Video summary

The Most Impressive Watches I've Seen All Year

Main summary

Key takeaways

Product Review

Product reviewed

Crayon (Swiss independent brand) — the “Everywhere,” “Anywhere,” and latest “Any Day” watches, centered on unusually complex astronomy/calendar/agenda-style displays. The main focus is Crayon Anywhere, positioned as a simplified, more wearable evolution of the earlier Everywhere.

Key features (by model)

1) Crayon Everywhere (original)

  • Universal sunrise/sunset times anywhere in the world, based on a precisely chosen location
    • Uses latitude, longitude, and time zone (requires careful conversions).
  • Achieved via a universal sunrise/sunset movement (caliber USS).
  • Major engineering scale:
    • 595 components
    • 3 separate patents
    • Adjustable cams allow location setting (via crown and pusher).
  • Awarded:
    • GPHG 2018 Innovation Prize
  • Price: described as over $500,000

Noted usability constraints / differences

  • Presented as technically brilliant, but extremely expensive and complex to own.

Pros

  • Groundbreaking complication concept (sunrise/sunset anywhere)
  • High recognition (GPHG prize)
  • Impressive microengineering and novelty

Cons

  • Very high cost (half a million+)
  • More complex ownership/user experience than most people want

2) Crayon Anywhere (simplified “Everywhere”)

Positioned as:

  • A simpler, wearable, easy-to-read take on Everywhere
  • A white gold, blue-dial model shown
  • GPHG (2022): calendar in the astronomy category

Display & user-visible features

  • Two-handed hour/minute with a dial that appears relatively simple at first glance
  • 6:00 calendar subdial: displays days and months throughout the year
  • Outer/track elements:
    • 24-hour track with a ring connected to a sun disc that moves with time
    • A colored “daylight” visual (light blue vs darker region) that indicates changing daylight over the year

Sunrise & sunset location feature (core differentiator)

  • At purchase, you select a location
  • The watch displays sunrise/sunset times for that location throughout the year
  • Example (Geneva, Switzerland):
    • Summer solstice (June): sunrise around 5:00 a.m. (subtitle reads “roughly 500 a.m.”)
    • Through the year to winter solstice:
      • sunrise around 7:30 a.m.
      • sunset just before 5:00 p.m.

Mechanism description (high level):

  • Cam rotates once per year
  • Drives sliding racks → pinions → dial indications
  • Location setting:
    • Latitude via a lateral micrometer screw
    • Longitude via two screws (one for sunrise, one for sunset)
  • Includes equation-of-time conversion (because days are not perfectly 24 hours)

Key difference vs Everywhere (usability tradeoff)

  • Does NOT factor in daylight saving time (DST)
  • Changing the calibrated location requires a watchmaker adjustment (sending it in), though the narrator frames it as manageable with service/shipping

Build & comfort (wearability)

  • Movement: C030
    • 430 components
    • Finishing described in detail (e.g., Crayon waves, anglage/hand-finishing, polished jewel sinks)
    • Design/architecture linked to the brand’s Châtel coastline/workshop, including a “shoreline” motif and a central jewel placement as a kind of “easter egg”
  • Case/dimensions:
    • 39mm white gold
    • ~10mm height
    • 45.5mm lug-to-lug
  • Wearability claim:
    • Emphasized as wearing like a time-only dress watch more than typical ultra-complication bulk.

Pros

  • Extremely creative complication in a compact, readable, wearable form
  • Stunning daylight “sun disc” visual with precise sunrise/sunset for a chosen location
  • Excellent finishing and microengineering
  • Better day-to-day usability than full Everywhere

Cons

  • No daylight saving time handling
  • Location changes require sending it to a watchmaker
  • Still very expensive and scarce

3) Crayon Any Day (introduced in 2025, “mechanical agenda watch”)

Positioning:

  • Described as the world’s first mechanical agenda watch
  • Shows day and date for an entire month, helping you quickly determine:
    • what day next Tuesday is
    • what day of the week the 15th falls on

User-visible calendar logic & layout

  • Outer perimeter numerals 1–31
  • Weekday/weekend color pattern:
    • Five consecutive blue days, then two white days
    • Blue = weekdays
    • White = weekend
    • Pattern described as repeating: Friday (last blue) → Saturday (first white) → Sunday (second white)
  • A crescent day-date indicator rotates to show the day of the month
  • Four dots at the bottom preview the first four days of the coming month
  • Crown operation:
    • One direction adjusts the crescent day/date
    • The opposite direction adjusts a weekly day shift

Mechanism details

  • Movement: caliber C032
  • Uses two snail cams:
    • One builds energy every 24 hours to advance the calendar at midnight
    • Another larger cam moves the day disc forward
  • Precision detail:
    • Subtitle claims advancement/releases at 1/1,000th of a second at midnight
  • Supports backward adjustment
    • described as including fail-safes to avoid damage during quick changes
  • Power:
    • Manually wound 46J
    • 3 Hz
    • 72-hour power reserve
    • 378 components
  • Finishing:
    • wave decoration and polished edges, aligned with Crayon’s style

Wearability / case

  • 39mm white gold, ~10mm height, 45.5mm lug-to-lug
  • Narrator emphasizes it wears similarly to Anywhere (comfortable for its complexity)

Pros

  • More practical month view vs Anywhere/Everywhere’s astronomy focus
  • Clear weekday vs weekend color coding
  • Strong power reserve and finishing for the category
  • Backward adjustment possible with safety measures

Cons

  • Framed as “simpler” than the sunrise/sunset complication (presented as a trade in wow-factor rather than a true negative)

Comparisons made

  • Everywhere vs Anywhere
    • Anywhere is framed as a simpler, more wearable evolution
    • Anywhere omits DST handling and requires watchmaker adjustment for location changes
  • Anywhere complexity vs other chronographs
    • The video claims Anywhere’s movement has more components than the Lange L951 chronograph
  • Everywhere/Anywhere/Any Day wearability vs “ultra complicated” pieces
    • All are said to wear like dress watches, not bulky complication instruments

Price, availability, and scarcity (important context)

  • Anywhere and Crayon watches are described as:
    • Expensive: “over $100,000”
    • Limited production: fewer than 50 watches total per year
  • Everywhere specifically: over $500,000
  • The narrator emphasizes these are not accessible for most collectors

User experience (as described)

  • Central theme: wonder
    • Curiosity (“how’d he do that?”) and a “childlike wonder”
  • Even with complexity, the narrator emphasizes:
    • readability
    • wearability
    • practical glance utility (especially Any Day)
  • Ownership constraint theme:
    • Location-dependent astronomy means you choose a location (Anywhere) and then live with calibration limits, notably DST.

Unique points mentioned (complete list)

  1. Reviewer handles tens of thousands of watches; claims elevated excellence bar.
  2. Crayon is an independent Swiss brand; models are among “most impressive” the reviewer has seen.
  3. Everywhere: universal sunrise/sunset for chosen location; latitude/longitude/time zone used.
  4. Everywhere invented complications never done before.
  5. Crayon founded in 2013 in Neuchâtel by Rémy Maya.
  6. Maya background: STEM family; studied micromechanical engineering.
  7. Brand name Crayon comes from French word for pencil.
  8. Everywhere introduced 2017, inspired by free diving/snorkeling trips and sunrise/sunset experiences.
  9. Technical method described: true solar time → mean solar time; longitude/time zone/DST conversions.
  10. Everywhere specs: 595 components, 3 patents, adjustable cams via crown/pusher.
  11. Everywhere won GPHG 2018 Innovation Prize.
  12. Everywhere described as a major milestone (like a “Grammy” analogy) as a first serial produced watch line.
  13. Everywhere cost: over $500k.
  14. Anywhere created in 2022 as simpler version of Everywhere; won GPHG prize (calendar in astronomy).
  15. Anywhere is white gold with blue dial, described as simplified and wearable.
  16. Anywhere dial features: 6:00 calendar subdial, 24-hour track, moving sun disc tied to 24-hour scale, colored daylight region.
  17. Anywhere location selection at purchase; example calibrated for Geneva.
  18. Anywhere example daylight times: - June summer solstice sunrise around 5:00 a.m. - Winter solstice sunrise around 7:30 a.m. - Winter solstice sunset just before 5:00 p.m.
  19. Anywhere mechanical method: cam rotates once per year; cam drives racks/pinions for sunrise/sunset.
  20. Anywhere location setting method: - latitude via lateral micrometer screw - longitude via two screws (sunrise vs sunset)
  21. Anywhere includes equation of time conversion for non-24-hour days.
  22. Anywhere differs from Everywhere by not factoring daylight saving time.
  23. Anywhere location change requires sending to watchmaker.
  24. Anywhere wearability: dimensions resemble a time-only dress watch despite complexity.
  25. Anywhere case/specs: 39mm white gold, ~10mm height, 45.5mm lug-to-lug.
  26. Anywhere movement: C030, 430 components, described finishing details (Crayon waves, anglage, polished jewel sinks).
  27. Movement architecture tied to Châtel coastline; central jewel described as an easter egg location reference.
  28. Any Day: introduced in 2025; “world’s first mechanical agenda watch.”
  29. Any Day function: shows day and date for the entire month (e.g., next Tuesday, day-of-week for the 15th).
  30. Any Day mechanism: caliber C032, uses two snail cams; advances each day at midnight.
  31. Any Day midnight advancement timing claim: release/advance at 1/1,000th of a second (subtitle wording).
  32. Any Day supports backward adjustment with fail-safes.
  33. Any Day dial layout: CNC central plate with Crayon “Y” motif; outer numerals 1–31 with blue/white weekday/weekend cycle; crescent day indicator; four dots preview first four days.
  34. Any Day crown controls: clockwise/counterclockwise adjust different components (day/date vs weekly shift).
  35. Any Day specs: manually wound 46J, 3 Hz, 72-hour power reserve, 378 components.
  36. Any Day case/specs: 39mm, ~10mm height, 45.5mm lug-to-lug; wears like Anywhere.
  37. Price/availability: Crayon watches cost over $100,000 and total production under 50/year.
  38. Closing stance: not for everyone; reviewer wants to spotlight independent innovators; emphasizes the “push to try new things.”
  39. Reviewer met Rémy Maya personally at Watches & Wonders; demonstrated operation; reviewer describes inspiration/creativity.
  40. Reviewer says watches create a “sense of wonder” and encourage questions.
  41. Practical summary: Any Day is more practical than astronomy complications; Anywhere/Everywhere are more “wow”/artistic.
  42. Watch coverage call-to-action: comments for other independent brands; channel funded by sales (dealer mention).

Speaker-specific views

  • Single main speaker/narrator provides nearly all technical details, user experience impressions, and comparisons.
  • No distinct additional speakers are present in the subtitles besides the narrator (the “Applause” is an audio cue).

Overall verdict / recommendation

Highly recommended — but only for collectors who prioritize extreme innovation and accept ownership constraints and very high pricing.

  • If you want the most creative astronomy complication with wearable elegance, Crayon Anywhere is positioned as the best entry point (simpler than Everywhere). Main drawback: no daylight saving time and location changes require professional adjustment.
  • If you want more practical day-to-day utility, the newest Crayon Any Day is described as a more usable monthly agenda-style complication, still with premium finishing and wearability.

Original video