Hands-on – Jaquet Droz SW Chrono – A Sporty Take on the Brand’s DNA
For many, a ‘Jaquet Droz Sport Watch’ might come across as an oxymoron from a brand about to celebrate its 280th anniversary and intimately associated with refined artistic watches and complex automata. And I’m guessing that not too many of you knew that Jaquet Droz has had a Sport Watch (SW) in its catalogue since 2008, a sporty rendition of the Grande Seconde family, known as the Grande Seconde SW. Taking the sports watch concept into sportier terrain, Jaquet Droz presented a column-wheel chronograph at Baselworld 2018 with an upgraded silicon balance spring in the movement. Released in two contemporary dial colours, the SW Chrono abandons the iconic figure-eight dial configuration of the Grande Seconde in favour of a horizontal chrono display. Let’s take a closer look at the SW Chrono.
Anyone else ever play this game? Sitting at my desk during school, my friends and I would quickly double tap the start/stop button on our digi-stopwatches, trying our best to beat one another and see who could do it the fastest. I actually remember getting a digital watch just so I could play (and totally not to secretly practise at home). The watch I ended up getting, or at least what my now faded memory recalls, was a square 5000 series G-Shock. And this year the legendary resin-cased design celebrates its 35th anniversary, with Casio releasing the very first all stainless-steel version of the icon. First things first, this Full Metal take is every bit as tough as that very first bulletproof G-Shock – the DW-5000 brought to life in 1983 by Casio engineer Kikuo Ibe. Only now, instead of an entire outer case made of resin, the timekeeping module inside is suspended in all stainless-steel, with fine-resin cushioning sandwiched between. Everything else is much the same. The multifunction LCD screen is modelled on the original, except now it features Tough Solar technology with the familiar brick motif – as seen on various other G-Shocks – surrounding the outer edge…
“Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.” I’m fairly sure Arthur C. Clarke didn’t have Hublot — or even watches — in mind when he made the now famous futurist statement. But it’s certainly something that rings true for Hublot’s latest ceramic marvel. Because while most watch fans are familiar with the use of ceramic in horology these days, there’s still an aura of power and mystique around this oh-so-red watch. We’ve seen polished ceramic before, and we’ve seen red ceramic before (though none-so-vivid as this), and we’ve certainly seen Big Bangs before. But the combination of all three is a little overwhelming and, for me at least, awe-inspiring. Hublot, for all they seem to delight in their role of watch brand provocateur, are showing us glimpses of the future here. And it looks bright. Hublot Big Bang Unico Red Magic Australian pricing and availability Hublot Big Bang Unico Red Magic, limited to 500 pieces, $33,800
Here at Time+Tide we have a soft spot for smaller brands that are built on passion. Oak & Oscar definitely fits that bill. Chase Fancher (the man behind the brand) has made a series of retro-ish classics with loads of thoughtful details — the sort of details appreciated by true believers. These details are still very much apparent on Oak & Oscar’s Humboldt, a solid 40mm steel three-hander that’s built with adventure in mind — quite literally, in fact, as the watch is named after 18th century explorer and scientific traveller Alexander von Humboldt. The dial, offered in either charcoal or navy, will be familiar to those aware of Oak & Oscar’s previous offerings, with Arabics at the cardinal points and a sandwich-style construction that punches well above the Humboldt’s price point. The watch also comes with a steel 12-hour bezel, perfect for ad hoc GMT duties. The 20mm lugs are drilled (one of my favourite user-friendly watch features) for ease of strap change, and, impressively, comes with a steel bracelet option. Now, getting a stock third part bracelet isn’t too hard, but the fact that Oak & Oscar have gone to the effort of doing their own bracelet (slightly…