Isotope Brings Back the Popular “Will Return” Diver in a New Colorway

Inspiration can come from anywhere, and Isotope knows it. Since the brand’s founding in 2016, they have shown a knack for mining ideas from interesting places, and backing up their funky designs and color schemes with genuine technical prowess. Over the last eight years, they’ve made watches inspired by exit signs, NASA, British judges’ robes, and even the ridiculousness of gender-specific watches. 

But probably their most successful design came with the 2021 release of the “Will Return” Hydrium X Diver, a vibrant dive watch with a lume dial inspired by the “Closed, Will Return” signs found in shop windows all over the world. Now, as the promise of the name would suggest, the Will Return has, well, returned, albeit with some slight differences, and accompanied by a ridiculously cool wall clock.

The new “Will Return Red” plays off the format of the 2021 release but makes a few changes. The biggest and boldest is that the blue bezel has been swapped out for a bright red one. The hands have been updated slightly, forfeiting the white border. There’s no blue to be found on the watch head, but the black FKM tropic-style rubber strap from the original release has been swapped for a light blue strap of the same construction.

Ignoring the new colorway, the Will Return Red is the same watch Isotope has been making for the last few years. That’s a good thing, because despite the colorful and fun look of the Isotope, at its core the Hydrium X Diver is a properly spec’d dive watch, with 300m of water resistance and plenty of lume — including a fully lumed dial.

The original colorway of the Will Return is also making a comeback, but not as a watch. The “Wall Return” wall clock lifts its colorway directly from the original release, with a bright blue bezel and red hands with a white border. The Wall Return even includes a fully luminous dial, just like its wrist-borne brothers.

The case of the Will Return Red measures 40mm across, 48mm lug-to-lug, and comes in at 14.9mm thick when you include the double-domed sapphire crystal (the case height itself is 12.9mm). The Will Return Red is powered by the same Swiss Landeron movement as previous Hydrium X Divers.

The Wall Return measures 350mm (35cm or 13 3/4 inches) across, and, thanks to its lugless design, measures the same lug-to-lug. Powered by a quartz Seiko movement with sweep seconds, the Wall Return comes in at a svelte 6cm. You will have to provide your own batteries.

The Will Return Red and the Wall Return are not a limited edition, but if you want them you will have to place a pre-order during the pre-set window. The window opened yesterday and closes on Sunday, March 10th at midnight GMT (8 pm EDT). Daylight savings time also kicks off on March 10 here in the US, so get your orders in early to avoid confusion.

The Will Return Red and Wall Return are available separately or in a bundle. Outside the UK the Will Return Red is priced at £840 if bought individually, the Wall Return is priced at £145, and the bundle comes in at £940. Isotope