I attended the 5th year of Nomos?s annual forum this week, and even though the theme was about design and colors, it was the new manual winding movement that received the most attention. 
As a seasoned writer who has closely followed Nomos’s trajectory, I often find myself anticipating the brand’s future moves. However, even with my extensive experience, the unveiling of the Tangente 2date ($2,760-$3,020) caught me off guard. I will be very open about what resonated with me, and what left me puzzled.

Let?s begin with the movement itself. The DUW 4601 is a new manual winding caliber with a slim height of 2.8mm, and 52 hours of power reserve. Speaking with Mirko Heyne, head of research and development at Nomos, I learned that the previous manual winding caliber, DUW 4101, had the same height with a normal date complication, 42 hours of power reserve, and not the nice finishing we see on the new 4601. Both have the Swing System, the proprietary escapement developed by Nomos. In summary, the new movement delivers extra power reserve, better finishing, and has an additional date complication while still remaining the same height as the previous movement – that?s because the patented date wheel is integrated into the mainplate. Another significant technical advancement in the 4601 caliber is the quick set date mechanism. You can easily jump forward with the crown in the second position. 
When I saw the standalone movement with Mirko, my first impression w...