Latest watch news · Page 4

Fears expands its Arnos collection with the Opera Black, pairing a polished black onyx dial with crisp white lacquer and Art Deco styling.

The Papar Vuelte combines a wandering hour complication, striking brutalist design and an ultra-thin 8.8mm case, limited to 100 pieces

For those familiar with the work of Dutch independent watchmaker Laurens de Rijke, working under his De Rijke & Co brand name, you’ll know about the Capri as well. Following his Amalfi Series driver’s watch and series of whimsical Miffy Moonphase watches, both featuring rotatable cases, the Capri is cut from a different block yet […]

At Windup last fall, De Rijke & Co. made a surprise unveiling of the Capri collection, marked by its distinctive ultra-thin rectangular case, unique curved sapphire crystal, integrated shrouded lugs, and stone dials. As the year went on, the brand made an official announcement about the line, launching a poster challenge featuring hidden Easter eggs and offering further previews at other industry events like Milan Watch Week. As the calendar page turned to 2026, pre-orders for the anticipated limited edition Capri finally opened for the initial iterations in black onyx, black aventurine, and blue capri produced in just 50 pieces each. Now, the brand ushers the model into its permanent catalog with three new dial colors: champagne, salmon, and silver. Within each dial variant, there is a balance of subtle nuances and stylistic throughlines. Each version carries a fine textured frosted dial composition that catches and diffuses the light, bringing out the broader spectrum of tones within each of the neutral colorways. De Rijke & Co. has made this effect deliberately subtle. Rather than relying on gloss or decoration, the dials reveal themselves through the curvature across the dial and crystal that’s a defining feature of the Capri. However, each dial shade also has its own cheeky personality. The salmon model offers a fresh take on a hue used throughout the history of watchmaking. Here, the warm pink tone is brought to life thanks to the contrast of the deep blue strap an...

François-Henri Bennahmias, the high-profile executive who served as the CEO of Audemars Piguet for more than a decade and grew annual sales beyond $2 billion, is being tapped as a consultant to Hublot in a surprise move by the LVMH-owned watch brand. Bennahmias was recently brought on to advise and consult for the brand, according to people familiar with the matter. Julien Tornare, the long-time LVMH executive who has served as Hublot's CEO since 2024, remains in the role, according to people who asked not to be named because Bennahmias' appointment hasn't been publicly disclosed.  The Hublot Classic Fusion Balloon Dog by Jeff Koons Bennahmias's move to consult for Hublot, founded in 1980 by Italian entrepreneur Carlo Crocco and known for its innovative, irreverent approach to watchmaking, including rubber straps on precious-metal timepieces, is an unexpected shift. The former professional golfer, who led Audemars Piguet until 2024, launched The Honourable Merchants Group in 2025 and promised to bring watch brands to the new luxury conglomerate that also included an electric bicycle company. While Bennahmias held discussions to acquire stakes in existing watch brands, none have been completed. THMG, as the luxury constellation is known, said in July that it would create a brand called 'N3W5' that will launch at Dubai Watch Week in 2027.  François-Henri Bennahmias at an event in Switzerland launching The Honourable Merchants Group.  LVMH, meanwhile, has been making c...

What We Know It's hard to pinpoint the moment when microbrand watches went from just good to genuinely competitive, but without a doubt, Monta was one of the brands that showed that the transition was more than just happening; it had happened. Thinking back now, it seems obvious, but 2016 was a very different world in microbrand watches. When I got into watches around 2010, microbrands were a bit of a Wild West, with brands popping up and disappearing often just as quickly. Put another way, they were daunting. A lot of the early micro-brands were born out of forums and felt like a mismatch of parts sourced from wherever they could be had. By 2016 (or 2018, when James offered up a primer on microbrands), that was increasingly not the case. In 2026, the microbrand movement has come even further, and Monta is no small part of that history. Now, the brand — based in St. Louis, but whose watches are "conceived" and made in Neuchâtel — is celebrating its tenth anniversary with a pair of limited editions, the Monta Skyquest Neuchâtel X and the Monta Triumph Neuchâtel X. At their core, each of these limited-edition watches is a relatively straightforward re-dial of the standard collection Skyquest and Triumph, but each is filled with detail meant to elicit memories of the mid-century sports watches which served as clear inspiration for these models. The most obvious change here is the shift, in each case, to an Opalin silver dial with painted indices and numerals, and "vint...

You probably know I’ve been a fan of Papar from the brand’s launch in 2024 with its initial model, the Anillo. Since this inaugural GMT collection, the brand has expanded with the addition of a diver called the Cenote. Now, we get a third collection that offers a wandering-hour: the Vuelte. Before even reading the full press kit and just browsing through the images of the latest model in Papar’s lineup, I could see the brand’s distinct and playful DNA shine through in details like the now-signature octagonal case created by intersecting planes giving the impression of folded steel and the poetic color-changing crescent moon logo smiling. I could also see the Vuelte bringing a new personality to the lineup – one that’s a bit more restrained and minimal. However, knowing the attention to detail and the meaning attached to those details that’s been a throughline with Papar’s designs, I also knew there was more than meets the eye behind the aesthetics of this latest offering. The Vuelte introduces a wander-hour complication executed with a very distinct all-black design. If you’ve been in the watch world for a while now, you are well versed in the plethora of blacked-out watches available from nearly every brand. Leave it to Papar to put its own spin on the color concept.  Rather than relying on conventional hands, an aperture carrying the current hour travels around the black dial while a red triangular indicator traces the passing minutes along the perimet...

What We Know Timex and Noah have announced the latest in their ongoing series of collaborations, the Noah x Timex Boatswain. Here, the two have taken their Ellipse-style case and swapped out the dial. This makes for the third release from the two brands to make use of this case style, after the Oval Moon — with an oversized moonphase — and the Lighthouse watch — whose standout design detail was a sketch-like image of a lighthouse across the dial. In this case, both those details have been dropped in favor of a reined in nautical theme, which is most evident when looking at the inner track ring on the dial, which is patterned on a ship's rope. Beyond that detail, the Boatswain is, as a watch (dare I say it), rather conventional, with painted Roman Numeral indices, a slightly creamy ivory dial, and your choice of a gold tone or stainless steel case. The watches are double signed, with the Timex logo at twelve, and the Noah script wordmark at six. Hands and dial printing are, in all cases here, black. The case itself retains the same dimensions as previous releases, measuring 31mm x 35mm. The watches are water resistant to 30 meters, and come fitted on textured leather straps; brown with a stainless steel pin buckle on the stainless steel case, and black with a gold tone pin buckle. The straps are fixed to the case by a centrally mounted pin and collar bar, so strap changes are possible, if a little fiddly. As one would expect these watches are quartz. The Noah x Timex ...

Today, Christopher Ward officially introduces what some might call one of the worst kept secrets in indie watchmaking. We all knew that a dressy version of the brand’s Loco was coming – their British Watchmakers’ Day limited edition kind of gave it away. No one really thought that would be a one off, right? The all new C1 Loco Classic arrives as a fully formed product line within the brand’s Atelier lineup, and offers collectors who might have bristled at the aggressively sporty, angular C12 Loco a more refined option built on the same caliber with the same dramatic architecture.  The C1 Loco Classic is built on a 41mm 904L stainless steel “Light-catcher” case with a mix of high polished surfaces and contrasting brushed elements. The case features a pronounced groove running through the middle section, following through to the lugs, and has a curvy, rounded appearance. It’s a thick case, measuring a total of 14.1mm tall, but over 5mm of that height belongs to the domed crystal – Christopher Ward says the case itself is 8.55mm thick. Despite its overall height, Christopher Ward has gone to great lengths to create a softer and more organic shape for the Loco Classic, and while it might not work on every wrist, visually it certainly meets the brief of a more refined Loco.  As an owner of a C12 Loco, I can say that while I enjoy the case quite a bit, the real draw of the watch is the movement and the dial, and the way those two aspects of the piece are integr...

Contrary to what many watch enthusiasts think, a watch’s design usually starts with the caliber, not the case or the dial. Most of the time, the movement is the limiting factor that a creative team needs to build a design around. But there are multiple ways of solving the puzzle. One involves creating a different […] Visit Hands-On: The New Christopher Ward C1 Loco Classic Continues The Loco Series In Style to read the full article.

Introducing the Fossil Signature Collection. We visited Fossil’s Dallas headquarters to sit down with Senior Creative Director Ryan White for a behind-the-scenes look at the inspiration and creative process behind a collection designed with enthusiasts in mind. Join us at Windup Watch Fair NYC for an exclusive screening of the short documentary chronicling the collection’s […]

The GPHG-nominated Christopher Ward C1 Loco Classic features a six-day power reserve, exposed escapement, and beautifully traditional design.

What We Know It's New York Watch Week, which means lots of new releases hitting your feed. But if you're like me, the most exciting ones to find out about this week are often the special editions from the brands at Windup Watch Fair. Last year, I picked up a New York Edition Metric Chrono from Jonathan Ferrer at the Brew table at Windup—which featured dials inspired by the distinctive patterned flooring of New York subways. It was an extremely weird and fun edition, so naturally I've been looking forward to seeing what Ferrer has in store for this year. Turns out, Brew is taking inspiration from another iconic mode of New York City transportation for this year's special edition launching at Windup Watch Fair—the yellow cab. With the very evidently named Metric Chrono Taxi, the familiar mecaquartz chronograph from the brand gets a black, white, and yellow livery for a dial that reflects the motifs of the cars you love and hate in the city (depending on whether you're a rider or a pedestrian, of course). The Metric Chrono framework remains the same here, with a steel square(ish) cushion case design coming in at 36mm and a thickness of 10.75mm. Given the case shape, the lug-to-lug measures a bit longer, though still very compact at 41.5mm. It comes on a steel bracelet with quick-release spring bars and offers a water resistance of 50 meters. Inside is the Seiko VK68 mecaquartz chronograph movement, sitting behind a checkered solid caseback. The dial is where things get in...

IWC's latest Chinese New Year edition wraps the Performance Chronograph 41 in titanium and gold, limited to 500 pieces for the Year of the Goat. IWC Pilot's Watch Performance Chronograph 41 Year Of The Goat ref. IW388310 reviewed: 500-piece limited edition with gold dial in titanium case.

Urwerk's latest satellite watch arrives with a completely fresh architecture inside and out. The Urwerk UR-300 Time Quantum introduces an all-new case and movement to the Geneva brand's iconic satellite hour display lineup.

The wildly popular Loco gets a dress-watch makeover, and the result is one of the most compelling British-designed watches of the year. The Christopher Ward C1 Loco Classic takes the brand's beloved Loco architecture and reframes it as a refined dress watch with six-day power reserve.

This story has been republished from our friends at Hodinkee Australia. What We Know Today, a luxury sports watch with a rubber strap is nothing revolutionary, but in 1980 it was scandalous. Italian watchmaker and entrepreneur Carlo Crocco fired the starting gun on a casual-luxury sports watch revolution when he combined a gold case with a rubber strap to build his ultimate Mediterranean summer watch: the MDM 'La Hublot.' Turns out his idea caught on and was quickly embraced by royalty in Monaco, Spain and Sweden, to name just a few. An archival shot of Carlo Crocco posing with early MDM Hublot models. Rarely-seen 'pre-Biver' Hublots, including chronographs and a dive watch. The original MDM 'La Hublot' and the new Hublot Classic Fusion Tributo. It's hard to imagine that Hublot is almost 50 years old. We as collectors tend to think of it as a young brand - and in many senses, it still is - but a half-century ain't nothing to sniff at. 46 years after its inaugural release, Hublot is going all the way back to its Carlo Crocco roots with the Hublot Classic Fusion Tributo, a standard-production watch that pays tribute to where the maverick brand started, made with the input of Mr Crocco himself (who officially exited Hublot in 2008). This release encompasses two models in 38mm, one in yellow gold and one in white gold, both housing a Zenith-sourced movement. In a departure from the standard Classic Fusion, the Tributo returns to the original MDM Hublot's 12-screw bezel design ...

Forty-six years ago, Carlo Crocco put a gold watch on a rubber strap, and everyone told him he was mad. Now, Hublot has brought it back as the Classic Fusion Tributo. I sat down with him in Nyon, a week before his 82nd birthday, to hear where it really came from. Picture the showroom at […] Visit The New Hublot Classic Fusion Tributo Takes Us Back To 1980 to read the full article.