Two Broke Watch Snobs
Casio vs Seiko: 10-Year Affordable Watch Brand Review – Here’s the Winner
Explore which brand delivers better value, durability, design, and performance before you buy your next watch.
Results for Mainspring Types and Alloys
30,303 articles · 156 videos found · page 375 of 1016
Two Broke Watch Snobs
Monochrome
Buying Guide – First-Class Travel, With Some Of Today’s Most Elegant GMT Watches
For frequent travellers or those who regularly find themselves in meetings on a global level, it helps to stay on time and in style. A GMT watch offers the perfect solution, but there are a ton of options to choose from. The majority of travel watches lean towards the tool-ish side of the spectrum, often […]
Fratello
Hands-On With The Kudoke 5 - A Piece Of Art For Your Wrist
Part of the fascination that drives my interest in watches is the endless variations in design and, even more so, completely new ideas that result in something I have never seen before. Most of these true innovations come from small independent brands that do not need to cater to the mass market. Recently, I was […] Visit Hands-On With The Kudoke 5 - A Piece Of Art For Your Wrist to read the full article.
Teddy Baldassarre
The Dive Watch That Changed The Trajectory of Tudor Forever - 58 Black
At the time of starting our main YouTube channel in 2017 discussing watches, Tudor was already well on its way with hit releases like the Black Bay and Pelagos, with MT manufacture calibers furthering the excitement around the brand. However, if we had to identify the start of the second wave for Tudor in the 21st cent
Monochrome
The ABCs of Time – Fighting Counterfeiting – How Brands Can Ensure Authenticity
If you’ve ever travelled to Shanghai or Thailand, you might be familiar with the ease of acquiring a convincing fake Rolex for pennies on the dollar. Asian counterfeiters (particularly in Guangdong Province, China) often have access to the original machines used for cases, bracelets, and so on (not for Rolex specifically), as some Swiss brands […]
Deployant
New: Raymond Weil millesime small seconds with Tuxedo‑style sector dials
The latest millesime small seconds keeps the core architecture of the line intact while shifting the visual emphasis toward stronger contrast and more deliberate layering. The case, proportions, and RW4251 movement remain unchanged, which gives the new references a familiar baseline. The update comes through the Tuxedo‑inspired dial treatment and the way each colorway organizes light and dark zones.
Fratello
The Panerai Luminor PAM01086 - Is The Brand’s Entry-Level Dive Watch Its Best?
I first strapped the Panerai Luminor Base Logo PAM01086 to my wrist on a gray Sydney morning. Anchored to my wrist was one of the most storied dive-watch silhouettes in the world - simple, formidable, and, yes, iconic. Over the next two weeks, I wore it everywhere, from work and coffee runs to rainy city […] Visit The Panerai Luminor PAM01086 - Is The Brand’s Entry-Level Dive Watch Its Best? to read the full article.
Monochrome
The Petrolhead Corner – A New Chapter In Formula 1 Is Here, As We Look Ahead At The 2026 Season
In just a week’s time, the madness that is the 2026 Formula 1 season will kick off in Melbourne with the Australian Grand Prix serving as the opening event of 24 rounds of racing. And this year it’s really anyone’s guess as to what’s going to happen over the 24-race-long season. We have very few […]
Two Broke Watch Snobs
Dryden’s New Chrono Diver Gen 2 Delivers Vintage Dive Watch Style Under $500
A look at the Dryden Chrono Diver Gen 2, an under-$500 microbrand dive watch chronograph with refined 1970s styling and a new bracelet.
Time+Tide
Tudor opens up its supply chain while Lange opens new doors in Sydney
We take a look behind the curtain and what really goes in to making a watch at an industrial level in 2026 and more.The post Tudor opens up its supply chain while Lange opens new doors in Sydney appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.
Worn & Wound
Hands-On: IWC Turns on Dark Mode with the Portugieser Chronograph Ceratanium
I’m writing this just a few hours jetlagged from an IWC preview in Los Angeles, where I had the chance to see much of what the brand has in store for this year. Now while most of what I saw has to stay under embargo for now, one piece I can talk about is the new Portugieser Chronograph Ceratanium, and it’s one I feel most watch enthusiasts didn’t see coming. I should admit something up front: the Portugieser line has never been a true favorite of mine. I’ve always thought it was a little too dress-forward and formal. That’s not a criticism, just my own preference. I just typically gravitate toward pieces that feel sportier or more tool-like. Which is exactly why this release surprised me. This is the sportiest Portugieser we’ve seen yet, and it really shifts the tone of a collection that has previously leaned more elegant. The Portugieser Chronograph Ceratanium (Ref. IW371631) keeps the familiar 41mm proportions of the modern Chronograph but the case, crown, and pushers are now crafted in Ceratanium, IWC’s proprietary titanium-based material. If you’re not familiar with Ceratanium, IWC developed this material over five years and it is a patented, matte-black material made by firing a special titanium alloy in a kiln, resulting in a scratch-resistant, non-coated surface. Ceratanium has historically felt most at home within IWC’s more tool-like utilitarian watches, particularly in the Pilot’s Watch line. We’re big fans of this material at Worn & W...
Two Broke Watch Snobs
Hamilton Khaki vs Timex Expedition: Hands-On Field Watch Value Comparison
See how the Hamilton Khaki Mechanical and Timex Solar Field Post perform beyond specs. Find out which delivers better comfort, reliability, design, and value.
Fratello
Hands-On With The New Farer World Timer Thorne Gold
Some colorways naturally lend themselves to a particular watch style. Think, for instance, of a blue-and-red “Pepsi” combination for a GMT watch, stark black and white for a Flieger, or simply the marriage of blued hands over a porcelain-white dial on any number of dress watches. I’m sure I’m missing many more. Some of those […] Visit Hands-On With The New Farer World Timer Thorne Gold to read the full article.
Monochrome
Introducing – The New Perrelet Weekend Malachite
Abraham-Louis Perrelet made his mark in watchmaking history with his work on automatic winding. The modern Perrelet brand is recognised for its patented Double Rotor and Turbine watches, which feature hypnotic spinning rotors on the dial. Much less theatrical, Perrelet’s Weekend collection offers more traditional dress watches in 39mm cases with a subtle retro vibe. […]
Fratello
Fratello’s Top 5 Rolex Explorer II Alternatives In 2026
Another Friday, another list. This week, we follow up on last week’s list of the top five Rolex GMT-Master II alternatives with the best alternatives to the Rolex Explorer II. It’s a logical step since the two models offer much of the same functionality. But they are inherently different watches in terms of presence and […] Visit Fratello’s Top 5 Rolex Explorer II Alternatives In 2026 to read the full article.
Monochrome
Introducing – The Tutima Patria Titanium, Now with a Light Blue Dial
Long associated with pilot’s chronographs and robust instrument watches, Tutima has, over the past decade, built a compelling “classical” collection. The Patria line, introduced in the early 2010s and coinciding with the brand’s return to Glashütte, offered refined cases, restrained dials and, most notably, beautifully executed hand-wound movements rooted in Saxon tradition. Following earlier executions […]
Fratello
Introducing: Three New Raymond Weil Millesime Small Seconds Watches With Tuxedo Dials
Three years ago, the Raymond Weil Millesime Automatic Small Seconds timepiece won the GPHG 2023 Challenge Watch Prize. That was a bigger surprise to most watch fans than Audemars Piguet winning the Grand Prix for the Code 11.59 Ultra-Complication Universelle RD#4. Since that award-winning watch, many variations have debuted. And truth be told, they all […] Visit Introducing: Three New Raymond Weil Millesime Small Seconds Watches With Tuxedo Dials to read the full article.
SJX Watches
Hands On: Breguet Expérimentale 1
The Expérimentale 1 debuted last year as the capstone to the first quarter-millennium of the house of Breguet. We attended the launch event and shared immediate hands-on impressions, but watches like this don’t come along every day, or even every year, so it’s worth a fresh look now that some time has passed and the dust has settled. On paper, the Expérimentale 1 arguably represents the highest form of the mechanical watch. To understand the technical details of what makes the watch so groundbreaking, this in-depth analysis should be considered required reading. In short, the cal. 7250 housed within introduces the first-ever contactless mechanical escapement that simultaneously achieves two feats that Abraham-Louis Breguet himself toiled to accomplish throughout his entire career, namely, an oil-free escapement and stable amplitude. The Expérimentale 1 delivers both, and more. That said, as a wristwatch the Expérimentale 1 is tantalisingly imperfect owing to its polarising design. In fairness, this arguably says more about the difficultly of communicating technical breakthroughs to a non-technical public than it does about the design process at Breguet. It could also be the result of Breguet learning lessons from its own past. A modern (Marine) chronometer The Expérimentale 1 is most notable for its novel escapement and what it signals about the future direction of the brand, but it’s also worth analysing the updated Marine-style case, which is the most challeng...
Worn & Wound
Dryden Introduces Updates to the Chrono Diver Collection
With all the challenges that come with owning vintage watches-servicing, wear on components, wildly varying valuation-sometimes it’s easier to look for something that simply looks vintage instead. Thankfully, we’ve seen a wave of intriguing retro-style watches as of late, and the new Dryden Watch Company Chrono Diver Gen 2 collection brings even more 1970s design to the world of modern skin divers. While the first generation of Chrono Divers from Dryden covered relatively contemporary aesthetic points, like bright colors, high-contrast details with ultra-bright Super-LumiNova, rubber straps, and more, the second generation promises an adherence to more nostalgic design cues. While the new Chrono Divers sport the same modern 42mm case dimensions, the design itself is revised; a layered profile to integrate solid end links for a new tapered five-link bracelet and recessed pushers give the watches a sleeker silhouette that harkens back to simpler skin divers of the 1960s and 1970s, rather than the bulky beasts of today. On the aesthetic end, three new colorways are available and though they largely mirror the dial designs of the first generation, the combinations themselves are much more muted in adherence to the new vintage look. The Black Vintage and PVD Vintage styles feature light yellow indices and hands over a black dial, with white chrono subdials, whereas the Blue Panda model swaps in a dressier white dial and hands with a blue bezel and subdials. Both color...
Monochrome
Introducing – The New Tissot T-Race MotoGP Automatic Chronograph 2026 Limited Edition
Since becoming the official timekeeper of the MotoGP championship in 2001, Tissot has connected itself firmly to the sport through trackside timing systems and watches that speak the design language and mechanical intensity of motorcycle racing. The T-Race MotoGP collection was first introduced in 2003, and the brand has since created many motorsport-inspired references, with […]
Teddy Baldassarre
IWC Portugieser Chronograph Ceratanium Review
In 2017, IWC introduced a proprietary alloy called Ceratanium, or ceramized titanium, a hard, lightweight material that combined the best of ceramic and titanium. Oh, and it happened to look pretty cool as well. The material has been used sparingly in the intervening years, largely appearing across the brand’s sport-watch portfolio, from the Pilot to the Aquatimer collections. This week, Ceratanium is making its first appearance in the Portugieser collection with a new, limited-edition 41mm chronograph featuring a Ceratanium case affixed to a black rubber strap. In an effort to drive the point home, the rest of the watch is fully murdered out making the IWC Portugieser Chronograph Ceratanium a decidedly sporty take on this otherwise dressier collection. [toc-section heading="What's New"] The new watch is the Portugieser Chronograph Ceratanium, and it turns the classic chronograph layout on its head by rendering every detail in shades of black (insert Henry Ford quote here). The Portugieser is a historic watch with roots that date back to the late 1930s, and its modern aesthetic is largely referential to that history. That underlying design remains intact here, with a large, open dial hosting Arabic numerals at each hour, and a set of leaf hands tracking the time against them. The two subdials are arranged vertically, retaining a symmetric layout that recalls the original time-only references that had subsidiary seconds located at 6 o’clock. Using Ceratanium (which ha...
Two Broke Watch Snobs
This Affordable Timex Chronograph Is Giving Serious Ice Blue Daytona Energy
The new affordable Timex Waterbury Heritage Chronograph gets a striking ice blue dial and classic motorsport styling.
Time+Tide
Is the COSC Excellence Chronometer Certification late to the party? Or just what the watch world needs?
Andrew O'Connor interrogates who and what COSC's stricter new chronometer certification is actually intended for.The post Is the COSC Excellence Chronometer Certification late to the party? Or just what the watch world needs? appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.
Hodinkee
Happenings: Sébastian Vivas To Lecture At The Horological Society Of New York
Audemars Piguet's Heritage and Museum Director shares how the brand organizes, enriches, and studies its archives and historical collections.
SJX Watches
IWC Reimagines the Portugieser Chronograph in Ceratanium
One of the longest-lived models in the IWC catalogue, the Portugieser Chronograph is simple, distinctive, and handsomely proportioned. Now it’s undergone a surprising makeover to create the Portugieser Chronograph Ceratanium, which has just debuted publicly on Ed Sheeran’s wrist during the musician’s tour of Australia. Now in its second generation with an in-house movement, the Portugieser Chronograph has a clean aesthetic with vertically laid out registers and a large-but-thin case. Usually available only in gold or steel, the case is now Ceratanium, essentially titanium that’s been treated to form a hard ceramic layer on its surface. Ed Sheeran wearing a Portugieser Chronograph Ceratanium during his concert at the Marvel Stadium on February 26 in Melbourne, Australia. Image – Mark Surridge Initial thoughts IWC doesn’t put out many interesting watches now (regrettably), but the Portugieser Chronograph Ceratanium certainly stands out. Though it’s essentially a cosmetic variation of a familiar model, it is appealing. I’ve long been a fan of the Portugieser Chronograph; I like the proportions and design. The design is now over 30 years ago but still feels fresh. The Ceratanium version is odd yet likeable. The all-black livery feels like a mismatch with the classical style, but somehow it works and fits the minimalist look. Despite the appeal, the new Portugieser is expensive. It costs 50% more than the steel model, which feels like too much notwithstanding th...
Monochrome
First Look – The IWC Portugieser Chronograph Ceratanium, the Icon in Dark Mode
Since its introduction in 1998, the classic IWC Portugieser Chronograph (ref. IW3914) has barely evolved visually. It has only undergone a technical upgrade in 2020, with the introduction of a new generation featuring a manufacture calibre inside (ref. IW3916). And that consistency in the design and overall sporty-chic, nautically-inspired spirit is what makes this watch […]
Hodinkee
Introducing: The IWC Portugieser Chronograph Ceratanium Is A Sleek Twist On A Classic
A uniquely sporty and stealthy take on one of IWC's most recognizable designs.
SJX Watches
Raymond Weil’s Well-Dressed Millesime “Tuxedo”
An eighties icon that is finding fresh footing, Raymond Weil has extended its GPHG-winning dress watch collection with the Millesime Small Seconds 39 mm “Tuxedo”. Available in three appealing colourways, the Millesime features Art Deco-inspired typography that brings a surprising degree of energy to the line-up’s familiar sector-style dial. Initial thoughts Raymond Weil was one of the biggest names in Swiss watchmaking in the 1980s and 1990s. Raymond Weil himself was one of the first entrepreneurs to see a future for mechanical watchmaking amidst the rubble of the quartz crisis, launching his eponymous brand in 1976. While peak production is in the past, the brand seems to have rebounded with a collection of well-received dress watches and savvy limited editions. The new Millesime Small Seconds embodies the carefully considered details that have underpinned the brand’s recent resurgence. It’s not revolutionary by any means, but at just US$2,295 it offers an affordable entry point to the world of Swiss dress watches. Affordability is one thing, but appeal is another. Fortunately the 39 mm Millesime hits many of the right notes in each of the three colourways, including a so-called ‘tuxedo’ configuration in either classic back and white or on-trend burgundy, as well as a dark blue option that might be the dark horse favourite. Art Deco trio All three models have a few key things in common, starting with the stainless steel case. The Millesime measures 39 mm in ...
Time+Tide
The past is a place worth visiting: Jaeger-LeCoultre’s Made of Makers gets a Middle Eastern soul
The latest chapter of JLC's Made of Makers programme, "Bridge in Time", explores the intersection between photography, art and AI.The post The past is a place worth visiting: Jaeger-LeCoultre’s Made of Makers gets a Middle Eastern soul appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.
SJX Watches
In-Depth: Orient Star’s Smart Silicon Escape Wheel
While silicon mechanical movement components have swept across Switzerland, adoption has been slow within the Japanese watch industry, stymied by Swiss patents and professed concerns over the material’s durability. To this day, it remains the unlikely domain of Orient Star, a small brand with priority access to Seiko Epson’s massive industrial base. This positions Orient Star to capitalise on consumer demand for increasingly long power reserves, without sacrificing performance. Thanks to an ultralight and geometrically efficient escape wheel with a patented design, Orient Star is able to deliver a 70-hour power reserve without resorting the same counter-productive trade-offs to balance energy made by some Swiss peers – here’s how it was done. A silicon wafer of escape wheels. Image – Seiko Epson The quest for longer power reserves Recent consumer demand for longer power reserves has sent the industry’s engineers scrambling for ways to increase the autonomy of existing movement platforms. A movement’s power reserve is dictated by the length of the mainspring, which unwinds at a constant rate. That is why using a chronograph doesn’t cause a watch to run down faster – usually. Of course, you need to find somewhere to fit that extra length of mainspring while maintaining the movement’s dimensions, such as by thinning out the barrel walls, narrowing the inner barrel arbour radius, or, reducing the thickness of the mainspring. However, while decreasing the ma...