don't forget that watches are just a mechanical simulation of a sundial
I disagree. Sundials are rubbish for telling time and they look different throughout the year. A (decent) watch does not attempt to replicate the inadequacy of a sundial; it just tells you the time.
It could also be said that mechanical watches are rubbish for keeping time compared to their digital counterparts. Always gradually moving away from accurate timekeeping, they must be rewound to keep proper time. They don't sync with the official time distribution services so are not guaranteed to be accurate.
