Smartwatches Let’s admit it. There is no escape from the smartwatch, everywhere you look there’s someone with an Apple Watch. Even the recently announced Apple Watch Series 2 is a hot topic. Not among watch enthusiasts per se, but a lot of people who watches the Apple novelties (iPhone 7 and Apple Watch Series 2) […]
Twice in my life I have been fortunate enough to hear multiple Patek Philippe minute repeaters doing their thing, and the most recent was under interesting circumstances. Patek Philippe is generally, well, you wouldn’t say uncommunicative, but they do have the natural reticence that you’d expect from a family-owned haute horlogerie firm. Let’s go with discreet. However, over the last few years, the company has also begun holding periodic educational seminars, which, though of course they focus on Patek Philippe wristwatches and history, also offer a great deal of very useful, generally-applicable information on watchmaking. The last such educational event I was part of was a full-day workshop on static and dynamic poising (which, if you’re of a similar turn of mind to mine, is pretty exciting, white-knuckle stuff, and I’m being totally serious). The most recent, however, was a workshop on minute repeaters, during which we discussed everything from manufacturing gongs, to case construction, to how repeaters are tested and validated for release at Patek – and, yes, horse urine as well; and thereby hangs a tale.
No, Watches Of Knightsbridge is not hosting a themed auction – quite the opposite really. The London auctioneer has actually put together a rather eclectic catalog for its September 17 sale, led by a classically elegant Longines 13ZN flyback chronograph. But, as I looked over the lots, I noticed a healthy dose of steel sport watches from the 1960s, in particular a few with sleek black dials. Here are four of my favorites, ranging from a classic Rolex Submariner to a funky Universal Genève diver to a Lemania chronograph used by the South African Air Force.
Over the course of last week, I had the privilege of meeting Raul Pages, founder and Master Watchmaker of Pagès Watches to better understand his latest creation, the Soberly Onyx. We first covered the Soberly Onyx back in May where our editorial director, Mr. Peter Chong shared about Raul’s impressive watchmaking background. Having worked in…
The Kari Voutilainen VINGT-8 watch is a classic 3-hand piece made in very small numbers for some of the most discerning watch collectors out there. Watch Xchange recently got ahold of a rare, one-of-a-kind Voutilainen VINGT-8 watch in platinum that is a prototype model numbered 000 and represents the first time the watchmaker used his then-newly developed escapement design as well as his first COSC-certified piece.
What can be seen now as a natural collection for Frederique Constant was not that of a gimmick and neither just another collection, back in 1994. When it has been introduced, the Frederique Constant HeartBeat was a sort of first of its kind. Showing the beating heart of a watch on the dial was not that usual, apart from the high-end tourbillon. This HeartBeat collection has expanded since then, and continues to do so this year, with two new references. Here are the 2016 Frederique Constant HeartBeat Manufacture Watches, with new dials and one edition with Date by Hand.
While Frederique Constant has a clear classical, elegant and refined vocation, the other branch of the group, Alpina, is much more oriented on heritage and sports watches. Once again, the motto is the same: accessibility, value for money, very decent quality and functionality – but in another style category. The main collection of Alpina, the Alpiner, was mainly focussing on Chronographs and vintage-oriented pieces until now. This year, the brands adds two references in the catalogue, two robust sports watches, the Alpina Alpiner 4 Automatic and the Alpina Alpiner 4 Automatic GMT Business Timer.
To celebrate the tenth anniversary of the all-black watch, Hublot presented the competitively priced Hublot Big Bang Unico Sapphire All Black, a darkly transparent watch equipped with the latest technological breakthroughs of the brand.
Blancpain Blancpain is the oldest watch brand of the world and famous for its tourbillon. There is a core idea behind Blancpain’s tourbillon that lay behind the invention that was patented by Ambraham-Louis Breguet in 1801. This video is going to explain how a tourbillon works. How a tourbillon works Want to know more about the […]
Piaget’s move into the high-end steel sports market surprised many – but how does the Polo S hold up under close inspection?
The Polo S caused quite a fuss when it was released. Not only was this steel sports watch far from what most people expect from the reserved Genevan brand, they also released it at a star-studded launch party in Brooklyn – the sort of event you’d expect from the likes of IWC and JLC.…
