German watch manufacturer Nomos has just released three models of its Neomatik line of watches with nachtblau (midnight blue) dials. The Tangente Neomatik Nachtblau, the Metro Neomatik Nachtblau, and the Minimatik Nachtblau will join the Tetra Neomatik Nachtblau in this midnight blue series of watches notable for its 3.2mm thin in-house DUW 3001 movement and appealing minimalist design.
According to Nomos, midnight blue is quickly replacing black as the dark dial color of choice. For both men and women, the color is the most popular and so the design choice logically follows. Nomos has done a good job of building an easy-to-read and beautiful dial based on this background color; the clean dial has white numerals that are easy to read off of the dark background, and the seconds sub-dial at six o’clock is well-accented by the small orange seconds hand.
The minute and hour hands, as well as the case are stainless steel and the strap is made of hand-stitched Horween genuine shell cordovan leather. The Nomos Tangente Neomatik Nachtblau is 35mm in diameter and is 6.9mm thick. Differentiating it from the other models are the green minute markers and the lugs. It also uses more traditional Arabic numerals on the dial for denoting the hours.
The Nomos Metro Neomatik Nachtblau is also 35mm in diameter and is 8.1mm thick. It has a more vintage tone to its hour markers which are simply dots, rather than the larger numerals seen on the Tangente. It also has green minute markers. The lug design, despite all of the other differences, is what really changes the look of this model.
The Nomos Minimatik Nachtblau is most different from the other two models due to its more integrated lug design. It is 35.5mm wide and 8.9mm thick. As far as the dial design goes, it is a cross between the two previously discussed models. It has numeral and dot hour markers in the vintage cream white coloring. All of the models feature domed sapphire crystal up front and sapphire crystal display casebacks, and all are water resistant to 30 meters. All also feature the DUW 3001 automatic movement.
For some, the midnight blue dial will be a game changer, and I must admit that it is nice seeing the midnight blue handled so well in the design of this watch. It is different and fits well on the modern design of the Nomos Neomatik watches.
If you prefer modernist design, then the new Nomos Neomatik Nachtblau watches will be worth checking out. Priced at $3,580 for the Nomos Tangente Neomatik Nachtblau, $3,960 for the Nomos Metro Neomatik Nachtblau, and $3,800 for the Nomos Minimatik Nachtblau, these models check off a lot of boxes: in-house movement, thoughtful construction, interesting design. nomos-glashuette.com
