News – On the Road to Baselworld 2018 – What You’ll See on MONOCHROME
Rolex, Omega, Patek Phillipe, Tudor, TAG Heuer and many more… Tomorrow, the 2018 edition of world’s largest watch fair, Baselworld, will open its doors. Hundreds of new watches will be revealed to members of the press, retailers and collectors. Even though the general consensus around the fair itself seems quite negative, the industry is in relatively good shape and this won’t prevent the MONOCHROME team to “veni, vidi, referi” – “go, see, report” live from the fair, with an incredibly large coverage. Baselworld is coming, and we are on the road to Switzerland
Editor’s note: Today’s review is a little unusual on several accounts. Most significantly it’s of a watch that’s been discontinued for seven years. Given this fact, Bruce (of BLNR fame) has written a more personal, evocative piece, which makes sense as much ink has already been shed in tribute to the details and intricacies of this particular Rolex Explorer II. So why talk about it now? Well, I’m of the firm belief that the star of the Explorer II is on the rise — especially the polar version — so it’s the perfect time to shine a little light on it. Plus, you never know what we’ll see at Basel tomorrow … Back when I was shopping for my first Rolex, I was offered a ‘new old stock’ Explorer II 16570 by the local boutique at a decent discount. I brushed it off at the time due to a fixation with the Submariner (which ironically ended up as a Datejust) and also the limited knowledge that it was a past model and recently replaced by an improved 216570 in 42mm. Why in the world would I have bought that old 16570? It made no sense to me at the time.…
Stop us if you’ve heard, or seen, this one before (and the odds are increasingly high that you have, as this video was filmed a couple of years ago), but as unbelievable as it may be to the watch journos in the house, some people don’t have any clue what this ‘Basel’ thing is and what being there is actually like. The Time+Tide team is in various states of migration, all heading from different points – Dubai, Canada, Brisbane, Amsterdam, Melbourne – to Basel, and while we’re travelling, I guarantee you one thing: when you say you’re going to Baselworld, you more often than not get met with blank looks. Airline staff, family members, non-watch-addicted friends. Look, the concept is comprehensible enough. A watch fair. A lot of hype. An exhibition hall. But that just doesn’t cut it. I say over and over, “It’s BIGGER than a ‘fair’, it’s more like a world expo, or Vegas, or …” Then I invariably reach into my pocket, hit the YouTube app and play this one again, Sam. It captures everything I love about the big dance, this big watch fair. The energy, the affluence, the bloated distortion of scale and perspective. It’s…
With Baselworld 2018 just around the corner, fevers around the Time+Tide office are running hot, contemplating what Rolex is likely to drop in Basel in a few days time. Looking back at Rolex releases in Basel over the past seven years, we assess some of the mic-dropping releases in the Rolex line-up and the likelihood of seeing updates to those models in 2018. 2017 – Rolex Sea-Dweller 126600 Boom. Probably the most talked about watch of Basel 2017, Rolex launched the new Sea-Dweller a mere three years after its previous incarnation, with a 43mm case (to some controversy), cyclops date window (to even more controversy) and red ‘Sea Dweller’ text on the dial (to no controversy at all). Chances of seeing a new Sea-Dweller at Basel 2018? Somewhere between ‘never’ and ‘impossible’. 2017 – Rolex Sky-Dweller in Rolesor Rolex made the Sky-Dweller available in stainless steel (with a white gold bezel) for the first time ever, with new dial variants and an accessible price (albeit not availability). The blue-on-blue and black-on-black dials simply stole the show. Chances of seeing a new Rolex Sky-Dweller at Basel 2018? Too soon. 2016 – Rolex Oyster Perpetual Air-King 116900 2016 saw Rolex put a steroid…
There’s a story, published by GQ way back in 2016, that periodically does the rounds of the T+T office, and not just because it has a snappy, hooky title (though it does). No, the appeal of Jessi Klein’s “Yes, there is a male engagement ring” runs a little deeper. Deeper even than that unbidden hope that our nearest and dearest will buy us the watch of our dreams (for some hints on how to make that happen, I suggest reading this). No, this article touches on the fundamentals of what a watch that’s built to last means. Timelessness, meaning, and if we’re really – really – honest … looking cool. If you haven’t read it, you should.