Buying Guide – The 10 Best Watches of 2018 from EUR 5,000 to 10,000 (Plus the 11th One)

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.

6 years ago

Pre-SIHH 2019 – Panerai Submersible Chrono Guillaume Néry Edition PAM00982

As part of the pre-SIHH 2019 introductions, Panerai is presenting a new version of its Submersible Chrono, which lays the foundations for a new collaboration with French free-diving champion Guillaume Néry. Knowing what job the man is doing, a professional dive watch sounds like something rather relevant. This new piece is aptly named the Panerai Submersible Chrono Guillaume Néry edition or, in more technical words, the PAM00982. Bold and sporty, it features striking blue accents and an attractive shark grey textured dial. Read on for all the details, including expected pricing.

6 years ago

Visiting the Panerai Manufacture, the Brand’s Highly Efficient Production Site (With Exclusive Live Pics)

The Panerai manufacture was completed in 2014 and is currently headed by Jean-Marc Pontroué. Located on the outskirts of Neuchâtel, the 10,000sqm building was constructed with eco-compatible standards. It gathers all product development and production teams under one modern roof to operate the brand manufacturing activities (parts, movements and casing). There, 250 people carry out their specialist work. In addition to the Swiss manufacture, Panerai’s headquarters are located in Italy where key corporate functions, such as design and marketing, take place.

6 years ago

Introducing – Panerai Luminor Regatta Transat Classique 2019 – PAM00956

Panerai dedicates a model from its Luminor 1950 Regatta family to celebrate the Regatta Transat Classique, the most extreme and exciting race for classic yachts covering 3,000 miles and departing next 8 January 2019 from Lanzarote. The new limited edition 47mm Luminor Regatta Transat Classique PAM00956 is a flyback chronograph fitted with a regatta countdown function, a knots scale to calculate speed, a robust 3-day power reserve and a navy blue colour scheme that evokes the deep blue. Fitted out with a titanium hull, the 47mm Luminor Regatta Transat Classique is shipshape and ready to sail.

6 years ago

Entry Price – The Most Accessible Watches You Can Get From Established Brands (Rolex, Omega, Patek… and many more)

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. 

6 years ago

Review – Panerai Luminor Submersible 1950 Carbotech PAM00616 – Camouflaged for Action

Carbon fibre – in all its composite guises – has become the material of the moment and has been used across the board, from Bvlgari’s chiming marvel to faux carbon dials on TAG Heuer’s Aquaracer… Whether or not an Haute Horlogerie model like the Octo Finissimo Minute Repeater Carbon looks good in its high-tech black suit is debatable, but one thing is certain, carbon cases work especially well for a brand like Panerai. A top military secret until 1993, Officine Panerai crafted high-tech instruments for the Italian Navy’s its covert underwater operations before it surfaced and worked its magic on dry land. Panerai was the first brand to use Carbotech – a composite material based on carbon fibre – and unveiled its 47mm Luminor Submersible 1950 model in a striking, black mottled case. Although this was back in 2015, we recently had the watch in our hands and thought a reappraisal was in order.

6 years ago

Introducing – Panerai’s New Entry-Level Watches – Radiomir Logo 3 Days PAM00753 & Radiomir Black Seal Logo 3 Days PAM00754

A couple of years ago, when the idea of buying a Panerai crossed your mind, you knew that a minimum of 6K would be required. Quite a hefty price for what were, after all, simple tool watches. Yet, it seems that a new strategy is on its way at the “Officine”. After introducing new and affordable Luminor Base and Marina at the SIHH 2018, the brand is applying the same concept on the Radiomir watches, creating its new entry-level offer: the Radiomir Logo 3 Days PAM00753 and the Radiomir Black Seal Logo 3 Days PAM00754. Back to basics and back to realistic prices – indeed, you can now have a new Panerai for less than EUR 4,000.

7 years ago

Introducing – The (Very Cool) Panerai Luminor California 8 Days DLC 44mm PAM00779

Let’s get straight to the point: the new Panerai Luminor California 8 Days DLC 44mm PAM00779 is packing all the possible cool things Panerai can do in a single watch to an almost gimmick-like level… But honestly, it simply works! It has a strong, distinctive and masculine look, which results in a completely original combination of classic Panerai elements. This PAM00779 is, to us here at MONOCHROME, one the most interesting new watches the brand has recently launched – and even its price is rather competitive. Overview.

7 years ago

The new Panerai Luminor Due 38mm – That Small but That Good?

In the collective psyche of watch enthusiasts, Panerai is synonymous with large, robust, instrument dive watches. After all, that’s how the brand was conceived back in the 1930s. The brand wasn’t shy about making a 45mm watch its standard offer, and even to introduce 50mm pieces (or more). However, that was the 2000s and demand …

7 years ago