The test of time

I have  always been a Longines man myself, as was my father. With its classic elegance and large dial, I prefer it to the more ostentatious Rolex or the fussier Tagheuer or Breitling. You are less likely to get mugged with it too.

I was chatting about this  to my p/a Polly who has exquisite taste. As an international show jumper she was familiar with Longines as they sponsor the Grand Prix circuit. For Xmas I decided to buy her a smart watch and, curious about it, acquired one for me too. The immediate problem I had with it is there was no instruction manual but rather you have to download the app. This caused me untold stress to follow. It’s not a bad watch in terms of accuracy and offers 3 different faces but I do not receive any emails and only some texts including a regular flow from Sky Sports which I never requested.

Watches like this, as with the Swatch, are vogue pieces and I doubt if in every sense they will stand the test of time. They are vulnerable to new technology and the whims of fashion. For a basic but reliable and elegant time piece I like Rotary. Rotary may not have the cachet of some of the names I mentioned but it’s reliable and acceptable for every day use.