Latest Review
December 6, 2022 
Born from a deep passion for watches and a successful initial Kickstarter campaign, Sternglas watches has been bringing affordable Bauhaus design to the masses for over five years. After working in the world of watches and web design, their founder Dustin wanted to turn his love of watches into his own brand. The result is Sternglas—a brand focused on minimalist design and quality construction at a fair price. Affordable price tags put Sternglas in a great spot for both giving and receiving as a gift. You’ll find premium features like sapphire glass, reliable automatic movements, and that crucial element of German design language. Today, we’re taking a look at six different models, each with their own unique spin and functionality. Let’s dig in.
The Naos is an automatic watch, featuring a Miyota 821A movement inside. The stark design is easy to read at a glance, with wide open space making up much of the dial. A pair of rich blue hands contrasts the white of the dial, making the time especially easy to read. A date display resides at 6 o’clock and features a matching date wheel, furthering the minimalist look of the watch. Measuring in at 38mm wide by 43mm lug-to-lug, the Naos is just the right size for comfortable daily wear. It ships on a handsome dark brown calf leather strap that looks just as good when worn casually as it does when dressed up.
Inspired by maritime instrumentation, the Hamburg is a handsome and thin quartz watch that will make a great gift for the no-fuss individual in your life. The Hamburg runs on a reliable Ronda quartz movement, which has helped Sternglas achieve the extremely thin 6mm height of the watch. At 42mm in diameter, the watch still has plenty of presence on-wrist. The almost-black graphite dial features white printed indices with two different scales: one for hours and one for minutes. Pencil-shaped hands point to the time, making the Hamburg highly legible.
Standing at a scant 8.5mm tall, the Asthet is the thinnest automatic watch in Sternglas’ lineup. At first glance, it might look pretty plain, but there are some really interesting design elements integrated into the watch. A closer look shows that the dial features a concave curvature, where the edges of the dial curve up to the edge of the crystal. Fine hash marks are used for the hour, minute, and second indices, while a set of stark black hands point to the time. Inside the watch, one of Miyota’s thin 9015 movements keeps time. It’s an impressive feat to have an automatic watch measure so thin, especially at such a reasonable price point.
Taking things in a different direction, is colorful Tachymeter Blue. This quartz chronograph sports a fun, tool-watch style design, drawing inspiration from the Furkapass in Switzerland – one of the most scenic roads in the world. The Tachymeter measures in at 42mm wide by 10mm thick, perfect for a wide range of wrists where you want your watch to make a bold appearance. The brushed 316 stainless steel case features two chronograph pushers and a textured crown with a tachymeter bezel for calculating speed. On the dial, three colorful sub dials reside at 3, 6, and 9. It’s a fun and functional watch that the automotive enthusiast in your life will love to wear day after day.
The vintage-style gold toned case of the Berlin immediately draws you in. Inspired by the first train to connect Berlin with Hamburg, the timepiece is designed to look like the watch that might have been on your wrist, should you have been around 180 years ago for the inaugural trip. In perfect harmony with the gold-toned case, the dial is rendered in a warm satin-finished sepia tone. Bold, yet refined numerals reside at 12 and 6, while the indices between are marked with a fine hash. A simple day-date display sits next to the 3 o’clock hash mark for a quick and easy way to read the date. To round out the design, the strap has been embossed with an alligator-style pattern to give the watch an even more vintage look.
If you’re specifically looking to gift a watch with a Swiss made story, Strenglas can help you there as well with The Kanton 2.0. This 39mm watch features a Sellita SW200 movement inside that’s visible through the sapphire case back. To tell the time, you’ll have the pleasure of reading the warm silver dial that features a gently domed shape that adds serious visual appeal. Both the hour and minute hands are treated with Swiss SuperLuminova, making them legible in both bright and dark conditions. The Kanton 2.0 takes craftsmanship and quality up to the next level for Sternglas, making it an excellent sub-$1k way to get into the world of Swiss watchmaking.
