A Delayed Reaction: The Nomos Glashütte 2date Has Twice The Charm

When I first started teaching one of the best lessons an older mentor gave me was to never react emotionally. Always take a second, pause, think, before you open your mouth to anything. And I feel this is a solid life lesson to not only employ in the classroom but all walks of life. That said, when the Nomos Glashütte Tangente 2date dropped this past week I needed to take a moment to collect my thoughts. Sometimes a delayed reaction is better than being timely, especially when it comes to any sort of review or editorial.

Before I dive into how I personally feel about this watch, let’s get the specs out of the way.

The Specs

The blue dial variant with its white date ring.

At 37.5mm this is right in the goldilocks realm of watch sizes and it aligns much better to the classic Tangente models. Considering this is a more complicated version of previous Tangente’s I am quite pleased they kept this sizing. And at 6.8mm thick this is a slim watch by every standard. Possibly too thin to be considered an everyday watch, but versatile enough regardless. I know watches are trending to be smaller these days but when I step back and think of Nomos as a whole, I feel their wheelhouse is in the sub 40mm category.

Where Nomos truly shines is with their in-house movements and the 2Date comes with a new caliber. The DUW 4601 is Nomos’ first hand-wound caliber to include a ring date complication with quick-set capability. Remarkably, the movement measures just 2.8mm thick. Nomos achieved this slim profile by integrating the date mechanism on the same level as the rest of the movement, rather than stacking it on top like many others. With an extended 52-hour power reserve, this is a standout achievement for the brand.

In-house caliber DW 4601 with its sunbeam ribbing — previously only used on their precious metal models.

When you turn the watch over, another surprise awaits. One of the first things you’ll notice about this caliber is its new finishing style. Normally, Nomos reserves the sunbeam-pattern for their precious metal models, but this marks the first time they’ve opted for this dynamic decoration on a steel model, moving away from the traditional Glashütte stripes. While the Glashütte striping reflects the region’s watchmaking heritage, this update feels like a welcome change.

The watch comes in two colorways — the white silver plated with red date accent variant and the sunburst blue with white date accents. The white dial version with the pops of red is definitely my favorite but the sunburst blue also leaves nothing on the table. Both great choices for this release.

My Take

White dial variant with its red date accents.

Now that the specs are out of the way, here’s my take. The Tangente line, in my opinion, embodies everything Nomos represents. No matter the variation, these watches are always simple, clean, and elegant, while offering excellent value. Nomos has continued to build on this model with different sizes, complications, and even the spectacular color array they introduced for the 175th Glashütte Anniversary collection at Watches and Wonders last year.

However, when I first saw images of this watch, I found myself puzzled. It sparked some “water cooler” conversations with colleagues, and the word that kept coming up was “unnecessary.” Despite the initial knee-jerk reaction of “What the hell?”, I knew there had to be more to the design than simply “because they could.” The trapezoidal date window and the outdoor date ring were always standard fare for Nomos, but together there had to be a reason. (Only two other models featured the ring date complication, both automatic Neomatik calibers — the 41mm Metro and the Tangente).

Blue dial variant.

I didn’t have to go far to understand the thought behind this seemingly unnecessary extra date. On the Nomos website it states, “the ring date provides an overview of the month. It is the art of synchronicity in a watch.” With that little bit of literature it became clear that the secondary date ring is to show you where you are in the month as opposed to just the date number. Okay, I will admit, still unnecessary, but for someone who lives and breathes having more context in all facets of their life, I started to like this watch even more. Giving the context as to where the date falls in the course of the month, is extra unneeded info but adds a level of cleverness that I can’t help but admire.

Then it got me thinking — could this be setting the company up for something more — possibly a new GMT variant? This would be a great base model to produce one on and outside of the Tangomat and the Zurich Worldtimer; it feels like there is a gap in their multiple time zone watch offerings. A 38mm Tangente with a second time zone moving around the minute track would be an absolute hit. This may be wishful thinking, but wishful thinking never hurt.

The Nomos Glashütte Tangente 2date features a 37.5mm diameter and a slim 6.8mm thickness, with a lug-to-lug measurement of 47.7mm. Its stainless steel case offers 5atm water resistance and is paired with either a white silver-plated or blue sunburst dial. The watch displays hours, minutes, small seconds, a date window, and a ring date complication. Inside, it houses the manually-wound DUW 4601 caliber, which includes a quickset date function and offers a 52-hour power reserve. It comes with a black Horween shell cordovan leather strap and is priced at $2,760 for the solid caseback model, or $3,020 with a sapphire caseback. Read more at Nomos.com

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