Hodinkee
Hands-On: Breitling Top Time B01 Martini Racing
A compact cushion-cased chronograph powered by the mighty B01 and rocking an iconic motorsport livery.
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Hodinkee
A compact cushion-cased chronograph powered by the mighty B01 and rocking an iconic motorsport livery.
Monochrome
Unlike the tool-focused Superman line, the latest release of French brand Yema, the Granvelle, takes visual and mechanical cues from France’s long-standing horological tradition and is named after the Granvelle Palace in Besançon, the 16th-century Renaissance building that houses the Museum of Time. But while its inspiration is historic, the execution is modern and precise: […]
Monochrome
The slowing global economy and changes in consumer behaviour are hurting the luxury watch industry. Geneva-based luxury goods group Richemont reported a 4% increase in sales for their 2024/25 year, closing at the end of March at EUR 21,399 million. At EUR 3.8 billion, the profit for the year’s continuing operation is down 1%. This […]
SJX Watches
Now a decade old and an established event in the annual horological calendar, Dubai Watch Week (DWW) will take place November 19-23, 2025. Most notably, DWW will move to a new venue, a 200,000 sq ft space next to Dubai Mall, departing its longtime home of the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC). The 2025 event will host over 90 brands, ranging from giants like Rolex to micro-brands such as Studio Underd0g. The biggest names will have standalone spaces, including Rolex and Tudor, Audemars Piguet, Van Cleef & Arpels, and Chanel. DWW traditionally took place at DIFC, pictured above But independents will still have a prominent role in the event, since DWW got its start as an indie-centric event. The 2025 edition will give independent brands room to breathe with a dedicated space. Exhiitors include leading independents like Rexhep Rexhepi, Voutilainen, and Roger W. Smith. DWW takes place from November 19-23, 2025 in Burj Park, the landscaped area surrounding the Burj Khalifa and adjacent to Dubai Mall. Entry is free but registration is required. For more, visit Dubaiwatchweek.com.
Teddy Baldassarre
We never really know how – or when – it happens, but some watches manage to achieve an iconic status that gives them a certain immortality long after discontinuation. We know the types, from the Speedmaster to the Submariner to the Royal Oak. But not all icons are pricey and they’re certainly not all Swiss. Enter the Seiko SKX007, a watch without a nickname, whose reference number is as recognizable as any of the aforementioned icons I just listed. The SKX, as we call it shorthand, is the value king in all of horology because of its capability from top to bottom, literally. Today we are going to be examining the SKX007, a watch that Seiko has since moved on from and never truly replaced. We will look at it at face value (as well as current secondary market value), for the watch’s impact on collector culture, and for its staying power even in the face of no longer remaining in production. Seiko SKX007 History And Specs In order to properly contextualize the SKX007, we must go back in time to the 1970s, when Seiko made its first impactful dive watch. Notice how I say "impactful," as the lot of you ready yourselves to remind me not to discount the 62MAS. For the record, I am not – at least not entirely. The 62MAS has proven to be a classic for Seiko, but the diver that really put the brand on the map in terms of culturally relevant tool watches was the Ref. 6105 which was worn by Martin Sheen in the film Apocalypse Now. It has since gone on to take the name of his c...
Worn & Wound
Serica has unveiled the new 5303 PLD, a new dive watch the brand has developed in partnership with the French Navy. Specifically, the watch was developed with the EOD (Explosive Ordinance Disposal) team, which, I think most people will understand, is a fairly highly specialized and dangerous diving discipline. The watch follows the form and function of Serica’s popular 5303 diver, but with a few small tweaks that distinguish it from the standard version without calling out to its inspiration too overtly. The most notable and obvious change from the standard 5303 is the new bezel, which has a “DT Max” scale as opposed to the standard dive bezel that allows you to count minutes from a given start time. The DT Max bezel features twin scales (minutes and meters) that display the “maximum working time” at a given depth. This allows a diver, in theory, to ascend continuously without decompression stops, a necessity for EOD divers. The number at the outer scale (“profonduer,” or depth) relates directly to a number on the inner scale, the number of minutes a diver can safely work. Not super functional for anyone not on a dive, but it provides a very real reminder of the danger of the sport, and adds a certain charm to the piece. The bezel itself is rendered in a shade the brand refers to as “abyssal blue,” and it’s a very nice shade that further sets this diver apart from other watches in the Serica lineup. Serica has also tweaked the dial in small ways for...
Monochrome
A couple of years ago, we introduced you to the wonderful work of a self-taught Chinese watchmaker by the name of Logan Kuan Rao. While he wasn’t on our radar until just before that article, he’s actually been practising and perfecting his craft for almost a decade. Making virtually everything by hand and in the […]
Monochrome
Serica began its journey with a classic field watch, and since its launch in 2019, the young brand has quickly carved out a strong identity with a lineup of retro-inspired, adventure-ready timepieces, spanning field, dive, and GMT models, and something else a bit dressier. Designed with durability, precision, and style in mind, every Serica watch […]
Time+Tide
Serica makes a dive watch designed to help those who diffuse bombs and mines for a living in the French Navy.The post Serica teams up with the French Navy bomb disposal squad for their new dive watch appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.
Deployant
Released last year, and still with a waitlist is the Leica Q3 43. Many hail this as the perfect everyday carry. But what else is it good at? Is it perfect?
Teddy Baldassarre
The Omega Railmaster can best be put into historical context as of one of the most recognizable names in its category that arguably gets the least amount of attention. It hasn’t been a mainstay for the brand, and currently sits in purgatory, with no modern Railmaster existing in the contemporary Omega collection. It’s a black sheep with serious historical credentials that should have been a perennial adversary to the Rolex Explorer, and yet it became instead something of an enthusiast darling, a relic of esoterica. I would argue that it just missed its initial window to hit immortality, courtesy of little more than bad timing. It was, and remains, one of the coolest designs from a brand that really could rest on its laurels behind the Speedmaster and Seamaster. And with those two models mentioned, let’s properly understand the what, where, how, and why of the Omega Railmaster. Okay, and also the when. In 1957, Omega basically released the only three watches any brand would ever have to release to prove everlasting viability. Well, in theory, two of those brands seem to have done the trick – the Railmaster was just icing on the cake. Think of it like when Rolex unveiled the Submariner and the Explorer in the very same year, followed closely by the GMT-Master. Those three watches have experienced continuous production since that time and represent the core ethos of Rolex today. Similarly, in ‘57, we saw Omega unveil a trilogy of watches: The Seamaster, the Speedmas...
Monochrome
If you look at the current collection of Omega, you’ll see that almost everything there is based on iconic designs and watches that have left a strong mark on watchmaking. The Seamaster, the Constellation and, of course, the Speedmaster, to name the most important ones. You’ll also see that two of these watches formed part […]
Fratello
With recent Speedmaster and Seamaster releases, Omega quietly put the new watches on its ambassadors’ wrists to hint at what was coming. We could have missed it, but we don’t think the same happened with the newly revised Railmaster. Supposedly, there was a leaked image, but it came with very little information. Luckily, we’ve recently […] Visit A Hands-On Introduction To The New Omega Railmaster With A Beige Or Gray Gradient Dial to read the full article.
Time+Tide
Simple and stylish, the Omega Railmaster makes a welcome return after a lengthy hiatus.The post The Omega Railmaster returns – do we have Cillian Murphy to thank? appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.
Monochrome
The watch trade market has become sprawling. Digital channels have been added to single-brand and multi-brand points of sale: specialised platforms, digital media that have evolved towards an additional retail offering (limited and dedicated series), social networks (Instagram, WhatsApp, Telegram) flooded with offers of second-hand (and sometimes new) pieces. A jungle characterised by a common […]
Time+Tide
Naoya Hida presents their most complicated watch yet, powered by a Habring and Dubois-Dépraz perpetual calendar calibre.The post Naoya Hida releases the Type 6A perpetual calendar, rivalling equivalent Patek Philippe models (at least in price) appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.
Monochrome
Biatec is a fairly new brand from Slovakia, founded in 2016 by Peter Kožár and designer Miloš Jakubec. Watches in their current portfolio range in price from EUR 1,490 to EUR 1,990, so accessible yet a bit beyond the standard fare (in both quality/design and price). Chronoshop was founded in 2007 by Jakub Sivek as […]
Quill & Pad
Watch collector Quentin R. Bufogle was determined to add a piece to his collection harking back to those dust-strewn days of early Las Vegas, a time when the occasional tumbleweed still ambled along what would one day become the famous Las Vegas Strip. And he found it in a 1946 Bulova Aviator B. Here's how and why.
Fratello
It’s no secret that we’re Speedmaster fans here at Fratello. RJ, our founder, is an avid collector of these chronographs and the mind behind #SpeedyTuesday. But not all Speedies are created equal. Today, we’re looking at some of the best modern Omega Speedmaster models. RJ, Thomas, and Nacho have tasked themselves with selecting their top […] Visit Fratello Talks: The Best Modern Omega Speedmasters to read the full article.
Worn & Wound
Ming has announced their latest release, a follow up to the 29.01 Worldtimer which launched in 2023. The new 29.01 Midnight is conceived as the flipside to the original, which was presented in titanium with a blue/black gradient dial. The new watch is a blacked out version, with a DLC coating on the titanium case, and a black dial with layers of sapphire and, as we often see with Ming, loaded with lume. The release follows a bit of a pattern we saw with the 37.09, which debuted with the bright and colorful Bluefin about one year ago, and saw a darker sibling emerge several months later with the Uni. The colorway of the 29.01 Midnight is, in fact, directly lifted from the Uni, providing yet another connection between Ming watch families. The 29.01 is one of my personal favorite examples of Ming’s higher end, haute horlogery offerings, as the worldtimer format really allows the brand to flex a bit. While I think many probably associate Ming with a certain strain of minimalism, the 29.01, by necessity, is throwing a lot at you, and it’s a great accomplishment on Ming’s part that the watch is able to communicate so much so clearly. Here’s how it works. The cities representing the world’s time zones are printed on a sapphire upper dial. Below that, a metal base dial with a very subtle grained finish has the 24 hour scale printed on it. Throughout the day, the base dial rotates so that the 24 hour scale lines up with the correct time in each world city, hour by hou...
Teddy Baldassarre
My first Rolex was an Explorer II 216570 with black dial and I absolutely loved that watch. It was rarer than the GMT-Master II or Submariner, and didn’t have the ceramic bezel, which I found to be a little too glossy and “luxe” for what I was looking for in a watch at the time. I kept and wore the heck out of that watch for almost six years until I just felt like it didn’t speak to me anymore. The 42mm wide “Maxi” case seemed too big and the big, thick hour and minutes hands just began to bug me. I can’t explain why I was so dead set on the 216570 rather than the older 16570 at the time but I can certainly say that now, in 2025, the Rolex Explorer II 16570 is not just my preferred iteration of the modern spelunking watch, but an all-timer from Rolex. I’ve started to refer to the 16570 as a “Forever Rolex” because it ticks all the boxes - size, reliability, dual-time functionality, and discrete aesthetics - all while remaining one of the few Rolexes that isn’t immediately recognizable to every casual observer. Let’s take a look at why I’m such a big fan of this old-school Rolex. Case and Specs: The Other Rolex GMT Measuring 40mm wide and 12.2mm thick with a 47mm lug-to-lug height, the 16570 is an eminently wearable Rolex. And while this is very obviously a sport/tool watch, these proportions make for a very versatile and subdued piece. No, there isn’t a rotating bezel with a nickname-ready color combo here. Rather, there is a demure, fixed ...
Worn & Wound
Seeing a watch made by Naoya Hida & Co. in person for the first time was one of those moments when you truly realize that you have to experience a watch in the metal before casting judgement. At the time, the brand was only in its second full year, and most of the people commenting on the watches in online forums, Instagram, etc. were reacting to what they perceived as an exorbitant price tag. These specific watches, after all, used a (highly) modified Valjoux 7750 as the base movement – not exactly high horology. But when you handle one of these watches, wear it, and, importantly, turn the crown, you realize you’re dealing with an object that’s largely handmade, a fully fleshed out complete thought with a singular perspective. That’s a pretty rare thing, as are the hand carved dials that have become an aesthetic signature of the brand, and truly require magnification to fully grapple with. Naoya Hida & Co. has just unveiled their new slate of watches for 2025, and I imagine we’re heading for some of the same conversations we’ve heard before, but there’s a new watch in this crop of releases that should quiet at least some of the naysayers. The marquee release in this year’s lineup is the NH Type 6A, Naoya Hida’s most complicated watch to date and their first perpetual calendar. The 6A is made in the same vintage inspired style as all of Naoya Hida’s other watches, evoking classic pieces by Patek Philippe and others (but mostly Patek, let’s be honest...
SJX Watches
Despite everything, including tariffs and a strong Swiss franc, the Geneva auction season turned out to be a strong one, with some of the strongest results being in the most surprising segments. The bigger winner this season was Phillips, which sold a bit under 200 lots for CHF43.4 million including fees, while also claiming the most valuable lots for the season, reflecting Phillips’ strong leadership and team. Despite being the market leader by some margin, the Phillips catalogue was arguably the riskiest as it included several high-value pocket watches and clocks – timepieces that not part of mainstream collecting today. Yet the gamble paid off with the most valuable timepiece this season being its Breguet Sympathique no. 1 that sold for CHF5.51 million. Christie’s achieved CHF21.2 million with a similar number of lots that were arguably more conventional in taste and format than at Phillips. One of its most valuable lots was a Cartier Crash “NSO” with a special order dial that sold for CHF736,000 – one of the biggest surprises of the season but proof that being eye-catching enough for social media is a big factor in desirability and value today. Interestingly, the Crash sold for exactly the same as the Richard Mille RM UP-01 Ferrari. The Crash went for about 15 times the original retail, while the RM UP-01 was about half of retail. The Crash NSO “nickele” grey. Image – Christie’s Over at Antiquorum, the tally was CHF10 million – from almost 800 lot...
Hodinkee
With a super-compressor-style case and a ton of color, this could be a great pick for an elevated and exciting summer diver.
Monochrome
After several years of covering this independent Japanese watch brand, you should now be familiar with Kurono Tokyo‘s work. And if not, what matters here is that we’re looking at the accessible side of independent watchmaker Hajime Asaoka (also behind the return of Takano), with classic designs and outsourced movements to keep the prices reasonable. […]
Monochrome
Girard-Perregaux has a rich history and has produced quite a few exceptional timepieces over time. The 1969 Deep Diver Ref. 9108 may not be as complex and elaborate or iconic as some of the brand’s better-known creations (Laureato, Tourbillons or Bridges, both historical and modern), but it left its mark as a rare dive watch […]
Fratello
As many of you know, the late ’60s and the first half of the ’70s were an era of design experimentation in the watch industry. While Girard-Perregaux might not be the first name on people’s tongues when it comes to funky watches from this period, don’t think the brand didn’t have any. With the Casquette […] Visit Girard-Perregaux Reintroduces The Deep Diver In Collaboration With Bamford Watch Department to read the full article.
Fratello
What happens when you take the 2755 QP movement out of the 2017 Traditionnelle Calibre 2755 (ref. 80172/000R-B406), update the design so it caters to an audience with a more contemporary taste, and put it in the sportiest of watch designs available? You get the Vacheron Constantin Overseas Grand Complication Openface. This limited-production watch is […] Visit Introducing: The Titanium Vacheron Constantin Overseas Grand Complication Openface to read the full article.
SJX Watches
Vacheron Constantin (VC) continues its 270th anniversary festivities with its first minute-repeating sports watch, the Overseas Grand Complication Openface. In addition to the repeater, the manually wound movement also features a perpetual calendar, tourbillon, and rear-facing power reserve indicator. All of this is housed in a titanium case rated to 30 m, which is a notable degree of water resistance for a chiming watch. This is also the first Overseas model with the “Openface” treatment, which pays homage to rock crystal dials found in vintage clocks and pocket watches with a clear sapphire dial exposing the perpetual calendar works. Image – Vacheron Constantin Initial Thoughts It’s unusual, but a chiming sports watch makes sense considering the direction of consumer preferences for complications. That said, the minute repeater has been slow to make its way into sports watches, despite enjoying renewed popularity for the past few decades, due to the challenges of waterproofing the charging slide and preserving sound quality. This has created a perception of water resistance and sound being mutually exclusive, which has only recently been challenged. Audemars Piguet was an early pioneer with water-resistant repeaters, and now Vacheron Constantin has entered the fray with a water-resistant minute-repeating integrated-bracelet sports watch of its own. While 30 m of water resistance is low compared to other models in the Overseas collection, it’s significant for a ...
Teddy Baldassarre
While the El Primero movement architecture may serve as the face of the Zenith brand, it is the Defy collection that remains its soul. The Defy represents an historically significant ethos for Zenith, a creative foundation that is just as important to the Swiss brand’s past as it is to its future. Originally meant to be a showcase of innovation and ideas, the Defy collection serves dual purposes: to preserve and celebrate innovations of the past in the “Revival” subfamily, and to continue innovating for the future in the series’ other branches. In 2022, the brand took a big step toward the future of the collection with the release of the Zenith Defy Skyline, a watch that simultaneously looked to build on successful elements of the past and also to capitalize on the integrated-bracelet sport watch trend that had taken hold of the industry. The Zenith Defy collection has roots in the 1960s and ‘70s, when many of the brand’s most iconic and exciting references were released (you can read a more in-depth history here). Many of these have been reborn in the form of modern Revival references, allowing a new generation of enthusiasts to discover them again, or for the first time. These designs weren’t afraid to take risks, from the shape of the case, to the bracelet integration, right into the dial colors and textures. The Defy name quickly came to signify a huge amount of character, and that’s on full display within the brand’s current stable. In finding a mo...
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