Today, Glashutte-based Nomos is introducing two new higher-end watches; the “Lambda” and the “Lux (discussed here)” We chose to cover each of them in a separate article. This is the Lambda, and with it is the Lux we will cover in another post. Both are similar timepieces that are offered in different case shapes – each with questionable names… Available in either 18k rose or white gold, these Teutonic timepieces take what we already love about Nomos to a new, more “luxury” playing ground. Each of course contains a totally in-house made Nomos mechanical movement and a minimalist Bauhaus style.
The announcement of these more luxury watches is a bit strange because it goes against what the brand is for many people. Nomos is where you go when you want a well-made mechanical watch without the typical luxury pricing premium. Most will agree that the Lambda could be more expensive for sure, but it is certainly a much more expensive product compared to what we are used to seeing from the fine German watchmaker. In fact, when you visit many of the other more high-end watchmakers in Glashutte (say for instance A. Lange & Sohne), you’ll see their rank and file production workers often wearing Nomos timepieces. It’s like watch snob’s blue collar watch.
Between the Lambda and Lux (just really odd names in my opinion), the Lambda is my pick. I like the round case and needle thin hands as well as indicators on the dial. Aside from referencing the Greek letter, Nomos doesn’t quite explain the influence of the watch’s name. Though you don’t really need to know the name of the watch to enjoy it. Design-wise the Lambda is very pretty. The thin bezel emphasizes the open nature of the dial, and the face is dominated by a very large power reserve indicator. Personally I am very happy about the size of the watch as it is 42mm wide. That is among the larger Nomos timepieces available, and I think it suits this design very well. Also, the case is beautifully slim at just 8.9mm.
I typically don’t prefer manually wound watches, but for interesting and beautiful creations like the Lambda I can make an exception – especially when they are designed with a long power reserve and easy to read power reserve indicator. Germans understand very well how to extract a lot of function from a pretty design, and that is one of the reasons people appreciate Nomos as much as they do. The Lambda is also very much a dress watch, but certainly not in a stubbornly traditional manner. That often means no lume (which is true in this case), but the trade-off is a bit of extra style.
