With the SIHH 2019 just around the corner, we thought it was the perfect moment to look back at what the 2018 edition of the Geneva Watch Fair, a.k.a Salon International de la Haute Horlogerie (SIHH) had to show… And it had a lot to show. Technical, beautiful, innovative, ultra-complicated or simply well-thought everyday pieces. […]
As the end of the year is fast approaching, we continue with our “best of 2018” buying guides. After the top 10 watches below EUR 2,000, followed by 10 watches between EUR 2,000 and 5,000, and finally, our pick of the best watches of 2018 priced between EUR 5,000 to EUR 10,000, we now move to true luxury watches (or even the start of the high-end category for some) with our 10 favourite watches of 2018 in the 10k to 25k Euros range. And yes, big money means big pleasure here.
Just like we did on previous weekends with our Top 10 watches below EUR 2,000 and between EUR 2,000 and 5,000, it is now time to look at the best watches introduced this year in the hyper-strategic EUR 5,000-EUR 10,000 price range – it is certainly where the competition is the fiercer, with most of the “luxury brands” having their core collections (Rolex, IWC, Cartier, Panerai and many more). After long debates at the MONOCHROME redaction room, here are our 10 “best 2018 watches” picks if you’re in the 5k to 10k market.
Last but not least, of the four pilot watch ‘teasers’ that IWC has released ahead of the SIHH 2019, is this well-proportioned, vintage-inspired, bronze-cased, no-nonsense chronograph upgraded with a manufacture movement. All of that might sound like music to the ears of many collectors. At least, it does to us. Meet the IWC Pilot’s Watch Chronograph […]
One of the four ‘teaser’ watches that IWC has unveiled ahead of the SIHH 2019, the Pilot’s Watch Timezoner Spitfire Edition ‘The Longest Flight’ introduces an unprecedented display/movement. Based on the Timezoner unveiled at SIHH 2016, this new version gets rid of the chronograph function to show a more balanced and legible dial focused on a world […]
Among the four watches that IWC introduces for its pre-SIHH 2019 collection are three ‘standard’ pieces – a chronograph, a double-chronograph and a world time – and one very exclusive, complicated piece; the IWC Big Pilot’s Watch Constant-Force Tourbillon Edition “Le Petit Prince” IW590303 (yes, quite a name…) Nevertheless, if some will point to a lack of relevance […]
This is it… 2019 will be the year of the Pilot’s Watch at IWC. Don’t expect to see the entire range being remodelled, as that had been done already in 2016 – with a new Big Pilot and the Mark XVIII for instance. However, expect to see some nice new editions, some good-old designs brought back to life and some mechanical improvements. But before the real fireworks start at the SIHH 2019 in January, IWC teases us with 4 new pieces, including this new Pilot’s Watch Double Chronograph TOP GUN Ceratanium ref. IW371815.
“Everyone has a Rolex. If you don’t have a Rolex by the time you reach 50, then you have clearly failed in life.” Some of you – at least our French-speaking readers – might remember this outrageous statement pronounced by Jacques Séguéla as the advertising tycoon tried to defend Nicolas Sarkozy’s bling-bling style on French TV. If owning a Rolex is the sine qua non of success for some, it’s a good time as any to review the entry-level prices of watch candidates from the leading brands.
Aviation inspired watches are said to have made their debuts on the wrist of aviator Alberto Santos Dumont. At the beginning of the 20th-century, Louis Cartier had made a watch for his Brazilian friend, who wore it to time its flights. It was the first purposed-designed wristwatch. Since then, many watches have been inspired by aviation, all born out of practicality – in particular, pilot watches. Today, the category is one of the most popular.
With the vintage market and auctions in full hype-mode these days, we often hear the words “unique” or “never-seen-before” to talk about a watch with one small detail to differentiate it from the rest of the crowd. However, we’re quite confident in saying that you’ve never seen what we’re about to show you: a truly unique, truly legit and truly interesting IWC Ingenieur 666A (the first generation of this model). And for once, we have all shreds of evidence that it was born this way, back in 1965, as a special order to IWC – and before you ask, no it isn’t for sale (or not yet at least).