Best Super NEWS Watches
Introducing The Christophe Claret X-Trem-1 Pinball For Only Watch 2013
Brands are beginning to unveil their piece-unique creations for the 2013 Only Watch charity auction, which will be held in Monoco in September to raise money for research into Duchenne muscular dystrophy. Christophe Claret's contribution this year is the X-Trem-1 Pinball, a fun take on the brand's X-Trem-1 dedicated to children suffering from myopathic disorders. Here's your first look at this unique watch that's going to do some good this fall. The foundation of the X-Trem-1 Pinball is the standard Christophe Claret X-Trem-1 (if you can call anything created by Claret "standard"). Front and center is a 30-degree angled flyin...
Hands-On: With The Antoine Martin Quantime Perptuel au Grand Balancier (Live Pics & Pricing)
When a brand's first watch is a perpetual calendar, it certainly gets your attention. When Antoine Martin launched in 2011 as the new venture of veteran watchmaker Martin Braun, it did so with the Quantime Perptuel au Grand Balancier. We went hands-on with this thoroughly modern take on a classic complication at Basel World and were very impressed with what we saw. Click through for all the details.?In the small town Alpnach (near Lucerne), Martin Braun and business partner Bruno Jufer set up Antoine Martin in 2011 to create watches that push watchmaking forward both technically and aesthetically by utilizing Braun's decades of experience designing movements from the ground up. ...
Hands-On: With The Jaeger-LeCoultre Duometre Spherotourbillon Moon (Live Pics, Official Pricing)
We kicked off the beginning of SIHH with the announcement that Jaeger-LeCoultre had redesigned its amazing Spherotourbillon to contain a hyper-precise moonphase. Yesterday afternoon, we got the chance to go hands-on with this dual-winged, platinum stunner.What one must remember about designing complicated watches is that though it is common to see iterations upon base watches such as this C what was born as a Spherotourbillon is now a Spherotourbillon Moon C that doesn't mean it's simple work. Consider that the case of this Sphero Moon is the same size as the original Sphero, which means JLC had to find a way to add in this complication within the same case. ...
The Road to Basel Episode 3: In-Depth With The Jaeger-LeCoultre Gyrotourbillon Three
Driving through the Valle de Joux, you pass more watch brands than you can count. But we went straight to the heart of the town of Le Sentier to visit Jaeger-LeCoultre. There we sat down with Marketing and Technical Director Stphan Belmont to take a closer look at one of Jaeger's latest creations, the Gyrotourbillon Three.We told you about the original Gyrotoubillon back in 2009, but the Gyrotoubillon Three is a far cry from its older brother. Inside the beautiful platinum case is a flying multi-axis gyrotourbillon that houses a spherical balance spring. It's difficult to take your eyes off the mesmerizing rotating structure at 6 o'clock, but if you do, you'll find a monopusher chronograph...
Hands-On: With The Bell & Ross BR 123 Sport Heritage (Live Pics & Pricing)
Bell & Ross has introduced new BR 123 and 126 models to their popular Vintage line, dubbed Sport Heritage models. The new watches are meant to be reminiscent of designs seen on the wrists of pilots and aeronautics enthusiasts in the 60s. We got the chance to sit down with the watches in Basel a few weeks ago and think we found one of the better value propositions of the show in the 123 Sport Heritage. At the helm of the collection are the 123 and 126 Falcon limited editions, which celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Dassault Mystre-Falcon 20, a popular French jet used for business and government operations. These watch...
Auction Report: Important Watches Sale At Christie's Hong Kong Nears $20 Million
Yesterday saw some pretty big results at Christie's latest auction in Hong Kong. The Important Watches sale included a number of extremely rare and unique pieces from brands like Patek Philippe, Greubel Forsey, Laurent Ferrier, MB&F, Kari Voutilainen, and more. A number of these pieces either set records or came extremely close, with the sale's value totaling just shy of $20 million. Here are some highlights from the sale.? We'll start with the watch that sold for the highest final price, a Patek Philippe 5004 in platinum. The split-seconds chronograph / perpetual calendar combo is arguably one of the most appealing compl...
The World's Most Precise Clock C Ever
Recently we told you about TAG Heuer's MikroPendulumS, which features a chronograph accurate to 1/100th of a second. For a wristwatch, this is extremely accurate. But in the grand scheme of the universe, this is nothing. Today our friends over at Gizmodo have the story of a team of physicists in Colorado who built a clock that measures time down to slivers on the order of magnitude of 10 to the 18th parts per second. This is serious timekeeping we're talking about here.At the National Institute Of Standards And Technology in Boulder, CO, Andrew Ludlow and his team reconfigured an existing technology known as an optical lattice clock to achieve this feat. It's an extremely complex process (as...
Hands-On: With The Maurice Lacroix Masterpiece Seconde Mystrieuse (Live Pics & Video)
Maurice Lacroix first incorporated a bit of showmanship into their Masterpiece line in 2010, with the Roue Carre - you may remember this watch as the one with a functional square wheel gear on the dial. At this year's Basel World, the brand introduced a new Masterpiece watch pushing this theme even further, the Seconde Mystrieuse. We got our hands on the watch in Basel and think we've got the scoop on the big mystery. Read on for the reveal. Rather than a square as seen in the Roue Carre, the Mystrieuse showcases a "floating" seconds hand that counts off the seconds in a linear fashion. The display of this dancing seconds han...
We just finished dinner here in Geneva, where Patek Philippe revealed its latest and greatest (seriously, it's a new take on Patek's most complicated wristwatch ever). ?Tonight, in the private salon above Patek's downtown Geneva boutique, we were shown the Sky Moon Tourbillon Reference 6002. ?While the technical differences between this Sky Moon and the original (reference 5002) are not extensive, they are there, and where this new reference shines is in its case and dial work. ? Let's first cover the technical strengths of the 5002 and the new 6002 Sky Moon tourbillon to see where they differ. ?Both features 13 complications...
IWC will celebrate 75 years of the Portuguese this year, and to kick things off, theyre expanding the line with a new look that looks like an old look. And it is awesome.?Among the new models is the Hand-Wound Eight Days Edition 75th Anniversary,?an homage to the original Portuguese models offered in the early 40s. Like the anniversary edition released in 1993 (ref. 5441), the new Hand-Wound takes its styling cues from its predecessors?but remains remains distinct in its own right, not meant to resurrect any specific reference. Oh, and it's gorgeous. The Portuguese Hand-Wound is a vivid reminder that IWC is aware of, and ...
Hands-On: With The Oris Aquis Depth Gauge (Live Pics & Pricing)
While visiting Basel World last month, we decided it was time to pay Oris a visit to have a peak at their latest diver. While unique divers in this price range can be a hard find, Oris has set themselves apart by employing a full-on depth gauge complication within the dial itself. On top of that, it looks the business and offers a nice bit of kit for the coin. Read on for our full impressions. The Oris Aquis Depth Gauge, as it's called, looks at first glance much like your average desk diver: thick bezel that clicks, hefty case, fat hands, and a minimal dial design. But such a simple recipe has proven difficult for many brand...
Introducing The Urwerk EMC, The First Mechanical "Smart" Watch Movement (Live Pics & Details)
You might be familiar with the idea of a concept watch, but how about a concept movement? What we've got for you today is just that from Urwerk, the EMC movement. It is a "mechanical 'smart' watch movement" that offers feedback about its own performance through the use of an optical sensor and a proprietary display. We've got all the details along with a few live photos of Urwerk's latest development.Providing user-feedback is not something entirely new for Urwerk - the UR-210 "Maltese Falcon" shows the wearer how fast or slow the watch is being automatically wound, allowing adjustment of the rotor to provide even winding. But to push this interactivity to the next level, Urwerk has come up ...
While there are countless brands producing dive watches loved by the "desk divers" among us, few can boast connections to actual divers like Doxa. And when it comes to Doxas, the orange dial Sub is the quintessential watch to have. Jacques Cousteau was a huge Doxa fan and this summer his son Jean-Michel is auctioning off a few of his mission-worn orange dial Subs to benefit the Ocean Futures Society.?Members of the Cousteau family have been wearing Doxa watches for over half a century and Jean-Michel received his first Doxa from his father Jacques over forty years ago. His current research team all wears the Doxa Sub 1200T, which was developed as an homage to the Doxa Sub 300T Conquistador t...
Hands-On: With The Arnold & Son DBS, Double Barrel Sidereal Time (Live Pics)
Earlier this year we brought you a detailed introduction to the Arnold & Son DBS, one of the watches pushing Arnold & Son to the forefront of the high-end watchmaking world. The interesting (even if not terribly useful) complications caught our attention immediately, while the level of detail and amazing execution made this watch a must-see come Basel World. We took a detailed, hands-on look at the DBS and have all the details for you today. The DBS, or Double Barrel Sidereal time, holds its own in the rockstar lineup that Arnold & Son prepared for this year's Basel World (we already showed you the HM Perpetual Mo...
All the many awards presented in the realm of classic automobiles, there is a special place reserved for the one given on the shores of Lake Como. ?The?Concorso d'Eleganza Villa d'Este has taken place at the historic resort since 1929, and the crowd, coupled with the setting and level of automobiles present makes this just a magical event. ?For the second year in a row, A. Lange & Sohne has sponsored the classic car show by making a one-of-a-kind timepiece, and this year's winner wasn't just some nameless mega-millionaire, it was in fact a very famous mega-millionaire. It was Mr. Ralph Lauren himself. ? Mr. Lauren won thi...
Found: The First Vacheron Constantin 14-Day Tourbillon Available In The United States
Tourbillons rarely interest me.? There are some exceptions. of course - like those from these guys, these guys, and these guys.? But one of my favorite tourbillon introductions from the past few years was Vacheron Constantin's Patrimony Traditionnelle 14-Day tourbillon.? This bad-boy was released at SIHH 2011, and just yesterday, I got the chance to see the very first one delivered to the United States up at the VC boutique on 64th and Madison in NYC.? This 42mm pink gold tourbillon has a tremendous power reserve of approximately 336 hours, thanks to four barrels mounted in coupled pairs, which all unwind at the exact same r...
Hands-On: With The Armin Strom Gravity Collection (Live Pics & Pricing)
Biel-based manufacture?Armin Strom?has enjoyed steady growth from its admittedly small, but formidable team. We've brought you a few looks along the way, and it was no surprise to see them continuing to push themselves at this year's Basel World fair. Among other things, they showed us their new ARM13 caliber which employs the use of a micro-rotor winding system. The ARM13 lives inside the brand's new Gravity collection, which builds on some of the aesthetic themes shown over the past years, meaning Armin Strom didn't shy away from making a strong impression. Armin Strom's new Gravity collection is being offered in 4 flavors:...
Today the Grand Prix dHorlogerie de Gene?ve announced its latest jury selection - and not one, but two members of the HODINKEE team have been added to the panel. HODINKEE Editor Benjamin Clymer and Columnist John Mayer (whose contributions you can read here) are both among the recent inductees. The latest 23-person list includes experts and luminaries from the fields of horology, design, architecture, and more. Our own team members aren't the only new additions, with names like Philippe Starck and Jean-Michel Wilmotte appearing as well. The chairman is Aurel Bacs, International Director of Christie's watch department. In add...
During Basel World we gave you a first look at the new MikroPendulumS concept watch from TAG Heuer, which replaces the usual sprung balances with new magnetic pendulums. From top to bottom this watch is full of technical innovations that push the boundaries of what a mechanical watch is capable of by changing the limiting factors themselves. Here we've got a hands-on look at the MikroPendulumS, complete with detailed descriptions, a breakdown of the new technologies, and video of the MikroPendulumS in action, explained by TAG Heuer VP of Science and Engineering Guy Semon himself. Ok, first let's get the basics out of the wa...
The Road To Basel Episode 2: Inside The Atelier With The Legendary Philippe Dufour
On the road from Geneva to the sleepy village of Le Solliat in the Valle de Joux, one drives past the likes of Audemars Piguet, of Patek Philippe, of Blancpain and Breguet, and of Jaeger-LeCoultre and Vacheron Constantin. This one road is home to the vast majority of the finest mechanical watchmakers on the planet C the epicenters of horological micro-engineering that we fawn over on the wrists of friends, at the annual trade shows, and on auction catalog covers. And yet, when we drove down this very road last month en route to Basel World 2013, it wasn't any of these grande manufactures for which I was giddy with excitement. No, it was a visit to a small schoolhouse turned one-man watch st...