This Wristwatch Has Some of the Tiniest Freeform Circuitry We’ve Seen

Wristwatches these days mostly come in two varieties: smartwatches that are basically just smartphones with a strap, and expensive fashion watches intended to be stylish. If you’re interested in the latter, you’re probably out of luck unless your style is either “mob boss” or “CEO with something to prove.” Mile’s Skeleton Watch, on the other hand, is a freeform circuit sculpture that is totally geek chic.

Whereas most of the other freeform electronics we’ve featured recently are designed to sit prettily on a shelf, the Skeleton Watch is meant to be worn. The display is a 0.96" 128x64 OLED screen, and a magnifying lens on top gives it a cool distorted effect, while also making the delicate freeform circuitry stand out. The lens snaps right into a frame made from relatively thick copper wire, and the frame sits on a nifty camo watch band.

But, it’s that gossamer circuitry that makes this Skeleton Watch so impressive. Unlike most of the freeform circuits we’ve seen, which use larger through-hole components, the Skeleton Watch is built on a small ATmega328P-AU microcontroller intended for surface-mount soldering. That necessitates the use of very thin wire, which Mile has bent and soldered together beautifully. The ATmega and other components would have been difficult to solder on a PCB, so the fact that they were soldered freeform is a substantial achievement. It also looks a lot cooler than a gaudy gold Rolex.