Today I would like to talk about trends and brands in the watch world. About imitation, the degree of similarity and a very important, but controversial concept - "Hommage" (from the French hommage - appreciation, tribute). And a cozy model will help us in this - Davosa Dav.16152555S. This is just the watch with which you can wear something warm and meet the cold autumn evening.
At first glance, it may seem that the variety of watches is endless, and the list of watch manufacturers is inexhaustible. But in fact, there are not so many important ideas and trends in watch design, and even more so technical content. It's about trends.
Brands have a similar story. The list of manufacturers who have introduced something worthwhile and therefore well-known is not so long. Hourly progress does not move very quickly and often - by touch. Among the mass of inconspicuous models, a designer diamond suddenly sparkles. Having found a valuable vein, the manufacturer tries to develop success. But the competitors do not sleep! Feeling the trend of development and popularity, they are moving in the same direction. Someone tries to save face and creatively reworks a good idea, while someone copies it clean. It's good if the shield puts its own.
Such borrowings are called homage (a tribute to another creator). And the situation with homage of varying degrees of depth in the watch industry is complex and ambiguous. On the one hand, it’s not good to “monkey” and appropriate other people’s achievements and finds. On the other hand, many trends in technology and design have already kind of disappeared into the world ether and, in a sense, belong to everyone. After all, someone once put the hands on one axis, introduced an automatic winding or invented a rotary bezel for diver's watches and a triangle mark on pilot's watches. And now it makes no sense to accuse everyone in a row of borrowing and plagiarism.
On this sensitive issue, I take the following position. Excessive copying of models from the current lines of other manufacturers is “not comme il faut”. And the creation of its range exclusively from homage - too. In my opinion, the value of the brand is determined by the original and fresh technical and aesthetic ideas that the manufacturer brought to the watch world. But borrowing to one degree or another will always be.
Now we smoothly move on to the hero of our review - a simple but rather attractive watch with a wind rose icon on the crown. This is the emblem of Davosa. The company was re-assembled in the nineties of the 20th century, but had some watch roots in the 19th century under the name of the Hesler family. At the moment, the company is known in watch circles for producing high-quality homages of varying degrees of similarity with one of the most famous watches of our time - the Rolex Submariner.
This name is the secret of the attractiveness of the chosen model. It is not for nothing that the Mercedes hand, the combination of sticks-circles and a triangle as hour markers, as well as the small size have become classics of watch design. But the point is also that this model is a reference not to the current version of the progenitor, but to his distant and ancient relatives. The absence of the usual ceramics on the bezel and applied marks sends us back to the 60s and 70s of the 20th century. And now references to the past are in trend.
The watch case is small (40 mm is fine). Wearing comfort is very important. Excellent ergonomics is a feature of the Rolex Submariner that is worth copying. But the polished sides of the case upset me. Scratches will be visible and the overall image somehow does not fit with polishing. A strap (very soft, by the way) instead of a bracelet is also an odd choice for a diving watch. Claimed water resistance is 100 meters.
But the case thickness is only 11 mm. And this despite the fact that the sapphire crystal has a domed shape and provides lovers of the “warm lamp vintage spirit” with those very beautiful highlights at the edges. The bezel turns with medium effort and has an aluminum lining. In theory, it should be inferior to ceramic. But practice shows that the aluminum bezel is quite wear-resistant and is not damaged by impact.
The arrows are classic (for Submariner), but the markup indexes are drawn, not overhead. What can you do? Tribute to tradition. Like the color of the phosphor - old radium. The phosphor is good, and in general, the readability of the dial is in order. There is no date indicator.
The debate about the necessity or undesirability of a date in everyday watches between adherents of functionality and guardians of beauty can be eternal. I'm leaning towards the "date" camp. Nevertheless, I admit that the absence of a date specifically adorns this model. The dial is symmetrical and balanced. And there are no eternal problems with the design of the window with numbers.
In general, the watch left a positive impression. Inconspicuous and look solid. Critics will not see them as an exact copy of the current Rolex, and it is pleasant to feel that you are wearing a model in the style of an imperishable classic. So, if you don’t have a few million for a historic Submariner, but you like the design, then it’s a good option for yourself.
