

Swatch is celebrating the Chinese Year of the Dragon with a collection of five colourful new watches.
Priced from £73 to £183, they aim to offer something for everyone, but all share the inclusion of dragon motifs on their dials and straps. One model, called the Dragon In Wind Pay!, even has support for contactless payments with Swatch Pay integration.
Despite their differing designs, the five watches are technically quite similar. They are all powered by a quartz movement, fitted with a silicone strap with a buckle fastening, and they each have three bars of water resistance. This is equal to a depth of 30 metres, but in reality, it means they're safe to shower and swim in, but shouldn’t be taken diving or exposed to high-pressure water.
The Dragon in Gold and Dragon in Motion models feature a stainless steel case, with the latter being the only watch in the collection to have a set of sub dials and the look of a chronograph timepiece. The other three watches have ‘biosourced’ plastic cases, while only the Dragon in Gold has a mineral glass on its front instead of Swatch’s ‘biosourced material’.
The largest model is the Dragon in Cloud, which has a chunky 47mm case and a crown offset to the unusual two o’clock position. The smallest is the Dragon in Waves, which has a dial diameter of just 34 mm. These bookends of the collection sit either side of the 38mm Dragon in Gold, the 41mm Dragon in Wind Pay and the 43mm Dragon in Motion.
I suspect the slightly chaotic design of these watches won’t appeal to everyone. The gold hands of the Wind Pay and Motion models in particular struggle to stand out from the busy dial behind. But I think that’s also part of the appeal; these are fun, design-first watches that make a statement, more than they are tools for accurate timekeeping. As Swatch itself says, they’d make for a fun gift or party accessory.
Although Year of the Dragon celebrations don’t begin until 10 February, Swatch’s new collection is available now online and at Swatch stores worldwide.
Sign up to the T3 newsletter for smarter living straight to your inbox
Get all the latest news, reviews, deals and buying guides on gorgeous tech, home and active products from the T3 experts
Alistair is a freelance automotive and technology journalist. He has bylines on esteemed sites such as the BBC, Forbes, TechRadar, and of best of all, T3, where he covers topics ranging from classic cars and men's lifestyle, to smart home technology, phones, electric cars, autonomy, Swiss watches, and much more besides. He is an experienced journalist, writing news, features, interviews and product reviews. If that didn't make him busy enough, he is also the co-host of the AutoChat podcast.
-
Struggling to nail push-ups? A fitness expert says this simple hack will make them stronger
A simple tweak to your arm position can make all the difference
By Bryony Firth-Bernard Published
-
Android Auto 14 beta arrives and it sets the groundwork for major changes
More details link Android Auto to significant car control changes
By Chris Hall Published
-
A Week on the Wrist with the Rolex Explorer – basic, boring, brilliant
The platonic ideal of a sports watch; it’s near-perfect
By Roland Moore-Colyer Published
-
Girard-Perregaux’s new Aston Martin collaboration boasts a green dial made from automotive paint
The Girard-Perreagaux x Aston Martin collab has everything I like in a watch
By Bethan Girdler-Maslen Published
-
New OMEGA Seamaster is a vision in bronze gold and burgundy – Bond fans will love it
Calling all 007 fans! OMEGA has debuted a new Bond-inspired Seamaster
By Bethan Girdler-Maslen Published
-
Laurent Ferrier gives its Classic Traveller watch a stylish enamel dial upgrade
Laurent Ferrier celebrates its 15th anniversary with Earth-inspired watch
By Bethan Girdler-Maslen Published
-
Hublot debuts first-ever multicolour ceramic watch – but you won’t get one
Hublot unveils Magic Ceramic material, and it claims to be a world’s first
By Bethan Girdler-Maslen Published
-
This beautiful bronze watch by Venezianico is a must-buy
I'm in love with this unique bronze watch from Venice
By Alistair Charlton Published
-
OMEGA counts down to the 2026 Winter Olympics with new Seamaster
The Olympic Winter Games couldn’t get here fast enough…
By Bethan Girdler-Maslen Published
-
Swatch’s new MoonSwatch strap has transformed my Mission to Pluto – but it isn’t perfect
Finally, it’s time to get rid of your MoonSwatch’s awful Velcro strap
By Alistair Charlton Published