Best Super NEWS Watches
Hands-On: The Ulysse Nardin Diver Chronometer
Why do so many watch brands have freedivers as ambassadors? After all, the dive watch came about, and was used for decades, to track elapsed bottom time while the person wearing it breathes compressed air, specifically to avoid overstaying no-decompression limits or to time deco stops. Yet for years weve seen many brands tout their relationships with such apnea luminaries as Carlos Coste (Oris), Herbert Nitsch (Breitling), Guillaume Nry (Ball and now Panerai), Tanya Streeter (TAG Heuer), Tudor (Morgan Bourchis) and of course, Jacques Mayol (Omega). At first blush, it seems illogical. After all, freediving involves going deep on a single breath, in which the risk of decompression illness i...
Introducing: The Timex Marlin Automatic
Following the successful launch of their classically-minded, hand-wound Marlin, Timex has just announced a new Marlin Automatic line. Carrying a simple and inoffensive styling, these new automatics are 40mm wide, have a date function at three, a lovely domed mineral glass crystal, and a steadfast '60s-derived design that leverages a common aesthetic that has never really been out of style.? Initial Thoughts All four models come on leather straps and the 40mm case is 13mm thick and offers 30 meters of water resistance. The movement appears to be a Miyota 8215. (See the arrows engraved on the winding mass? ...
HODINKEE Radio: Episode 14: Matt Scannell (Live In Los Angeles)
Subscribe to the show: (Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Spotify, TuneIn). Already heard it once or twice? Please leave a short review here, and tell us which guests we should have on! It's a little tough to believe that it's already been a month since we hosted our pop-up at the UTA Artist Space in Los Angeles. An important part of our time out west was recording the first two live episodes of HODINKEE Radio. Youve already heard our conversation Spike Feresten, legendary comedian, car guy, and watch collector, as Episode 11, and if you havent, you should go back and check that out immediately. Today I'm super excited to share the second on...
Photo Report: Celebrating The New Vacheron Constantin Bucherer Blue Editions In Paris
Last week in Paris, we had the pleasure of being a part of the launch of three new Traditionnelle models from Vacheron Constantin in partnership with (and available exclusively from) the legendary watch retailer Bucherer. Part of the retailer's signature Blue Editions series, theses watches took existing archetypes and rendered them in rich pink gold with intense blue dials. There is a 33mm model with two hands and a diamond bezel, a 38mm version with small seconds and a date, and a 42mm model with a 14-day power reserve and a tourbillon. As a set, they make quite the statement.?Guests gathered at the famous H?tel de Crillon, where they were met with a cocktail reception as anticipation buil...
Happenings: An Exhibition Of Vintage Fifty Fathoms At Blancpain's NYC Boutique
The Fifty Fathoms is one of the few watches that I feel comfortable calling an "icon" without cringing at all. It's one of the pillars on which Blancpain is built and the brand has continued to expand the line over the last few years, offering new materials, smaller sizes, and a wealth of complications to the mix. But today we've got something for you that's all about looking back at the classics. Opening today at Blancpain's New York City boutique is an exhibition of vintage Fifty Fathoms models, covering some of the greatest hits and some models that you might never have seen before.? A mid-1950s Fifty Fathoms. ...
Recommended Reading: What Are Google's Smartwatch Plans?
We've spilled plenty of ink ... or, I guess pixels ... writing about the Apple Watch lately. And for good reason. But it's important to remember that there are in fact other people out there making smartwatches, trying to figure out what the future of wrist-worn computing devices looks like. Chief amongst them is Google, whose Wear OS (formerly Android Wear) powers almost every smartwatch made by companies not named Apple and Samsung. Last week Wear OS got a pretty major update, but it still leaves a lot of open questions about Google's vision for the platform and for smartwatches more generally. Luckily, the folks over at The Verge have us covered here. On his w...
Introducing: The Bulgari Octo Grande Sonnerie Perpetual Calendar (Live Pics & Pricing)
Over the last decade, Bulgari has become perhaps most famous in watchmaking for its pioneering work in ultra-thin movements and watches. Although the company says that it's not concerned with records for their own sake, it's also true that having a fistful of superlatives under your belt doesn't hurt. The most recent record-breaking timepieces Bulgari has introduced are the Octo Finissimo Minute Repeater Carbon, and the Octo Finissimo Tourbillon Automatic C the former holds the world's record for thinnest minute repeater, and the latter holds three records: thinnest tourbillon, thinnest automatic tourbillon, and world's thinnest automatic watch.? ?While ultra-thi...
Introducing: The Bell & Ross BR-X1 Military (Live Pics & Pricing)
Bell & Ross has just unveiled an all new BR-X1, and it's everything you would expect from the brand. It's bold, while being focused on new materials development. The BR-X1 collection is of course an extension of the well known, thinner, and less complex square watches that most people associate with Bell & Ross. From the initial skeleton chronograph in titanium and ceramic, the BR-X1 collection now boasts 20 references which include chronographs and a tourbillon?(remember the Hyperstellar in titanium or the Instrument De Marine with a wooden case?).?And now we have the BR-X1 Military.Designed by brand co-founder Bruno Belamich and inspired by fighter jets, the BR-X1 features a 45mm c...
Auctions: The Hamilton Worn By Robin Williams In 'Dead Poets Society' Sells For $32,500
It's been four years since the tragic passing of Robin Williams, one of the most talented entertainers that America has ever produced. A stand-up comedian with Shakespearean dramatic acting chops, Williams's range was legendary. How the person who portrayed Mork and Mrs. Doubtfire was also Sean Maguire, the down-to-earth psychologist in Good Will Hunting, and John Keating, the inspirational literature teacher in Dead Poets Society, still seems remarkable to me, all these years after the films were made. In addition to his life on stage, Williams was a pretty serious watch collector, often spotted wearing timepieces from big brands like Jaeger-LeCoultre, Cartier, ...
Hands-On: The Maurice De Mauriac L2 Deep Blue Diver
Designing a fresh take on the dive watch is no small task. In a format all but entirely established around watches like the Rolex Submariner, the Blancpain Fifty Fathoms, and the Omega Seamaster, a new design is often a tough balancing act. If you step too far outside the established parameters then you effectively thumb your nose at the forebearers of the genre. Conversely, if you stay too close to the format, you risk being labeled derivative, or worse, an homage, little more than a fleeting reflection of someone elses talent. With the creation of their L2 Diver, Maurice de Mauriac has attempted to thread the needle between these outcomes to produce a distinctive dive watch design that ba...
This weeks roundup is a bit of a longer read than usual, but fear not, weve got the goods as always. All bases are covered, with exotic independent creations like a titanium DB28 from De Bethune, obscure watches like an early automatic from a brand you've almost certainly never heard of, a range of compelling pieces from the Wilsdorf-founded brands, and the coolest damn chronograph you've seen in a while all making appearances. We wont waste time C lets get into this weeks supersized Bring A Loupe. De Bethune DB28 Titanium You really know the Daytona market has reached new heights when works of art f...
The Grey NATO: Episode 66: We're Back!
Subscribe to the show: (Apple Podcasts, SoundCloud, Google Play). Already heard it once or twice? Please leave a short review here, and tell us which guests we should have on! We're back! Summer break is over and the The Grey NATO returns C with news! Moving forward, the show is now part of the HODINKEE family, running right here alongside Hodinkee Radio (new episodes every Monday). In case you missed yesterday's more formal announcement, TGN will now post a new episode every other Thursday. There is no change to the feed though and, aside from the occasional ad, no change to the format of the show.?Given the extended break, this episode is a catch up between you...
Provenance has been the byword of the watch auction scene over the last few years. We've seen watches sell that once belonged to Vietnamese emperors and Ethiopian emperors, ?Jackie Kennedy, Elvis Presley, Robin Williams and, of course, Paul Newman. These watches fetch huge prices, sometimes many times what a similar watch without the backstory could command. But a watch doesn't have to come from an A-list celebrity or a world dignitary to carry provenance C no, sometimes the story can reside a little closer to home. At its upcoming Geneva auction in November, Phillips will be selling an original 1993 Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Offshore owned by Emmanuel Gueit, the designer who created it in t...
Personalities: Jean-Claude Biver And The Making Of The Modern Watch Industry
You see, I am like a cat. You throw it out the window and it lands on its feet. Even if at one point I am falling upside down, I recover. I am such a lucky man! That was Jean-Claude Biver in Nyon, Switzerland, in 2005, in a conversation with me five months after he had launched the first Hublot Big Bang watch. We were discussing his then 30-year career in the Swiss watch industry. He had already seemed to have nine lives. He went on to have what seems like nine more.But LVMH's surprise September 21 announcement that Biver will step down on Nov. 1 from his posts as CEO of TAG Heuer and head of LVMH's watch division for health reasons raises the prospect that the caree...
Introducing: The Van Cleef & Arpels Midnight And Lady Arpels Zodiac Lumineux (Live Pics & Pricing)
I'm going to preface this post by stating what might seem obvious. The watches we have here, ornate, enamel-dialed timepieces with an unusual electro-mechanical lighting feature, are not first and foremost made to appeal to watch guys. Still, I've long admired the company that makes them, Van Cleef & Arpels, for its understanding of how storytelling is essential to selling a highly emotional C ?even irrational C product, which is of course what high-end mechanical watches are.A tourbillon is far from a rational product. Nobody needs one, and for that matter, your own wrist is a tourbillon, as Philippe Dufour told Jack on HODINKEE Radio recently. Neither is a minute repeater, a chronograp...
Editors' Picks: Some Of Our Favorite Non-Swiss Watchmakers
When you start talking about high-end watches, the word "Swiss" often ends up getting substituted in for phrases like "high-quality" and "reliable." But it doesn't have to be that way. Sure, Switzerland is the modern home of fine watchmaking, but there are plenty of fantastic watchmakers creating timepieces worth your attention in other places. We had our editors round up five of their favorite watchmakers that reside outside the Confederation, highlighting different types of watches and different approaches to watchmaking in general. And best of all? No passport required. Cara Barrett C Uniform Wares (U.K.) ...
Introducing: The A. Lange & Sohne Datograph Up/Down 'Lumen' (Live Pics & Pricing)
Lange has basically bottled lightning here. The Datograph is, without question, the Lange that gets the most collectors excited, and even people like Philippe Dufour aren't immune to its combination of pure beauty and watchmaking muscle. So far, the watch has existed in platinum and rose gold, with both versions showing rich black dials. They're handsome, they're sturdy, and they're reliable. But today we're getting a new take on the Datograph Up/Down that has everything you'd expect with a dash of something extra. Meet the Datograph Up/Down "Lumen." This is a platinum Datograph with an insane dial treatment that mixes smoked sapphire and huge sections of luminou...
Recommended Reading: Why It's Easier To Buy A Good Watch Now Than Ever Before
It's no secret that the watch market is evolving, and in lots of different directions at once. There are high-end Swiss watchmakers dipping their toes into online sales, retailers experimenting with new store concepts, and upstarts trying to figure out how to get younger buyers interested in devices with hands and dials. In light of this, our friends over at GQ have penned a fascinating look at why, in their opinion, "good watches are cheaper than ever." The survey examines a number of different makers, specifically in the direct-to-consumer space, trying to understand how they do what they do and why we're seeing this explosion in new watch brands right now. ...
Introducing: The Patek Philippe Twenty-4 Automatic
You are likely familiar with the Twenty-4 as Patek Philippe's main women's collection. It was first launched in 1999 and is known for its rectangular design and articulated bracelet. The Twenty-4 has been the most popular women's collection produced by Patek for years and now there is a new addition, the Twenty-4 Automatic. While this watch looks absolutely nothing like the original Twenty-4, it is easy to argue that it has a lot more to offer. It features the same articulated bracelet, but with a more traditional round case, Arabic numerals (that personally remind me of the pilot's watch ref. 7234R released earlier this year), and an automatic movement. This last bit is a first for the coll...
Happenings: Manfredi Jewels Is Throwing A 30th Anniversary Party (And You're Invited)
Our friends over at Manfredi Jewels in Greenwich, Connecticut, are marking a pretty major anniversary this year C it's been 30 years since Roberto Chiappelloni set up shop and created one of the best watch retailers out there today. To celebrate, they're hosting a party at their shop on Greenwich Avenue and would love for you to be there. It should be a pretty incredible night, with cocktails, food, and some of the coolest watches (and watch collectors) you'll find anywhere in the world. The Voutilainen Manfredi 30th Anniversary Watch We've obviously shared stories with you in the past about Manfredi, including this behind-the...