Christopher Ward has finally caught that ‘worldtimer’ superbug that keeps infecting European watchmakers at an alarming rate. Still, their new Chr.Ward C900 Worldtimer offers an unusual combination of functions: it not only tells you the time both in the home and the second time zone but also displays a three-letter airport code that makes it a tad easier to always set the correct time in the place of your current stay.
Of course, this is not the first watch that offers such a combination, however, there is a third indication that makes this timekeeper truly unique.
You see, there are millions of travelers that don’t have the slightest idea about airport codes. To help them, the C900 Worldtimer features whole two dozen tiny holes on the world map engraved on its blue & silver dial: when the code appears within its 12 o’clock aperture (LHR stands for London Heathrow in this example), a respective dot on the map gets filled with red color.
To make things even easier, the dial was equipped with a traditional day/night indication with numerals from 05:00 to 18:00 printed on a silver background and the other displayed in inverted colors.
According to the British brand, the watch is powered by Caliber JJ03, which is based on the ETA 2893 self-winding caliber and features a “patent-pending” modification done by a master watchmaker Johannes Jahnke of Switzerland. As usual for this mechanism, time in both time zones is displayed with two hour hands with the other one featuring the usual arrow-headed design and painted bright red with its tip filled with Superluminova.
For a sporty timekeeper, this new worldtimer is relatively compact measuring just 43 millimeters in diameter. Thanks to this and the ultra-thin bezel, the watch features an extremely large dial that allowed making all elements of the face easily readable even for persons with poor eyesight.
Unlike many timepieces that feature “Swiss Made” letterings at 6 o’clock, this watch features a truly impressive “value for money” ratio. So far, it is offered at just £1575, which is just over $2500 at the current exchange rate.
Of course, it is about twice as expensive as the aforementioned Hamilton Khaki SkyMaster UTC, but for the money, you get a brilliantly designed watch that, again, looks twice more expensive than it is. If I needed yet another worldtimer, I would get it in no time.
See also: IWC Pilot Worldtimer (IW326201)
Photos: Chr.Ward
WWR Verdict
Originality 3.5/5
Build Quality: 5/5
Usability: 4.5/5
Overall Legibility: 4.5/5
Nighttime Legibility: 4/5
Value for Money: 3/5
Overall Rating: 4/5
Chr.Ward C900 Worldtimer GMT specification
Price: £1575 (MSRP)
Movement: Automatic, Caliber JJ03 (base ETA 2893 modified by Johannes Jahnke), Swiss Made
Movement frequency: 28,800 vph
Power reserve: 40 hours
Functions: Hours, minutes, seconds, airport code, second time zone, day/night indicator
Case: Stainless steel
Shape: Round
Size: 43.00 mm
Dial: Silver and Blue
Numerals: Arabic, 24-hour format
Hour markers: Black
Hands: Luminous
Water resistance: 50 meters
Strap: Louisiana alligator strap with Bader deployment clasp (a co-development between Christopher Ward and its Swiss partner, Jorg Bader)
Crystal: Sapphire, antireflective
Back: Engraved serial number