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Best Super NEWS Watches
HODINKEE Events: We're Celebrating The 40th Anniversary Of The Royal Oak In NYC, And You're Invited!
We love the Royal Oak. A lot. So much in fact that we are throwing it a 40th birthday party right here in New York City.?Actually, Audemars Piguet is celebrating the 40th anniversary of the Royal Oak with a truly incredible exhibition of more than 100 different examples of the watch that changed everything, many of which are leaving the Le Brassus Museum for the very first time.?The exhibition will be open for four days (March 21-24) and will be open to the public.? The collection of watches from Audemars Piguet will be set atop the artwork of famed contemporary artists Sebastien Leon Agneessens, Quayola and Dan Holdsworth.On the night of Friday, March 23rd, HODINKEE will host a special cele...
Pre-Basel World 2012: Introducing The Linde Werdelin Oktopus II Double Date (VIDEO)
You are looking at the brands new dive watch from Linde Werdelin, the Oktopus II Double Date.? This is the follow-up piece to 2009's popular Oktopus.?Designed from the ground up, the Oktopus II Double Date features, for the first time, the use of ceramic in a Linde Werdelin piece.? It is coupled with titanium, and in one case, rose gold to provide optimal water resistance and prevention of corosion over long term exposure to saltwater.? Yes, the Oktopus II is actually designed to take diving.As with all LW pieces, this new diver features a really strong case design: it houses a central movement chamber and four seperate caseparts assmbled with 16 screws to keep the beating heart of the Oktop...
Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Ref 5402 "A-Series": Estimate $15,000-$22,000On the very first day of SIHH this year, we showed you the watch the #watchnerds had been waiting for - the new Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Jumbo.? The Jumbo is a special watch as we've told you a few times now, and this year's release is as close to the original as any modern interpretation could possibly be.? But you know what it's not? It's not the original.But, in March's Antiquorum auction, there are actually two chances to own AP RO Jumbos from some of the very first batches to leave Le Brassus.? The reference of the first RO's was Ref 5402, and there are two 5402's in this sale - one of them being a holy grail "A-Ser...
Introducing The Cartier Tank Anglaise: A New Tank Using Cartier's In-House Movement
We already showed you a new, super-slim tank from Cartier at SIHH 2012 in the Louis Cartier XL Slimline.? But, the Louis Cartier is not a new case.? And, while the Louis Cartier did answer collectors' calls for a Tank with a mechanical movement, it uses a Piaget, and not a Cartier movement.?Then, there is the brand new Tank Anglaise - the big story from the tank category of watches at Cartier 2012.? The Anglaise is the third model to be attributed to a particular region, following the Ame?ricaine and Tank Franc?aise.?? The case to the Anglaise is bulkier than the other two, but features a rounded, ergonomic profile and has a crown that is integrated right into the signature parallel brancard...
FOUND (In A Toolbox): A World War II A. Lange & Sohne B-Uhr Wristwatch
Its every car lovers dream to come across a Ferrari in a barn. Similarly, watch collectors hope to stumble upon a pre-Moon Speedmaster at a garage sale or in a relatives sock drawer. Well, it does happen and today weve got one of those stories. Ian Brown, owner of a jewelry store in Woodstock, Georgia, recently acquired a 1940s A. Lange & Sohne Beobachtungsuhr, or B-Uhr, that was found in a toolbox at an estate sale.If youre a regular reader of HODINKEE, you know weve covered these World War II pilots watches before. But heres a refresher. The German air force, or Luftwaffe, commissioned five companies to build watches for its pilots and navigators: IWC, Laco, Stowa, Wempe and ...
Photo Report: Inside The New Jaeger-LeCoultre Boutique In NYC
Madison Avenue in New York is quickly becoming one of the best watch shopping streets in the world. Not only is there a stunning Vacheron Constantin Boutique on 64th street (open since 2011), and brand new boutiques from A. Lange & Sohne and Seiko, but as of this past Friday at 4 p.m., we now have an official Jaeger-LeCoultre store in NYC. And guess what? We were there first thing to photograph the whole damn thing. Click through for a photo report of the new Jaeger-LeCoultre boutique in NYC, now open for business. ? The selection of watches in the new JLC boutique is simply fantastic. Of course, you are going to see a wi...
Introducing The iPocketWatch: Exactly What You Think It Is
When Steve Jobs first introduced the latest iPod Nano he made a reference to the device's potential use as a wrist watch thanks to a built in clock interface. This idea took hold with both the technophiles and watch nerds among us and has taken on a market all its own (remember this project?), heck even Apple has indulged us with their own (interesting) take on dial designs. It makes sense then that Australian designer Edwin Conan took this a step further with his iPocketWatch concept that he is currently trying to get off the ground with your help. Conan's prototype is currently on display at Pozible, Australia's version of Kick-Starter. His industrial designs put a contemporary spin on the...
Remember when we promised to send one of you, a HODINKEE reader, on a VIP trip to visit famed Swiss watch manufacture Piaget?. You should, because it was the biggest, baddest giveaway we've ever held.?The response to this project was enormous, and we had hundreds of participants take the time watch all the videos necessary to answer the ten (very difficult) questions.? From the few entrants that managed to answer all 10 correctly, 1 winner was selected - Bao Nguyen of Virginia, who brought his wife along for the adventure that took place earlier this month. During his stay, Bao was taken to the manufacture's movement production facilities in La Cote-aux-Fes, within Swiss Canton Jura, and th...
American-made pocketwatches from the early 20th century can be had for nothing. And when i say nothing, I mean like $20 or less, in some cases.? This New Haven pocket watch is a prime example of the "Dollar Watches" that permeated the US about a century ago.? It's just a nice looking watch, sure, and still keeps remarkably accurate time.? But the real joy comes when you pop off the caseback and take a look at the movement.? Could this movement be any less impressive looking? Not really, and that's the joy of this watch.? These watches have absolutely zero finishing to them because they were made not as a keepsake or heirloom,...
In-Depth: The IWC Sidrale Scafusia (Live Photos + Video Explanation)
IWC makes watches with a purpose - watches designed to be taken into battle, or to be worn while doing important research. ?So, in August, when the gang from Schafhausen released a $750,000 mega-watch, the world wasn't sure what to think. ?Had IWC jumped the shark and started to cater to clients who demand a watch this expensive, the clients who buy more for the sake of ownership than the joy of ownership? ?You all know the type.A $750,000 IWC is curious, but it is not unwarranted, and nothing about the Sidrale Scafusia is superfluous, from a developmental standpoint. ?You see, this watch took ten years to create, and employed the minds of some wonderfully brilliant men, including Professor...
Helmut Sinn Selling His Personal Watch Collection: Own A Sinn That Belonged To The Founder Of Sinn
Helmut Sinn, the founder of the eponymously-named watch company famous for its robust aviation-inspired tool watches, is selling off some of his own collection. Herr Sinn, a former pilot and flight instructor, founded his watch company in the late 1950s and the brand quickly became known for its overengineered timepieces that are highly functional in all conditions. Helmut Sinn sold the company to Lothar Schmidt in 1994 and went on to pursue other ventures with brands such as Chronosport and Guinard. Mr. Sinn, now in his 90s, has a large and eclectic collection of timepieces - pocketwatches, wristwatches and even aircraft nav...
Found: One Of Three Panerai Prototypes From 1984
Most people know the tale of Panerais rise in the early 1990s, thanks to the enthusiasm for the brand from a certain action film star. In the early Eighties, Officine Panerai, then based in Florence, was still only a small producer of instruments for scientists and the Italian navy. At that time, the head of Panerais mechanical design department, Alessandro Bettarini, found some old records and drawings in the archives from Panerais days making the now-famous dive watches for the Italian and Egyptian navies. He was interested in reproducing these watches, updated to modern specifications and usable as wrist instruments for Italys naval divers and a few prototypes were built, like the one...
This is the new Richard Mille RM056. It is a split-seconds chronograph with tourbillon with a case built entirely out of sapphire. The whole thing. ? In fact, this three piece case is actually milled from one solid block of sapphire, cut to allow for the movement placement and then reassembled as this watch. Sapphire is indeed highly scratch-resistant, though somewhat brittle, so in theory, this watch could break if dropped.Still, it features just an absolutely breathtaking movement - the lightest split-chrono tourbillon movement in the world - and an incredible look.Only five RM56's will be made. The cost? Yup, $1.65 million....
Introducing the Roger Dubuis Pulsion Chronograph In Titanium
The evolution of Roger Dubuis continues. Last years Monegasque collection provided a more elegant alternative to the oversized bling of their Excalibur lineup and this year the brand introduces the Pulsion collection of high end sports watches. A flying tourbillon and chronograph both in-house with Geneva Seal) are available in titanium or gold cases with rotating bezel and spectacular decorated skeletonized dials. All versions come on integrated rubber straps. The Pulsion collection replaces the Easy Diver, which is being phased out, a welcome change in our opinion....
First Look: The Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Offshore Diver In Forged Carbon (Live Photos)
Two years ago, Audemars Piguet released their first real diver C the Royal Oak Diver C and its been a huge success for the brand (We reviewed it in its briny element here.) For 2012 comes a new carbon fiber version with ceramic bezel. Sporting the same dimensions, mega-tapisserie dial, 3120 automatic movement and rotating inner timing ring as the steel Diver, the new version has a decidedly more sporty appearance, thanks to the yellow minute hand and 15-minute arc on the timing ring.More photos after the jump....
Introducing The New Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Jumbo, Complete With "AP" At 6 O'Clock
This is the watch we've been waiting for.? You are looking at the new Royal Oak Jumbo, a fitting tribute to the 1972 original if there ever was one.? Sized at 39mm and using the same AP caliber 2120 that made the original the icon that it is, the new Jumbo will feature a few design traits reminiscent of the original.? You will, most noticeably, see that the "AP" logo has been moved from the 12 o'clock position back down to 6 o'clock, and the tapisserie is also smaller, just like it was on the original.This watch will retain the reference 15202 despite the cosmetic changes, and it will only be available with a historically inspired blueish grey dial. The see-through sapphire caseback also rem...
Introducing The IWC Pilot's Watch Worldtimer
Announced this very moment at SIHH is the Pilot's Watch Worldtimer from IWC.? This 45mm piece in stainless steel has the ability to not only display two timezones at once, but actually 24 timezones simultaneously.?The home-time jumps in one hour intervals for easy setting when changing timezones.? The automatic movement has a power reserve of 42 hours, and a worldtimer makes perfect sense in IWC's Pilot's line of watches, the rest of which we'll update you on very soon....
Follow HODINKEE For Live Updates From Geneva Next Week
Ben and Jason are currently somewhere over the Atlantic ocean en route to Geneva for one of the most important weeks in watches.? This week is the annual SIHH, where the Richemont brands, plus some great friends, announce their latest and greatest.? This week is also the GTE, which showcases some independent brands.?We will be bringing you constant updates from the field via a number of social media outlets, in addition to posts right here on the blog.? To be as close to the action as possible, you'll want to follow HODINKEE on:Tumblr / Twitter / Facebook / Foursquare / FlickrYou can also follow our two intrepid journalists on their personal accounts at @JasonHeaton and @BenjaminClymer....
Interview: Stephen Urquhart, President & CEO Of Omega Watches
Today is the final day of our first ever Interview Week - a week we spent giving you unparalleled access to some of the most powerful men in the industry. ?Our last installment features a man in control of one of the biggest and most famous watch brands in history, the brand that went to the moon - Omega Watches.Stephen Urquhart is the president and CEO of Omega, and in this interview we ask him about what prompted to the decision to open thirty boutiques in the United States alone, his view on the changing demands of watch buyers, why the prices of Omega seem to be not so slowly creeping higher by the year, who he views as his biggest competitors (hint: one begins with a "C," the other with...
Interview: Thierry Stern, President of Patek Philippe
On the eve of his second anniversary as president of Patek Philippe, I joined 41-year-old Thierry Stern at the seaside Ritz-Carlton resort in Half Moon Bay, California for a chat about his legendary brand - the brand that his great-grandfather Charles purchased in 1932 with his great-uncle Jean C the brand his grandfather Henri helped establish as the watch of legends in the 1950s and 60s, the brand his father Philippe brought into the modern age with the introduction of the Caliber 89, and the brand Thierry now controls as the fourth Stern to helm the watch manufacture by which all others are measured. Stern was in town to present two new watches to select retailers C the Reference 5550P ...