Watches- A Brief Review
A watch is a timepiece which is used by a person to keep a note of the time. Generally nowadays wrist watches are being used by people because they are easy to carry and anyone can keep a note of the time. In addition to time modern watches also display day, date, month and year. Generally watches have been categorized in two types.
First comes the inexpensive watches which are used to keep a note of the time. Second comes the expensive watches which are not only used to see the time but are more for their workmanship and their high appeal. Before these watches pocket watches were used which had a cover on them and were tied with a chain.
There are basically two types of movements in a watch, electrical movements and mechanical movements. Electronic movements have no or very less moving parts. These watches have a quartz oscillator which resonates at a specific frequency and thus is very useful in managing accurate time. For this reason sometimes these watches are also called quartz watches. These watches are also quite cheap as compared to the mechanical watches.
Compared to electronic watches mechanical watches are quite slow and are often at a delay of a few seconds in a day. The movements in mechanical watches are often sensitive to position and temperature. The mechanical watches had a spring as a power source. The spring was rewound by the user periodically by turning the watch crown. The pocket clocks were wound by inserting a key in the hole and turning it.
After these watches came the automatic watches with a self winding mechanism. In these watches a rotor swings with the movement of the wearer’s body and winds the spring. The automatic watches are generally electronic watches which require electricity as a power source. Generally the power source is provided by a replaceable battery. Batteries are generally cells designed for this purpose. They provide very small power but continuously for very long periods.
Nowadays solar powered watches are also in use and these watches gain power from solar energy. Watches are both analog and digital. Analog watches are generally in analog form with a number dial and at least two rotating hands. Analog display is the universal display and these watches are generally used in jewellery and collectibles. They are specifically designed for the left wrist. Then comes the digital display watches with Led displays that require a button to play as they require much power to display.
Likewise, watches are generally used to keep time but nowadays watches come with many functions like day, month, year, alarm, stop watch and many more. Nowadays watches are used for fashion where people buy expensive watches to have a good self – esteem. Watches have been made for even space travel and water diving. In all, in the modern era watches are not just time keeping devices but are also used in fashion and other multiple functions like day, calendar etc.