Introducing the Chronotimer Aurora

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February 08, 2022 2 min read

Introducing the Chronotimer Aurora, a bold new addition to our collection. We wanted to be more adventurous and fun with our dial options. We understand that most of the magic of microbrands is finding something that would not be offered elsewhere, so we decided to bring out something that other brands may not consider.

If you go back to the beginning, our first iteration of the C-01 – released back in 2017 – was inspired by the greatest racing watches of the 1960s, featuring round subdials with a stopwatch function, 24-hour timer, and contrasting tachymeter.

But time moves on and we wanted to take Geckota in a slightly different design direction. We wanted to take vintage elements from our previous models and reintroduce them with a modern take establishing the Geckota design ethos that we still use today.

In 2018, we started to work on the second generation of C-01. Although the original model was one of our bestsellers, we knew we could make it better by applying design techniques that help us stand out. We strengthened the hour markers by making them thicker and adding lume to the tips. We also swapped the round subdials for a shape that resembled the cushion case of the actual watch and substituted the movement in favour of one with a ticking seconds hand, the reliable Miyota 6S21. We added the distinctive crosshair that you can also see on our G-01, as well as incorporating some text at the six o’clock position to better balance the dial layout. Lastly, we gave the watch a raised and chamfered tachymeter. The result gave us a watch that was unmistakeably Geckota.

Now in 2022 we wanted to offer something unique, while making sure the C-01 was still very much the C-01.

So we decided to offer new colours; and not just any old mundane colours either. Lighting up your life we introduced three vivid dial colour options: green, aqua and purple – all with a sunburst finish.

‘Aurora’ is the Latin word for dawn, and with all these colours represented at daybreak, before the sun bursts into the sky, the concept is beautifully holistic.

Something else that we decided to experiment with was strap choice. The C-01 Aurora definitely feels like a summer watch and pairing it with a Tropic strap really strengthens that feel, with a pleasingly retro vibe. The matte black of the rubber contrasts perfectly with the vitality of the dial, making this a perfectly balanced watch that epitomises our current design language and direction.