watch reccomendations??  

The choice of a watch...
is very personal...like clothing this piece of "weareble technology" expresses, wether we want it or not, part of who we are.
I am very happy with a black face version of the swiss railway station watch. Good luck in your choice.
http://www.princetonwatches.com/shop/94145.asp

Which watch?...
Like Koen i think this is a personal choice, also dependant on which mood your in, sometimes a Bling mood and sometimes a more serious minimalist mood. I have an old Longines c.1920 for my serious days and an old Rolex for my show off days. Having said that though i have just noticed that they both look quite plain!, a bit like me!! ha.

Akteo
I've been wearing an Akteo watch for years. It's a plain white face with little slashes for 12-3-6-9. I like the simple styling and the off-set angle for the stem. I couldn't find an exact example on-line, but this one is close minus the themed flag design.
http://www.teno.com/america-lg.html

So many watches so little
So many watches so little time. Honestly, I think if you work at it, you can get two or three, maybe several, for a reasonable amount of money. I like Vivienne's take, the more the merrier, a big old vintage Rado on weekdays and something else for the weekend, but if I had to choose only one, and if I had the money, it would probably be Ikepod.

Watch choice
As most of the posters here have stated, a watch is a very personal choice. You should select that which suits you best. I will say however if you wish to make this purchase only once in a lifetime and wear it forever going forward, then it should be something durable, waterproof (not simply water resistant) few watches are actually waterproof. They require a screwdown crown as is standard on most Rolexes. I purchased a Rolex Submariner back in the early 80's upon graduating from college, yes it was the so called "Go-Go" eighties and they were very much in vogue, but it has served me more than faithfully. It has been on my wrist every day since I purchased it. In the shower, the pool, ocean, washing the car, building a stone wall, all manner of abuse, and keeps perfect time. It has a self winding movement, therefore it never needs a battery, big easy to read face (night or day) and has a handy rotating bezel to time parking meters or a steak on the BBQ. Equally at home with jeans or a tuxedo. I'm not sure a $200. watch will still be on your wrist 25 years from now as my Rolex has. I would highly recommend this brand and adore the fact that it is an item that will outlast me and probably keep ticking long after my ticker has gone kaput.

I have a watch by Piero...
I have a watch by Piero Lissoni that I love. Simple.
http://www.retromodern.com/item_detail.asp?5329.

NICE WATCHES
.
andyallen and koen,
The achille castiglioni record series:

...and the swiss railway station are both gorgeous watches.

To andyallen- I say get the achille, it's pretty stunning, yet not ostentatious.
And damn, you can't beat the price. You're making me want one.
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For years I wore the most basic Lorus I could find-
The Lorus Easy Reader 829:

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When I got married, my family gave me a TAG Heuer 2000 Classic in black as my wedding gift. Judging by the selling price on this one here, I see that it has not held its resell value well.

.

What I appreciate..
most in the Achille Castiglioni watch is the lack of a visible attachment of the strap. I do not know if anyone remembers a watch designed by one of the students in HfG Ulm which had the same feature. If I remember it properly the strap passed through two flat wire loops under the watch. It was designed early sixties...I suspect that it never went into production, but I hope to be wrong.

i prefer simple watches....
i prefer simple watches. like omega speedmaster, junghans max bill or nomos watches.
i own the max bill version as wall-clock and wrist watch an it looks really good.
[img] http://ec1.images-amazon.com/images/P/B000EJPDOK.01-A29VPP2HAR5B51._AA28...http://www.omegawatches.com/
[img] [/img] http://www.junghans.de
[img] [/img] http://www.glashuette.com/de/uhren.html

Anonymous perfection
For sheer unpretentious function, I find the S and Y military watch unbeatable. No more bells and whistles than a normal person (sedentary me) needs; no ostentatious bling; unmatched readability in the dark -- and no goddam logo on the face. I'm not nuts about the strap shown in the photo (see link), but there's a plain mesh one at www.projects-us.com that does the trick.
http://www.lapolicegear.com/h3trtrp59ty3.html

IWC rulezzzz
Me, myself & I bought a few years back an IWC Fliegeruhr UTC (been in love with this watch for years). If I could afford it I would buy a Rolex and IWC Portegieser too, but they are all very expensive.
I affordable option would be the Tissot Le Cocle
[img] [/img]
(timeless design & self winding)
The designaddict with a unlimited budget would probably buy a Jaquet Droz http://www.jaquet-droz.ch/

I found....
the name of the "student" of the HfG Ulm. Now a highly regarded member of the academic community in Design education in the U.S. (see link).
Reinhart Butter designed a watch as a project with no other than Bruce Archer at that point 1960-1961-2? visiting professor at the HfG Ulm. It certainly is a "Cleaner" watch than the Max Bill Junghans. I have no picture of it but a search under Reinhart Butter might show something
http://www.design.osu.edu/.../2faculty/a_faculty_profiles/design_fac_pro... -

I will re-write the link
instead of the usual trouble with cut and past....
http://www.design.osu.edu/design_faculty_profiles_2005/2faculty/a_facult...

hm...
Yes, this was the watch link I was looking for.