HANDS-ON: The Bulgari Octo Finissimo Automatic Sandblasted – same Octo, completely new look
Bulgari blew us away last year with their Octo Finissimo Automatic – that mind-boggling thinness; the incredible lightness of being at one with its titanium case and bracelet, feeling it drape around the wrist. For Baselworld 2018, it’s back – this time in full gold. And if you think “solid gold bracelet watch” means 1980s-style bling, think again. Vital statistics In all respects, except the case and bracelet material, the new model is the same watch as before – equipped with that super-skinny (briefly record-breaking) manufacture self-winding calibre BVL 138. At only 2.23mm thick with a single barrel, it packs in a power reserve of 60 hours. The 5.15mm thick, pink gold case has a matching crown with a ceramic inlay and it’s water-resistant to 30m. The dial has a gold finish that exactly matches the case material, with printed black numerals and faceted black hands. On the wrist Having briefly worn the first, titanium version last year and marvelled at its almost unworldly lightness on the wrist, the relatively hefty weight of the gold feels almost strange for such a super-slim watch. But after that momentary surprise, it feels very good indeed. The bracelet has the same fluid-as-a-ribbon feel…
The post HANDS-ON: The Bulgari Octo Finissimo Automatic Sandblasted – same Octo, completely new look appeared first on Time and Tide Watches.
One of the more entertaining games to play at Baselworld 2018 is: “Who is Brand X after with this watch?” In some cases the answer can be as clear as mud, but in the case of the new Patek Philippe Aquanaut Chronograph it’s a bit of a no-brainer. Bright orange accents on its dial, and sold with both black and bright orange straps, this is the new king-casual Patek for a new generation. With the steel Nautilus in brutally short supply these days, this new Aquanaut is expected to be the new entry point into the Patek Philippe universe. Having taken a closer look at the new reference 5968A, we don’t doubt it’ll hook its fair share of new Patek fans. Vital statistics Transferred over from the Nautilus chronograph, the automatic flyback chronograph Caliber CH 28-520 C powers the new Aquanaut, featuring central chronograph seconds and a large 60-minute chronograph counter at 6 o’clock. Unlike current versions of the Nautilus Chronograph, the Aquanaut’s subdial does not include the 12-h totaliser within said subdial, giving the dial a slightly cleaner look. The case size is also increased on this latest Aquanaut, coming in at 42mm in diameter. This is now the largest Aquanaut on…
Since the launch of the Defy 21 last year, and the shockingly innovative Defy Lab later in 2017, it wasn’t a matter of speculation that more releases for the new collection were coming to Baselworld in 2018. The new Zero G is this year’s Halo watch from the brand as we wait for the groundbreaking new escapement to trickle down to series production. Though this is a new execution, the Zero G’s clever gyroscopic escapement — said to have been based on the concept of the gimbals used in old marine chronometers — is nothing new. Oddly enough, the first execution of the Zero-G was also a Defy, known as the Defy Xtreme Zero-G Tourbillon. Since that massive half-million dollar beast’s launch, Zenith have further refined the mechanism, scaling it down to a more modest size that no longer requires a large dome in the crystal to accommodate its freewheeling functionality. Vital statistics Regardless of how new the innovation is, there’s much to love about the new Zero G. At its heart, a high-beat El Primero caliber delivers a 50-hour power reserve to its indication of time and running seconds, with a subtle power reserve display to the right of…
There was a lot of mystery surrounding this piece when it was pulled out of a large green box during our appointment with Rolex at Baselworld. And, to be honest, we were too caught up in the moment, too dazzled by the gemstones, to take it all in at the time. It’s formally known as the Submariner Date ref. 116659 SABR, a variant on the white gold, blue-dialled ‘Smurf’ (ref. 116659 LB), but while at first glance it might look like the stones are the only addition, the dial is completely different. Not only is it darker, and has a sunray effect, but there’s a notable omission. Look closer. Have you spotted it yet? That’s right, there’s no depth rating. On a typical sub, there’s a line underneath the ‘Submariner’ text that says the watch is good to ‘1000ft = 300m’; not so here. And there’s also no specific mention of depth rating on the press release, though it does specify an Oyster case and Triplock crown. But it bears the Submariner name, so you’d expect it to be 300m, though it’s not made explicit, perhaps something to do with all those diamonds. Speaking of stones, the bezel is set, in Rolex’s…
Last year, Jaquet Droz rolled out a first round of the Grande Seconde Moon in three editions, including two steel models, and an ivory-coloured enamel dial cased in red gold. Building on the model’s success (and the growing popularity of black and gold wristwatches across the board), the brand added a fourth model to the collection at Baselworld 2018 in the form of this elegant-yet-modern black enamel model cased in red gold. Given how smitten I was with the first iterations — especially the beautiful level of detail in the execution of their moonphase complication — I couldn’t wait to take a closer look. Vital statistics As noted, the changes with this new model are entirely visual. Powered by the self-winding caliber 2660QL3, which features a silicon hairspring and a pair of mainspring barrels delivering at 68-hour power reserve, its moonphase complication was executed to maintain accuracy for 122 years and 46 days before requiring a 1-day correction. I always find these sort of stats a little humorous, as this accuracy is effectively useless unless the caliber is maintained fully wound and running for that duration of time (which, by the way, is impossible considering the need for servicing along the way).…
This year saw Bell & Ross expand their popular Renault Sport collection, and add a smaller, regular dialled version. I had the pleasure of chatting with Bell & Ross co-founder and CEO, Carlos Rosillo, to discuss the new models, and hear his thoughts on the ongoing partnership with Renault Sport. Most people know Bell & Ross for their iconic aviation-inspired timepieces; however, Carlos sees the partnership with Renault as a natural fit, highlighting their fondness of Bell & Ross, and Renault’s Chairman and CEO, Carlos Ghosn, as key reasons for the partnership coming to fruition. Launching into F1 was foreign territory for Bell & Ross, but partnering with a fellow French brand makes sense. Now in year three of the partnership, Carlos has gained several insights into the sport, and what it takes to be successful — placing a high emphasis on teamwork and collaboration. CR: It’s like in any business – it’s all about teamwork. You need the right car and the right team; if you do, you have a better chance to succeed. Looking at the collection itself, we saw an additional model added, the BR 03-94, which features a ‘regular’ carbon fibre dial, and comes in at 42mm…
For a watch lover, Baselworld is the big dance. It is every birthday rolled into one. It is Vegas, it is Christmas, it is a jolt back to childhood, when you would count sleeps before a special day. It’s awesome. And, I think you will be able to quickly establish from the video, we get ever so slightly overstimulated by all the lights, jetlag, cameras and the watch action. In the days leading up to Basel, speculation runs rife about who will release what. Those adept at Photoshop design the watches they’d like to see, and social media, the new hive for the world watch community, escalates into a buzz louder than the engines of the A380 we took to get over there. Did Rolex keep the crown for the most-hyped release? Did the reinvented Bond watch by Omega dazzle or disappoint? What about those challenger brands from Germany and Japan, did they shake the Swiss? Longines – Legend Diver The Legend Diver is not a new watch, but a fully blacked out version, including a black rubber strap molded to look like a ‘Milanese’ style bracelet, is beyond surprising, it’s astonishing. Longines excel every year at heritage reissues, their…
Given how much Hublot unveiled in Geneva back in January, the volume of additional novelties the brand had ready to go for Baselworld 2018 came as a bit of a surprise. Though nearly faced with a little analysis paralysis, given the broad range of models to choose from, getting a closer look at the Big Bang MP-11 14-Days 3D Carbon was a real no-brainer. The melding of the classic Big Bang case with the clever engineering of the Hublot Masterpiece collection is a total win-win, and provided ample motivation to take a closer look. Vital statistics As it says in the name, the big selling feature of the MP-11 is its staggering 14-day power reserve. Cased in what Hublot are calling “3D Carbon”— a variant of carbon fibre woven in a more three-dimensional fashion than conventional carbon fibre — this casing helps offset the additional weight found in the MP-11’s seven series-coupled barrels. Effectively, this multi-barrel configuration is a scaled-down version of what is found in the MP-05 LaFerrari, which uses 11 barrels to achieve a power reserve of 50 days. The trade-off with things like the LaFerrari is you’re then left with a much larger and elaborate case, whereas…
Twenty-five years is a milestone worth celebrating, so Omega have pulled out all the stops with their latest upgrade of the Seamaster Professional 300M, AKA the Seamaster Professional, AKA the SMP. The SMP is a fairly iconic watch, largely down to its prominent placement on the wrist of Bond (James Bond). Omega have made a host of small but sweeping cosmetic changes, from the bezel, to the dial (hello wave pattern), to the bracelet (thinner) and the case (slightly larger). However, the real change is on the inside: it’s now powered by the Master Chronometer Calibre 8800, which, in another SMP first, is visible through a clear caseback. It’s also available in a range of flavours. Steel, two-tone, bracelet, rubber — you choose. And the best thing, the price. Steel only on rubber comes in at $6375, on bracelet $6525.