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Nomos Glashütte Tangente Neomatik 41 Update
Ref. 180
Sits in Nomos Glashütte’s upper tier here — more premium than three quarters of the Nomos Glashütte watches we list, which start at £1,480.
Price range £1,480 to £5,020 across 33 Nomos Glashütte watches in stock.The Tangente line has always been NOMOS's most considered argument for Bauhaus restraint, and the neomatik 41 Update makes one significant addition to that case: a patented peripheral date ring that runs around the full circumference of the dial. Rather than a conventional aperture, two red segments rotate beneath the dial surface to isolate the current date against the white galvanised ground — a mechanical solution that leaves the centre of the dial entirely uncluttered and, from a distance, nearly invisible until you look for it. At 7.8mm thick, the case sits remarkably flat for a watch carrying an automatic movement and a date complication, and the 49.3mm lug-to-lug span means it wears long across the wrist rather than proud of it — the geometry of a dress watch that has not been told to make itself smaller. The DUW 6101 inside is made entirely in Glashütte to the standards NOMOS reserves for its automatic calibres: Glashütte ribbing, perlage finishing, blued screws, and a proprietary swing system regulator, all visible to anyone who reads the movement rather than just the dial. The Shell Cordovan strap — Horween hide with rembordé edges — is the one detail that rewards handling in a way the specifications alone cannot convey.
- Reference
- 180
- Brand
- Nomos Glashütte
- Collection
- Tangente
- Case size
- 40.5mm
- Case thickness
- 7.8mm
- Lug width
- 20mm
- Case material
- Stainless steel
- Case shape
- Round
- Dial
- White
- Crystal
- Sapphire
- Movement
- Automatic
- Calibre
- DUW 6101
- Functions
- Date, Small seconds
- Water resistance
- 50m
- Bracelet / strap
- Leather strap
- Strap colour
- Black
- Clasp
- Buckle
- Lume
- Luminous
- Retailer
- Mappin & Webb
Additional specifications
- Lug-to-lug
- 49.3mm
- Power reserve
- 42 hours
Learn more about Nomos Glashütte
Roland Schwertner, a photographer and computer technician from Düsseldorf with no watchmaking background, registered Nomos in Glashütte in January 1990 — two months after the Berlin Wall fell and before German reunification was complete. The town's watchmaking infrastructure had been state-owned for four decades and was suddenly available.
The design language was settled from the start and has barely moved: Bauhaus in the strict sense, drawing on the Dessau school's functionalism. Sans-serif numerals, no applied ornament, no unnecessary line, and dial layouts where every element earns its place. The Tangente, one of the first models, remains the flagship and looks the same today.
The technical ambition came later and was considerable for a company of its size. Nomos moved from modified Swiss ébauches to its own Alpha calibre, then to the DUW family, and in 2014 introduced the swing system — a proprietary escapement with an in-house hairspring, the component almost no independent manufacturer makes. Fewer than a dozen companies worldwide produce their own hairsprings.
The house is still independent, still based in a converted railway station in Glashütte, with design offices in Berlin. It occupies unusual territory: in-house movements and German finishing at prices closer to Swiss mid-range brands using bought-in calibres, which has made it the most common entry point into serious German watchmaking.
- 1990
- Roland Schwertner founds Nomos in Glashütte.
- 1992
- The Tangente launches and defines the house style.
- 2005
- Production shifts to in-house movements.
- 2014
- The swing system escapement with in-house hairspring is introduced.
Also in 5 collections
This watch appears in the Nomos Glashütte Tangente range (7), Stainless Steel Watches (3,355), Back in Stock (2,731), Automatic Watches (1,699) and Leather Strap Watches (1,083).
What the specifications mean
A slim watch on leather, made for wearing with a shirt.
Strengths
- 7.8mm is unusually slim for a 40.5mm case
- Sapphire crystal, which resists scratching
- Luminous hands and markers for low light
- One of Nomos Glashütte's more premium watches
Worth knowing
- 50m suits rain and handwashing, not swimming
Nomos Glashütte Tangente Neomatik 41 Update alternatives
Watches from other brands at a similar price, style and size, so you can see what else your budget can buy.
| Specification | 180 | 2020.002S | FC-718N4NH6B |
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | £3,820 | £3,700 | £3,995 |
| Case size | 40.5mm | 41mm | 41mm |
| Water resistance | 50m | 50m | 50m |
| Movement | Automatic | Automatic | Automatic |
| Strap | Leather strap | Fabric strap | Stainless steel bracelet |
| Power reserve | 42 hours | — | 38 hours |
| This watch | Closely matched | Closely matched |
Your new watch
Frequently asked questions, and things you should know about this watch
Can I swim with it?
Showering yes, swimming no. 50m covers splashes and brief immersion, but a swimming stroke generates well above the pressure that figure describes.
Will the glass scratch?
Unlikely. Sapphire is second only to diamond in hardness and shrugs off everyday marking.
Does it need a battery?
No. It is automatic — the motion of your wrist winds it, and there is no cell to replace.
How long does it run for when it's not worn?
About 42 hours fully wound — enough to survive a night off the wrist, but not a full weekend.
What size strap does it take?
20mm. Any strap of that width will fit, and on most modern watches quick-release bars make the swap a two-minute job with no tools.
Will it fit my wrist?
Lug-to-lug is 49.3mm, which suits wrists from roughly 16.5cm (6½ inches) upward.
Lug-to-lug decides fit more than case diameter does.
Is it a men's or women's watch?
Listed as unisex, and at this size it suits any wrist that takes the dimensions.
Cheapest place to buy
Mappin & Webb is the only UK retailer we track stocking this reference new, at £3,820. There is nothing to compare it against today.
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