Best Super NEWS Watches
Introducing: The New And Improved Chanel J12 (Live Pics & Pricing)
You may know them best for their bags, their shoes, and their chic tweed jackets, but Chanel has consistently been upping the ante in the watch industry over the past few years. This year is no different. For 2019, Chanel is re-launching their popular J12 model on its 20th anniversary. Yes, it's the one you are thinking of, the white or black ceramic ladies' dive watch that graces the wrists of everyone from Victoria Beckham to socialites at the Dallas country club. But despite what you may think, this year's release isn't your average tennis bracelet. No, no, this J12 features a brand spanking new movement from Kenissi, a Geneva-based manufacturer that Chanel bought 20% of back in January o...
Introducing: The Bulgari Octo Finissimo Chronograph GMT Automatic
The folks at Bulgari have done it again. What we've got here is another record-setting watch in the Octo Finissimo line, this time an automatic chronograph with a GMT function that can proudly claim the title of being the world's thinnest mechanical chronograph. Seeing "6.9mm thick" on the spec sheet is one thing, but we're actually having a hard time envisioning what that's going to feel like on the wrist as a chronograph C it's so much thinner than what we usually see these days, even setting aside the prolific use of modular chronograph movements. As with many previous Octo Finissimo watches, the Octo Finissimo Chronograph GMT Automatic has an angular case made of sandblasted titanium wit...
Introducing: The Zenith El Primero Defy 21 Carbon
Zenith resurrected the Defy collection back in 2017 and the Defy El Primero 21 was one of the family's initial stars. That watch is a high-speed chronograph (based on the legendary El Primero) that uses two separate escapements, one for timekeeping and one for the chronograph, allowing it to time events down to 1/100th of a second. Yeah, it's serious stuff. This year, Zenith is following things up with a version with a case made entirely of carbon, down to the caseback, pushers, and crown. Technically speaking, the watch is the same Defy El Primero 21 released two years ago, still powered by the El Primero 9004 caliber, but it gets an updated look and feel, with the carbon case complemented ...
Introducing: The Bulova Joseph Bulova Swiss Made Automatic Collection
To celebrate the legacy of its founder, Joseph Bulova, the eponymous brand is releasing a brand new collection of watches inspired by the 1920s, '30, and '40s, the last great age of American watchmaking. The watches all take their design cues from watches of that period, even pulling numeral fonts and details from specific watches in Bulova's archive, including the Commodore, Bankers, and Breton models.There are three different sub-families within the Joseph Bulova collection, each defined by a different case shape: Round, Tonneau, and Tank. We'll break each family down below, but all three share the same automatic Swiss movement, the Sellita SW200, a reliable three-hand-with-date movement w...
Introducing: The Carl F. Bucherer Heritage BiCompax Annual
Joining the Tourbillon Double Peripheral in Carl F. Bucherer's new Heritage collection is this pair of annual calendar chronographs that take their inspiration from classic mid-century models from CFB's archive and beyond. Starting with a 41mm case, the Heritage BiCompax Annual combines a chronograph with a 30-minute totalizer and an annual calendar with a big date display and a subtle month display tucked in at 4:30. There's no day of the week or leap year display, which helps keep the dial clean and classic. The month display is a bit small, but it's not something most people will be referencing on a daily basis so I don't think that will be too big of a problem in practice.?There are two ...
Sunday Rewind: The Road To Basel (Six Years Later!)
Have I got a Sunday for you. Throw your plans out the window and jump into our eight-part videos series following our approach to Baselworld 2013. From Vacheron Constantin to Philippe Dufour, Jaeger-LeCoultre to MB&F, this series digs into independents, major brands, collectors, and even watch designers.? Experience Max Bsser introducing the MusicMachine, learn about watch design from Eric Giroud, and dig deep into the simplicity of Ochs Und Junior watches. Eventually, we make it to Basel and its a great primer for what the show looked like some six years ago. A new Baselworld starts later this week, so dig in and get ready ...
Introducing: The Grand Seiko 20th Anniversary Of Spring Drive (Live Pics & Pricing)
The very first Spring Drive watches from Seiko (which is a slightly redundant thing to say, as there are no Spring Drive watches from anyone else) appeared in 1999, and since then, they've stood alone as a unique form of watchmaking technology. Spring Drive movements are similar to conventional movements in many respects C there is a mainspring, and a conventional going train. However, where the escapement would be in an ordinary watch, a Spring Drive movement has a regulating system consisting of a "glide wheel," which is driven by the going train, but which acts as an electrical generator to produce a minute amount of current. This is used to power an electromagnetic brake, which acts on t...
Introducing: The Patek Philippe 5172G Chronograph
This year Patek Philippe is making a big move, introducing the reference 5172G, a white gold chronograph, to replace the entire reference 5170 that was first introduced back in 2010. This means the existing stock will dry up quickly, so if you want one, you had better go get one now. Like, right now.? The 5172G?is a white gold, manual-winding chronograph with a bright blue dial and luminous Arabic numerals. It has a vintage vibe with the fancy stepped lugs and round chronograph buttons, the former being reminiscent of the still hard to get 5320G from 2017. Both of these design cues are also very different from the 5170 before it, but hey, I guess it's good to kee...
Introducing: The Bulgari Octo Finissimo Skeleton Ceramic
Keeping in step with their theme of making ultra-thin and ultra-high-tech watches, Bulgari has released two additional pieces in the Octo Finissimo Collection C?the Automatic Ceramic and the Skeleton Ceramic. Both watches are made in black ceramic, one with a solid dial and the other with a skeletonized dial. Both watches measure up at 40mm in diameter and 5.5mm top to bottom. They both feature high performing movements, the automatic caliber BVL 138 Finissimo (60-hour power reserve) and the BVL 128SK Finissimo (65-hour power reserve). Both are fitted with the ultra-thin and wearable Finissimo bracelet made of black ceramic as well.? The Octo Finissimo ...
Introducing: The Patek Philippe 5212A Calatrava Weekly Calendar
The ref. 5212A-001 Calatrava Weekly Calendar is a rarity for Patek Philippe. Rather than the precious metal case generally used for Calatravas, the 5212A is cased in stainless steel. In addition to showing the day of the week and the date, the 5212A also shows the number of the week in the year. The weeks are numbered in accordance with the ISO 8610 standard, which specifies that the first full week in any year must begin on Monday, not Sunday, and that the first full week of the year is that which contains January 4. A feature of the standard is that occasionally a year will contain 53 rather than 52 weeks, which is accounted for in the calendar mechanism and numbering scheme on the dial (t...
Introducing: The Panerai Submersible Bronzo PAM 968 (Live Pics & Pricing)
Panerai entered the Bronze game back in 2011, and theyve been carefully working with the alloy and releasing a Bronze model or two a year. This year were getting a whopping 47mm Submersible diver, perhaps the most in-your-face bronze model yet from Panerais Laboratorio di Idee. Its made of a honkin 161 grams of bronze, and youll find a sandblasted ceramic bezel insert on a bronze bezel. This watch is all bronze everything. ? The typical seconds register thats come to signify the Italian brand sits at nine o'clock, and the dial is a deep hue of brown, designed to complement the bronze case. And beyond the bronze, its designed with intention: Its water-res...
Introducing: The Patek Philippe Ref. 5235R Annual Calendar Regulator
This is a Patek Philippe unlike any other. When the ref. 5235 (or 5235G, to be more precise) debuted in 2012 it was the first time that Patek had ever made a regulator-style wristwatch, with the hours, minutes, and seconds broken out into three separate dials. But, being Patek, they weren't satisfied with that and had to add an annual calendar and a trio of high-tech movement components in the Pulsomax escapement, Spiromax balance spring, and Gyromax balance. At the time it was released, it was the only serially-produced watch from the brand with these parts from their Advanced Research division, and as such there were serious production delays after the watch was first launched. For a while...
Introducing: The Zenith El Primero A386 Revival
This year's biggest horological anniversary might be the 50th birthday of the Zenith El Primero. The incredible movement and the watch that introduced it to the world C the A386 C changed the game entirely back in 1969. Sure, there were other automatic chronographs unveiled that year, but Zenith's was the only one to feature a high-speed 5 Hz (36,000 vph) escapement for greater precision and accuracy. It has gone on to become one of the most storied movements of the 20th century and, despite briefly going out of production, it's been a mainstay in Zenith's arsenal for almost its entire lifespan.The big question was how Zenith would celebrate such an important anniversary. Back in January the...
Introducing: The Patek Philippe Aquanaut 5168G With Khaki Green Dial
Well, this one's gonna be a fan favorite. Patek Philippe is updating the Aquanaut with a new dial and strap combination C this time in rugged shades of green. They're calling the color "khaki green," but I think you could easily call it drab green, army green, or even olive green and be pretty spot on. Interestingly, Patek chose the 5168 as the canvas for this new hue instead of the more obvious 5167. The latter is what we think of as the "standard" Aquanaut, with the traditional 40mm case size, while the 5168 is noticeably larger at 42.2mm across. Additionally, the 5168G is made of solid white gold instead of steel (as noted by the G at the end of the reference number), meaning that this to...
Auctions: Phillips To Auction The George Daniels Grand Complication Pocket Watch
It isn't every day that one of the founding father of independent watchmaking's most complicated creations goes up on the auction block. Today we learned that this will happen in May, when Phillip's Geneva Watch ?Auction: Nine, taking place May 11 and 12 at Geneva's Hotel La Reserve, will be headlined by the George Daniels Grand Complication.?This entirely handmade gold masterpiece with a beautiful engine-turned dial last sold publicly at Sotheby's in 2012, where it brought in GBP 914,850. As one would expect, the Daniels Grand Complication is a proper masterpiece, and it's been a little while since it last came up for public sal...
Introducing: The Patek Philippe 5078G Minute Repeater With Black Enamel Dial
Nobody goes big quite like Patek Philippe. The reference 5078 minute repeater has been around for years, but it has never been executed quite like this. The already impressive minute repeater has always utilized the caliber R 27 PS, which is expertly finished and wound automatically with a relatively hefty micro-rotor. That's no different here, but up front you get an absolutely over-the-top incredible black enamel dial with tonal arabesque patterns and applied white gold markers paired with the white gold case. It's a pretty safe bet that these early press photos don't do this watch justice at all, since other Patek watches with black enamel dials (like the incredible 5370P) are straight st...
Introducing: The Zodiac Aerospace GMT Limited Edition
During the 1950s and '60s Zodiac emerged as a powerhouse manufacturer in the Swiss watch industry. It seemed like there wasn't a category of watches that they didn't have an answer for. With the proliferation of GMT watches, Zodiac responded with the Aerospace GMT model, which, like most of Zodiac's watches at the time, was a huge hit. The watch was born from the success of the Sea Wolf; Zodiac created a design that followed the Sea Wolf's design language closely, and added a 24-hour hand and bi-directional GMT bezel in a 35mm case.? The 2019 Aerospace GMT is a modern re-edition of that very watch. The original Aerospace GMT has ...
Introducing: The Patek Philippe Ladies' Nautilus Ref. 7118
If you are a watch enthusiast, or at least read about watches from time to time, you probably know about the Patek Philippe Nautilus. The 5711 has been seriously trending and has become nearly impossible to get. Just ask your local AD for one and they will either tell you it's a 10 year waiting list or hang up on you. So it should come as no surprise that Patek is pushing this classic (dare I say "iconic"?) model (along with other sporty models such as the 5172 and the 5212A).? Cue the ladies' Nautilus reference 7118/1R. Currently the 7118 comes in steel or rose gold with diamonds. Now they have launched four additional 7118s: one in rose gold with a rose gold or...
Introducing: The Porsche Design 1919 Globetimer UTC
When you hear "Porsche Design" your mind might immediately jump to chronographs. And with the automotive connection, you'd easily be forgiven. However, don't sell the brand short and pigeon hole them into only making one kind of timepiece. You'd be missing out if you did. The new 1919 Globetimer UTC is a travel-focused watch that uses the familiar ergonomics of a chrono to make changing time zones extremely easy. The Globetimer starts with a very Porsche Design style case with broad, open lugs and sleek tonal dials available in titanium or gold. You get a simple time display augmented by a central date hand and a central 24-hour hand for the GMT function (complete with day/night indicator). ...
Introducing: The Patek Philippe Alarm Travel Time 5520P
Continuing the expansion of their sporty aviation-themed spin-off of the Calatrava, Patek has announced a new model with a rather cool grand complication. The new 5520P Alarm Travel Time takes the aesthetic established by the 5524G and adds in a 24-hour alarm with a digital display of the alarm time. 42.2mm wide and made of platinum, this four-crown wonder has a brand new movement that adds a technically impressive and useful complication to their pilot line up.? Initial Thoughts When the original 5524G was released in 2015, it was a controversial offering from Patek, with its fair share of both lovers and detractors. Since then, Patek ha...