Red Dot Award: Product Design 2026: 13 Award-Winning Watches
The Red Dot Award: Product Design is one of the most internationally recognized competitions for product design. In 2026, the competition received entries from 61 countries. Among them were numerous watches, 13 of which received awards.
An independent panel of international experts decides on the recipients of the Red Dot Awards. The panel evaluates the submitted products in detail and specifically recognizes those that stand out in terms of design, function, practical value, and innovation.
The Red Dot Jury
All jury members gathered at the Red Dot GmbH & Co. KG headquarters on the grounds of the Zollverein Coal Mine Industrial Complex—a UNESCO World Heritage Site in Essen—to evaluate the submitted projects and engage in direct discussion. In addition to experienced jury members, numerous new voices contributed their perspectives this year. They came from China, Germany, France, Greece, the United Kingdom, Italy, Lithuania, Austria, and the United States. As a result, the jury grew to include representatives from a total of 19 countries across four continents.
Red Dot – 10 Award-Winning Watches
The Red Dot award is a symbol of high design quality and is given to products that excel in key evaluation categories.
Citizen Promaster Eco-Drive Professional Diver 300m
Designed for professional diving, the watch combines a helium escape valve design with 30 bar water resistance. A light-powered movement provides a runtime of up to 365 days. The case design, which lacks pronounced lugs, reduces weight and improves comfort and shock resistance. A textured bezel with precise knurling facilitates operation while wearing gloves, while the crystal is protected from direct contact. Highly luminous hands and hour markers ensure readability under extreme conditions.
Jury’s rationale: The functionally precise design, featuring a compact build, ease of use, and high readability, gives this diving watch a robust quality.
Grand Seiko Sport Collection Tokyo Lion Tentagraph SLGC009
This sports watch combines the Tentagraph mechanical chronograph caliber—with a frequency of ten half-oscillations per second and a three-day power reserve—with a design focused on durability. A case made of high-strength titanium combines light weight with enhanced scratch resistance, while the faceted shape and a domed case back promote balanced ergonomics. Shell-shaped counters, distinct hands, and prominent hour markers enhance readability. The case and movement are designed for disassembly, refurbishment, and sustainable use.
Jury’s rationale: The combination of high-frequency mechanics, precise readability, and durable construction gives this watch a unique quality.
Hublot Big Bang 20th Anniversary King Gold Ceramic
The Big “Bang 20th Anniversary King Gold Ceramic” is based on the model of the same name released in 2005 and has been optimized in terms of details. The watch features a 43-millimeter case with curved lugs and a polished bezel with distinctive knurling. The textured rubber strap can be easily replaced thanks to the OneClick system. A redesigned dial with a sophisticated 3D carbon pattern ensures excellent readability of the Arabic numerals and hour markers. Red chronograph accents round out the look.
Jury’s statement: “Big Bang 20th Anniversary King Gold Ceramic” is a successful reinterpretation that embodies precision watchmaking in an elegant fusion of gold and ceramic.
Hublot Chief Product Officer Sadry Keiser: “Design at Hublot begins with an attitude: questioning, refining, reinventing. The ‘Big Bang 20th Anniversary King Gold Ceramic’ reflects two decades of this discipline, in which every material, every line, and every movement serves a specific purpose. This recognition is due to the teams driving this vision forward, as well as to a collection that continues to evolve without ever losing its identity. It also marks a new step toward the next chapter of the Big Bang Original Unico: even more integrated, more architectural, and focused on the essentials. The signature style of one of the 21st century’s most iconic collections.”
MeisterSinger Panthero Jumping Hour
The “Panthero Jumping Hour” transforms the single-hand principle into a newly developed display architecture featuring a jumping hour indicator in an off-center window and an off-center minute hand. The modified geometry structures the dial into distinct layers and creates depth. A moving element visualizes the passage of seconds as a distinct, non-measuring impulse. A 40-mm case with milled details, varied finishes, and a narrow bezel draws attention to the dial.
Jury’s rationale: The interpretation of the single-hand principle as a multi-layered display architecture, combined with the moving, non-measuring element, defines a unique form of time representation.
Mudita Radiant
The “Mudita Radiant” automatic watch features a minimalist design with a clear dial optimized for easy readability. A custom-designed typeface, generously sized hour markers, luminescent hands, and anti-reflective sapphire crystal define the dial and ensure readability in a variety of lighting conditions. A brushed stainless steel case combines durability with a subtle appearance. Powered by a mechanical movement, the watch is designed for long-lasting use and is available in various sizes and colors.
Jury’s rationale: The consistent focus on readability, materials, and function gives the “Mudita Radiant” a clean, understated appearance.
Porsche Design Chronograph 1 – 1975 Limited Edition
The “Chronograph 1 – 1975 Limited Edition” builds on the uncoated model series of the first “Chronograph 1.” The case and bracelet, crafted from glass-bead-blasted titanium with a matte finish, give this handcrafted watch an appearance that is as elegant as it is functional, while also ensuring high durability. A matte black dial featuring the historic Porsche Design logo, Superluminova-coated hands and hour markers, a COSC-certified movement with a flyback function, and anti-reflective sapphire crystal underscore the technical excellence of this edition, limited to 350 pieces.
Jury’s rationale: This special edition stands out for its clear design, excellent readability, and functional, high-quality choice of materials.
Qlocktwo W Series
The “Qlocktwo W” wristwatch displays the time as written words in a typographic matrix. The display is activated by a natural wrist movement and automatically adjusts its brightness via a built-in light sensor. The time is set contactlessly via optical signals from the Flashsetter app, eliminating the need for mechanical controls and preserving the watch’s clean, minimalist design. A charging adapter milled from a solid block of aluminum echoes the watch’s design.
Jury’s rationale: “Qlocktwo W” impresses with its combination of voice-based display and minimal interaction via movement and light, designed for intuitive use.
Seiko Prospex Marinemaster Professional SLA081
The “SLA081” diver’s watch is designed for saturation diving and achieves a high level of water resistance without a helium valve thanks to an innovative case design. This allows for a more compact design and improves comfort. The dial features a reinforced transparent layer that creates a striking three-dimensional effect. Precisely matched materials and the polishing of components with varying degrees of hardness result in a seamless, distortion-free surface that ensures excellent readability under demanding conditions.
Jury’s rationale: The SLA081 stands out for its compact design and a visually rich dial that highlights the precision of its materials and craftsmanship.
SINN 613 St UTC
An advanced argon-flushing technology ensures enhanced reliability and protection against fogging in the “613 St UTC” diver’s watch. Its magnetic field protection up to 100 mT (= 80,000 A/m) offers effective protection against magnetization, which could impair timekeeping accuracy. User-friendly features include a 60-minute stopwatch display, highlighted by a white sub-dial at 6 o’clock. A rotating bezel also allows for precise monitoring of dive times. A second time zone in 24-hour format is particularly useful for travelers.
Jury’s rationale: The rugged “613 St UTC” diver’s watch impresses with its innovative technology as a precise instrument designed for demanding operating conditions.
Xiaomi Watch 5
The “Xiaomi Watch 5” is a smartwatch with a modern, minimalist design featuring a forged 316L stainless steel case, refined through precise CNC machining. Alternating brushed and polished linear surfaces characterize the center bezel of this well-proportioned watch. Sapphire crystal protects the generous display. In addition to the included fluororubber and leather straps, a 3D-printed titanium strap is available; the straps are easy to swap out.
Jury’s rationale: Thanks to its practical features, the “Xiaomi Watch 5” is an ideal everyday companion and impresses with its minimalist design and high-quality craftsmanship.
Red Dot Best of the Best – A Trio of Ticking Award Winners
The Red Dot Best of the Best is the competition’s highest honor and recognizes groundbreaking design within a category.
Grand Seiko Evolution 9 Collection U.F.A. SLGB003
In Japanese aesthetics, there are countless subtle nuances between light and shadow. Shadow is considered at least as important as light itself—what matters most is the harmony of their interplay. This philosophy also shapes the design of Grand Seiko. The juxtaposition of distortion-free, mirror-like surfaces achieved through the Zaratsu polish and finely brushed sections creates a “masterful interplay of light and shadow.”
Jury’s rationale: This is how that “vibrant, ever-changing effect” is created. The dial is also characterized by an intricately crafted, multi-layered structure. Inspired by the winter forests around Shiojiri, where the watches are crafted, delicate shades of blue with filigree surfaces create an “impressively subtle finish reminiscent of ice-covered trees.” For the jury, the unmistakable character of the “Evolution 9 Collection U.F.A. SLGB003” lies in this combination of “utmost precision, meticulous craftsmanship, and an aesthetic deeply rooted in Japanese nature.”
Grand Seiko designer Kira Yoshida: “We aimed for a design that conveys the value of exceptional precision—not only through the movement, but also through its external appearance. To achieve this, the compact design we sought was a natural approach. By refining the machining and surface finish of each individual component, we were able to make the case both smaller and flatter without compromising its premium feel and functionality.”
Nomos Glashütte Club Sport neomatik Worldtimer Silver
Being connected internationally and moving between time zones is part of everyday life for many young people today. Designed with this target group in mind, Nomos Glashütte brings global mobility to the wrist with the sporty and elegant “Club Sport neomatik Worldtimer silver.” In the finest Bauhaus tradition, this watch combines precise clarity with exceptional craftsmanship, all within a remarkably slim profile of just 9.9 millimeters.
Jury’s Statement: The exceptionally slim design of the Club Sport neomatik Worldtimer silver is astonishing—virtually unique in this category. Combined with its complex functions, this makes it not only technically impressive but also exceptionally comfortable to wear in everyday life.
Nomos designer Michael Paul: “A world time complication has real practical value. Our goal was to create a watch that makes this function easy to read while remaining true to the ‘Club Sport’ style: well-proportioned, robust, sporty, and suitable for everyday use,” he says.
Ressence Type 3 by Marc Newson
Inspired by Marc Newson’s early Ikepod watches, the model is based on the technical platform of the “Type 3,” the Ressence Orbital Convex System (ROCS). With an elliptical silhouette, the watch features a domed sapphire crystal and display discs that appear to float like four biaxial satellites in an oil-filled chamber. This innovative upper case impressively highlights the clarity of the dial, and it appears as though the time is projected directly onto the glass.
Jury’s rationale: It is a symbiotic combination: This watch brings together the design philosophies of Marc Newson and Benoît Mintiens into a design that combines exceptional aesthetic and functional qualities.
Ressence founder Benoît Mintiens: “I think what convinced the jury was that one plus one equals three. A very strong design language met a very unique technical system, and this combination produced a result that none of us could have achieved on our own.”
The Red Dot Design Award – 70 Years of Design History
In 2026, Red Dot will look back on more than 70 years of design history. Its origins date back to 1954, when the “Verein Industrieform” was founded in Essen—with the goal of improving the design of consumer goods and strengthening the competitiveness of German products after World War II. As early as 1955, the first exhibition was held, accompanied by a competition, which over the years evolved into an international event.
In the decades that followed, the competition’s profile was continuously refined. With its renaming to “Design Zentrum Nordrhein Westfalen” in the late 1980s and the introduction of its own seal of quality, design increasingly came into focus as a key factor in economic success.
Peter Zec, who took over as director in 1991, provided a decisive impetus for the organization’s internationalization. Shortly thereafter, the “Red Dot” was introduced as a symbol of quality and, in the years that followed, evolved into an internationally recognized mark of design quality.
