Style Edit: Swatch Neon gives 1980s watches an eye-popping, hi-tech makeover

When Swatch launched in 1983, it was like a bomb had gone off in the world of horology. This was a Swiss watch brand like none before it – it was the one that made watches cool. In so many ways, Swatch was ahead of its time, helping to usher in a new era in watchmaking – and watch wearing.

Instead of a single, extremely expensive piece to be worn on all occasions, suddenly watches were a fashionable accessory that could be chosen to complement an outfit. The brand embraced the use of modern materials, cultivated cult status with twice-yearly drops and launched collabs with celebrity artists. Most revolutionary of all, it offered Swiss mechanical watch expertise at an approachable price.

In 2024, the brand looked back to the era when Swatch first rocked the world by launching the Swatch Neon collection, which recreates favourite models from those halcyon days of the 1980s and 90s – with a contemporary twist. This year, the latest iteration of the Swatch Neon collection takes another selection of much loved vintage Swatches and gives them a modern glow-up – with an eye-popping colour palette, contemporary construction and hi-tech functions, including the SwatchPAY! contactless payment system.

With its unmistakable graphical dial, bezel and strap in dramatic neon hues, the Swatch Neon Flumotions is a fitting tribute to the 1988 original, updated with a new slimline case. For an even more energetic whack of colour, check out the Swatch Neon Signal Flag, a reworking of a sought after rarity from 1990, with its dial divided into three sections in vivid shades of orange, yellow and green. A legendary diver’s watch, the Emerald Diver from 1986, has been reinvented as a new chronograph, the Swatch Neon Emerald Chrono, its black dial contrasting with primary-coloured indications and its three chronograph subdials.

With its signature giant date window dominating the centre of the dial, the Skychart was a head turner back in 1991; it’s been updated in a fresh, darker hued palette of electric green, deep purple and dark blue that dramatically amps up the visual contrasts.

The Swatch Neon Seppia, similarly, supercharges the colour scheme of the 1994 original in neon pink, green and yellow, and joins the watchmaker’s Big Bold line of timepieces with imposing 47mm cases. The Swatch Neon Hielo, meanwhile, completely changes up the colouring of the 1993 piece it updates, transforming it from orange to blue, and again supersizing the case to 47 mm.