Timex Reveals the Final Versions of the Giorgio Galli S1, and Provides Some Hints as to What’s Coming Next

We’re pretty big fans of the Timex Giorgio Galli S1 here at Worn & Wound, have covered the watch since its initial release back in 2019. We’ve seen a number of iterations on the original in the last three years, including new dial variants and a pretty great 38mm case size that really hit the sweet spot for this particular case design. Now, as 2022 draws to a close, so does the S1, as according to Timex this latest release marks the end of the S1’s run. The new variants that mark the end of the S1 slot nicely next to the previous versions of the watch, making for a coherent collection that tells the story what the brand refers to as “the most ‘Timex’ Timex ever made,” and also offer some clues as to what might be next for Galli and his eponymous sub-collection. 

For those unfamiliar with the S1, a quick primer. The watch is the creation of Timex’s Milan-based Chief Creative Director, Giorgio Galli. Galli has been designing watches for over 30 years, and as the top creative at Timex oversees an enormous breadth of watch styles and designs, working in every medium you can imagine for just about every type of customer. The S1, though, is a more personal project for Galli, drawing on his own design interests and a career’s worth of knowledge on what makes a watch special, while also paying due respect to the long history of the Timex brand. The S1 will likely be best remembered for its complex, injection molded case design featuring dramatic hollowed out lugs. This is a type of contemporary watch design that’s not often seen at an entry level price point, and draws heavily from the world of haute horlogerie. 

These final S1 variants use the 38mm case that debuted a year ago and have jet black dials with the same layout seen in prior versions of the watch: simple applied hour markers coupled with small minute markers in between. You’ll also find a synthetic sapphire stone just above the 6:00 position, a flourish that has become an S1 signature. 

What sets the new S1 watches apart is the use of coatings on the stainless case. One version has an “onyx black” coating (with matching black dial accents for a particularly stealthy look), while another limited version has a gold tone coating. The use of a coating is obviously capable of giving a watch an entirely new impression on the wrist, and for a case design that’s so dependent on how we interact with its unique shape and finishing, it will be interesting to see how these new versions of the S1 remake something that has become familiar. 

With the S1 in the rearview, Galli is focusing on the eventual release of the S2, and according to Timex is considering adding complications like GMT functionality into the next iteration of his signature watch. Perhaps even bigger news than the addition of new complications, Galli says that Swiss automatic movements are coming to the S2, and that the price point will be kept under $1,000. This is certainly something to look forward to, perhaps as early as next year (Timex says Galli is currently wearing an S2 prototype). 

Until then, watch enthusiasts have a full roster of S1s to choose from, and these latest versions are available through the Timex website now, starting at $475. Timex