Post by timelessluxwatches on Oct 1, 2016 15:04:32 GMT -6
Nomos Tetra Neomatik Review
The Tetra is Nomos' only square watch and this year it receives an update to its size, design and movement. Originally aimed at female collectors, this new Neomatik version is now an excellent choice for both men and women. As part of the Neomatik collection, it has a unique color scheme as well as the DUW 3001 ultra-thin automatic.
The Tetra, derived from the Greek word for four, refers, presumably anyway, to the four-sided square case (that or the species of fish, which seems less likely).
The Tetra has been a popular collection of Nomoses, but primarily among female collectors. That's likely because they were sized relatively small and also because this collection had the most diverse selection of colors to choose from. But, despite the color selection, it lacked the size and movement options of other Nomos lines.
The new Neomatik is 33mm, up from the 29.5mm and 27.5mm sizes of its predecessors. That doesn't sound like much, but square watches often run smaller, in length anyway, than their round counterparts. The Tetra Neomatik wears about as large as my 38.5mm Timeless Club II, for instance.
Like other Neomatiks, it has a fairly provocative color scheme. Here you can see the bright orange seconds hand.
It's also got cyan blue minute numeral accents around the perimeter. The dial color is a very dark blue, also like the Timeless Club models.
What I like more than the color scheme itself, however, is the very thick printed silver numerals and hour markers. Those look terrific.
Like all Neomatiks, it receives quite an impressive movement, the new DUW 3001.
I've covered the DUW 3001 in several articles before, so to mix it up, I created a photo of the movement without the rotor. Now you can see it in all its super flat glory.
The DUW 3001 is a super thin automatic movement at just 3.2mm thick. That keeps the Tetra Neomatik itself super thin at 7.2mm, thinner than many manual wind watches.
It's quite a departure from typical Nomos movement design. It features a balance bridge instead of a balance cock, the only movement of theirs to do so, as well as a new regulator. Almost all older Nomos movements used a Triovis system instead, the rare exception being a swan's neck regulator on their high-end models. Of course, it features the new Swing System escapement. Nomos tells me that the DUW 3001 is not only thinner than other Nomos movements, it's actually made to tighter tolerances in general, which should result in a very stable movement.
I find the dark blue, cyan blue and silver accents to be unobtrusive and probably very versatile. The more divisive element is the orange seconds hand and 6:00 marker.
Of course, even if you're not fond of these particular colors, they do make a silver dial version like the other Neomatiks. As of yet, there is no Champagner model though.
For myself, however, I prefer this dark blue Neomatik. That's not especially surprising, since we used a somewhat similar color scheme for our own designs, albeit with yellow accents instead of the orange/cyan combination.
But what do you think? If you like square watches, has the Neomatik won you over to the Tetra line? If you don't ordinarily like square watches, are the Neomatik's impressive upgrades enough to make you consider one? Let us know in the comments below.
