Hodinkee
Gatherings: An Evening With Leica In The Nation's Capital
Celebrating fine mechanical instruments on the wrist and through the lens.
Results for Mechanical vs Quartz
2,052 articles · 478 videos found · page 49 of 85
Hodinkee
Monochrome
Buying Guide – Independent Watchmaking At Its Finest, With Six Recent Masterpieces
Style, creativity, originality and craftsmanship are often at the core of what we appreciate in watches. From the very lowest end to the very highest end of mechanical watchmaking, I like to think we seek something that connects to our personality in the watches we buy. And where else to find more of that than […]
Monochrome
First Look – The New, Architectural Yema Granvelle CMM.20 Collection
Unlike the tool-focused Superman line, the latest release of French brand Yema, the Granvelle, takes visual and mechanical cues from France’s long-standing horological tradition and is named after the Granvelle Palace in Besançon, the 16th-century Renaissance building that houses the Museum of Time. But while its inspiration is historic, the execution is modern and precise: […]
Fratello
Hands-On With The New Serica 5303 PLD - Made In Collaboration With The French Navy
Did you know an amagnetic mechanical watch is a key part of an EOD (Explosive Ordnance Disposal) diver’s equipment? Admittedly, I didn’t. However, as it turns out, the slightest magnetic disturbance can set off explosives, rendering any battery-powered watch dangerous to EOD divers. Because of this, the French Navy turned to Serica for an amagnetic […] Visit Hands-On With The New Serica 5303 PLD - Made In Collaboration With The French Navy to read the full article.
Fratello
Hands-On With The Nivada Grenchen Chronosport Mecaquartz Salmon
Many love an excellent mecaquartz chronograph. Brands can spend more money on the looks of such watches thanks to their affordable movements. These watches often punch above their weight, at least visually. Others say they are cheap interpretations of the real deal, a timepiece with a mechanical movement. I received the new Nivada Chronosport Blue […] Visit Hands-On With The Nivada Grenchen Chronosport Mecaquartz Salmon to read the full article.
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A GREAT $500 Mechanical Watch - Hamilton Khaki Field Mechanical PVD
Monochrome
First Look – The New and Accessible Hamilton Khaki Navy Scuba Auto GMT
The Khaki Navy Scuba collection has long served as Hamilton‘s entry-level offering for dive-inspired timepieces, alongside the more rugged Frogman and BeLOWZERO models. Available in both quartz and automatic versions, the Scuba range has evolved over the years with a wide variety of styles, making it a versatile companion for aquatic and beachside adventures. In […]
Monochrome
Introducing – The New Kudoke 5, with a 24h Rotating Celestial Disc
Independent watchmaking continues to thrive with imaginative creations, and Stefan Kudoke remains a standout name to watch. His HANDwerk collection, launched in 2019, established his reputation for blending mechanical finesse with artistic expression. The Kudoke 1 and Kudoke 2 exemplified this fusion beautifully. With the Kudoke 3, he pushed the design further, retaining his signature […]
SJX Watches
Record Breaking Konstantin Chaykin ThinKing Debuts at Auction
If you want to own the world’s thinnest mechanical watch, the Konstantin Chaykin ThinKing, you’ll have to fight for it at The Geneva Watch Auction: XXI, which will see the first production example go under the hammer. The 1.65 mm stature of the ThinKing is even more impressive coming from a small Russian independent watchmaker, considering previous records were set by big Swiss brands ranging from Piaget to Richard Mille. Notably, this is not the first time a landmark release has been trusted to an auction that isn’t linked to a charity. The most famous example of this was the Patek Philippe Calibre 89 (ref. 989J) back in 1989 at Antiquorum’s thematic sale. The ThinKing will be sold in the first session of the auction, which starts on May 10, 2025, at 2 pm. The ThinKing in profile. Image – Phillips Mr Chaykin achieved the record-setting height with clever construction, including a “double balance wheel” system that places an intermediate wheel between the balance and escapement, allowing both to sit on the same plane. Another notable technical feature is a barrel that is open on both sides, and no thicker than the mainspring itself. And unlike most serially-produced Konstantin Chaykin watches, each ThinKing is made, finished, and assembled by Mr Chaykin himself. Wearability is enhanced by the bolt-on protective shroud in titanium christened “PalanKing”. This increases the height to 5.4 mm, but adds key-less setting and winding, and automatic winding by a...
Teddy Baldassarre
Rolex Oysterquartz: The Complete Guide
When Rolex introduced its Oyster Perpetual Land-Dweller watch at Watches & Wonders 2025, some longtime fans of the brand experienced a bit of déja vu for a Rolex watch - and a Rolex era - that have been largely consigned to the mists of history. Why? Because the Land-Dweller's angular case and integrated-bracelet design reminded many enthusiasts of the Oysterquartz models introduced during the early heyday of quartz watches in the 1970s. That's correct: once upon a time, Rolex, one of the undisputed champions of luxury watches with mechanical movements, jumped on board the Quartz Revolution bandwagon and not only produced its own in-house quartz calibers but marketed the watches that housed them as the pinnacle of the Crown's timepiece portfolio at the time. Here is everything you need to know about the Rolex Oysterquartz and its quirky but significant place in horological history. Rolex Oysterquartz: The Early Days Of Electric Watches The wristwatch industry, like any other industry, is uber-competitive and every watchmaker wants to be the first to market with The Next Big Thing. In the 1950s and into the ‘60s, that Next Big Thing was a watch that could be powered by electricity. American companies like Hamilton, with the Ventura, and Bulova, with the Accutron, were among the pioneers, even though the movements that resulted from these early efforts proved to have difficulty maintaining reliability in mass production. The Japanese, particularly Seiko, took a diff...
Monochrome
Introducing – Seiko Upgrades its Prospex Diver GMT with more WR and a Micro-Adjust Clasp
Surprisingly, Seiko’s first mechanical dive watch with a GMT function was introduced to the collection only two years ago, with the references SPB381, SPB383, and the Save the Ocean limited edition reference SPB385. Inspired by the 1968 Hi-Beat 300m diver, these office GMT watches came with a 200m water-resistance. Only a couple of months ago, […]
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Nodus vs NTH - Retrospect II vs Amphion Vintage Gilt Which is the better Diver? Micro Vs Micro
Fratello
Introducing: The New Garrick S3 Deadbeat Seconds
When you buy a high-end mechanical watch, you may expect a few things - a fine guilloché dial, for example, and/or a smoothly sweeping seconds hand. British watchmaker Garrick sure knows how to deliver both of those. However, you get neither of them with the new S3 Deadbeat Seconds. What you do get, though, is […] Visit Introducing: The New Garrick S3 Deadbeat Seconds to read the full article.
Teddy Baldassarre
Nomos Watches Review
In its relatively young existence, Nomos Glashütte has become one of the most popular and successful German watch brands as well as probably the most accessible to newer (and younger) collectors. Nomos’s success - which includes an impressive string of German design awards - has resulted from a combination of sensible pricing, classical Bauhaus design, and creative forays into color, with a bit of mechanical innovation thrown in for good measure. Read on for an in-depth look at today's Nomos Glashütte collection, along with some background on the brand. A Rebirth in Glashütte It was just two months after the Fall of the Berlin Wall, in January 1990, when Roland Schwertner, a photographer and tech-savvy entrepreneur from Düsseldorf, founded Nomos in the East German town of Glashütte, deriving its name from the Ancient Greek god of law. Before World War II and the subsequent Cold War that partitioned Germany into two nations, the town (above), outside of Dresden in the state of Saxony, was a world center of watchmaking. The foundation of Nomos - along with the revival of historical watch brands like A. Lange & Söhne and the evolution of the conglomerate known as Glashütte Original into a luxury watchmaker - spearheaded the rebirth of Glashütte’s horological heritage in the new, reunited Germany. What set Nomos apart from most of the other manufacturers in Glashütte, then as now, is the company’s clean, modernist aesthetics as well as its relatively...
Fratello
Hands-On With The Sternglas Hamburg Automatik Edition Marine
It’s nice to review a truly affordable watch like the Sternglas Hamburg Automatik every so often. After all, entry-level mechanical timepieces are great for daily wear and can provide a start for new collectors. Sternglas does these watches well and adds thoughtful details, including attractive dials with uncommon lume colors. Today, we’ll look at the […] Visit Hands-On With The Sternglas Hamburg Automatik Edition Marine to read the full article.
Fratello
Retrospective: True Joy With A 100-Plus-Year-Old Plato Flip Clock
I feel a strong sense of nostalgia for the old flipping scoreboards I remember from my childhood. That’s probably why I adore digital jump-hour watches and quartz flip clocks so much. When I first saw the Plato Clock, patented in 1903, I froze in amazement. I believe I’m pretty strong when it comes to controlling […] Visit Retrospective: True Joy With A 100-Plus-Year-Old Plato Flip Clock to read the full article.
Revolution
Everything You Need to Know About the Rolex Oysterquartz
Ross Povey gives us all there is to know about Rolex’s brief foray into quartz watches with the famed and revered Oysterquartz.
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Why Nick Kenyon bought a quartz Grand Seiko SBGN007 as his first \
Fratello
Could The 1990s Inspire The Next Cycle Of Watch Fashion?
The 1990s were a period of significant change in the watch industry. Those years were very much a time of realignment and ongoing recovery after the crippling Quartz Crisis two decades earlier. Today, we’re looking at 1990s watches and design principles from that era to consider whether they could inspire the next trends in the […] Visit Could The 1990s Inspire The Next Cycle Of Watch Fashion? to read the full article.
Monochrome
Just Because – Immersing Myself in Fine Arts, with the Moritz Grossmann Art Edition Max Frintrop
Plenty of people consider mechanical watches an art, and to an extent, I consider myself one of them. I do hold the conviction that, in the end, a watch is a tool to tell time, but every so often, I can appreciate when a watch pairs its time-telling capabilities with something expressive. And when the press […]
Monochrome
First Look – The new Tissot PRX Powermatic 80 40mm in Rose Gold PVD
60 different references… This is how wide Tissot’s best-selling collection, the sporty-elegant integrated PRX watch, has become in about 4 years. Ranging from compact and affordable quartz models to more expensive watches with gold fluted bezels and chronograph movement, and basically everything you can imagine in between (even a forged carbon edition), you’d think the […]
SJX Watches
Grand Seiko Debuts the Angular, Sporty Tentagraph Tokyo Lion
Grand Seiko’s flagship mechanical chronograph has been reimagined as the Sports Collection Tokyo Lion Tentagraph SLGC009. Executed in the brand’s proprietary “Brilliant Hard Titanium”, the oversized, facetted case is inspired by the paw of a lion, the historical emblem of Grand Seiko. This is the first time the Tentagraph movement is being combined with the Tokyo Lion case, setting it apart from the original model that was in the classic Grand Seiko Evolution 9 design. Initial thoughts While the original Tentagraph was conventional in style, the Tokyo Lion edition is big and bold. The watch has presence on the wrist. The case is large at 43 mm wide and almost 16 mm high, with its many facetted surfaces catching the light nicely. While the concept of a lion-inspired case might sound gimmicky, the new Tentagraph has its own appeal. The size and style makes this less of a low-key everyday watch than the first Tentagraph, but definitely more striking and original. Even though the Tokyo Lion case is arguably an acquired taste, I like this more than the original. At US$16,400, the Tokyo Lion Tentagraph is one of Grand Seiko’s priciest models in non-precious metal. But it is a flagship watch with a latest-generation movement, the cal. 9SC5, which incorporates the proprietary Dual Impulse Escapement and a free-sprung balance. The only shortcoming of the watch is the modular construction of the movement. Ten beats per second While the Tokyo Lion case design has been emplo...
![[VIDEO] Grand Seiko Introduces the Tentagraph “Tokyo Lion”](https://wornandwound.com/library/uploads/2025/04/GS_WW_Tentagraph_030.jpg)
Worn & Wound
[VIDEO] Grand Seiko Introduces the Tentagraph “Tokyo Lion”
When the Tentagraph was introduced at Watches & Wonders a few years ago, it was, in its way, a pretty radical idea. Grand Seiko, somewhat surprisingly, had never developed a mechanical chronograph to that point, and the high frequency movement at work in the Tentagraph was and is a significant accomplishment. For Watches & Wonders 2025, Grand Seiko has introduced a new spin on the Tentagraph that is perhaps as equally radical as the introduction of the first Tentagraph in 2023. The new Tokyo Lion Tentagraph (reference SLGC009) puts the Tentagraph into a new context entirely, using what might be Grand Seiko’s most avant-garde and aggressive case shape. The “Lion” chronographs, which have previously only existed with Spring Drive movements, are characterized by a 43mm titanium case with around 40 facets. That, folks, is a lot of facets, and with the Grand Seiko’s zaratsu polishing applied liberally throughout, it’s one of the most dynamic and intriguing cases in their catalog. It’s also, of course, not for everyone. The severe case lines might be a bit of an acquired taste, and the whole thing has an almost M.C. Escher-like quality about it. As someone who personally struggled with geometry in middle school, this case, when I first saw it, gave me no shortage of anxiety. Over the years though, as I’ve had more experience handling these complex cases, my appreciation has grown, and the Tokyo Lion Tentagraph jumped out to me as one of the more special release...
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$500 Watches VS $5k Watches - Similarities and Differences
Monochrome
First Look – The Grand Seiko Evolution 9 Tentagraph SLGC007
Grand Seiko got into the spotlight in 2023 with the launch of its first-ever mechanical chronograph, the Evolution 9 Tentagraph SLGC001, filling the gap in the brand’s 60-year legacy of precision watchmaking – surprisingly, it was missing one until recently. For 2025, Grand Seiko introduces the Tentagraph SLGC007 – a near-identical successor to the original, […]
Fratello
Introducing: The Ulysse Nardin Diver Air
We’re used to outlandish creations from Ulysse Nardin, but today’s Diver Air may be the most extreme yet. The brand set out to create the world’s lightest mechanical dive watch and has gloriously succeeded. Intriguingly, several collaborators were brought on board, including materials companies that normally work on automobiles. Ulysse Nardin takes me back to […] Visit Introducing: The Ulysse Nardin Diver Air to read the full article.
![[VIDEO] Grand Seiko Redefines Accuracy – Again: Introducing the 9RB2 U.F.A. Spring Drive Caliber](https://wornandwound.com/library/uploads/2025/03/GS_WW_UFA_021WR.jpg)
Worn & Wound
[VIDEO] Grand Seiko Redefines Accuracy – Again: Introducing the 9RB2 U.F.A. Spring Drive Caliber
2022: the Kodo constant force tourbillon. 2023: the Tentagraph hi-beat mechanical chronograph. 2024: the 9SA4 manual wound, hi-beat, dual-impulse escapement caliber, and Kodo Daybreak. It’s easy to forget that Grand Seiko has brought the proverbial heat to Watches & Wonders every year since the fair started, unveiling something that one could call “revolutionary” for the brand, if on varying scales. Well, it’s looking like 2025 will continue the trend with the introduction of Spring Drive Caliber 9RB2, the first caliber with U.F.A., or Ultra Fine Accuracy, designation. Before proceeding, there are two important concepts to understand: Spring Drive and Grand Seiko’s history with acronyms (which, if you know, feel free to jump two paragraphs ahead). Starting with the former, the elevator pitch, which I will take from our article dedicated to the topic is “Spring Drive combines the best of mechanical watchmaking and the best of quartz timekeeping to create a state-of-the-art caliber that lacks the weaknesses inherent to both of these movements.” A bit deeper, Spring Drive movements use the energy stored in a traditional mainspring to drive their proprietary “Tri-synchro” regulator, which replaces the classic lever escapement. It consists of a glide wheel, the rate of which is controlled by an electromagnetic brake, and is essentially regulated by an integrated circuit with a quartz oscillator. The result is a mechanical movement with quartz-like accuracy and...
Fratello
Introducing: The TAG Heuer Monaco Split-Seconds Chronograph F1
TAG Heuer is a name familiar to many of my fellow Australians. It’s a popular brand down under. Even so, it’s one from which I have never owned a watch except for an original quartz Formula 1 from the 1980s. This needs to change someday, but today’s article features a watch I could never hope […] Visit Introducing: The TAG Heuer Monaco Split-Seconds Chronograph F1 to read the full article.
Fratello
Grand Seiko Presents Two Completely Different Tentagraph Watches: The Cool Evolution 9 SLGC007 And The Wild Tokyo Lion SLGC009
When Grand Seiko launched the first Tentagraph in 2023, it was also the brand’s first all-mechanical chronograph. Two years later, two new Tentagraph models debut - the Evolution 9 SLGC007, which is a new colorway of the 2023 SLGC001, and the bold Tokyo Lion SLGC009, a watch in the Sport Collection. Yes, Grand Seiko presents […] Visit Grand Seiko Presents Two Completely Different Tentagraph Watches: The Cool Evolution 9 SLGC007 And The Wild Tokyo Lion SLGC009 to read the full article.
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