Love my BLNR but...

[MTROIS]

...the intensity of the lume at night is pretty pathetic!!
I mean, it is so weak that you can't even tell the GMT hand from the hour dots.

I can't even tell you how much I love this watch, but coming from an Omega SMP watch where you could light up a room with the intensity of its lume, this is pretty disappointing. Especially for a "professional" watch.

Ok, I vented enough for now.
Carry on...

[Tseg]

I have a "value priced" Japanese watch whose lume blazes when I bring it in from the sun and turn off the lights. Within an hour or two I can't read anything on the dial.

My BLNR I can barely see when I turn off the lights but once my eyes adjust I can see it very well... and 10 hours later before dawn I can still read the time in a pitch black room.

I argue the BLNR lume is less dazzling but quite a bit more functional.

[Ravager135]

Have you used it outside? I mean there are ways to charge the lume indoors but truly it should be in sunlight to get the desired effect in the dark. When I wear my Submariner surfing and then go out for the night, my dial blazes.

[WJGESQ]

That would be a bummer indeed. Omegas have great loom.

[Muzz]

I never had a problem with Rolex lume at all. Maybe you just need to charge it.

[Tseg]

What time is it?

[eonflux]

Originally Posted by MTROIS

...the intensity of the lume at night is pretty pathetic!!
I mean, it is so weak that you can't even tell the GMT hand from the hour dots.

I can't even tell you how much I love this watch, but coming from an Omega SMP watch where you could light up a room with the intensity of its lume, this is pretty disappointing. Especially for a "professional" watch.

Ok, I vented enough for now.
Carry on...

Rolex lume could definitely be better.
And with the 24-hour triangle at the same distance from the center as the hour markers, can be difficult to differentiate.

May have been better to go with Maxi hands but non-Maxi dial markers--Rolex could have kept the dial markers the same size as before the ceramic models.
In general, I think the lume on the dial shouldn't overpower the lume on the hands. Because the hands have relatively poor lume, being unbalanced with the dial markers makes them look even more feeble.
The newer Explorer II really upsized the hand lume so that they dominate the dial markers, but the ExpII hands are almost too big.



GMTC on left, SubC on right.
The markers overwhelm the hands.



SubC on left, Audemars ROO 44mm chrono on right.
APs are not renowned for fantastic lume either, and the lume is pretty thin, but is clearly distinct, and the hands are not overshadowed by the dial markings.

[beshannon]

Originally Posted by MTROIS

...the intensity of the lume at night is pretty pathetic!!
I mean, it is so weak that you can't even tell the GMT hand from the hour dots.

I disagree

[9*9*3]

My new Sub is the first watch I've ever owned that was bright enough to tell me it was 3:30AM when I got up to pee.

[Syed117]

Anyone can hold their watch in the sun or charge it for a quick shot immediately after.

It's misleading to imply that the lume glows like a light at night. It doesn't. After a relatively short amount of time, all that is left is a faint glow.

All lume is disappointing to some degree. Rolex is no different. Their lume is about the same as other manufacturers.

I have heard great things about Ball, but haven't seen one in person.

[sickened1]

Originally Posted by Syed117

I have heard great things about Ball, but haven't seen one in person.

Ball's lume is crazy. Like a light show. lol I used to own one but it was just too thick and heavy for my wrist.



^ Ball's Spacemaster X-Lume (not mine).

[tkerrmd]

Originally Posted by MTROIS

...the intensity of the lume at night is pretty pathetic!!
I mean, it is so weak that you can't even tell the GMT hand from the hour dots.

I can't even tell you how much I love this watch, but coming from an Omega SMP watch where you could light up a room with the intensity of its lume, this is pretty disappointing. Especially for a "professional" watch.

Ok, I vented enough for now.
Carry on...

Agree not the best and many better...

[Syed117]

Originally Posted by sickened1

Ball's lume is crazy. Like a light show. lol I used to own one but it was just too thick and heavy for my wrist.

Awesome.

I might be crazy, but I want a ball watch just for the lume. The tube design is amazing.

[WatchinMD]

Originally Posted by sickened1

Ball's lume is crazy. Like a light show. lol I used to own one but it was just too thick and heavy for my wrist.



^ Ball's Spacemaster X-Lume (not mine).

Not a fan of Ball design in the daylight but that lume is awesome!

[marzzz]

With normal use I have no trouble seeing my BLNR throughout the night. Occasionally I shine an ultraviolet light at it just for fun, and then it really blazes for quite a long period of time afterward.

[WS9D]

Originally Posted by Tseg

I have a "value priced" Japanese watch whose lume blazes when I bring it in from the sun and turn off the lights. Within an hour or two I can't read anything on the dial.

My BLNR I can barely see when I turn off the lights but once my eyes adjust I can see it very well... and 10 hours later before dawn I can still read the time in a pitch black room.

I argue the BLNR lume is less dazzling but quite a bit more functional.

x2 but with my LN and sub. Not as bright as my planet ocean initially, but lasts a lot longer.

[JRT]

The lume of the BLNR is fantastic and much better than my Seiko GPS watch if they are charged in a same condition.

[GB-man]

I like the level of glow as it's enough for me to read it but not so much it disturbs my eyes while I'm falling asleep.

[sco]

My sub lasts through the night but wouldn't describe it as bright after a few hours.

[zama]

Not a Rolex strength IMHO

[DocHorton]

I have gotten into the habit of wearing a watch while I sleep as I usually get up before daylight and the room is still dark. Before bed I shine my iPhone flashlight on the watch for about 15-20 seconds, I can still easily read the time when I wake up in a dark room 5-7 hours later.

For the first hour or so it shines brightly enough that I could almost read with it.

[Lpugliese]

Have always thought the same thing

[polaris72]

What is the recommend amount of the time (outside during the daylight) for the lume to be effective during the night?

[MTROIS]

You really hit the nail on its head!

The 24-hour triangle is especially difficult to differentiate from the hour markers. I believe that the GMT hand is purposely shorter on the EXP II for this very reason.

Thanks for the comparison shot with the AP.

Cheers.

Originally Posted by eonflux

Rolex lume could definitely be better.

And with the 24-hour triangle at the same distance from the center as the hour markers, can be difficult to differentiate.



May have been better to go with Maxi hands but non-Maxi dial markers--Rolex could have kept the dial markers the same size as before the ceramic models.

In general, I think the lume on the dial shouldn't overpower the lume on the hands. Because the hands have relatively poor lume, being unbalanced with the dial markers makes them look even more feeble.

The newer Explorer II really upsized the hand lume so that they dominate the dial markers, but the ExpII hands are almost too big.







GMTC on left, SubC on right.

The markers overwhelm the hands.







SubC on left, Audemars ROO 44mm chrono on right.

APs are not renowned for fantastic lume either, and the lume is pretty thin, but is clearly distinct, and the hands are not overshadowed by the dial markings.

[yld2rob]

Tube lume is the best

[cruise_bone]

This is a stock photo of my Ball watch. The lume is fantastic. This is the best watch I have ever owned when it comes to being able to see the time anytime day or night in any situation.

I can not say the same about my DJii.

[JSI]

The Ball watches are tritium tubes not lume?

[T. Ferguson]

Originally Posted by eonflux

Rolex lume could definitely be better.
And with the 24-hour triangle at the same distance from the center as the hour markers, can be difficult to differentiate...

Not that it matters, you can't read the bezel in the dark anyway.

Since the tritium dials Rolex lume has never been much to write home about. Ball is kick ass in this regard but tritium tubes glow inherently and doesn't dim once the lights go out.

Admittedly my requirements are not what some are but so long as my lume lasts til the end of the movie in a dark theater I'm OK with it. If I absolutely need all night lume I'd get a cheap tritium tube piece. Other than that I'm not really looking for my nice Rolex to light up like the Vegas strip in most low light situations, like a nice restaurant for example. Since it doesn't have an alarm I don't use it to tell time in the middle of the night anyway.

[locutus49]

That is what I thought: tritium. And if so it has a five year life or so.

Originally Posted by JSI

The Ball watches are tritium tubes not lume?

[trackntrail]

Originally Posted by Syed117

I have heard great things about Ball, but haven't seen one in person.

I've got a Ball engineer master GMT II and the lume is ridiculous. Even for a somewhat dressy watch with small markers it's crazy bright and doesn't fade overnight due to the tritium tubes!

Edit: also the lifespan is not 5 years on the tubes, the half life of tritium is 12.5 years I believe. Ball claims a useful lifetime of 25 years and by then they would be 1/4 as bright as when they started out. Mine is 3 years old and just as bright as the day I bought it