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Best Super NEWS Watches
Welcome to another installment of "My Watch Story," a video series starring HODINKEE readers and their most prized watches. The submissions continue to stream in, and we couldn't be happier to share them with the watch community. Today, we have five new stories submitted by Shashi Baltutis, Michael Berrios, Edgard Ngono, Michael Indig, and Suprotik Das.Feeling inspired, or just discovering this project? Please scroll down to the bottom of the page to learn how to submit your own video. But first, we hope you enjoy this installment of My Watch Story. Shashi Baltutis And His Tudor Oyster Shashi, from Adelai...
Four + One: This Is Us Interviewing Sterling K. Brown
When Sterling K. Brown isn't wearing a Patek Philippe as Randall on the emotional (we're not crying, it's just allergies) NBC drama This is Us, or narrating the upcoming CNN original Lincoln: Divided We Stand, the Emmy-winning actor and producer is busy building his own timepiece arsenal. Brown, 44, is a true watch lover and a collector of things C including a very specific subset of sun-protecting eyewear.? Like many of us, he got into watches through a connection to his family. "My uncle had C and this was a big deal for a Black man in the sixties C a Rolex. I remember he never talked about it. He wasn't ostentatious, but every once in a while, I would watch ot...
Introducing: The Timex Nuptse Atlantis Edition For Japan
I'll admit it: While many of my peers had Flik Flaks, Shark watches, and G-Shocks as introductions to the wide world of watches, my earliest days were spent with a bevy of digital models from Timex, and those loveable watches have had a lasting impression upon me.?My journey began with an Ironman C a story I have shared here C and a few years later, I was the proud owner of a grey and black Timex Expedition. Where the Ironman felt sporty and unassuming, the Expedition was my first true introduction to ruggedly capable no-nonsense watches. And while I cannot go out and buy a new version of my original Ironman, Timex has recently created ten colorful versions of the Expedition. Unfortunately f...
It's Complicated: The Zenith Chronomaster Sport, With The El Primero Caliber 3600
The El Primero caliber 400 is an anachronism, but a wonderful one. The first high-frequency automatic chronograph movement, it was introduced (along with the Seiko 6309 and the Breitling/Heuer/Buren caliber 01) in 1969 and it has, rather astonishingly, persisted down to the present day. The movement's design, however, is also a relic of its time C for instance, there are a number of different size screws, more than you'd see in a movement designed today, which makes manufacturing comparatively time, labor, and cost-intensive. The Chronomaster Sport, launched today by Zenith, uses a new movement: the caliber 3600, which is designed to reduce parts count, take advantage of modern materials and...
Another Wednesday means yet another great group of vintage watches hitting the HODINKEE Shop. As we settle into 2021, our focus has been curating a selection that's broad in brand name, formality, and price point with every watch offered possessing the intrigue to be the crown jewel of a collection. If pressed to propose a theme to this week in particular, it would be examples of classic models with all of the little details collectors seek. An 18k yellow gold ref. 1005 Oyster Perpetual from 1963 is great, but ours, with the added detail of a Serpico y Laino retailer signature, really jumps off the page. We have an Explorer ref. 1016 but with a glossy gilt dial, a vintage Datejust with "wide...
Beginner's Guide: Seven Questions To Ask Before Buying A Vintage Watch
Starting out collecting watches can be a minefield C if you're not careful, you can end up feeling like you jumped into a shark tank wearing a meat bathing suit. Any watch purchase comes with a set of stresses, from sourcing the piece to paying the bill to navigating insurance C and that's all on top of making sure you love the watch itself. And the older the watch, the murkier the process. In many ways, buying a new watch is about what you know, and buying a vintage watch is about mitigating the risks of buying into the unknown.? To shop smart, you'll need to ask questions. These questions. If the wa...
Introducing: The Bulgari Octo Finissimo S Chronograph GMT
More big news from Bulgari as the brand has announced a new version of its well-received Octo Finissimo Chronograph GMT. Eagle-eyed readers will have already caught the "S" found in this new model's name, and that's a major hint as the new Octo Finissimo S Chronograph GMT features a steel case and bracelet surrounding a new sunray blue dial with striking silver sub-dials.?Previously available in titanium (and given the Week On The Wrist treatment here), the original model was the thinnest mechanical chronograph in the world when it came out in March of 2019. As of today, there is a new brushed bad boy on the block and a few more changes to discover.? ...
Introducing: The Hublot Big Bang Tourbillon Automatic Orange Sapphire
LVMH Watch Week continues with a tangerine fever dream from Hublot called the Big Bang Tourbillon Automatic Orange Sapphire. While we've seen lots of different and colorful sapphire-cased watches from Hublot, the brand says this is the first time orange sapphire has been used in this manner, and the effect is, to say the least, striking. The brightly orange form is tinted with titanium and chromium, and this peach of a Hublot is also rocking a brand new partially transparent automatically wound and tourbillon-equipped movement.? Initial Thoughts With a translucent sapphire case measuring 45mm across and 1...
Culture Of Time: Unraveling The Mysteries Of Time With Scientists From MIT
An atomic clock's projected error allowance is about one second per 100 million years C a reminder of just how rudimentary our beloved mechanical watches actually are. To put it in perspective, one of the most accurate modern quartz wristwatches, the Citizen Caliber 0100, is a feat of engineering that allows for an error of roughly one second per year. That means that over 100 million years, there'd be an expected error of just over three years.? That's, uh, a pretty big gap. And thanks to a recent breakthrough at MIT, the atomic clock is now even more accurate.? Physicists in the university's Research Laboratory of Electronics have d...
Introducing: The Bulgari Serpenti Spiga
The Serpenti is ubiquitous with Bulgari. Since the late 1960s, the Italian jeweler has created new iterations of the classic bracelet watch over and over, each one offering something different than the model before. This year's big drop is the Serpenti Spiga, which is essentially the same design as the traditional Serpenti Scaglie (introduced in 2009) with a new bracelet design and application.?The Spiga (meaning wheat) was first launched in 2014 with a wavy-patterned black ceramic wrap-around bracelet. The organic pattern was a runaway hit, and Bulgari is back this time with a cross-hatch patterned bracelet in precious metals set with gemstones.?The watch is available in diamond-set rose go...
Introducing: The Chanel Premire Extrait de Camlia
Charmed, I'm sure! Chanel's latest Premire watch, the Extrait de Camlia (Extract of Camellia), offers a playful twist on one of the house's most prolific symbols, the camellia flower.? In this latest incarnation, Gabrielle "Coco" Chanel's favorite blossom is depicted on a sculpted golden charm that dangles from the watch's crown. A single brilliant-cut diamond sits at the center of the bloom on the black-dial version, while the jeweled version fittingly puts on the Ritz, with a pav diamond dial and glittering charm suited for a black-tie soiree. (Remember those?) To complete the look, there's even a matching open ring with a charm. ? ...
Introducing: The Bulgari Octo Finissimo S With Silvered Dial
Measurements, prices, materials, and technical innovations are what I want to know most when I read a press release about a watch. The rest is typically marketing speak. Sparing you as much of that as possible is something I consider to be part of my job. But allow me to break form for a moment and share what I found right at the top of a recent one announcing this year's crop of Bulgari Octo Finissimo watches: "The Watchmaking Icon Of The XXIst Century.'" That's pretty bold, I thought. But then I considered the Octo Finissimo's peerless combination of record-breaking thinness across multiple models, its captivating design, and its seemingly unending introduction...
Introducing: The Zenith Pilot Type 20 Chronograph Silver
Pilot watches from early last century have a very specific aesthetic that's difficult to stray from without breaking the link to early aviation. But Zenith's latest creation manages to sneak in a sterling silver case and dial C a first for Zenith. Silver as a case material is quite rare, and when it is used in watchmaking, it's typically what's referred to as "fine silver," or 99.9% silver. Sterling silver rings in at 92.5% silver, and the remainder is another metal like copper or nickel. It's important to note, however, that sterling silver was commonly used in jewelry and even silverware in the early 1900s, so thematically, it'...
Introducing: The Bulgari Octo Roma Carillon Tourbillon, With Chimes Of Westminster
Above, left to right: Octo Finissimo Minute Repeater, Octo Roma Carillon Tourbillon, and Octo Grande Sonnerie Perpetual Calendar. Bulgari is probably best known, right now, for its many record-setting forays into ultra-thin watchmaking C in fact, the company's broken so many world's records in the genre, some of which had stood for decades, that for a lot of enthusiasts, Bulgari is synonymous with ultra-thin watches.?However, the company has a number of other identities in watchmaking, including the high-jewelry pieces you'd expect, and also, highly complicated watches. These are usually in modified versions of the circle-on-octagon Roma case. Today, for LVMH Wat...
Breaking News: The Patek Philippe Ref. 5711 Nautilus Has Been Discontinued
After a month of internet (and Instagram) speculation that the 5711/1A-010 was discontinued, it has been confirmed by Patek Philippe HQ directly that the blue-dial version of the Nautilus is, in fact, no mas. While this may seem like pretty boring news, it's not if you have been following the path of the luxury steel sport watch market, which has taken off in recent years.The waitlist for the likes of the Nautilus 5711, Rolex Submariner, and Audemars Piguet Royal Oak have become comically long (see all the memes). Rumor has it that the waitlist for the 5711 is (or was) ten years long (yes, ten years long). Which is kind of absurd when you think about it, but also not when you realize that on...
Introducing: The Hublot Classic Fusion Orlinski 40mm
Hublot occupies the space between street art and horology. The brand takes abstract concepts created by important modern artists and translates them into something that can be strapped on the wrist. Just have a look at the Cruz-Diez watch, or the Sang Bleu II to see how Hublot transmogrifies art into watches. The latest watch following this pattern comes from the mind of Richard Orlinski, a French sculptor who also dabbles in producing pop music.? The 40mm Classic Fusion is reimagined in an Orlinski-esque fashion, with a dial that reflects the faceted style found throughout his work. The specific tones of black and blue nod to co...
Sunday Rewind: Thierry Stern's Stubborn Stance On Stainless Steel
We broke the news that the Patek Philippe Ref. 5711/1A-010 Nautilus had been discontinued on Friday, and predictably, people had plenty of thoughts on the matter.? But the signs were there all along. When Joe Thompson had some one-on-one time with Thierry Stern in 2019, Stern gave Joe some insight into his fears that steel might come to define the brand, saying, "I have to be very tough on the quantity [of steel watches]. I don't want steel taking over the lead in the whole collection." Patek Philippe is a family-owned high house of horology, and with that position comes the power to make decisions that protect the brand's long-t...
Introducing: The Bulgari Diva's Dream Peacock Dischi
Merriam-Webster gives the narrow definition of a diva in the context of opera, but it also says that a "diva" is "one who demands that attention be paid to his or her needs, especially without regard to anyone else's needs or feelings." Whether this is an admirable trait or not, I leave to the reader's conscience C but the idea has certainly given rise to some amazing Bulgari watches with that name, and of the three new Diva watches introduced for LVMH Watch Week, the Diva's Dream Peacock Dischi is the one that best fits the name. If this watch could talk, it would say, "Drop dead." "Dischi" means "disk" in Italian, and the time,...
Introducing: A New Book About Chanel's Signature Watch
Rarely can a fashion house transition into watchmaking. The timepieces typically lack the design rigor and aesthetic beauty of the clothes, not to mention the technical sophistication to be considered a true watch lover's watch. But as with so much in the world, Chanel is an exception.?The brand has been making watches for almost 30 years now and has heavily invested in its manufacturing capabilities. It made clear that it means business when it launched Monsieur back in 2017 this was Chanel's first dedicated mens watch, with a jumping hour no less. But the real cornerstone of Chanel's watch collection is the yachting-inspired J12.? ...
Introducing: The Zenith Chronomaster A385 Revival
Today, we've got something new for you. But I'll bet it looks familiar. It's the Zenith A385 Revival, a watch that follows in a steady stream of models paying homage to the first generation of Zenith El Primeros.? These revival pieces are nearly identical to the watches that Zenith used to launch its iconic movement, a caliber that remains, 52 years later, its most famous asset. But if looking at these Revival watches has reinforced anything in my mind, it's that even if Zenith is best known for one very special automatic chronograph movement, the company was doing some really fantastic watch design when El Primero launched. ...