I sat down to write this article at the Madrid airport, on my way to Geneva for Watches & Wonders 2026. It was late, I was talking to the Time-Telling team about the new releases, and meditating on what this year actually meant for the watch world. 

I tend to do that a lot, because I believe that no matter how unattractive or boring a year might be — and 2026 was — it still had to mean something for the overall context of the industry. 

My meditations took me to one conclusion: Brands are going back to 34mm!! 

Hold on now, let me lay down some context. 

The general consensus of the watch world in the last few years — let’s say up until 2022 — was that 38-39mm was the small-to-medium size, safe for enthusiasts.

However, and you’ll notice while reading this article, that 38mm and 39mm are starting to seem like some big numbers. You might even cringe, like a Catier-Tank-Wearing artist might do at the thought of a 45mm Panerai. 

And THAT is today’s article in a nutshell. 

It sure didn’t happen on a whim. No no no… it was gradual and very clear. 

We had that Tony Soprano 36mm Rolex Presidential Day-Date trend, then the Patek Philippe Ellipse, and the Cartier Tank craze, and and and… 

Side note before we consider continuing this article: This has nothing to do with genders, and which watches are manly and which are feminine or whatever. I don’t care.

This year on Watches & Wonders (2026), big brands felt like they had to listen to their clients. The clients that kept slipping through their fingers because they didn’t have watches to fit under their cuffs and provide a certain comfort. 

And since we’re gradually descending to 34mm, I’d like to point out Bulgari’s amazing attempt at reducing the size of their Octofinissimo to 37mm. 

God, I loved that. Wanna know why? Because people tend to forget that to reduce a watch’s dimensions, the brand has to CHANGE THE ENTIRE MOVEMENT. But more on that in an upcoming article.

34mm is Becoming The New Universal Sweet Spot.

At Watches & Wonders 2026, Rolex, Patek, and Moser introduced 34mm watches.

And if these 3 big and respected brands see it, we’d better do so too.

Rolex gave us the Oyster Perpetual Ref. 124205, in Everose gold, Store dial, and all of it in a 34mm case. And what’s funny about it all, is that I wore to W&W (and am currently wearing) a 34mm two-tone Tudor Prince Oysterdate. This watch is from 1971. And we know how much today’s pop culture is yearning for a 70’s reboot.

This 2026 34mm Oyster Perpetual seems intentional, not new and not homage, and my favorite, not gendered. It seems like Rolex is planting a flag.

Another brand that I spent a lot of time praising on my GQ contribution and on my social media, H. Moser & Cie.

They released their 34mm Streamliner this year — with an amazing dial might I say — which I interpreted as a clear and direct attack on the oversized and heavy sports watch market.

On my wrist (tiny as it may be), it belonged. 

Patek Philippe’s 34mm release was much more subtle. The Ellipse D’or is known to be small, slim, elegant, under the radar… but they reinforced that sub 36mm sizing with a large 34.5 x 39.5mm large-size model and a 31.1 x 35.6mm mid-size model.

As in “we’ve been here for a while, you guys are now catching up”

What does this mean for the industry?

Watches are going smaller. It’s not a trend. It’s just practical. And let me tell you why.

During our press appointment at H. Moser’s booth, I asked the gentleman who was presenting and explaining the novelties about why the brand would go this low (34mm) with their most popular collection. 

He said: it’s practical to wear, people like it, and smaller watches resonate with the Asian market. 

It’s safe to say that Asian collectors are like no others. I can confidently say, based on insider information, that brands are closing branches in Europe, to expand them in Asia. So I guess the only way to profitability for them, is to respect and listen to their true customers. 

But the softer version of this would be, brands are listening, complications fatigue is real, we are de-gendering watches, and the collector maturity curve is reaching all time highs. 

I like watches that make sense when you step back a little. Not the ones that try too hard to impress at first glance, but the ones that grow on you once you understand where they come from. The Eclipse Qatar Edition from Beda’a sits exactly in that category. It is not a loud release, not a disruptive watch, and not something trying to reinvent the industry. It is simply a continuation of a story the brand has been building carefully over the last few years.

To understand this piece, you first need to understand the Eclipse collection itself. Eclipse is one of Beda’a’s most important platforms. It is the watch that really put the brand on the map internationally, especially after being presented around the time of the Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève in Geneva. That moment mattered. Not because of trophies or validation, but because it placed a young Middle Eastern independent brand in a room where design, mechanics, and credibility are taken seriously. Eclipse showed that Beda’a was not just experimenting anymore. They had a clear idea of how they wanted to display time and why.

The Eclipse collection is built around an unconventional way of reading time. No traditional hands, no central axis doing all the work. Instead, the dial is layered, with hours displayed through a sweeping aperture, minutes floating independently, and a subtle ten second indicator adding movement without stress. It is modern, but not aggressive. Conceptual, but still wearable. That balance is hard to achieve, and it is why Eclipse feels like the backbone of the brand.

The Qatar Edition keeps that exact architecture intact. Same proportions, same philosophy. A 37 millimeter stainless steel case that feels intentional on the wrist, paired with a slim profile at just over 8 millimeters thick. Sapphire crystal on both sides, 3 ATM water resistance, and inside, the Sellita SW300 automatic movement. A Swiss caliber chosen for reliability and thinness, offering around 56 hours of power reserve. Nothing exaggerated, nothing underwhelming. Just a solid mechanical foundation that lets the design speak.

What changes with this edition is the context. The color Ad’am defines the watch. This deep maroon tone, closely associated with the Qatari flag, carries historical and cultural weight that goes far beyond aesthetics. Traditionally, this color was extracted from the sea, from shells, then transformed by time and the desert sun into a darker, richer tone. Over centuries, it became associated with sovereignty, identity, and belonging. That is the color language Beda’a chose to work with here.

You see it clearly in the strap, in the dial elements, and even on the rotor at the back. It is consistent without being excessive. The watch does not explain itself through graphics or text. It assumes the wearer understands what Ad’am represents, or at least respects it enough to wear it without needing justification.

Looking at this piece alongside the rest of the Beda’a collection helps put things into perspective. I own the black dial Angles, which is sharp, geometric, and very architectural in how it approaches time. Angles feels assertive. Eclipse feels calmer. More reflective. This Qatar Edition leans even further into that calmness. It feels considered, measured, and confident in its simplicity.

Limited to fifty pieces and released in December around Qatar National Day, this watch does not feel like a commemorative object in the traditional sense. There are no obvious symbols, no forced storytelling. It feels more like a respectful gesture. A way of grounding the Eclipse collection in local identity without compromising its original design language.

Orders for the Beda’a Eclipse Qatar Edition are open today, December 16. That being said, it has already sold out in the first 10 minutes.

The Eclipse Qatar Edition is not trying to be everything at once. It is a well proportioned, thoughtfully designed mechanical watch with a strong sense of place. It sits comfortably within Beda’a’s evolution as a brand and makes sense both technically and culturally. And sometimes, that balance is exactly what a watch needs.