# Anyone else that does not wear a watch? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [November 10, 2026, 6:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-that-does-not-wear-a-watch/1034787 "2026-11-10T18:54:33Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![smithsb](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smithsb/32/12107_2.png) [@smithsb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/smithsb)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2026, 4:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-that-does-not-wear-a-watch/1034787/61 "2026-11-11T16:24:41Z")
If the wife and I go out I’ll wear my not fancy watch (it’s got a leather band and exposed movement, so there) and leave the phone at home. A nice dinner and phones on the table drive me nuts. otherwise, the stove, microwave, phone, car, etc… have things down to the minute. ---
**Author:** ![Bullitt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bullitt/32/5725_2.png) [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2026, 4:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-that-does-not-wear-a-watch/1034787/62 "2026-11-11T16:37:43Z")
I’ve worn a wristwatch all my life. I have two. My main watch has a special meaning because it was a wedding gift from my wife and I’ve worn it every day since we got married in 2002. It is a very nice watch, a Breitling Aerospace and it is titanium and very light. It is an analog watch with digital features — time; day & date; stopwatch; countdown timer; second timezone; and alarm. I love its many functions. And it keeps time very accurately so I’m curious about @SanVito’s watch and why his (hers?) doesn’t. Here it is a picture of it (web pic) — [![](https://i.imgur.com/nGKDDHt.jpg) ](https://i.imgur.com/nGKDDHt.jpg) The “W” looks funky so it might be a little challenging to read, but it’s displaying Wednesday the 7th here. You rotate the crown to change the digital display and access the different functions. It is an homage to what I wore in the Marines, a standard issue analog watch on a Velcro strap. I added a digital watch onto the strap so that the digital watch sat underneath my wrist — and this was what I used to conduct artillery fire missions when precision timed delivery was called for (TOT missions, time on target). It was a kluge of a setup but it worked really well. The watch I wear now is a much better setup. My second watch is a simple solar-powered analog watch, and I only wear that when my main watch needs a new battery or servicing, or if I’m being rough on it like doing demolition work. I’ve had opportunities to get a smart watch but no, I’ll continue wearing my Breitling every day since it has special meaning. > [@Crafter\_Man](#): > > For me: no watch, no jewelry, no tattoos. I’ve worn a wedding ring for 25 years. My wife recently gave me gift of a Marine Corps ring and I wear that every day. And I recently got my first tattoo (➜ [What’s your tattoo story?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-s-your-tattoo-story/972858) ◆ ) so now I have all three that you don’t wear. ---
**Author:** ![Railer13](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/railer13/32/9742_2.png) [@Railer13](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Railer13)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2026, 4:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-that-does-not-wear-a-watch/1034787/63 "2026-11-11T16:50:27Z")
I got a watch for Christmas when I was 14, and wore a watch virtually every day until I retired in 2016. At that point, time was no longer of the essence, and I haven’t worn one since. ---
**Author:** ![StGermain](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stgermain/32/2868_2.png) [@StGermain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StGermain)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2026, 5:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-that-does-not-wear-a-watch/1034787/64 "2026-11-11T17:10:46Z")
I’ve never been able to wear a watch. They speed up and eventually die. But I have a naturally good sense of time and usually know what time it is. And I have a phone, of course. StG ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2026, 6:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-that-does-not-wear-a-watch/1034787/65 "2026-11-11T18:05:05Z")
Do I wear a watch a few weeks before 2027? Nope. I have recently seen people wearing flashy watches as jewelry. They like the old-school, retro bling. My phone’s lock screen shows the time. All my watches went into a drawer in 2005 or 2012? I can’t recall now if my first Nokia flip phone displayed the time. IIRC flip phones back cover displayed the time? ---
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2026, 6:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-that-does-not-wear-a-watch/1034787/66 "2026-11-11T18:17:35Z")
> [@Ulf\_the\_Unwashed](#): > > I’m on Team No-Watch too, for a variety of reasons. _Ulf\_the\_Unwatched_ 🤭 ---
**Author:** ![Kropotkin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kropotkin/32/18045_2.png) [@Kropotkin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kropotkin)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2026, 6:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-that-does-not-wear-a-watch/1034787/67 "2026-11-11T18:26:03Z")
Nice! ---
**Author:** ![Treppenwitz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treppenwitz/32/3445_2.png) [@Treppenwitz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Treppenwitz)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2026, 9:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-that-does-not-wear-a-watch/1034787/68 "2026-11-11T21:19:26Z")
> [@sunacres](#): > > I stopped wearing a watch long before mobile phones were a thing… It occurred to me that without a watch on I’d have to keep track of the time by noting clocks when I went by them and “feeling” the passage of time… Yep and Yep. Although I suspect that (can’t remember) for a period I wore a watch on non-work days. (Work days I was commuting in a car with a clock or staring at a screen with a clock in the bottom right corner). In 1996 I got a job where I had to handle out of hours medical inquiries, so I demanded (and got) a mobile phone. and I haven’t worn a watch since. I’m sure that without a watch you develop a pretty good sense of the passage of time. I’m not often far wrong. j. ---
**Author:** ![Ulf\_the\_Unwashed](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Ulf\_the\_Unwashed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ulf_the_Unwashed)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2026, 11:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-that-does-not-wear-a-watch/1034787/69 "2026-11-11T23:27:11Z")
Love it! Plus, it makes me feel famous. ---
**Author:** ![Hari\_Seldon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hari_seldon/32/5173_2.png) [@Hari\_Seldon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hari_Seldon)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2026, 1:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-that-does-not-wear-a-watch/1034787/70 "2026-11-12T01:43:09Z")
I always hated wristwatches especially when I sweated under the band, so early on I started using a pocketwatch since all my slacks and jeans had–and still have–fob pockets. More recently, I have used a carabiner type watch that hooks onto a belt loop. I do not carry my phone around the house so it is not handy for that. Although there clocks and usually one is visible. ---
**Author:** ![Bullitt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bullitt/32/5725_2.png) [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2026, 4:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-that-does-not-wear-a-watch/1034787/71 "2026-11-12T04:24:34Z")
> [@aceplace57](#): > > My phone’s lock screen shows the time. Mine does too and I really like this feature. It’s a soft display, not bright. ---
**Author:** ![SanVito](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sanvito/32/2805_2.png) [@SanVito](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SanVito)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2026, 1:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-that-does-not-wear-a-watch/1034787/72 "2026-11-12T13:09:08Z")
> [@Bullitt](#): > > a Breitling Aerospace and it is titanium and very light. It is an analog watch with digital features — time; day & date; stopwatch; countdown timer; second timezone; and alarm. I love its many functions. And it keeps time very accurately so I’m curious about @SanVito’s watch and why his (hers?) doesn’t. It’s a Chronomat Automatic 36. It loses time slowly, not enough to be much of a bother, but I need to check it every few days to make small adjustments. And the date is never right. ---
**Author:** ![SanVito](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sanvito/32/2805_2.png) [@SanVito](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SanVito)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2026, 1:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-that-does-not-wear-a-watch/1034787/73 "2026-11-12T13:13:09Z")
> [@Bullitt](#): > > Curious, what kind of Breitling is it? I have a Breitling Aerospace that’s 25 years old. Chronomat Automatic 36. It’s only about 5 years old. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2026, 1:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-that-does-not-wear-a-watch/1034787/74 "2026-11-12T13:31:52Z")
> [@SanVito](#): > > And the date is never right. ? IANA fancy mechanical watch guy, but I’ve certainly owned some ordinary date or day+date mechanical watches when those were the norm. A mechanical watch may be designed to assume all months are 31 days long, needing you to diddle the date forwards on the 1st of any month following a shorter month. But other than that, keeping the date correct is mechanically trivial and once set, ought to work flawlessly for the life of the watch\*. It’s even easier for the day of week if so equipped. Once set, that should be accurate for the life of the watch\*. If you’re having a different experience, that watch badly needs a trip to the shop. * * * * * * \* Net of any long-duration overnight airline flights or international date line crossings you may make. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2026, 1:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-that-does-not-wear-a-watch/1034787/75 "2026-11-12T13:41:24Z")
I used to be very picky about keeping my watch set accurately. I used my dad’s Hallicrafter radio to check WWV and set my watch within a few seconds. PC’s sync the time through the Internet. My childhood watches were inexpensive Timex’s. I wore a Seiko my dad gave me in high school for at least twenty-five years. It was a nice calendar watch with brushed aluminum case and band. It wasn’t a decorative dress watch. I don’t remember owning a dress watch. My Seiko was serviced (cleaned and oiled) several times. It kept accurate time. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2026, 2:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-that-does-not-wear-a-watch/1034787/76 "2026-11-12T14:14:30Z")
> [@LSLGuy](#): > > needing you to diddle the date forwards on the 1st of any month following a shorter month. Mine needs that. But it otherwise keeps excellent time. Mine is quartz, not mechanical. I reset it on daylights saving time/standard time switches, and when i change time zones, and it’s always within a few seconds of the correct time. ---
**Author:** ![SanVito](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sanvito/32/2805_2.png) [@SanVito](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SanVito)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2026, 2:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-that-does-not-wear-a-watch/1034787/77 "2026-11-12T14:57:00Z")
It might well be a 31 day thing, I have no doubt its user error as I’m just not that fussy about using it for the date ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2026, 4:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-that-does-not-wear-a-watch/1034787/78 "2026-11-12T16:02:30Z")
> [@aceplace57](#): > > I used to be very picky about keeping my watch set accurately. I used my dad’s Hallicrafter radio to check WWV and set my watch within a few seconds. > > PC’s sync the time through the Internet. There was a time just a few years ago when my household had 4 PCs and two mobile phones. All configured to regularly sync time to the internet or the mobile carrier. And all configured to be online continuously so they had access to their time sync source. It was common that there was a 1 minute spread between all 6 devices. I’m now down to one PC and one mobile phone. As I type here right now the mobile phone is over 3 seconds ahead of the PC. Probably close to 3-1/2 seconds. My bottom line: All this time sync stuff is not as precise as all that. There _are_ ways to achieve higher sync precision / accuracy. But it’s not there by default. Each of us is of course free to be as fussy as we choose about time accuracy. But anyone assuming they’re getting excellent accuracy from the default configuration is mistaken. ---
**Author:** ![Section\_Maker\_Jupe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/section_maker_jupe/32/1424_2.png) [@Section\_Maker\_Jupe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Section_Maker_Jupe)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2026, 4:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-that-does-not-wear-a-watch/1034787/79 "2026-11-12T16:20:32Z")
I have a drawer full of my old broken watches…mostly cheap waterproof ones, for wearing under a wetsuit, so I could go surfing at dawn and then report for work. I wore them often enough, I got some fungus growing under them…learned to let that white skin get some air. I have skinny wrists so watches always rotate, hence keeping them tight, which does cause those sweat and skin problems I had a few instances of them getting hit or dragged by things during sports or surfing, so stopped that. I carry a phone at all times now, but still like the lightness of a simple watch. Recently bought a small Timex for going out to dinner or similar. I have some family who are timepiece collectors, I just save my old ones!! … my internal sense of time is pretty accurate, except for DST shifts…grrrrr) ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2026, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-that-does-not-wear-a-watch/1034787/80 "2026-11-12T16:25:04Z")
And when your phone can’t sync, like on an airplane, it’s surprisingly inaccurate. I’ve had my phone be off by a couple minutes when my flight ends. My watch keeps excellent time without needing to be online. At my new years eve party, for the countdown, we often find the phones are off from each other by several seconds, even though they are all online. We have to pick one. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-that-does-not-wear-a-watch/1034787.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-that-does-not-wear-a-watch/1034787.md?page=5)