We see you there, frustrated because you need to change your watch battery again after only 1 or two years. Sometimes only after a few months! And we totally feel for you because it’s never fun to go out of your way to install a new battery and pay the price every time.
But what if there was another option? One where you can charge your watch battery as you go about your day. Where you never have to worry about the pains of changing your watch battery (almost ever). Well, we might have the solution to all your worries.
Solar-powered watches are all the rage and not for nothing. Long-lasting batteries, renewable energy, made to last, the list goes on. Oh, and did we mention sustainable? You can see why we’re obsessed.
3 Benefits of a Solar Powered Battery
Trust us when we say that owning a solar watch has many more than 3 benefits. But that’s for a different article. Instead, we want to zero in on the core advantages of a battery that is sustainable, durable, and low maintenance.
Eco-Friendly
Yes, solar watches are one of the most eco-friendly choices within the watch industry. Especially if we are discussing one made with recycled, ethically sourced materials. Solar batteries run on renewable energy (light), so you don’t need to change the battery every few years.
Did you know that in 2022, 94% of Japan’s watch production was digital quartz and analog quartz? It resulted in roughly 29 million single-use watch batteries being sold in Japan within that year! After only about 2 years, these watch batteries ended up in landfills because they can’t be recycled or repurposed. The toxins like silver oxide and mercury can then end up in our waterways and the air we breathe (not good).
Quartz is sourced by mining and it contributes to the 8% of greenhouse gases produced by the watch industry. Mining for quartz also results in a lot of waste, like non-target rocks that are sadly only sometimes disposed of properly.
Sourcing materials and fabricating solar watches is much more sustainable than the traditional quartz watch battery. Although it also includes quartz, a solar watch lasts about 15 years longer on average and doesn’t require frequent battery changes.
Made to Last
One of the most popular perks of a watch run by a solar battery? The battery itself lasts for (almost) a lifetime. That means no more having your watch give up on you, demanding more time and money to get a new battery. Instead, you can go about your life knowing your solar watch has your back. For example, the solar powered battery in our watches is made to last over 30 years.
Low Maintenance
A watch powered by solar, you can’t get more low maintenance than that. Imagine, you wake up every day and put your watch on, and there is no doubt it will keep ticking.
Not only do you not need to go out of your way to change the battery, but you also don’t even need to put any time into charging it. Wear it and go about your day or leave it on your bedside table - it does the rest itself. With only 2 hours of light, the battery stores enough energy for 6 months!
What About Mechanical Watches?
Mechanical watches are popular for the fact that they don’t require any battery to function and also because they allow for more technicalities than a quartz watch. Why all this debate about the best type of movement when mechanical watches exist? Well, mechanical watches are not as low-maintenance as one may hope.
If you are a watch freak, you know that mechanical watches require an abundance of maintenance. It’s just as much of a hassle as needing to change a battery consistently - which doesn’t really solve the initial problem of wanting a hassle-free watch. Thus why a solar watch is often a better solution for someone that wants a good looking timepiece without having to do any maintenance on it. They require almost no battery changes, run on renewable energy, and help prevent tons of non recyclable and environmentally harmful batteries ending up in landfills.
TL;DR About Solar Powered Watches
- Solar batteries last almost a lifetime as they only require a change every 30 years.
- They run on a renewable source of energy that is low maintenance. With only two hours of natural or artificial light, a battery saves enough energy to run for six months.
- Solar powered watches help prevent the billions of watch batteries disposed of every year.
