ChronoWatch X2040 Is A Clean, Reproducible RP2040 Round-Display Watch

Not every DIY watch needs to push a new idea to be worth a look — sometimes the value is in how cleanly a familiar formula gets executed. ChronoWatch X2040, built by Vishalsoniindia, is a round-display RP2040 watch done with enough documentation that someone else could realistically build their own copy.

What They Built

The watch is built around a Waveshare RP2040 Round 1.28-inch touch display, housed in a three-part case designed in Tinkercad and 3D printed in ABS. It includes multiple selectable watch faces, adjustable 12/24-hour time and date settings, brightness control, a stopwatch, and a sleep-timer mode for battery management — all controlled entirely through the touchscreen, with no companion app or phone pairing required.

How They Did It

The case design splits sensibly into a body section that holds the display, battery, and strap mounts, a locking front ring that keeps the display seated, and a screwed-on back for serviceability. Heat-set inserts give the printed plastic real metal threads to screw into, and an Apple Watch strap handles the wrist fit rather than a custom-designed band — a practical shortcut that saves a fair amount of design time without hurting the final result.

Why It’s Worth Your Time

It’s a solid “build this yourself” entry point into round-display RP2040 watches: less novel than some of the other projects we’ve covered, but the firmware, schematics, and 3D files are all published and the build steps are genuinely followable.

Go See It

Vishalsoniindia’s full writeup, code, and design files are on Hackster.io, with source on GitHub.