Review: One month with…

So after one month with my The Twelve, I thought I’d write up my thoughts on ownership.

Let’s jump right past the honeymoon period - there are plenty of YouTube videos and other reviews that will gush about the Twelve as soon as they get it in their hands - and not without good reason.

In the realm of integrated bracelet watches, Christopher Ward obviously had a design brief - hit all the best notes from the best in class, make it their own where they could, and cram the spec and feeling of a £3-4k watch into £1k.

They succeeded.

We’ve had weird weather for June in the UK, and my Twelve has coped with it all - even on dull days, eyes will be drawn to the watch as the bracelet, case and dial catch and play with the light in different ways - the mixture and placement of the brushing and polishing has been well thought through.

The dial texture, a repetitive pattern of the new CW logo, ensures visual interest each time you glance at your wrist - something I still find myself doing often even after a month. I love the fact that the date dial has the same background colour as the dial - helping that blend in at the 6 o’clock position, aiding the symmetry of the layout.

The lume has been spot on as well, although I’ve only had a couple on instances where it’s come up - lots of light in the evenings right now.

Although the bracelet doesn’t have micro adjustments, their are half-size links you can remove. For my 7.5” wrist, pulling 3.5 links was enough for a perfect fit, that stayed perfect when the weather warmed up. Detaching the links was easy as they are screwed in place.

Being an integrated sports watch, but finished so well, The Twelve can be worn with any outfit and for any occasion and not look out of place. I’ll not take mine swimming, although it does have 100m water resistance , but anything else is fair game.

I did find that it’s versatility meant I had to exert willpower to reach for other watches in my collection - you’ve been warned!

That said, many of it’s qualities only become apparent on having a close look - most watches of this genre don’t look vastly different to a casual observer, so don’t expect it to spark conversation.

Mine has been keeping time well within tolerance for the SW200 movement - something of a standard in CW watches - and it’s good enough, although nothing to shout about in the looks department.

In short, for the money (£1050) The Twelve over-delivers in every department - and I’d highly recommend picking one up if it’s to your tastes.