Two Broke Watch Snobs
Can Orient Outdo Omega? Affordable Dive Watch vs Luxury Dive Watch
After hands-on testing we compare the Orient Mako and Omega Seamaster across movement tech, case finishing, wearability, and real-world durability.
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Two Broke Watch Snobs
After hands-on testing we compare the Orient Mako and Omega Seamaster across movement tech, case finishing, wearability, and real-world durability.
Fratello
We mostly write about mechanical watches here on Fratello. However, we certainly get excited about the occasional solar-powered watches we see released. Solar-powered watches are ideal grab-and-go pieces. They are always running and often come in very capable configurations to withstand most everyday situations. It’s no wonder that big brands, such as TAG Heuer, Seiko, […] Visit Fratello’s Favorite Solar-Powered Watches Of 2025 - Including TAG Heuer, Tissot, And More to read the full article.
SJX Watches
After four years leading the relaunch of Urban Jürgensen (UJ) alongside co-chief executive Alex Rosenfield, Kari Voutilainen is returning to the bench and dedicate his time to watchmaking and development, while Mr Rosenfeld will assume the role of sole chief executive. Despite this change, the relationship between Mr Voutilainen and UJ remains strong; he will still be involved, albeit in a more hands-off capacity as a shareholder, board member, and senior strategic advisor. From this vantage point, Mr Voutilainen, who has a long history with UJ, should retain substantial influence over the brand’s direction. Initial thoughts The news of Kari Voutilainen stepping back from day-to-day executive responsibilities at UJ seems natural, and was probably inevitable. Having gotten the relaunched brand into orbit, Mr Voutilainen is putting things in the hands of the team at UJ to carry on. Judging by the steady pace of deliveries so far this year, there’s plenty of reason to be optimistic about their capabilities. One reason this change seems natural is that it follows a similar move at Voutilainen earlier this month. Mr Voutilainen has been planning for the future and putting management teams in place to build a long-term business and free up more of his own capacity for working on new watches and movements. His daughter, Venla, is also stepping down from her role as chief operating officer at UJ in order to assist with the family business. Kari Voutilainen alongside recently ...
Fratello
Hello and happy holidays from your Fratello Talks team! Today marks the final episode of 2025 and the end of our third season of the show. What better way to round out the year than by looking back at some horological highlights of 2025? RJ, Daan, and your host, Nacho, join forces to discuss some […] Visit Fratello Talks: Horological Highlights Of 2025 to read the full article.
Fratello
Merry Christmas and welcome to another episode of Fratello On Air! We’re back with an episode on Christmas Eve, and we’re talking about our favorite Seiko watches of all time. That’s a tough mission, but like Santa’s job of delivering toys to all the children, we’re up to the task! Grab some mulled wine, settle […] Visit Fratello On Air: Our Favorite Seiko Watches Ever to read the full article.
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Teddy Baldassarre
For a category often seen as a safe harbor for demure and conservative design, the dress watch regularly delivers some of the year’s most memorable releases and 2025 was no different. In fact, we had to do things a little different here by not having any honorable mentions altogether just because all of these pieces really shone. And one of my favorite decisions from our editorial team came together for this story when we decided to award two watches for their awe-inspiring executions of a gold Milanese bracelet. So, without further ado, here are our favorite dress watches of 2025: [toc-section heading="Raymond Weil Toccata Heritage"] Raymond Weil’s Toccata Heritage Seconde/Seconde edition is the fruits of a collaboration between the independent Swiss watchmaker and designer Romaric Andre, known for his playful customization of watch dials. This latest iteration of the brand’s oval-cased dress watch - its name drawn from the world of classical music, a passion of the brand’s eponymous founder - is described as a “horological Simon Says:” its dial is divided into two different shades of anthracite gray, with Dauphine hands in the center, each inscribed with fashion-forward “dress codes” on how to wear the watch. The right sector, with polished indexes, has vertically oriented guidelines on where the wearer’s shirt cuff should land in three different scenarios (business casual, formal, and semi-formal, plus the “sweet spot” halfway divider), while t...
Time+Tide
This is the first-ever Time+Tide "Mean Tweets"segment. Comments you have shared on our content - and you really let us have it.The post “Mean Tweets” Time+Tide Edition: Reacting to our most savage comments appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.
Time+Tide
Despite Rolex’s ongoing success and massive 2025, the brand’s moves this year have left some collectors tilting their heads.The post Why 2025 was a weird year for Rolex appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.
Fratello
Merry Christmas, everyone! As we approach the end of the year, it is time to look back at some of the best Grand Seiko releases of 2025. The past 12 months have been packed with new watches from brands all over the industry, but we saw some amazing novelties from Grand Seiko. From the impressive […] Visit A Condensed Guide To Grand Seiko Releases From 2025 to read the full article.
SJX Watches
Our 2025 coverage included original research and in-depth stories including CEO interviews, engineering explainers, behind-the-scenes manufacture visits, and hands-on features exploring the latest developments in modern horology. We’d like to thank our readers for their engagement and support, which continue to shape and sustain our work. Our founder SJX provided an in-depth study of the Breguet Sympathique No. 1, with exclusive insights from its creator François-Paul Journe. The story is notable not only for its technical reconstruction of the mechanism but also for clarifying how the Sympathique informed Journe’s earliest thinking as a constructor before launching his namesake brand. SJX also spent time with the people leading the industry. Interviews with Kari Voutilainen, Gregory Kissling, Ilaria Resta, and Marc Michel-Amadry offered unusually direct insight into how each manufacture is approaching product development, heritage, and shifting collector behaviour. That research-driven approach continued across several technical features, including his hands-on review of the Rolex Land-Dweller, the most consequential mainstream release of 2025. His analysis unpacked both the engineering decisions behind the cal. 7135 and the strategic implications of Rolex introducing a new collection. Finally his analysis of the record-breaking Patek Philippe ref. 1518 in steel and reporting from the major auctions traced the evolving tastes and appetites of a tightening pool of top...
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Teddy Baldassarre
Chronographs are one of the most popular and yet under-appreciated watches out there. While we might take them for granted due to the relative ease of finding a nice one at just about any price point, the watchmaking on display can be as impressive as that from more exotic complications. 2025 was a fantastic year for fans of the chronograph with Omega releasing a manual wind iteration of their sportier ceramic take on the Speedmaster. And then there’s Breguet, who have been on a roll all year. Let’s take a look at our favorite new chronographs for this year and while not all of them made the list, there are some particularly robust honorable mentions here. [toc-section heading="Longines Spirit Flyback Chronograph"] The Longines Spirit Flyback Chronograph was given a refresh that, in my opinion, puts it in the running for one of the best chronographs out there period. It was previously offered only in a 42mm case but now comes in a fantastic compact 39.5mm wide stainless steel case that comes in at a lug-to-lug height of just around 47.4mm. Of course, it’s not just the case diameter that matters, it’s also the thickness and the reduction from a hefty 17mm to 13.4mm is truly transformative. The L792.4 calibre movement is a manual wind take on the Valjoux 7750 that also gets a contemporary makeover with a silicon balance spring and COSC certification on top of the 68-hour power reserve. While the price of $5,350 on strap and $5,500 might not shout “value” to some,...
SJX Watches
Episode 21 of the SJX Podcast reflects on independent watchmaking in 2025, a year that saw fewer genuinely new releases than expected. Many familiar names opted for variations on existing models rather than bold new directions, making the standout pieces all the more significant, including Urban Jürgensen’s impressive relaunch under Kari Voutilainen, two exceptional time-only watches that proved there’s still room for originality in a crowded field, and interesting calendars from Greubel Forsey, Konstantin Chaykin, and Berneron. Listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Youtube.
SJX Watches
By the early 1930s, Henry Graves Jr lived a life shaped by precision, inheritance, and permanence. It was from this vantage - both social and literal - that he took up residence behind the limestone façade of 834 Fifth Avenue, Rosario Candela’s neo-Renaissance co-operative that replaced hulking mansions with what contemporary coverage called “a series of luxurious homes” in a building that was promised to be “a worthy and lasting landmark”. The promise held: in 2007 the New York Observer called the address “the most pedigreed building on the snobbiest street in the country’s most real estate–obsessed city.” This reputation was sustained in part by its prodigious roster of illustrious owners, from Berwind and Rockefeller to Murdoch and Blavatnik, names that reflect the same social altitude that drew Graves there in the first place. 834 Fifth Avenue where Henry Graves Jr. lived when he received the Supercomplication in 1933. Image – The New York Public Library/collage. From the window of his high apartment, Graves could watch the constellations lift over the dark mass of branches and the curving drives, the lamps along the park paths thinning as the air cleared towards the river. Inside, in a room lined with paintings and prints, a heavy yellow gold watch lay on a table. Opened on its reverse dial, it carried that same sky, compressed into enamel and gold, calculated for this exact latitude and this exact view. The Supercomplication framed the night ...
SJX Watches
From one-off artistic creations to new escapement technologies, 2025 delivered more than its share of surprises and unexpected developments. Brands with institutional research and development departments led the way with unexpected material breakthroughs, while Geneva’s oldest watchmaker surprised (and delighted) with a clock of astronomical proportions. Rolex Land-Dweller and Dynapulse Escapement - SJX Given its institutional nature, Rolex rarely surprises, but when it does, the brand does so in a big way. The Land-Dweller was unquestionably one of the biggest debuts from Rolex in a long time. The integrated bracelet design is certainly a departure from the prevailing house style, but the Land-Dweller is a landmark mainly for the movement inside, the cal. 7135 that boasts the Dynapulse escapement. While Rolex movements have enjoyed largely incremental improvements for years, the cal. 7135 in the Land-Dweller is a radical break because it’s an all-new movement with an all-new escapement. The Dynapulse escapement is one of the most forward-thinking inventions by Rolex, arguably ever. A double-wheel, detached and indirect-tangential impulse escapement, the Dynapulse is arguably among the most advanced escapements on the market today – and the cal. 7135 is probably the most precise self-winding movement on the market. More crucially, it is being produced at scale. A new escapement is an achievement, but a new escapement manufactured in large numbers is a bona fide fea...
Teddy Baldassarre
With 2025 coming to a close, the editorial team at Teddy is eager to share some of our favorite new releases of the year. We’ll be starting with one of the more competitive and popular categories out there: dive watches. Really any given year is a big year for divers but 2025 had some refreshed heavy hitters as well as some new entries that push the limits of watchmaking technology. We attempted to keep our final picks somewhat tight but there is, of course, a honorable mentions section at the end where we go through some notable new releases from the year. So, without further ado let’s get into our favorite new divers from 2025. [toc-section heading="Longines Legend Diver"] The category of vintage-inspired divers has only gotten more competitive in recent years, but Longines has managed to deliver a truly wearable and memorable lineup with its Legend Diver collection. Fully refreshed and reimagined in 2024, this white dial take on the line is the latest addition to the family, and has become the missing piece to making the entire collection feel complete, well-rounded, and versatile. It feels right at home with its other family members, carrying on the 39mm diameter, and slim 12.7mm case profile that makes it easy to wear when you aren’t about to dive into the deep, though its 300 meters of water resistance means you very well can without worry. The mid-century design cues look particularly handsome with the crisp white backdrop of the dial, and, combined with the...
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Teddy Baldassarre
Mickey Mouse is one of the world’s most iconic and recognizable characters and the smiling face of Disney Entertainment, whose vast universe of properties today encompasses everything from Cinderella to Spider-Man to Star Wars. The world first discovered Mickey way back in 1928, in the groundbreaking black-and-white cartoon Steamboat Willie. It was one of the very first cartoon films with synchronized sound and a milestone achievement for Mickey’s co-creator, Walt Disney, who had founded his eponymous animation studio with his brother Roy O. Disney five years earlier, in 1923. Today, that studio is a worldwide force in entertainment and Mickey Mouse’s image can be found on just about every type of merchandise you can imagine - including wristwatches from a surprisingly diverse range of producers and at a wide range of price points. Nearly a century after first appearing on a watch’s dial, Mickey Mouse continues to claim a small but enduringly popular niche in the world of horology. Here is a brief overview of Mickey Mouse watches from the 1930s to Disney’s centennial year of 2023. [toc-section heading="Ingersoll-Waterbury and the First Mickey Mouse Watch"] Photo Credit: Secondhand Horology Mickey’s instant popularity with audiences was such that it was only five years after his debut that the character found himself on the dial of a wristwatch. The circumstances behind the creation of the first Mickey Mouse watch, produced by the American watchmaker Inge...
Hodinkee
Following a huge year for new watches, here are the Editorial team's picks for their favorite watches of 2025.
Time+Tide
Three British brands visited our Time+Tide Discovery Studio to demonstrate 3 distinct approaches to leveraging heritage in the modern era.The post Three British brands show us how to leverage heritage in modern watchmaking appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.
Monochrome
Whenever we can shine a little light on something interesting that has to do with watches coming from the Netherlands, we tend to get a little bit extra excited. Call us chauvinistic, but we’re proud of the things that are being done in our small country. So when we learned that someone we knew quite […]
Deployant
Girard-Perregaux returns to its complications roots with the Cosmos, which was first introduced in 2019. This is a new, piece unique expression for 2025.
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Two Broke Watch Snobs
Reviewing the Halios Seaforth IV Titanium, a dive watch with titanium construction, great finishing, and everyday wearability.
Fratello
The big trend is “small.” And “thin.” Well, those two words perfectly describe the new 36.5mm Vacheron Constantin Traditionelle Perpetual Calendar Ultra-Thin. Not only is the diameter a size “S,” but it also has an 8.43mm case thickness, making it worthy of the “Ultra-Thin” moniker. The pink gold version is the most modern of the […] Visit Introducing: Two Simply Irresistible 36.5mm Vacheron Constantin Traditionelle Perpetual Calendar Ultra-Thin Watches to read the full article.
Monochrome
When Mido introduced the Multifort 8 Two Crowns earlier this year, it was clear the brand had found a confident voice within the competitive world of integrated sports watches. Compact, slim, and thoughtfully detailed, it proved that good design, reliable movement and fair price still matter. Now, Mido expands the series with the Multifort 8 […]
SJX Watches
One of the standout releases from Dubai Watch Week was the UR-Freak, a collaboration between Ulysse Nardin (UN) and Urwerk that embodies some of the most enduring motifs of each brand. More UN than Uwerk, the UR-Freak nonetheless incorporate’s the latter’s satellite wandering hours display, adapted to the Freak’s slow-moving flying tourbillon. A limited run of just 100 individually numbered pieces, the UR-Freak confers some of Urwerk’s disruptive cache to UN, a legacy brand celebrating its 180th anniversary next year. The wandering hours tourbillon To understand why the UR-Freak is such a compelling collaboration, one must understand what UN and Urwerk bring to the table, respectively. The UN Freak turns 25 in 2026, marking a quarter-century of the quirky tourbillon that introduced silicon to watchmaking. That innovation alone would have secured the Freak’s place in watchmaking history, but it was arguably more memorable for its unusual design that put much of the movement (including the escapement) on a rotating platform on the dial. The Freak One is an example of the typical Freak architecture. Ulysse Nardin refers to this architecture as a flying carousel, perhaps to differentiate the standard models from those with a nested tourbillon. Nomenclature aside, it’s technically a tourbillon by nature of its operation, which powers the escapement through a fixed-ring gear (which can be seen around the edge of the dial). In all previous Freak models to date, the mo...
SJX Watches
It was a mixed year for affordable watches, led by segment stalwart Tudor. While appealing offerings from brands like Grand Seiko moved up beyond the US$10,000 mark, the gap was filled by a slate of interesting releases from so-called micro-brands. Here is a selection of affordable releases under US$10,000 that stood out this year. Tudor Ranger 36 - SJX I’m a fan of Tudor – I own several – because its watches are well made and priced even better. But the brand is increasingly appealing because of its gradual evolution towards enthusiast-friendly designs. The Ranger 36 illustrates that. The original Ranger was a little bit too large for this vintage-inspired design. Tudor doubtlessly received feedback to that effect. It took the brand a while, but now the 36 mm version is pretty much spot-on. The compact size fits the design well and the watch also feels good on the wrist. And because the case and bracelet are both entirely brushed, the Ranger 36 also has a low-key look that makes it a practical watch in almost any situation. The “dune white” dial is also a nice touch; it’s a nod to the “albino” dials found on some vintage sports watches (from Rolex rather than Tudor, but that’s a distinction without a difference for most of the brands’ histories). And importantly, the Ranger 36 is the most affordable Tudor with an in-house movement. It’s a solid entry into Tudor’s world of sports watches with high-spec movements. As an aside, Tudor clearly excels ...
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