At the top of the wandering hours watch market, Audemars Piguet‘s Starwheel and nearly everything Urwerk builds carry price tags close to a home down payment. The DWISS S1 aims at the middle ground. This $2,730 Swiss Made automatic won a 2026 European Product Design Award, and it shows the time without a conventional hour hand.
Rafael Simoes Miranda designed the watch. He has spent 15 years building DWISS around a single conviction: there is always another way to display the hours.
A third attempt, guided by the Moon
The S1 is DWISS’s third wandering hours watch. The brand first tried the complication with the two-disc RW1 in 2020, then followed it with the three-disc M3W a year later.
Miranda drew his starting point from the night sky. He wanted the hours to travel across the dial in a loop, similar to how the Moon moves around the Earth. That orbital idea determined the disc layout and the shape of the case.
For another fresh approach to reading time, see how Habity’s e-paper clock for the nightstand rethinks the display entirely, trading mechanical motion for a minimalist screen.
DWISS limits each launch color to 50 pieces. The brand does not reissue a design once it leaves the catalog.
Reading the time on a wandering hours watch
A minute scale numbered 00 to 60 runs across the top half of the dial. The current hour appears on that scale in a small window. Read the numeral’s position against the scale to get the minutes. A 10 positioned over the 15 means 10:15.
Two satellite discs handle the hours. One carries the odd numerals and the other carries the even ones. A central carrier rotates once every two hours, bringing one numeral forward while concealing the rest beneath the dial. The seconds sit on their own disc at the center, marked by a single white dot.
The design departs from the classic approach. When Audemars Piguet revived wandering hours with the Starwheel in 1991, it used three discs with four numerals each. Many brands have copied that layout since. The concept behind this wandering hours watch itself dates to 1656, when the Campani brothers built a silent, lamp-lit night clock for Pope Alexander VII, who could not sleep through the ticking of a standard clock.
DWISS reduces the triple-disc system to two discs. The result keeps attention on the numeral as it crosses the minute scale. Expect a short learning curve before the display reads at a glance.
A cushion case shaped by the display
The hour display needs horizontal space to move, and the case was built to supply it. The S1 uses a cushion profile that spreads the dial wider, with rounded corners that soften the outline. The case measures 40mm (1.57 inches) across, 44mm (1.73 inches) lug to lug, and 13.8mm (0.54 inches) thick. It is rated to 100m (330 feet) of water resistance.
A double-domed sapphire crystal, treated with anti-reflective coating, rises above the dial. DWISS also shaped the central seconds disc to echo the curves of the case, which keeps the watch design consistent.
The finishing mixes textures. The main body is sandblasted, the lugs are brushed, and the bezel is high-polished. An exhibition caseback shows the movement and carries the edition number, printed out of 50. The crown bears an engraved DWISS shield.
Each S1 comes with a strap cut to the wearer’s wrist and matched to the dial color, secured by a steel butterfly clasp. The strap is made from FKM, a fluoroelastomer that resists sweat and skin oils.
Strap material matters as much as the dial, and vulcanised FKM rubber straps for luxury watches take the same durability-first approach to the wrist.
Movement and finishing
Inside is a La Joux-Perret G100 Soigné, which DWISS modified to drive the wandering hours watch module. Citizen has owned La Joux-Perret since 2012. The G100 was developed as a contemporary alternative to the ETA 2824, the movement that has powered a large share of Swiss automatic watches for decades.
The G100 offers a 68-hour power reserve. The ETA 2824 and Sellita SW200 typically provide roughly 38 to 42 hours. A watch taken off on Friday evening will still be running on Monday morning.
The Soigné grade is finished with Geneva stripes, circular graining, and blued screws. The decoration is visible through the exhibition caseback.
Price and place in the market
The S1 retails for $2,730 (CHF 2,200) in blue, green, salmon, and black. Two 15th-anniversary editions, one silver and one orange, sell for CHF 2,300, or roughly $2,840. Each color is capped at 50 pieces, for 300 watches in total. DWISS sells the watch through its website with free worldwide shipping.
That price falls between the Xeric Scrambler at $1,199 and the Gorilla Outlaw Drift at $3,950, which uses a Vaucher movement. The 2026 European Product Design Award placed the S1 in its luxury watches category and recognized it as a finished production watch.
For buyers who want to test the wandering hours watch concept without a Starwheel-level budget, the S1 makes a concrete case. It delivers the complication, a long power reserve, and a limited run for under $3,000.
Source: yankodesign.com
Frequently asked questions
How much does the DWISS S1 wandering hours watch cost?
The DWISS S1 retails for $2,730 (CHF 2,200) in blue, green, salmon, and black. Two 15th-anniversary editions, one silver and one orange, sell for CHF 2,300, or roughly $2,840.
How do you read the time on the DWISS S1?
The minute scale numbered 00 to 60 runs across the top half of the dial, and the current hour appears in a small window on that scale. You read the minutes from the numeral’s position against the scale, so a 10 over the 15 means 10:15.
What movement powers the DWISS S1 and how long does it run?
The DWISS S1 uses a La Joux-Perret G100 Soigné, which DWISS modified to drive the wandering hours module. The G100 offers a 68-hour power reserve.
How water resistant is the DWISS S1 wandering hours watch?
The DWISS S1 is rated to 100m (330 feet) of water resistance. Its case measures 40mm across and 13.8mm thick.
