Ulysse Nardin is clearly in the middle of an important restructuring process and updating most of its emblematic watches. After new watches in the Marine collection, it was time for the Diver to get a fresher look. Following last year’s evolutions on the 3-hand models, the brand now comes up with three new yet instantly recognizable Diver Chronographs.?Still imposing, still bold, still unmis...
The Royal Oak… A watch that needs no introduction anymore, a watch that’s so iconic that its popularity goes way beyond the confines of watch aficionados. However, if you look at Audemars Piguet’s catalogue, you’ll see that the collection is large (to say the least) and that it comprises dozens of versions. But today, we’ll focus on the two most important models, the ...
Recently I had the opportunity to enjoy spending some quality time with not one, but two exceptional timepieces from A. Lange & Sohne. Belonging to the same family, the Saxonia Moonphase and the Saxonia Outsize Date share a very similar aesthetic. In fact, from a distance, you could be forgiven for mistaking them as the same watch. But up close, on the wrist, each piece shows its individual pe...
If you’re into watches, the Oris Big Crown Pointer Date should be no stranger to you. In a few years, this watch has become the signature element of the pilot-oriented Big Crown collection, with its nice vintage design and practical function. Still, this apparently simple watch has a lot to tell, as it is far from a new design, and second, it actually helped to make Oris what it is today. Af...
Earlier this year, at the Swatch Group's independent Time to Move event, Omega introduced a chronograph version of its successful Seamaster Diver 300M. Equipped with all the design upgrades conferred on the standard three-hand model in 2018, the performance of James Bond's watch was notched up with a chronograph complication. Although the movement - Calibre 9900 – is not brand new, it featur...
2019 has been another hectic year for the watchmaking industry, with multiple announcements, debates on the pertinence of watch fairs and numerous novelties. But 2019 is coming to an end and it is time to look back at which were the best models introduced. After a look at our 5 favourite chronograph watches?and our 5? favourite dive watches, we’ll?now look at the traveller’s watch cate...
Founded in 1832, Longines is among the oldest registered watch brands in the world. It's no wonder that the company has a sizeable portfolio of faithful reissues in its Heritage collection. Look no further than the Avigation BigEye, Legend Diver or Type A-7 for recent examples. The Longines Heritage Military 1938 is the latest piece to join the collection with a design faithful to the 1938 origina...
If you didn’t know yet (well, now you’ll know), I have a soft spot for vintage-looking dive watches… I know, I’m weak – and I never dive – but when they are done right, I can’t help myself. I already had a thing for the Polaris Date, when JLC presented it at the SIHH 2018. More recently, the Grande Maison launched a limited edition with a rather funky, 197...
Vacheron Constantin interprets an Haute Horlogerie Christmas carol with a series of 12 unique pieces made by its Les Cabinotiers artisans and grouped under the title La Musique du Temps. As you might have guessed, they are all repeaters and hyper-exclusive editions limited to just one piece per model. Today, we take a look at four of these very special striking watches.The first chiming watch attr...
This is it The big news for Omega, the new James Bond watch! After a limited 007 edition based on the Seamaster Diver 300M celebrating the 50th anniversary of the 1969 film On Her Majesty's Secret Service, it is time for the real deal, the watch to be worn in the 25th opus of the 007 series, No Time to Die. And with its new titanium case, its military elements on the dial and caseback, its referen...
If you are looking for a vintage-inspired dive watch, the world is your playground. Especially since ambitious young watchmakers and marketeers heard about Kickstarter, new watch companies with old watches keep on popping up. One of the first out there was Aramar Watch Company, founded in 2010 with Kickstarter-funding and a nice vintage-inspired watch. Now, it’s back with a dive watch. Meet ...
Max Busser and Friends, or simply MB&F, was created as an avant-garde horological lab with a vision: gathering talents to create radical mechanical art pieces. For its latest creation, Busser got two of his long-time friends to collaborate for the first time; the discreet Finnish master Kari Voutilainen and the inventive Eric Coudray. The result of this collaboration is spectacular, to say the...
Manufacturer IWC Schaffhausen has dedicated two limited-edition Pilot's watches to Mercedes-AMG Petronas Motorsport, the renowned constructor of Formula One cars based in the UK. As the team's official engineering partner since 2013, IWC exploits the many parallels that exist between motor sport's premier competition and high-end watchmaking. Kitted out with the black and turquoise livery of Merce...
Here, at MONOCHROME, we adore watches. Mechanical, high-end watches, hand-finished. We're not really the right platform to write about smartwatches, or even quartz watches – this is our editorial choice, and we'll stick to that. But last week, Swatch introduced SwatchPAY!, and that is a big innovation. I actually believe that this new introduction could, in fact, change how a new generation ...
As 2019 is coming to an end, this is the perfect moment of the year to look back at what were the best models introduced. After a look at our 5 favourite chronograph watches (well, 6 in fact…), it is now time to look at what certainly is the most prolific category these days, with hundreds of new models/editions launched. And with more than 80 new dive watches covered here, on MONOCHROME, fo...
What to offer a real watch lover? Or what you, as a watch lover, can treat yourself to. We've got it all lined up! It is, in fact, our own wish list come true: handmade watch straps and watch rolls of the best possible quality at great prices. And of course, with plenty of guarantees. Find out for yourself. Here’s the MONOCHROME Christmas guide for real watch lovers!The Alligator StrapA beau...
You are all familiar with the Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Offshore Diver, a piece that has been in the ROO collection since 2010 designed for action men who want a robust companion for their extreme sports/lifestyle. What was once considered a big bad boy watch back in 1993 has now settled down and even its dimensions have become the accepted norm for sports watches. Every so often, AP refreshes its...
Earlier this year, Delma, the independent family-owned Swiss brand renowned for its deep dive watches, introduced the Cayman collection. A vintage-inspired diver, the Delma Cayman Automatic, like the reptile it is named after, is an amphibious watch as happy in the water as out. Water-resistant to 500m, retro 1970s styling, a Swiss automatic movement, three dial and bezel colours and multiple stra...
A few weeks ago, Omega introduced a new Bond-themed Seamaster Diver 300M, inspired by the 1969 film On Her Majesty's Secret Service, a watch that we experienced live and gave it a good, objective look. Based on the refreshed model launched in 2018, this limited edition showed multiple, rather blatant 007-inspired details, mainly visible on its dial. In addition to this specific reference, Omega is...
The World Is Not Enough does not only apply to James Bond… It could also work for Bernard Arnault, the CEO of the world’s largest luxury group: LVMH. Already the owner of some of the most prestigious fashion, leather goods, hotels, vineyards, perfumes, department stores and watch/jewellery brands, the French group has just announced a new name in its massive (to say the least) portfoli...
A few days ago an email from the IWC marketing team popped up in my inbox. Nothing unusual, and like always I had a quick look to see what the brand plans to communicate now. Maybe a new watch, another limited edition, or an update on the Silver Spitfire that is on its flight around the world? Nope, the email was about three videos featuring legendary watchmaker Kurt Klaus… and a smartwatch....
The end of the year is fast approaching, so it’s time for us to look back at the best watches 2019 brought to the watch community. And there were a lot of interesting novelties. So, we reunited the MONOCHROME team, debated and we today we start our “Best of 2019” series, looking at the five best chronographs of the year – in our opinion, that is… meaning that you̵...
In 2018, Audemars Piguet introduced a concept watch named RD#2. It was based on a Royal Oak, it was very thin, it was even 2mm thinner than the iconic Royal Oak “Jumbo” Extra-Thin 15202. The most impressive feature was that it even comprised a perpetual calendar. This year, Audemars Piguet introduces the final version of the RD#2, a watch named the Royal Oak Selfwinding Perpetual Calen...
If the name dates back to the 18th century, Ferdinand Berthoud was resurrected only recently by Chopard’s Karl-Friedrich Scheufele and his team. While manifesting respect to the Berthoud legacy, the brand’s first creations offer a superb, modern take on this heritage. These watches have received a remarkable accolade from the watch community and industry: at the GPHG, the Oscars of wat...
Recently launched movie Ford v. Ferrari is based on the true story of the failed attempt by the Ford Motor Company to purchase Ferrari and the subsequent efforts by Ford to produce a car to beat Ferrari at the prestigious 24 Hours of Le Mans. Paramount to the success of Ford GT40 that would finally beat Ferrari at Le Mans in 1966, was Carroll Shelby, a former American racing driver turned car desi...
After successfully funding its first collection via Kickstarter, Baltic Watches has managed to stand the test of time and to survive this inaugural series of watches. Even better, the small concept became a brand and has started to expand its collection – and there are many more watches to come (but we can’t tell you yet…) Today, we look at what Etienne Malec has created as his s...
Just a month after we celebrated the Art Blakey Jazz edition by Oris, the brand from Holstein introduces another, just as nice, jazz-inspired dressy piece in the same collection. This James Morrison edition really makes it quite hard for us to keep up with all these novelties, so let's see if the Oris James Morrison AoM Limited Edition lives up to the legend it's named after.Tribute to Jazz legend...
There are few brands as specialized in pilot’s watches as IWC… The brand has a long and rich pedigree in this field and, since the comeback of the collection in the mid-1990s with the Ref. 3711 and Ref. 3706, IWC has collaborated with some of the greatest squadrons and special forces – including Top Gun. Recently, the Schaffhausen-based brand?has become an official licensee of th...
Possibly the most handsome iteration of the Seamaster Diver 300M (discreetly) unveiled earlier this year, this white ceramic dial model is now officially in stores. Taking advantage of this long-awaited moment for many Omega fans, we're going to take a closer look at the Omega Seamaster Diver 300M with White Dial, a watch whose powerful design and technical prowess have catapulted it to cinematic ...
If you want to get a good understanding of a watch company, visiting the manufacture is really something you should plan. This is how you truly discover how a manufacture builds its watches, defines quality, and find out what is made “in-house”. IWC was born from an industrial vision, as F.A. Jones set up his manufacture next to the river Rhine. Here, he could combine American producti...