Best Super NEWS Watches
Business News: All Of The 2024 GPHG Winners And Our Quick Reactions
The 2024 Grand Prix d'Horlogerie de Genve (GPHG) C the watch industry's top awards show, where the best and brightest watchmakers in the world are showcased C just wrapped up in Geneva. All the categories were announced during a two-and-a-half-hour-long extravaganza of live music, including a stirring rendition of "What a Wonderful World" and a whole lot of French. While I may not have picked up everything from the live translating headset, here are the winners, including the highly coveted Aiguille d'Or, aka the event's top prize. This year, it served as a crowning technical, high-watchmaking achievement for a young CEO at the helm of a brand you may associate most closely with industriali...
Magazine Feature: Anatomy Of An Icon
The Porsche 911 is to cars what the Rolex Daytona is to watches C a perfectly composed, sternly planted, and rigorously over designed product that has come to define an entire category. And to that end, each can end up appearing desperately uninteresting, as friends, colleagues, and journalists further its ubiquity. Hell, there's a case to be made that the 911, just like the Daytona, is even boring. You know, boring in that same way as Tom Brady or Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau C we get it, you speak French and wear fun socks. In May 2017, the one millionth Porsche 911 rolled off the production line in Stuttgart, Germany. If you own a Porsche 911, arguab...
House Of Craft: Watch Industry Legend Jean-Claude Biver
Last month, in partnership with UBS, we hosted a get-together and series of talks in New York City called "House of Craft." The event featured a who's who of watch-world luminaries, including industry legend Jean-Claude Biver, actor Keegan Allen, chef Alton Brown, AP CEO of the Americas Ginny Wright, actor Daniel Dae Kim, journalist Jay Fielden, independent watchmaker Simon Brette, actor and comedian Ronny Chieng, dealer and collector Alessandro Fanciulli, auction specialist Geoff Hess, and menswear designer Todd Snyder. In today's installment of our House of Craft video series, we present a wide-ranging discussion with the aforementioned Jean-Claude Biver.? ...
Breaking News: Swiss Court Finds John Lennon's Patek Philippe 2499 Belongs To Yoko Ono
Today, Switzerland's top court rejected an Italian watch dealer/collector's appeal to claim ownership of John Lennon's Patek Philippe reference 2499. As has been covered on these pages before (right here), the watch was originally a 40th birthday gift from Lennon's wife, Yoko Ono. Now, once again, the watch is legally the property of Ono after the Italian dealer has been ordered to return it to her immediately. The verdict is final and marks the end of a years-long legal battle over the watch after it was stolen from Ono years ago. Should it eventually sell, John Lennon's 2499 would likely become the most expensive watch in the w...
Hodinkee Interviews Hind Seddiqi in Hong Kong 2024
This year, Hind Seddiqi brought the Horology Forum to Hong Kong. Less a city than a delirium, Hong Kong is an unapologetically vertical onslaught of steel, glass, and every fevered neon light imaginable. Stacked with frenetic, towering ambition C the city is both excruciatingly modern and overtly traditional. It's caught in a perfect medium between old and new.? Hong Kong is for watch lovers. Rare timepieces and collector meet-ups abound, complemented by a wealth of watch boutiques and Rolex retailers that line the streets of Central Hong Kong. It's absolutely brimming with watch enthusiasts who are as passionate about obscure '90s Gerald Genta as they are about ...
Happy Friday and welcome back to Bring A Loupe! This week's edition is more standard than last's. After taking a week to preview the wide breadth of watches available in Geneva at four major auction houses, we're back with more niche picks from eBay, smaller local auction houses, and all across the web. Good news for those who enjoy following the mostly spectator sport of major watch auctions, I'll be back soon to recap the results last weekend. And expect an equally enthralling BAL edition previewing the New York auctions in early December. Before all of that, let's reverse course two weeks to recap some results from our last "standard' edition of BAL. The Rolex...
Universal Genve Unveils Trio Of Polerouter Tribute Watches Ahead Of 2026 Relaunch
It's been almost an entire year since the ownership group behind Breitling (the Partners Group) announced its acquisition of vintage collector darling Universal Genve. Since that announcement, speculation has been rampant as to when we would finally see its inaugural product offering and learn where this long-awaited brand revival would nestle itself in the marketplace. Well, today is that day (sort of), as Universal Genve lifts the lid on three incredible new Polerouter Tribute watches, but before you get too excited, consider these new references concept watches of sorts C just a taste of what's to come, as the official reviv...
The launch of the Reverso Tribute Chronographs in steel and pink gold were one of the highlights of Watches & Wonders 2023, and Jaeger-LeCoultre has just released a new limited edition C still in pink gold C that seeks to upgrade the original idea. Now, with the case, dial, and movement bridges in pink gold, this new release looks like a beautiful evolution of an already great-looking, complicated Reverso. The bulk of the impact comes from the movement side, where you can see the gold movement through the skeletonized rear dial, with hours, minutes, and seconds and a 30-minute retrograde totalizer at the bottom of the dial. N...
Review of the tsuka Ltec No. 6
Welcome to "GPHG Week," a themed mini-series where we're covering four winning watches from this year's Grand Prix d'Horlogerie de Genve that you otherwise may have previously missed. Today we have the tsuka Ltec No. 6, which was awarded the "Challenge" award at the Grand Prix d'Horlogerie de Genve this year for best watch under CHF 3,000. If you've been on "watch internet" in the last year or two, you've likely seen the watches of the Japanese brand tsuka Ltec. Maybe you've seen the No. 6 or No. 7.5 being offered on Reddit or other sites for five, six, seven, or even $10,000. You may have seen the watches on the wrist of journalists like my colleague Masah...
Watch Spotting: At An International Meetup For Vintage Heuer Collectors
This time two weeks back, I was on a train from Geneva to Neuchatel. After a quick transfer, I arrived in La Chaux-de-Fonds just in time for dinner at Hotel de Ville. The 2024 Heuer Collector's Summit had begun. Around 30 of the world's more passionate vintage Heuer collectors were invited by the brand to meet the team, visit the manufacturer, and dig through the TAG Heuer Museum archives. If you're a longtime Hodinkee fan, you'll recognize names in attendance like Morgan King, Jeff Stein, George Bamford, and Eric Wind. If you're a longtime Heuer fan, you'll recognize others like Abel Court, Nicholas Gatehouse, and Paul Maudsley. Nicholas Biebuyck, TAG Heuer's He...
Why Watch Nerds Often Love Cars (And Vice Versa)?
It occurred to me as a fresh-hot slick of oil dribbled down my elbow that I probably shouldn't be wearing a watch. "A hundred-fifty meters water-resistant," I grumbled, backing out the drain plug until hot oil fed the basin in a fine black stream.?"Sure hope so." The author, his Seiko 7002, and a few choice rides. Later in the utility sink, I scrubbed the Seiko 7002 with an old frayed toothbrush, taking care to clean those little unreachable slivers between the Seiko's crown and its guards. "Funny things," I thought. "Watches and cars." It's a connection drawn so often it transcends clich. Keep those eyes rolling all you want...
Understated For The Road And Your Wrist C 10 Great Car-Themed Watches
Cars and watches are as interlinked as turkey and Thanksgiving or gin and tonic. If you have petrol in your veins, rocking an automotive-themed watch is a tempting proposition. For me, an automotive-inspired watch design done right is about the small, subtle details. Car enthusiasts' love of watches is fueled (pun intended) by the notion that chronographs and stopwatches were used to time motor racing long before computers. A well-adjusted mechanical movement has all the engineering qualities and appeal of a race-tuned Mezger flat-six in the rear of a vintage Porsche. There is also the talismanic daydream-inducing effect of the right watch, whether you're a wanna...
Editors' Picks: Hodinkee Japan's Favorite Lots From The Phillips 'TOKI: Watch Auction'
The Phillips "TOKI: Watch Auction," for which Hodinkee Japan serves as the media partner, will be held alongside the "Hong Kong Watch Auction XIX" starting November 22, 2024. This is the auction house's first themed auction focused on Japanese watch collecting, gathering watches that reflect the unique Japanese sense of beauty and watch-collecting culture.?The lineup includes pieces made exclusively for the Japanese market, perfectly preserved pristine examples sourced via Japanese collectors, and unique watches created by Japanese independents. A select few lots were on display at the auction preview held in Tokyo earlier, and the details of the entire 115 lots are now available online. Fro...
Introducing: Serica Gets On The Shaped Watch Trend With The New Reference 1174 'Parade'
Here's one I didn't see coming (but I'm glad to see). Serica just released a new addition to the brand's lineup with two dial variations of their new "Parade" ref. 1174, their first shaped watch. Powered by the same SoProd M100 movement as some of their other watches, Serica continues to focus on value and affordability in a distinct and attractive package. The new watch runs a bit more than some of their other time-only offerings C 1,450 C?but it's still a great addition to their collection. The name comes not so much from the picture of parades we have in mind in the U.S. C no, this isn't about floats or giant turkey-shaped ba...
Introducing: The Zenith x Collective Defy Skyline C.X Edition (Live Pics)
The first time we covered Collective Horology, it was a private watch club based in Silicon Valley, composed primarily of members in the Silicon Valley tech sector, as they debuted their first collaboration C a limited edition with Zenith that took the standard 38mm El Primero Chronomaster and stripped down the color palette to something that was refreshingly bright yet monochrome. Back then, the collaboration turned heads with its successful (and sold-out) design, but also in small part because it was a collaboration you couldn't obtain unless you were part of the invitation-only club. Five years later, Collective Horology has a...
Dispatch: Driving Something Sacrilege At The Audrain Tour d'Elegance
A few weeks ago, I brought you a Photo Report from the main event for Audrain Newport Concours & Motor Week, the Concours d'Elegance that is held on the Sunday of the weekend and has a great many amazing cars parked on the lawn of an equally amazing Gilded Age Rhode Island estate. Today, I want to share what happened the day before the main event when I got to drive an unexpected C possibly even inappropriate?C car in the Audrain Tour d'Elegance.? An exceptionally cool 1964 Iso Rivolta GT. We'll get to the car in question in a moment, but first, a bit of background on the tour itself. Typically, most high-profile concours ...
In-Depth: The Incredible Watches (And Cars) Of Briggs Cunningham
One of the countless reasons why any given person may have an interest in timepieces is that these little machines, bound to the wrists of their owners, may in fact be witness to greatness. In the ever-growing list of heroes and their watches, today's subject is not near the top for his contributions to exploration C like, say, a Neil Armstrong might be with his Omega Speedmaster C nor for his importance in the macro-level collecting world, like Paul Newman might be with his Daytona. No, Briggs Cunningham is an American hero of a different sort. His name means little to those outside the highest echelons of motorsport and aquatic racing, or classic timepiece and vehicle collecting. But, to t...
Introducing: The Audemars Piguet x Kaws Royal Oak Concept Tourbillon 'Companion'
Audemars Piguet is no stranger to bringing pop culture concepts into its ultra-high-end Royal Oak Concept platform. In the past few years, perhaps most famously (or infamously), we've seen our Friendly Neighborhood Web-Slinger as well as the King of Wakanda grace the dials of Concept Tourbillons, all in collaboration with Marvel. This time, Audemars Piguet teams up with the Brooklyn-based artist Kaws for a brand new take on the Concept Tourbillon with the artist's iconic character design. Kaws, whose real name is Brian Donnelly, rose to fame in the late '90s with his graffiti interventionism in New York, eventually exploding into...
Last month, I attended the 2024 outing of the Audrain Newport Concours as a guest of A. Lange & Sohne to experience Rhode Island's premiere automotive event. As part of the festivities, I had the chance to tour the lawn of The Breakers C the fabulous Gilded Age estate where they park all the wonderful cars for the show C for a special video with an impressive cast of characters, including Wilhelm Schmid (CEO of A. Lange & Sohne), Donald Osborne (CEO of the Audrain Group), and Nic Waller (Executive Director of the Audrain Newport Concours & Motorweek). As part of an automotive-themed, two-day series on Hodinkee, we're thrilled to share a video of our Audrain Lawn Walk with a few o...
Last month, in partnership with UBS, we hosted a get-together and series of talks in New York City called "House of Craft." The event featured a who's who of watch-world luminaries, including industry legend Jean-Claude Biver, actor Keegan Allen, chef Alton Brown, AP CEO of the Americas Ginny Wright, actor Daniel Dae Kim, journalist Jay Fielden, independent watchmaker Simon Brette, actor and comedian Ronny Chieng, dealer and collector Alessandro Fanciulli, auction specialist Geoff Hess, and menswear designer Todd Snyder.? Photo: David Aujero As promised, we filmed these conversations, and will be rolling them out over the next...