One of the biggest announcements of Baselworld 2013 came from an unlikely entity: Swatch. The plastic watch-fueled behemoth debuted the Sistem51, a $150 watch made in Switzerland with a 51-component movement made entirely by machines, mostly out of plastic. It was an instant hit with high-end collectors and new watch lovers alike. And now it’s available in steel.
Imagine the calm distinction of reaching into your pocket to gracefully remove a hand-crafted pocket watch to tell the time.
Commission by Vacheron Constantin to celebrate the launch of its new Overseas sports watch, the series of photos of exotic locales by Steve McCurry is now complete. The photographer best known for his striking Afghan Girl portrait roamed the world, creating a series of pictures that depicts 12 places in McCurry’s postcard-perfect style. The first […]
Nomos is coming to Vancouver, Canada – want to help us celebrate their arrival with Roldorf+Co?
There is nothing like one hyper-niche product trying to tie itself to another slightly less but still insanely niche product. We’ve seen it far too many times – the Hublot La Ferrari watch, the Bremont Boeings, all those Breitling for Bentley watches. I get why watch brands do it, and in most cases I am fairly agnostic about it. The Hublot La Ferrari watch, while not anything I would ever consider for myself (even if I owned a La Ferrari), made sense. It was cutting-edge, high-tech, and over-the-top. I could easily see how it belonged next to the mightiest car ever made by the winningest racecar producer in history. This watch, which showed up in my inbox today, is puzzling, and for more than one reason. Before I show you the watch, let’s look at the car that inspired it.
Almost from the moment Breguet invented the tourbillon (for which he was granted a patent in 1801), people have been wondering whether or not it actually does what it’s supposed to do. The basic idea is simple. If you put the balance spring, balance, lever, and escape wheel inside a carriage, or cage, that rotates in the plane of the movement plate, you get one average rate for the four vertical positions in which a watch is timed, rather than four different rates. You then adjust the two horizontal positions to match this single average vertical rate and, in theory, you should have a perfect timekeeper.
Lemon and Italian bergamot were used as the top notes for the James Heeley Sel Marin to provide freshness. It’s easy to imagine being on the Hamptons constantly exposed to the ocean breeze when you sniff it. But what else makes this my perfect summer scent?
Hublot is a polarising brand amongst the watch cognoscenti. Even when speaking to veteran high-end watch collectors like Glenn Chiang, answering a question about the existence of Hublot in their collection conjures deep thought and careful answers. Sometimes, over forum discussions, a number of commentators will offer that while Hublot is…
Earlier this year, Glashütte Original introduced its new Senator Excellence watch and Caliber 36 movement. HODINKEE’s European Editor, Arthur Touchot, wore the watch for the first 100 hours of Baselworld and reported on its increased autonomy, silicon hairspring, and innovative movement fastening system. There is one other new feature that Arthur didn’t get a chance to take a look at – Glashütte Original is including a quality promise for the Caliber 36, with standards exceeding COSC chronometer certification.
The famed Swatch Sistem51 collection gets its most important update yet: six new men’s and one new ladies’ piece, finally all in steel cases.