Not all images were able to load for printing. Please close the print window and try again. The New Klokers KLOK03, the Disc Watch Goes Automatic for the First Time
After two bankruptcies and a decade of quartz, Klokers returns with six new versions featuring an automatic movement for the first time.
Come to think of it, there aren’t many watches that are read like a Klokers. The brand has replaced hands with stacked discs and a single line of reading. A slide-ruler-inspired take on time display that was accessibly priced (every Klokers made between 2015 and 2025 ran on quartz) and earned a loyal following, but also struggled at some points in its history. The new KLOK03 is the brand’s first mechanical watch: it keeps the signature time display, changes plenty around it, and still sells for under EUR 900.
Founded in 2015, Klokers joined several brands that wanted to offer another way to read time, without conventional hands. Two Kickstarter campaigns raised more than one million euros from 2,600 backers, and the first models, the KLOK01 and KLOK08, used flat discs that turned counter-clockwise. A patented system let owners detach the watch head and move it between straps and accessories. The ambitious system proved difficult to make reliable. Loyal following or not, the brand filed for bankruptcy twice: in 2020 and again in 2023, when Christian-Louis Col, also owner of Ikepod, came to save it. The earlier KLOK01 and KLOK08 remain available, and after-sales service is assured, but the KLOK03 is not meant as their evolution. It is a watch built differently.
For this new chapter, Klokers invited Fabrice Gonet, watch designer and co-founder of Edge Design studio, who designed the latest Seaslug by Ikepod, but also worked for MB&F, DeBethune, and Louis Moinet: check him out; it’s worth the time. Visually, the biggest change is the composition: the three discs are now stacked in tiers, creating a sense of depth the earlier flat discs couldn’t offer, and they turn clockwise, so more conventionally.
Time is still read vertically, through a magnifier at 6 o’clock. The lower disc displays the hours, the middle one shows the minutes, and the central disc is for the seconds; all are aligned along a single line. Technical and instrument-like in appearance, the reading stays simple: three discs, three pieces of information, one line. As with all watches with an unusual display, it takes a bit of time to get used to it, but the result is fairly intuitive.
The KLOK03 comes in six versions: Yellow Dot, Blue Note, Yuri, Desert Storm, Orange Dot and Kaki K. The white Yellow Dot and the blue Blue Note revisit two colourways that were very successful in earlier Klokers collections, while the other four introduce new combinations. Yuri pairs a blue dial with a green dot and a rotating world map, Desert Storm goes for sand beige and a matte case, Orange Dot sets an orange dot against black, and Kaki K is, well, khaki.
The case is made from 316L stainless steel and measures 40mm in diameter and 13.9mm thick, with a 45mm lug-to-lug. A sapphire crystal with the Klokers logo protects the display, and the caseback is solid. Water resistance is 30m, which is OK for a design-led watch meant for daily wear. As mentioned, every previous Klokers was powered by quartz, the KLOK03 uses a classic Miyota 82S0 automatic movement, operating at 21,600 vibrations/hour with 42 hours of power reserve.
The Klokers strap-change system gives way to the more conventional quick-release spring-bar mechanism. Straps from other brands can be fitted, although those of the KLOK01 and KLOK08 cannot; the KLOK03 is now conceived as a complete watch instead of a detachable head.
The Klokers KLOK03 is now available from the brand’s website, with delivery within one week. The brand proudly states that the watch is made in Hong Kong and offers a two-year warranty. The price is EUR 890 including VAT, with a launch price of EUR 790 until 20 December. More information at klokers.com.
