While the focus of this year for IWC is, undoubtedly, the return of the Genta-styled Ingenieur watch, relaunched with great fanfare in 4 different editions (including a handsome, yet costly titanium model), there is, of course, more to expect from the Schaffhausen brand.?You secretive little thing, IWC…! We’ve recently presented the new green, steel case Big Pilot Perpetual Calendar. I...
Swiss brand Fortis has been under a drastic restructuring in recent years, with almost all collections being discontinued. There was, of course, an ambitious plan behind this bold move, a complete overhaul of the brand that materialized with the introduction of a brand new Flieger collection in 2020. Fortis being Fortis, this typology of watches was much anticipated and the result took the shape o...
Bulgari is becoming a force to contend with in the watchmaking arena, and not just because of its ultra-thin, razor-sharp Octo Finissimo range that has scaled the podium to achieve ‘iconic’ stature in less than a decade. As Rome’s most celebrated jeweller, Bulgari’s high-jewellery watches are no less spectacular. And we’re not just talking about women’s high jew...
In 1997, Patek Philippe presented the Aquanaut Ref. 5060A, a sports watch with a rubber strap, heavily inspired by the design of Nautilus. It was aimed at a new and younger clientele with fast money to spend, looking for a fresher and sportier alternative to an already established model. Twenty-six years later, the Aquanaut collection comprises twenty references, nearly as many as the Nautilus, bo...
If Watches & Wonders is, by far, the most important event of the year for the watch industry (because of the sheer number of exhibiting brands, participants and new models presented), another smaller yet highly interesting event has been taking place in watch-town since 2020. A different take on the watch salon, more relaxed, staged in lakeshore locations and open to the public, Geneva Watch D...
The most complicated watch in the casually-chic AT collection, the Omega Seamaster Aqua Terra Worldtimer has been around for some years now, undergoing several updates since its introduction in 2017 – back then in a highly luxurious platinum edition. Now part of the permanent collection in either stainless steel or Sedna gold, with a blue central world map, the complex and travel-oriented wa...
Partners Joseph Ollech and Albert Wajs started their adventure in watchmaking, distributing Omegas and Breitlings from their watch shop in Zurich. In 1956 they decided to create their own brand specialising in robust tool watches, much appreciated by soldiers, divers and pilots. One of the few companies to ride out the quartz storm by reducing production, after Ollech died in 1992, Wajs renamed th...
During Watches & Wonders 2023, Zenith unveiled an entirely new Pilot collection that radically changed the flight path of this storied collection. As a brand with legitimate pilot watch credentials, dating to Louis Bleriot’s successful cross-Channel flight in a monoplane in 1909 with a ‘Special’ Zenith wristwatch strapped to his wrist, the brand’s decision to jettison t...
One of the largest brands in the watch industry, Tissot is typically regarded as a solid watchmaker founded upon strong pillars and coherent collections. There is, of course, the successful PRX range?in the integrated bracelet sports watch segment. There are dive watches with the Seastar, a classic all-rounder with the Gentleman The collection we are looking at today is a classic, dressy watch nam...
When you associate Snoopy with watchmaking, you might immediately think about Omega and the Speedmaster. Obviously… But the reason why you can find the cute beagle on the dial of the most legendary space watch has actually far more to do with NASA than the comic strip Peanuts by Charles M. Schulz. Nevertheless, this gave birth to some of the coolest Speedies around – but also some of t...
Very few of us watch nuts are fortunate enough to hunt down and acquire tourbillons, minute repeaters or perpetual calendar watches. There’s no denying the appeal of such complex mechanical marvels, but there’s just as much fun (if not more) to be found on the lower end of the spectrum. And while we’ve compiled many lists of this year’s best sports watches, calendar watches...
Oris has consolidated a solid reputation for its resilient, purpose-built dive, pilot and sports watches that do the job in style without breaking the bank. The Aquis family of sporty, high-performance dive watches is one of the most popular, and its 43.5mm Aquis Date was the first to be powered by the brand’s powerful manufacture automatic movement in 2020. For 2023, Oris welcomes attractiv...
Released in 2020, the Carrera Chronograph 44mm marked the revamp of the collection, which now comprises various models ranging from classic to vintage-inspired, and sporty with this larger model. Equipped with the in-house Heuer 02 movement, it will form next to the sleeker 42mm the cornerstone of the modern Carrera line. When first presented by TAG Heuer, 4 editions were at the heart of this sub-...
Swiss?manufacturer?Hublot has made a name for itself experimenting with new materials through what the brand calls the Art of Fusion. Released in partnership with Nespresso, the latest limited edition Big Bang uses recycled Nespresso aluminium capsules and coffee grounds to craft its case and strap. Indeed, the Swiss coffee company is working on ways to limit the impact of its single-use capsules....
The annual calendar chronograph is a thoroughbred Patek Philippe product, a testament to the brand's impressive talent for combining complications and inventiveness. Invented and patented by Patek, the annual calendar complication debuted in 1996 and ten years later, it was married to a flyback chronograph (with the reference 5960). More robust than a perpetual calendar and chronograph combo and a...
It can be hard to get excited about “another dive watch” from “another microbrand,” but the latest Concordia Automatic Kraken from French-based Charlie Paris is not your typical offering. The stealthy aesthetics, Swiss automatic and comfortable depth rating push it above familiar Seiko or Miyota-powered divers that currently flood the market. Charlie Paris isn't a newcomer,...
A few weeks ago, Seiko announced the introduction of a new size within the classic 5 Sports SKX Series – understand by that dive-inspired models bringing back the flair of the emblematic SKX007 watch. And we were offered a so-called mid-size case, in line with the current downsizing trend. No need to say, we were pretty excited by this new launch. Recently, Seiko has done a great job within ...
If you’re a regular reader of MONOCHROME, you might remember this article from 2022. Indeed, the now-called Aqua Terra Shades Collection isn’t entirely new. It has been teased about a year ago when Omega presented 10 new models in its classic, time-and-date Seamaster collection, all adorned with colourful dials inspired by nature and newly-finished cases. However, two comments have to ...
Announced in 2019, the partnership between Vacheron Constantin and Le Louvre in Paris now goes a step further. In 2020, the Bid for the Louvre charity offered the opportunity for a buyer to customize a watch featuring one of the museum collection's artworks on its dial – with the proceeds of the auction bid going to the museum's solidarity projects. The unique piece watch born in the frame o...
The original Bulgari Aluminium watch was released in 1998 and caused quite a sensation. A hit-watch back in the days, it was cool, different and slightly provocative. A cult model for the brand that even made it on the side of an Alitalia Boeing 747. In 2020, Italian brand Bulgari relaunched this emblematic watch?in a design that remained faithful to the original one, but with major technical impr...
Born in 1963 and named after the dangerous Carrera Panamericana race, the uncluttered, legible design of Jack Heuer’s sporty Carrera chronograph for racing drivers has contributed to its enduring success. Turning sixty this year, TAG Heuer unveiled three higher-end Carrera chronographs with an intriguing Glassbox design during Watches & Wonders 2023. The new Glassbox models pick up on th...
Although we saw plenty of very cool and innovative watches, it’s hard to ignore the continuing popularity of the luxury sports watch. With iconic entries like the Royal Oak and Nautilus still being very hard to obtain – both for their premium prices and limited supply – we’re always happy to spot alternatives. From indie brands to mainstream names and haute-horlogerie manuf...
Hublot has forged its identity on a fusion of state-of-the-art materials and extroverted watches, personified by the Big Bang collection. Similar to the differences between the original Royal Oak and the beefier, more aggressive temperament of the Royal Oak Offshore, Hublot's original Classic Fusion of 1980 was fed a steady diet of testosterone to grow in stature and become the bigger and bolder B...
Roger Dubuis' Excalibur line takes inspiration from the Arthurian legend and, since 2005, has been a flagship collection for the Geneva-based brand. Appearing with a recreation of King Arthur's Round Table, complete with miniature sculpted knights, the Excalibur has always felt comfortable about stripping off and showing off its avant-garde skeletonised mechanics. The latest Excalibur Monobalancie...
The words in-house and manufacture have been used and abused by the watchmaking industry for many years. Yet, the reality is somewhat different. This isn’t a bad thing, actually, because vertical integration is not an end in itself. And it has never been; watchmaking was born as a cottage industry. When it comes to movements, many brands source their engines (and many parts, for that matter)...
It is not a secret anymore that Frederique Constant has built its success around accessible luxury watches. The idea has long been to provide complications and in-house movements (at least within the Manufacture collection) at almost unprecedented price levels. Remember the brand’s take on the perpetual calendar? Less than 8k euros at launch time. Same with the Highlife Tourbillon Perpetual ...
It has been eight years since Patek Philippe launched a Pilot-style watch. It was the unexpected Travel Time 5524G, a watch that caused a lot of discussions, mainly due to its controversial appearance and a confusing attachment to the Calatrava family. The inaugural reference, the variants to follow, including the now-discontinued 7234, and the 2019 Calatrava Pilot Alarm Travel Time 5520P, with it...
The Rado Captain Cook collection is a skilful blend of retro vibes and high-tech materials. Ok, it’s also available in more conventional stainless steel or bronze but the high-tech ceramic models will always be a bit extra special. It displays Rado’s industry-leading know-how of the material and the brand’s ability to apply it to any style of watch. Over the past couple of years,...
Ten years… That’s how long the partnership between Swiss watchmaker IWC Schaffhausen and Mercedes-AMG Petronas Formula One Team is… And this connection has seen the creation of multiple watches, either dedicated to the world of motorsport in general, to the pilots of the team (Lewis Hamilton first and foremost), to its boss or to the team itself. The most focused watch in the lin...
One of the best marketing tools for a watch brand is an exciting, real-life action story. Whether providing field, dive, or even marine chronometer watches for US Army and Navy servicemen or appearing in cameos on the silver screen, many of Hamilton‘s historical watches have seen their fair share of action. The Frogman, Hamilton’s tough diver, got real-life experience with the US Navy&...