Nomad Glow in the Dark Sport Band Hands On

While most third-party Apple Watch bands try to stand out during the day, in the light, Nomad is taking the opposite approach with its Glow in the Dark Sport Band. Whether for safety or personality, this watch band is certainly unique.

Nomad Glow in the Dark Sport Band

Glow in the Dark Sport Band transitions from an off-white daytime color to a captivating glowing green in darker conditions. This remarkable FKM is finished with a subtle microtexture for a smooth satin finish.

Material

FKM rubber

Compatibility

Apple Watch 49mm, 45mm, 44mm, and 42mm (Series 1-8, SE, and Ultra)

Pros

• Nice fit with robust hole sizing
• Quality materials
• Nice white color during the day

Cons

• Could glow brighter for longer
• As costly as an Apple band

Glow in the Dark Sport Band Look and Feel

I showed my wife the off-white band on my wrist during the day, and she didn’t blink an eye. She said it looked nice but then carried on with what she was doing. Then I showed her how it can glow in the dark. I think her exact words were, “Oh, wow.” I’ll leave the tone of those words to your imagination.

Regardless of whether she was into the glowing green alternate ego in the dark, I liked it. I liked the idea of this Glow in the Dark Sport Band being secretly two-faced. It’s subtle and casual during the day and bright and bold at night—or when directly moved to the dark.

Interestingly, after wearing the band for a few days, I noticed, or didn’t notice, much of a continuous glow. The band glowed brightly when walking from direct sunlight to a dark room, but I never really experienced that scenario naturally. Instead, the more common visual was a very faint hint of green in lower-light areas. By the time nighttime rolled around, I didn’t see much glow.

This isn’t to say this Sport Band doesn’t work, because it does. This is more about realizing how it works in practice, in real-world situations. For example, I thought it could be a neat band to use for running at night with an Apple Watch Ultra. Once dusk and darkness approached, however, the Glow in the Dark Sport Band wasn’t bright enough to be a meaningful visual aid. In practice, I could see it in the dark, but only faintly.

Instead of running at night, I now imagine more extreme use cases for surfers and other adventurers appreciating the green glow while out in their element. Going from the bright sunlight outside to quickly dunking beneath the water into darkness, or the darkness of caves, might be a great use of the band.

The Sport Band is FKM fluoroelastomer rubber like the other colors on Nomad’s website. It’s less smooth and flexible than Apple’s standard band, but I didn’t think it was too hard or rigid. I found it very comfortable to wear all day, with enough pin holes to fit my wrist. However, it was on the longer side, which could affect people with smaller wrists.

Nomad Glow in the Dark Sport Band Price and Availability

Much like Nomad’s other colorful Apple Watch bands, this glow-in-the-dark model is a limited edition. It carries a $60 retail price and likely will only be around for a short time.

Should You Buy the Nomad Glow in the Dark Sport Band?

I’ve liked all the different Sport Bands Nomad has made in bold colors. Above all else, they’ve been fun. In this case, the Glow in the Dark Sport Band is maybe the most fun. Its day-time muted-white persona is understated, but I loved its broad fashion sense—it worked with all clothing styles.

The band fit well and remained comfortable all day, so it’s a viable third-party band option. For people jumping between light and dark, the band works perfectly. But in most natural occurrences, I didn’t find its glow bright enough for long enough as the day turned into night.

Nomad Glow in the Dark Sport Band

Glow in the Dark Sport Band transitions from an off-white daytime color to a captivating glowing green in darker conditions. This remarkable FKM is finished with a subtle microtexture for a smooth satin finish.