Exactly 60 years after the introduction of a funky but fascinating watch called the Spaceview, the Accutron brand has been renewed for 2020. It finally released the long-teased production versions of watches featuring, just as the 1960s models had, innovative new electronic technology. Alongside the new watches comes a lavishly illustrated book that tells the story of the brand, its technology and its most famous models. It also reveals some Accutron watches and trivia you might be surprised to discover.
Author and Editor-in-Chief of watch authority Hodinkee Jack Forster and co-author and editor Aaron Sigmund begin with the history of Bulova — which created the Accutron as a sub-brand — and the technology it pioneered. Through the decades, the brand's pre-quartz tuning fork tech was even used in aircraft and spacecraft, and its technically-driven design is now considered iconic. Originally intended as a retail display, the dial-less watch was meant to show off the novel electronics inside, but people actually wanted to wear it that way — and the distinctive design of such watches is also give a dedicated chapter.
Published by Assouline, Accutron: From the Space Age to the Digital Age by Jack Forster and Aaron Sigmond makes for a fun and attractive coffee table or library addition and can be bought by itself for $75. Or, if you'd prefer the book in a box set accompanied by a new Accutron watch, the price is $4,000.
