As I mentioned in my previous Nixon post, they’re a brand that aligns themselves with skate-, snow- and surfboarding.  To that end, they actually sponsor their own surfing championship the Winner Take All.  The final stop of that tour is in Hawaii on December 8th, and Nixon was whipped up a custom watch for the winner.

They started off with their ceramic 51-30 model (which itself has a starting point of $2,600), which has these basic specs:

• Automatic Swiss-made mechanical movement; 25 jewels
• 3 hands with sweeping seconds
• 300m water resistance
• Ceramic in the body (it has a steel “skeleton”), bezel, and screw-down crown
• Sapphire crystal up front; mineral crystal window on the caseback

In many ways, the basic 51-30 looks like a “big brother” to the 42-20 I wrote about earlier.  Of course, for the WTA series winner, they’re getting a watch of a whole different nature.  To start off with, there are a lot of jewels added to it, including:

• 50 black diamonds on the bezel
• 6 black sapphires and 95 black diamonds on the dial

The standard logo at the 12 o’clock position has been replaced with the Hawaiian flag (to commemorate the last stop of the tour), and there has been some additional engraving added to the case back and side.  All in all, Nixon is valuing this particular watch at a cool $10,000.

I’ll admit, I’m not normally one to like a watch that’s loaded with gems (see my previous post on an Omega for example), but in this case, it does work well.  I think it’s a bit overboard to have the bezel and dial SO loaded, but even with that, it doesn’t seem as “blingy” as diamond-encrusted watches seem to be.

I had no idea that something like a black sapphire even existed, so there you go – the watch is even somewhat educational.  And, if you happen to run into Joel Parkinson (the winner for the past three years) you might even get to see the watch in person.

And here we have one of Ocean7‘s latest creations, their LM-4 model.  From what I’ve read, this is a second generation watch, the first being the LM-4 LE model.  Aside from it’s good looks, what drew me to this piece is its primary case material – ceramic.

The case itself actually has a steel core to it, but Ocean7 has skillfully hidden this away with PVD and a second bezel, so all you see is the silky smooth ceramic.  They state that they like to compare this to how IWC does their ceramic cases:

Their inner steel case is polished and protrudes between the crystal and the case. We took a different approach – ours is PVD coated and hidden beneath the bezel. It is a more complicated construction because it requires a separate bezel that is bonded to the case during final assembly. It is not better, just different – but we like to think that our approach is better.

Of course, this usage of ceramic also makes the watch quite tough, though not necessarily any more lightweight (due to the internal steel case).  The screw-down crown and caseback are, by necessity, of stainless steel, but these are PVD coated to match the case.

Covering the generously-lumed (with SuperLuminova) dial you’ve got a domed sapphire crystal that has anti-reflective coating applied to the underside of it.  This all makes for a watch that is water resistant to 100 meters.  Inside this water-tight package you’ll find none other than the ever-present ETA 2824-2 movement keeping time for you.  This, of course, gives you the basic timekeeping functions, along with a small date display window between the 4- and 5-o’clock positions.  Finally, you’ll be strapping this onto your wrist with a 24mm “carbon” leather strap (which, I must admit, is my least favorite part of this watch).

All of this can be yours for the very reasonable (when you consider the movement you’re getting, plus a ceramic case) of $949.  Of course, if you feel like splurging, you can get a COSC-certified movement for an additional $399.  And, if you’re not drawn to the orange markers/lume like I was, you can opt for the White/Yellow C3 lume or a Shadow (read: dark grey) color.  Whatever the color, you’d be hard-pressed to find a ceramic encased watch that provides a better value.

Well, Sunday has rolled around on the calendar again, and all the political talk shows are blasting away on the airwaves.  So, why not take a look at a watch from a company who’s name immediately calls to mind one of our most infamous presidents?

While searching around for ceramic watches for the previous ceramic watch post, I came across the Nixon 42-20.  Much like yesterday’s watch, it’s not breaking any new ground on the design front.  However, it does offer that oh-so-interesting material of ceramic for the case and the bracelet.  You also get:

• Automatic Swiss movement (Sellita SW200) with sweeping seconds and date function
• Rotating ceramic bezel
• Screw-down crown
• WR to 200m
• Scratch-resistant sapphire crystal up front; mineral crystal for the exhibition caseback
• 42mm case
• 21mm ceramic bracelet
• 38 hour power reserve
• MSRP: $2,000
• Available in black or white

The Nixon company is located in California, markets themselves towards the skateboarding, snowboarding and surfing markets, and has been around for twelve years.  So, relative new-comers when it comes to the watch scene, but it would seem they’ve built some history, and aren’t about to disappear any time soon.  Given how they’re positioning themselves, it would seem that form is dictating function when it comes to the watches, but they do still have solid specs.  It’s just the pricing that stops me a bit short.  If you’re finding yourself in the same position (and you’re not absolutely set on a ceramic watch), they do offer steel versions of the 42-20 that come in between $400 and $450 – eminently more palatable pricing!  Let’s just hope that, if you do purchase on of their timepieces, you don’t follow in the footsteps of ol’ Richard M.

If you’re looking to strap an Android to your wrist, and you want a less-common material for said watch, I’ve got just the one for you.  No, this watch isn’t running some mobile phone software, nor will it translate untold numbers of languages while you travel the stars.  What it offers, instead, is a very unique material for it’s construction – ceramic.

Of course, if you’ve never considered a ceramic watch (at least, since our last review of one), you might be thinking back to the last coffee cup or plate that you dropped on the floor.  However, technology can turn that strong (but brittle) ceramic you’re more familiar with into something that’s tough, lightweight and scratch-resistant.  Which brings us to the subject of today’s post – the Android Exotic Ceramic Skeleton.  I will say up front that skeletonized watches generally are my taste – but with the ceramic involved, I thought it was unique enough to bring to your attention.

The watch itself offers some decent nice specifications:

• 46 mm ceramic case and bracelet
• TY2807 Automatic movement
• Sapphire crystal
• WR: 100 m

On that last point, I don’t know that I would test the water resistance too far, as the crown itself is just a push-pull, not a screw down.  Then again,  I doubt this is a watch anyone would go diving with.  Price is another interesting surprise – MSRP is $375 direct from Android. Or, if you prefer to just try out a ceramic bracelet first, they’re happy to sell you one of those as well (MSRP is $300, but currently selling for $150).

And what of the company?  If you’re like me, you’ve probably not heard of the Android company before. Surprisingly, they’ve been in existence since 1991, and was started when the founder (Wing Liang) produced a private collection to go with his clothing line.  From the materials that I found on their site, it does seem that the Android collection may be, at times, more influenced by form than function.  Given the price points, however, one could certainly be tempted to leave the safe harbor of the “known” affordable brands.

As always, if you have one of these watches (or any Android watch, given the scarcity of reviews out there), be sure to let us know.

Ariel “Sass-master 2000″ Adams has some great shots of the new Panerai monster. This watch, just for reference, costs more than ten of my cars.

The watch is made of black ceramic and it uses Panerai’s tourbillon calibre behind a skeletonized face. You’ll notice a second’s hand, an AM/PM indicator, and a GMT hand front and center. It is 48mm wide and limited to 30 pieces.

I’m not amazed by this thing but I’m amazed by the price: 109,000 euros. Clearly we’re all in the wrong business.