

The Stowa Marine Original wears beautifully on wrist with a profile that fits easily under sleeves. The contrast-stitched strap lends it a sporty look, but the austerity of the dial is more dress than anything else, particularly with the leaf hands. To me, this watch defines classic design.The limited edition sold out quickly, even at $1460, but the non-LE edition is available for $1099. That's not cheap although you can spend much more on watches with the same movement. The same base movement powers watches like the Omega handwind and Panerais which cost far more.About the only thing I'd change is a touch of lume on the hands and dial. Readability at night would be nice.The 3-touch has a very square case with a prominent knurled bezel that, despite its appearance, does not turn. The icons on the color-matched bezel denote places where you touch to control the watch. There are labels on the back of the watch, useful for when you're out and about and lack the manual.As with other touch-screen watches like the Tissot T-Touch, the touch screen is normally disabled until activated. The 3-touch is activated by touching the icon at 1:30 position, holding for 2 seconds, and then swiping your finger around to 7 o'clock. (If you swipe counter-clockwise, you get the backlight instead.) Clever, and non-obvious enough to make you feel like you know a secret when you operate it. After 30 seconds of inactivity, the watch beeps twice as it deactivates the touch screen.

It's a travel watch in the tradition of the Rolex GMT Master

There are certain high-end Swiss watches that I've always admired for their style and function, among them is the Ulysse Nardin GMT ± Perpetual. It's a travel watch in the tradition of the Rolex GMT Master, but with a neat twist: It has two buttons that increment or decrement the local time. When you travel, simply press the buttons as required to jump to your destination time zone! Simple to use, hard to make and very functional. However, being a Swiss chronometer of in-house design, the Ulysse Nardin is out of my price range. Imagine my surprise and delight, then, at discovering that well-regarded Swiss brand Oris now has a similar watch, the Oris Atelier Worldtimer.There are two versions, with and without bracelet. The picture shows the version I prefer, on an leather strap. Features of the watch includeSapphire crystals front and back, with interior anti-glare coating and doming on the front for easier visibility.Movement based on the ETA 2836, a well-known movement with good serviceability and excellent reputation. Oris modified the 2836 to add the plus/minus buttons, and added a second timezone display at 3 o'clock on the dial.Automatic movement, 38 hour power reserve.The dial is silver and grey, decorated with guilloche or machine turning.Date display at 6 o'clockPerfectly sized at 42.5mmThe hands and indices are lumed with Superliminova, so it should be readable at night as well.Water resistant to 30m or 98ft, but I'd be hesitant to get a watch like this damp. This is not a sport watch!MSRP of the Worldtimer is $2525, or $2625 on the bracelet, which is downright cheap for what it is. I hope to get one of these for review very soon.