To function properly, a watch first and foremost needs to tell time. On top of that, there’s a world of complexity and practicality to be discovered. One such complication is the GMT function, preferably of the Flyer kind. But what if you want something more than that? What if you want, let’s say, an alarm […]
In 1891, following a devastating train accident caused by a faulty watch, Cleveland watchmaker Webb C. Ball was called upon to investigate and ultimately standardise timekeeping across America’s growing railroad network. Many think his work laid the foundation for modern chronometry standards. Webb C. Ball, through Ball Time Service, initially certified watches from American brands […]
For its latest collaboration watch, NYC-based design studio Massena LAB is teaming up with venerable, alarm-specialist watchmaker Vulcain, bringing its own take on an emblematic model, the Cricket Nautical. This watch, which relied on the brand’s signature chiming complication, was one of the first of its kind, merging diving credentials with the alarm feature that […]
Imagine yourself being completely immersed in something of the utmost importance. Every single fibre is zoned in on the task at hand, whatever that may be. The outside world has ceased to exist for you in that moment of complete concentration. And then…. an alarm goes off, rudely breaking your concentration and bursting your zen-bubble. […]
While pilot-style watches have now found a comfortable niche within the modern Patek Philippe catalogue, the introduction of the Calatrava Pilot Travel Time 5524 in 2015 sparked more than just curiosity: it stirred a veritable commotion. Many were taken aback, feeling it was a departure from the typical Patek Philippe aesthetic. The design, markedly different […]
During our very busy lives it’s very easy to be late for a meeting, to forget to top up a parking meter or even be tight on time for a departing flight. And despite the fact we have a device called a smartphone with us to set a (very intrusive) beeping alarm, how about a […]
Operating out of La Chaux-de-Fonds, Switzerland, for several years now, the brand Edouard Koehn carries four distinct collections. Of particular interest is the model introduced in 2021 as part of the World Heritage line, blending two practical complications: world time and alarm functions. While several mechanical watches offer combinations of an alarm with a GMT […]
A watch that should have been first presented thanks to a unique piece for Only Watch 2023 (which has been postponed), we knew that Patek Philippe was on its way to presenting a new model entirely dedicated to its former President, father of the current President and a man of great importance for both the brand […]
The name Vulcain is, for obvious reasons, often associated with the alarm complication. The venerable brand, founded in 1858 in Le Locle, Switzerland, has since 1947 made this function a signature element of so many of its watches. Slightly dormant in past years, the brand has recently been revived and various historical models have been […]
It seems that Guillaume Laidet is on a mission to revive glorious historic names… Hidden gems of watchmaking history, names that have fallen into industrial oblivion, but that haven’t been forgotten by watch enthusiasts. Following the revival of Nivada Grenchen and Excelsior Park, the young watchmaking entrepreneur is now turning his attention to yet another […]