The Hamilton Pulsar P1 “Time Computer”, launched in 1972, is the first digital electronic wristwatch. It has a solid 18 kt yellow gold case and a red LED display that stays dark until you press a button, then shows the hours and minutes, and the seconds on a second press. It was powered by a battery and a quartz-controlled electronic module, and it was sold for about 2,100 US dollars, roughly the price of a small car at the time. Sources put the gold run at about 400 pieces.

The Pulsar began as a project by the Electro/Data company, which Hamilton took over; its marketing as a “Time Computer” tied it to the space age, and it appeared on Roger Moore’s wrist in the 1973 Bond film Live and Let Die. Cheaper steel LED models followed in 1973 and the price fell quickly, which made the gold P1 a short-lived luxury object.

Collectors see the P1 as the symbol of the quartz and digital revolution and a landmark piece of Hamilton history, although condition and a working module matter a great deal, as early LED modules are fragile. The original is no longer produced; Hamilton reissued it in 2020 as a limited-edition Pulsar P1.