Latest watch news · Page 88

What We Know Today, Longines follows up its 2024 release of the Conquest Heritage Central Power Reserve with a new colorway, adding a light blue opaline dial to the mix. Yes, this one's just a new dial color, but it offers a completely different feel from the three previous models in the very conservative shades of cream, grey, and black. The Conquest Heritage Central Power Reserve serves as an homage to a 1959 model from the brand with the same kind of power reserve indication, but you can bet that they weren't doing light blue in this watch back in the day. The hue on the front is a refreshing change, but the styling on the dial otherwise remains the same, with a sector dial framing the unique power reserve indicator right in the center. What makes it interesting is that the power reserve isn't just displayed by a rotating pointer, but rather by a dance between the two discs of the power-reserve hours track and the inner pointer.  This means that, depending on how you've wound the watch, the positioning of the pointer from full to empty may not always be the same on the dial. This certainly makes for a less intuitive setup, though in all fairness, this piece of information is probably secondary compared to the time and date, for things you'd need at a glance. A date window sits at twelve o'clock, nicely framed in an appliqué, and is accompanied by applied hour markers throughout. The case is well-proportioned for a wide range of wrist sizes, although rather tall for a ...

Have you seen a rainbow anywhere lately? I haven’t, but every time I see one, I think about the pot of gold that’s supposed to be sitting right at the end of it. Independent watch brand Awake also makes me think there’s a connection between the two. Lex recently went hands-on with the Sơn Mài […] Visit After Giving Us The Rainbow, Awake Now Gets Us The Pot Of Gold With The New Sơn Mài Frosted Leaf Royal Blue to read the full article.

Bringing the original high-tech ceramic timepiece back to the catalogue with full 80s style in black and gold.

When I first saw this watch, it immediately started the iconic tune of the 1980s cult TV show Airwolf, centred around a top-secret supersonic helicopter operated by a fellow named Stringfellow Hawke. Aired from 1984 to 1987, it followed in the footsteps of shows like Knight Rider, The A-Team and Robocop. This new Bell & […]

I suppose that out of all of my teammates, I come from the hottest place. Perhaps Nacho, with his Spanish roots, ties with me, but South Florida probably wins on humidity. Therefore, I’ve technically lived with summer watches for most of my life. While Balazs and I discussed this curious sub-genre on a recent Fratello On […] Visit The Best Summer Watches: Mike’s Five Picks From Rolex, Synchron, Victorinox, TAG Heuer, And Hamilton to read the full article.

In all four seasons of the Fratello Talks podcast, we’ve never dedicated an episode to watch dials. We thought it was about time to change that. The dial is one of the most important parts of a watch, as it’s the “face” that gets the most attention when checking the time. It often draws the […] Visit Fratello Talks: Texture, Color, Stone — Let’s Talk Dials to read the full article.

Citizen enhances their The Citizen collection with a dial made using the shibori dying method to depict mist like patterns on indigo on the dial.

American watchmaking seems to be on the rebound, though it bears repeating that the number of brands doing substantial work within the 50 states remains low. On the eve of the nation’s 250th birthday, we examine another aspect of the domestic watch industry: the state of its watchmaking training system. To bring this topic into focus, we visited the Watch Technology Institute (WTI) at North Seattle College (NSC) — the last remaining full-time public watchmaking programme in the US capable of granting a major certification. The Watch Technology Institute at North Seattle College. Image – WTI The state of watch education in the United States The United States was once a watchmaking powerhouse that forced a massive shift toward industrialised watchmaking in Switzerland. But the domestic industry faltered as consumer tastes shifted to favour wristwatches, and the nation’s industrialists effectively gave up on watchmaking to focus on other markets. That explains why most American watchmakers today are oriented toward the service and maintenance of Swiss-made watches. There’s been a renewed emphasis in recent years on making complete watches in the US — J.N. Shapiro’s Resurgence is a representative example — but the needs and trends of the broader market help explain America’s increasingly consolidated training landscape. Understanding WTI and SAWTA The history of WTI dates to the post-war era, when a large number of vocational schools were opened in the US to ...

Why Patek Philippe, Audemars Piguet, and Vacheron Constantin sit alone at the top of the watch hierarchy, why Rolex isn't in the conversation, and which of the three is the right buy depending on what you actually care about. The Holy Trinity of watches explained: Patek, AP, Vacheron. Why these three sit alone, why Rolex isn't in the room, and how to choose one as a collector.

The Ultra-Cermet sports chronograph returns in a Mineral Blue colorway that's hard to ignore. Parmigiani Tonda PF Sport Chrono Ultra-Cermet Mineral Blue: sintered cermet case, blue dial, matching rubber strap. Weekend weapon, colour-refreshed.

Editor’s Note: A break this week from reader submissions of our ongoing 3 for 5k column to make room for an entry from Worn & Wound contributor Cait Bazemore.  Cait is a watch industry veteran and her choices reflect her experience in the space in an interesting way. Specifically, they are all tied to her connections with the people behind the brands. This is a phenomenon most of us who work in watches for any length of time eventually come to understand. It just feels good to support the people we connect with (even when it’s hypothetical support for a Worn & Wound column). And honestly, this isn’t exclusive to watch industry professionals. Anyone who has attended a Windup event or any other watch fair and taken a minute to speak with a brand owner can probably relate.  Today, I notch another rite of passage as a contributor at Worn & Wound: my three-watch collection for under $5,000. The mission is clear, but I have to be honest, it was much more challenging than I expected. This exercise taught me a lot about myself, what I value, and how that actually translates to a dollar figure. I’ll confess, I realized a majority of my most desired watches sit around the $2,700 to $3,300 range – multiply that times three, and the total is well over the $5,000 mark. I had to carefully consider three timepieces that fell roughly around $1,500 each and that would make a well-rounded three-watch collection: a dress watch, a sport watch, and a wild card seemed like obvious ...

Among the ever-evolving sizes and colors of modern Tudor, we now have the latest (and smallest and most colorful) iteration of the brand's dive-inspired chronograph, the Black Bay Chronograph 39. Dubbed the "Bumblebee" for its bright yellow dial and black accents, it marks the progressive 39-ification of Tudor's core lineup and forms what I think will be a very appealing new offering for the brand. When Tudor returned to the American market in 2012, the brand's core offerings evolved around an initial 41mm footprint. This includes early hits like the Black Bay, the Heritage Chrono, and the Ranger. Then, in 2017, Tudor announced the Black Bay Chronograph 79350, a 41mm steel chronograph with 200 meters of water resistance and snowflake hands. Since then, the Black Bay Chronograph range has been tweaked, improved, and expanded considerably, with additional colors (including the recent pink and flamingo blue). But while we saw the Black Bay eventually offer the 39mm 58 range and the Ranger drop to 39mm (and later to 36mm), the Chronograph range remained steadfast at 41mm. While 41mm is within the range for a conventionally sized modern sports watch, the enthusiast taste has shifted toward the 39mm sweet spot (likely at least in part due to the success of the Black Bay 58 and the Pelagos 39). Additionally, as slightly smaller cases continue to be in vogue, more attention is (and was) being paid to case thickness. The 41mm spec of the Black Bay Chrono wears well, but it's not sm...

Since its revival in 2017, the Captain Cook has become one of Rado’s greatest success stories. Originally introduced in 1962, the collection has grown into a very diverse family, ranging from compact vintage-inspired divers to high-tech ceramic models, skeleton watches and chronographs. Rado has also experimented with materials, colours and finishes while preserving the distinctive character […]

Temporal Works, the brand brought to you by Armoury founder Mark Cho and the Armoury’s creative director Elliot Hammer, is only about six months removed from their first release at the end of last year. Today, they’ve unveiled the next watch in their Series A collection, dubbed the Rambler. It’s a slight tweak on the simple idea that defined the Series A in the first place. According to Cho, he thought of that watch as something that should be as straightforward and effortlessly elegant as a well tailored navy blazer. If that first batch of Series A watches could be thought of as trading in a somewhat elevated level of refinement, the new Series A Rambler takes a similar approach but with a more rugged perspective.  The new Rambler takes a more tool watch forward approach than its predecessor in a few key ways. First, the case has been finished with a bead blasting process and forgoes the polishing of the original Series A, making it immediately more of a casual, toned down piece. Matte dials in “Black Sesame” and “Red Bean” feel both classic and kind of earthy, with handset designs borrowed from historic pilot watches. It’s a tasteful, sector dial with the brand’s logo appearing at the 4:00 position, and no additional text to speak of. Straps are also appropriately casual, with the black dial pairing with an olive canvas strap, and the red dial one in gray Alcantara.  The Series A Rambler is sized at 37mm in diameter and 45mm from lug to lug. It’s 10...

Former Audemars Piguet Chief Executive François-Henri Bennahmias unveiled details of a new watch brand called N3W5 that will launch in late 2027 and draw on some significant names from the Swiss industry for the design, production, and craftsmanship.  Called 'N3W5' - an acronym for 'North, East, West, South' and pronounced 'NEWS,' the new marque will launch at Dubai Watch Week next year, the Honourable Merchants Group, the Bennahmias-led luxury brand constellation, said in a statement. Watch prices for the first models will start at about CHF 20,000, and production will commence at 'several thousand pieces' in the first year. A second collection will debut in 2028, according to the company's plans. François-Henri Bennahmias at an event in Crissier, Switzerland, introducing The Honourable Merchants Group. The news of N3W5 comes as pressure and speculation have mounted as to what Bennahmias, who led AP for more than a decade and oversaw a period of spectacular sales growth to more than CHF 2.3 billion for the family-owned brand, would do next in the watch world. At a flashy event near Lausanne last year, Bennahmias unveiled his vision for THMG, a new, multi-brand luxury brand group backed by private investors that promised a new philosophy of work, innovation, products, and sustainability in the luxury space. The charismatic executive said the new group would not be driven solely by profit and that at THMG, "we want to change the world of business. It is a mission," Be...

Roy Davidoff has spent a life keeping up with the time. Born into a family of jewelers and a youth spent in Geneva, followed by a move to Miami, watches have been a constant throughout his professional career.  Roy Davidoff (Photo Courtesy Cartier).  A return to Switzerland saw stints at brands including Bovet and Jacob & Co., before becoming a dealer of vintage and pre-owned with his brother and the launch of their business  - Roy & Sacha Davidoff SA - more than a decade ago. The fraternal duo gained prominence as dealers and experts regarding the Omega Speedmaster - a specialized section of the vintage market that has most certainly had its ups and downs. A respected name and authority in the industry, Davidoff most recently served as a jury member for The Cartier Prize For Watchmaking Talents of Tomorrow, where, alongside fellow judges including Kari Voutilainen, were tasked with making selections for creations from European watchmaking students who were chosen for their technical and artistic interpretations reconsidering different ways to tell time. Davidoff's role as a dealer and collector demands deep knowledge and constantly taking the pulse of the secondary market, shifting tastes, and changing demands. At the high-end and elite level, the market has changed, Davidoff says, as many collectors seek assurance and certainty in modern, independent brands and watchmakers. He's candid, enthusiastic, and dedicated to the Swiss industry, where he's found a place amon...

MB&F; has never been short of reasons to celebrate with a limited edition. This one, though, marks the opening of something new for the brand. After more than two decades of working with retail partners across the United States, the independent brand has finally opened its own New York lounge in Manhattan. To celebrate the […]

Parmigiani releases an extension to their Tonda PF Sport Chronograph line with their Ultra-Cermet ceramic case with a dial in grey and a mineral blue.

We're in the thick of summer now, and with it comes days at the beach, ice cream trucks, and perhaps even a trip to the movies for the summer blockbuster, which this year is Steven Spielberg's Disclosure Day. The film opened to $44 million domestically and has climbed to $195 million after three weeks in theaters. Hamilton has used the occasion to continue its nearly century-long tradition of working with filmmakers, outfitting two of the film's central characters with watches of their own. Disclosure Day follows a race between those trying to reveal a long-hidden truth and the forces working to keep it buried. In the film, Josh O'Connor's Dr. Daniel Kellner wears a Khaki Field Mechanical, while Noah Scanlon, another central character, is played by Colin Firth and wears a Jazzmaster Open Heart. Hamilton Khaki Field Mechanical 38mm. Why We're Watching Disclosure Day marks the first time Hamilton has placed a watch in a film directed by Spielberg—he produced, but didn't direct, Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, which means this is new ground for a relationship that's typically run through Christopher Nolan. Notably, there likely isn't a watch to be found in Nolan's highly anticipated The Odyssey. Josh O'Connor in Disclosure Day. Photo courtesy of Hamilton. That history with Nolan is worth dwelling on, because it's arguably the high point of Hamilton's film work. Interstellar gave us "The Murph," the Hamilton Pilot's Watch worn by Matthew McConaughey's Cooper across de...

Awake introduces the a new style to its sơn mài lacquer dials with the Frosted Leaf Royal Blue, adding 24k gold leaf to the process

Timepieces by Awake Watches have clicked with the community mostly because of their dials, if not always for the watches as a whole. You can pretty much count on whatever you pick from their collections looking alive on the wrist. Whether it is the Son Mai Silver Leaf “Atlantis Blue” handcrafted in Vietnam using ancestral […]

The Grand Départ of the 2026 Tour de France is just days away, and what better moment to introduce the Breitling Top Time B01 Eddy Merckx? It’s a watch honoring “The Cannibal,” the man who won five Tour de France titles and 525 victories in total. The Belgian legend earned his ferocious nickname due to […] Visit Allez, Allez, Allez! Introducing The Tour De France Yellow Breitling Top Time B01 Eddy Merckx to read the full article.

Most recently the chief executive of TAG Heuer, Antoine Pin has just started in the top job at De Bethune, the independent watchmaker owned by American watch retail giant The 1916 Company. De Bethune in its entirety sells as many watches in a year as a single TAG Heuer boutique does in a few months, so the scale is entirely different, as is the price segment and target audience. It’s almost a certainty that Mr Pin was tapped by De Bethune’s owners to take the brand to the next level in terms of size and reach, an ambition that now seems realistic given the success of F.P. Journe. Mr Pin will lead De Bethune alongside Denis Flageollet, the brand’s cofounder who has been its technical driving force since the beginning. He takes over from Pierre Jacques, a two-time chief executive of De Bethune who ran the brand from 2010 to 2015, and then again from 2017 to 2025 after a change in ownership. With an extensive track record in watchmaking going all the way back to Sainte-Croix in the 1990s, Mr Flageollet’s technical prowess is unquestionable; amongst his recent creations is the Sympathique clock in collaboration with Louis Vuitton. His watchmaking talent will be complemented by Mr Pin’s management and marketing know-how, skills honed over two decades at LVMH, where he climbed the ranks and held various management roles at Berluti, Bulgari, and Zenith. He was chief executive of TAG Heuer for almost 18 months before a surprise departure at the start of 2026.  

Frederique Constant’s Moneta line has been received with great applause from the watch community. The formal design with its distinguishing internal reeded ring rubbed many enthusiasts, including me, the right way. Today, I get a chance to go hands-on with the latest edition, the solar-powered Frederique Constant Moneta Solarmetre. It makes me wonder: is this […] Visit Is The Frederique Constant Moneta Solarmetre The Perfect Outlier Dress Watch For Your Collection? to read the full article.

François-Henri Bennahmias, the charismatic former Audemars Piguet CEO who grew the manufacture’s annual sales from CHF 500 million to CHF 2 billion announces his first watch project. Following his departure from the brand, Bennahmias unveiled The Honorable Merchant, a venture conceived as a platform for carefully curated luxury products and collaborations, spanning multiple product categories, […]