We have managed to obtain another of these brilliant Radiation Monitor Wristwatches - so eat your heart out James Bond! This is no movie prop, it's the real deal, a wristwatch radiation monitor; it even tells the time! The Polimaster PM1208 comes from one of the world's leading manufacturers of radiation measuring instruments, combined with fine Swiss engineering (the analogue watch bit...). 

Okay, it's all very clever, but why would any normal person want such a thing? Well, apart from the fact that it's a really great-looking watch, and an easy winner in any who's-got-the-weirdest-watch contest. It's also a serious piece of kit. It’s for anyone interested in their environment who wants to keep an eye on exposure to natural and man-made ionising radiation.  All you have to do is check your watch - it will even sound an alert if it rises above normal background levels.

It is also for those who may come into contact with radiation and radioactive materials in their daily lives, and not just those who do atomic stuff for a living... Anyone undergoing radiotherapy treatment, X-Ray investigations, even frequent flyers, are all routinely exposed to varying levels of above normal radiation. Those in the business definitely need keep an eye on their exposure; that includes hospital workers in X-Ray, radiology and radiological medicine departments, emergency and security personnel, the military, first responders and not forgetting airline pilots and of course people employed in the nuclear industry.

The list goes on; geologists, mineralogists, miners, antique dealers and collectors, watch repairers, even kitchen installers (granite worktops may contain naturally occurring traces of uranium...) and so on. All of them can come into contact with radioactive materials in the course of their work.

There’s plenty of others but let’s see what it does, and how it does it. First the obvious bit, there's the accurate quartz analogue watch movement with luminous hands and, for good measure, it also has a digital quartz LCD display, showing hours, minutes, seconds, day, month and year, plus a daily alarm function. An electroluminescent back-light panel illuminates the display so it can be read at night and the tough but stylish stainless steel case is water-resistant and rated for depths of up to 100 metres (328 feet) for short periods.

Now for the science stuff. At its heart is a Geiger Müller tube detector, sensitive to gamma and X-Ray radiation. The associated electronic circuitry carries out two measurements:  Dose Equivalent Rate (DER) and Dose Equivalent (DE), and both parameters have user-settable alarms to alert the wearer if the levels exceed a preset threshold.

Dose Equivalent measures how much radiation is absorbed biological tissue (your body) and is an indication of potential health effects. The results are displayed in standard units called millisieverts (mSv). Dose Equivalent Rate measures exposure in relation to time and the constantly updated display shows the results in microsieverts per hour (µSv/hr).

To round off the key features, the Polimaster 1208 has analogue bargraph indicators showing approximate percentage of DE and DER in relation to thresholds, a low battery indicator, full -function reset button, switchable alarm mute. It is fitted with a high quality metal strap and it comes with the original instructions in Russian and a full English translation.

Time to get technical:

• Energy Range                                        0.066 - 1.5MeV
  
• Detector Type                                       Geiger Müller tube
  
• DER Indication & Threshold range             0.01 to 4,000 µSv/hr
  
• DER Indication Accuracy                          +/- 30 %
  
• DE Indication & Threshold Range               0.01 to 9999.99 mSv
  
• DE Indication Accuracy                             +/- 25 %                               
• Alarm types                                            Audible & visual
  
• Battery type                                           1 x CR2032 (supplied)
  
• Battery Life                                             Min 12 months from new battery installation
  
• Operating range                                       -50 to + 50 degrees C
  
• Weight                                                   188g with strap
  
• Approximate Dimensions                           52 x 20mm (without strap) 
• FREE Postage for UK Buyers
  

Non-UK Buyers: Please Contact Us at the bottom of the page for courier shipping cost