‘Space-Age’ Watch Accessory Sending Rolex Owners Into A Spin

A stroke of genius, or a wind up?

‘Space-Age’ Watch Accessory Sending Rolex Owners Into A Spin

‘Executive toys’ sound seedy, but actually it’s the proper term for the sort of novelty items office workers like to decorate their workspace with – think drinky birds, marble runs or Newton’s cradles. They’re rarely functional and normally only enough to keep a child entertained for a few fleeting minutes while Daddy finishes some emails. These Rolexes don’t buy themselves.

However, this contraption from the minds of IFL Watches in Sweden is not only functional but truly impressive: the perfect combination of aesthetically stunning and actually useful – as well as being an even bigger flex than a mint-condition Submariner ‘Hulk’.

Enter: the ‘Orbit Winder‘.

 

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“Created to perfectly imitate the motion of a tourbillon,” the Orbit Winder is designed to gently and glamorously keep your automatic watch wound. For those of you who are unaware, automatic watches – such as virtually all current Rolex models – have a self-winding mechanical movement powered by, well, the movement of your wrist. Automatic watches contain an oscillating weight that turns on a pivot. As you move about in your day-to-day, the rotor will be spun around and charge the watch’s mainspring.

It’s better than having to regularly manually wind your watch, but the downside is that if you neglect to wear your automatic watch regularly, it can run out. It’s not bad for the watch to run out, but it’s inconvenient if you then want to wear it after a period of inactivity. That’s why many watch aficionados invest in watch winders, which gently turn automatic watches in order to keep them running.

I would love one of these Orbit Winders. I normally take my automatic watch off at work because I find it interferes with my typing, but it does mean that I find it running out of charge from lack of wear (and I’ve left my watch at work on more than one occasion). Not only would an Orbit Winder keep my watch in running order, but it would guarantee I’d never forget it. Plus, it looks schmick.

The only issue is that they cost a hefty 1,490 (around 2,430 AUD / 1,772 USD)… You could pick up a second-hand Rolex on Chrono24 for that sort of money. What would you rather: another watch, or a desk ornament?

We’re just surprised that IFL Watches didn’t use OMEGA Speedmasters in their marketing for such a space-age gadget. It’s the ‘Moonwatch’ after all. Still, I guess the Cosmograph Daytona is also on-brand…

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