If you’re new to watch winders, the Barrington Single Watch Winder is a great place to start. It holds a single watch, but thanks to its modular design, multiple units can be stacked and daisy-chained together into a personalised watch-winding setup powered by a single socket.
Add in the fact there are lots of bright, bold colours to pick from, and the Barrington Single Watch Winder could be the perfect watch winder to broaden your horological horizon. Is it the perfect starter watch winder? Read on to find out.
Barrington Single Watch Winder review: Price and availability
Watch winders are a category of product where pieces can vary enormously. You can pay under £25 if you really want to, or splash out almost £2,000 to keep a single watch wound and accurate.
With that in mind, the Barrington fits somewhere towards the more affordable end of the scale, while still looking, feeling (and sounding) like a quality product. Most colour options including the ‘Shadow Black’ model reviewed here, are priced at £225, while a trio of unpainted wooden models are £395. All are available now from the Barrington website.
Barrington Single Watch Winder review: Features and design
A key feature of this watch winder is how it’s powered. You can simply plug it into a wall outlet with the included cable and be done with it. Or, there’s a compartment for four AA batteries for cable-free running (and which can act as a backup if there’s a power cut).
Barrington also recognises how buyers might want to purchase several of these winders over time. As a result, they can be neatly stacked and even plugged into each other with an included cable. That way, you can daisy-chain several together and have them all powered by a single plug socket.
Another key feature is how you can set both the rotation direction and frequency. This is done via a pair of rotary knobs on the rear of the winder, which both move with a reassuring click through each of their settings. Their design and movement is similar to the controls of a vintage music amplifier, making the watch winder a pleasing thing to set up and adjust.
The direction options are forwards, backwards, or alternating between both, and the frequency options are 650, 750, 850, 1000 and 1950 rotations per day. Which of these you pick will depend on the needs of your watch, and it’s worth checking the instructions that came with your watch (or finding them online) to make sure you configure the winder correctly.
I’m a big fan of the glossy piano black finish of the review sample featured here. It makes the watch winder look and feel like a premium product, and the wide range of other colours – orange, red, yellow, white, blue and green – ensure it’ll fit in with, or stand out from, any home decor.
Unlike some winders, this one doesn’t cover your watch in any way at all. This is great for admiring your timepiece, but also means this winder is less suitable for long term storage, since there's no protection from dust, sunlight or prying eyes.
Barrington Single Watch Winder review: Performance
At the front you’ll find the watch cushion itself. This is plastic and wrapped in a squishy material with a carbon fibre weave effect. The mount has a spring-loaded design that compresses to accommodate your watch, then extends to apply some pressure to the strap or bracelet, holding it securely in place.
Barrington says the standard cushion is designed to hold watches with wrist measurements of between 19 and 24 cm, and suits 70 percent of its customers. Having smaller wrists, of about 16cm, meant the cushion didn’t work with my watches. Barrington offers a smaller, flexible cushion for smaller wrists, but this wasn’t provided with the review unit.
Fellow owners of small wrists should be very careful not to force their watch onto the larger cushion, as this puts a lot of strain on the lug bars, bracelet and clasp. In my excitement to try out the winder I almost bent the clasp of my Tudor, before realising the cushion was far too large. Instead, I installed a watch with a larger bracelet to see how the winder performed.
I’m pleased to say the winder works well. The cushion clicks into place securely enough, although feels a little cheap in the process, and holds watches nicely. All that’s left to do is plug it in, or insert some batteries, and rotate the knobs on the back to your preferred settings.
The motor is very quiet indeed, and almost silent from two or three feet away. You’ll likely hear it if it’s on your bedside table, but from across the room you won’t notice it at all. A green light on the front flashes when the winder is in motion, which might be annoying in an otherwise dark room, but it’s not particularly bright and hasn’t bothered me during my testing.
Barrington Single Watch Winder review: Verdict
Watch winders are a niche within a niche. A convenience for those who own a mechanical watch and see the benefit of it never running out of power when not worn. Particularly complex watches with more than just a time and date function are the primary targets of watch winders, since resetting a moon phase complication or a perpetual calendar can be time-consuming.
If that’s you – or if you simply want somewhere nice to put your watch – the Barrington Single Watch Winder is a good product to consider. It isn’t the cheapest option, but it’s also far from the most expensive, while offering the design, quality and functionality you’d expect in this middling sector of the market.
Horology purists will love the ability to adjust the rotation and frequency setting, while everyone else will appreciate the smooth, very quiet motor and how multiple Barrington Single Watch Winders can be stacked and daisy-chained together. Just be mindful of the cushion size, and order the smaller one if you think your watch will need it.
