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Results for Watch Dial Text Conventions

23,219 articles · 5,887 videos found · page 891 of 971

Fratelli Stories: This Tudor Submariner Has A Special Place In Graeme’s Collection Fratello
Tudor Submariner Has May 18, 2024

Fratelli Stories: This Tudor Submariner Has A Special Place In Graeme’s Collection

In the latest installment in our Fratelli Stories series, we talk to Graeme. He’s a Scottish collector with a passion for vintage tool watches, and his Tudor Submariner has a special place in his collection. Vintage watches are a wonderful opportunity for collectors and enthusiasts alike. The sheer number of options available to us at […] Visit Fratelli Stories: This Tudor Submariner Has A Special Place In Graeme’s Collection to read the full article.

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Hands On: Rolex GMT-Master II Oystersteel Ref. 126710GRNR SJX Watches
Rolex GMT-Master II Oystersteel Ref May 17, 2024

Hands On: Rolex GMT-Master II Oystersteel Ref. 126710GRNR

Just released at Watches & Wonders 2024, the Rolex GMT-Master II in steel with a grey and black bezel (ref. 126710GRNR) is the newest addition to the famous line of dual time zone watches. More restrained in terms of colour, the new GMT-Master sports a 24-hour bezel with a grey-and-black Cerachrom insert. It’s still immediately recognisable, but a bit more discreet than its siblings in the collection, especially the famous “Pepsi” that is perhaps too recognisable.  Like several other Rolex sports models, the 126710GRNR sports green accents on the dial and GMT hand. And the 126710GRNR is available on either a Jubilee or Oyster bracelet. Initial thoughts The GMT-Master II is a almost perfect, with little that needs revision. While some expected a “Coke” GMT this year, the 126710GRNR is a solid proposition for anyone who wants a GMT-Master dressed more subtly. The bi-colour bezel is functional without being too loud unlike the better-known GMT-Master “Pepsi”. Flashy or recognisable watches sometimes attract unwanted attention, so dialling back the bezel colours is smart. In fact, the 126710GRNR may as well be more appealing than the discontinued 116710LN with its all-black bezel. Although I prefer the all-black bezel of the 116710LN, the grey and black bezel of the 126710GRNR is more functional as it separates day and night. The Rolex GMT-Master II “Pepsi” 126710BLRO The green accents are a nice touch and also logical since green is the Rolex corporate c...

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Celebrating 30 Years of the Lothar Schmidt Era at Sinn HQ Worn & Wound
Sinn HQ May 16, 2024

Celebrating 30 Years of the Lothar Schmidt Era at Sinn HQ

On an unusually warm day in early March, I was invited to visit Sinn headquarters in Frankfurt, Germany. Sinn had prepared a special program including a special exhibition showcasing their technologies over the last 30 years in the main foyer. This was followed by a factory tour, and finally seeing their latest collection.  Most of us are familiar with the origins of Sinn, which all started with Helmut Sinn, who was a flight instructor, and former World War II pilot. The company’s core business under his ownership was the manufacturing of navigation clocks and pilot chronographs. In 1994, certified engineer Lothar Schmidt acquired the company from Helmut Sinn and renamed it to “Sinn Spezialuhren GmbH”. Lothar Schmidt worked previously with IWC, and was also part of Günter Blümlein’s team to revive A. Lange & Söhne. This year Sinn is celebrating 30 years since Mr. Schmidt acquired the company. It was a coincidence that the day of my visit, news broke regarding Mr. Schmidt’s succession plans. He will celebrate his 75th birthday this year, and announced plans to create a foundation similar to the Hans Wilsdorf Foundation, that will own the shares of Sinn and its subsidiary companies. Mr. Schmidt also owns the SUG casemaker in the famous watchmaking village of Glashütte.  Over the past 30 years, Mr. Schmidt, with his engineering background, has developed several technologies for Sinn watches. In 1995, Ar-Dehumidifying Technology was introduced for the first tim...

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Fratello On Air: Great Recent Watches That Were Quickly Forgotten Fratello
May 14, 2024

Fratello On Air: Great Recent Watches That Were Quickly Forgotten

We’re back with another episode of Fratello On Air, discussing several great recent watches that were quickly forgotten. Attention spans are short these days, which can be unfair to some excellent releases. We shed light on some of our favorite unheralded pieces. Enjoy the show! What have you done for me lately? We live in […] Visit Fratello On Air: Great Recent Watches That Were Quickly Forgotten to read the full article.

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[VIDEO] Hands-On with Sinn’s New Releases at Time to Watches Worn & Wound
Sinn s New Releases May 9, 2024

[VIDEO] Hands-On with Sinn’s New Releases at Time to Watches

The Time to Watches show in Geneva, which runs at the same as Watches & Wonders but is not affiliated with that show in any way, offers a very different experience than what we found in Palexpo. It’s smaller, for sure, but also much more easygoing, less hectic, and calmer in every way. Much of that comes down to the brands that exhibit at Time to Watches, which tend to be small, enthusiast focused, and largely more affordable than the high end luxury brands on the other side of town.  The show, in fact, is so relaxed that meetings are barely required. On the day we attended, you could simply walk up to a booth at pretty much anytime, sit down, and talk about the watches on display. But we did carve out time to talk to some of the brands that are squarely in our wheelhouse at Time to Watches, and the first on the docket was Sinn. As accessible as Sinn is, relatively speaking, we don’t often have the chance to go hands-on with their newest releases fresh out of the gate, so we were excited to be able to spend some time with the new HYDRO U50 dive watches and their latest aviation inspired chronograph, the 103 St Ty Hd. In these videos, Zach Weiss takes us through the new HYDRO U50, a watch that many Sinn fans have been anticipating for some time. These oil filled watches combine the practicality of Sinn’s U50 diver with the over-the-top engineering of legendary tool watches like the EZM2 and provide incredible legibility.  We also have Zach Kazan on the new 103 St Ty...

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Fratello Favorites: The Best Watches Under €2,500 - Daan’s Picks From Mido, Oris, And Polo Ralph Lauren Fratello
Cartier May 8, 2024

Fratello Favorites: The Best Watches Under €2,500 - Daan’s Picks From Mido, Oris, And Polo Ralph Lauren

People sometimes ask me on Instagram and in person which watches they should get. They often expect me to suggest watches from big names like Rolex, Cartier, and Omega. And yes, those brands make and offer great watches, but they’re also rather expensive for most people. In this series, we’re looking at our favorite watches […] Visit Fratello Favorites: The Best Watches Under €2,500 - Daan’s Picks From Mido, Oris, And Polo Ralph Lauren to read the full article.

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All the Way from New Zealand, the Beaufort Pulsatimer Worn & Wound
May 7, 2024

All the Way from New Zealand, the Beaufort Pulsatimer

Underpromise and over deliver pretty much sums up Aukland, New Zealand’s Beaufort Watches. Their goal is to create timeless pieces that fit all the criteria we look for in watches. A great story, a captivating design, and capabilities that can go beyond their specifications. Self-described as a brand that wants to invigorate the present with designs from the past, they seem to have successfully done so. New for 2024 is the Pulsatimer, which is Beaufort’s version of a pulsometer chronograph. Unlike previous models, there is a clear inspirational shift, and Brutalist styling has been at the forefront of Beaufort’s new design language following their rebranding in late 2023. This new piece is the first model following this shift in focus. Informed by the harsh angles of Brutalist architecture, throughout the watch, you will notice many steps. From the pulsations ring, subdials and the stepped bezel, all drawing from two main sources of inspiration:  The Faculty of Fine Arts, University of La Laguna, and University Campus, UTEC Lima. The aim was to give the Pulsatimer an old school industrial look with a touch of dressiness. Made of 316L stainless-steel, it features a mix of brushed, polished and media-blasted finishing. Measurements are 39mm in diameter, 13.8mm thick to the top of the box-domed sapphire crystal, and 47mm from lug tip to lug tip. Powering the Pulsatimer is the manually wound Sellita SW510 and it has a power-reserve of 63 hrs. It is also water-resistant ...

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Vintage Watches: The Gruen Curvex Lieutenant Fratello
May 5, 2024

Vintage Watches: The Gruen Curvex Lieutenant

The Gruen Curvex certainly ranks as an important line of historical watches. These pieces used a variety of curved cases and curved movements. During their two decades of production, they were the pinnacle of style and rivaled more expensive brands. Gruen also has a deep tie to America, which brings something different to the story. […] Visit Vintage Watches: The Gruen Curvex Lieutenant to read the full article.

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Hands On: Piaget Altiplano Ultimate Concept Tourbillon 150th Anniversary SJX Watches
Piaget Altiplano Ultimate Concept Tourbillon May 2, 2024

Hands On: Piaget Altiplano Ultimate Concept Tourbillon 150th Anniversary

You can never be too rich or too thin – a quote attributed to Wallis Simpson, Duchess of Windsor, but it might as well have come from Piaget, which just debuted the thinnest tourbillon wristwatch in history, the Altiplano Ultimate Concept Tourbillon 150th Anniversary. Covered in-depth at launch, the AUC Tourbillon is just 2 mm thick, including the case and crystal; that makes the watch thinner than a Swiss five-franc coin. While its record-breaking dimensions are headline-grabbing, it’s the watch’s overall design and ergonomics that make it look and feel almost miraculous on the wrist. The AUC Tourbillon next to the five-franc coin; it’s also slimmer than the two-franc coin, and equivalent to about 20 sheets of A4 printer paper Initial thoughts Record-chasing, whether in terms of thickness, weight, water resistance, or complications, is a common theme in the watch industry, but the results are often gimmicky and impractical. When I heard that Piaget would be introducing the thinnest tourbillon in history, I rolled my eyes. But my perspective changed as soon as I picked up the AUC Tourbillon, a moment that stands out in my memory as a highlight of Watches & Wonders 2024. The watch is thin, of course, but the immediate impression is one of substance; it feels far more substantial than it looks. This is in part due to the M64BC cobalt alloy case, the extreme rigidity of which makes the watch’s 2 mm thinness possible. Furthermore, the ergonomics of the case, which is...

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Video – The Craftsmanship behind the Louis Vuitton Voyager Flying Tourbillon Plique-à-Jour Monochrome
Louis Vuitton Voyager Flying Tourbillon Plique-à-Jour Apr 25, 2024

Video – The Craftsmanship behind the Louis Vuitton Voyager Flying Tourbillon Plique-à-Jour

Recently, we’ve discovered the new haute horlogerie creations of Louis Vuitton, which included a trio of artistic models inspired by the universe of Gaston-Louis Vuitton, as well as a striking take on horology by architect Frank Gehry. There was a third watch introduced, one that really made an impression on us with its combination of […]

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Rolex GMT-Master II: The Ultimate Guide Teddy Baldassarre
Rolex Apr 24, 2024

Rolex GMT-Master II: The Ultimate Guide

The Rolex GMT-Master II is one of the most coveted luxury travel watches on the planet, and its predecessor, the original, non-numerical GMT-Master, basically established the template that other dual-time zone timepieces have been following for more than half a century. Here is a detailed look at the history and evolution of the GMT-Master II, from its aviation-inspired beginnings in 1954 to the iconic status it enjoys in the modern era, with all the major models spotlighted in between. 1954: “PEPSI” FOR PILOTS Rolex, the luxury watch firm founded in 1905 by Hans Wilsdorf, achieved one of its many milestones in 1953 with the launch of the Oyster Perpetual Submariner, the first serially produced wristwatch with a case water-resistant to 100 meters and hence one of the first and most influential watches purpose-built for diving. If the watch community was wondering what Rolex could possibly do for an encore, they didn’t have long to discover the answer. The following year, 1954, saw the introduction of another trend-setting, genre-defining timepiece, the original Rolex GMT-Master (Ref. 6542, which actually hit the market in 1955), the first watch capable of displaying the time in two separate time zones thanks to the clever addition of a fourth, central 24-hour hand and a bidirectional rotating 24-hour bezel. The initials in the watch’s name signify “Greenwich Mean Time,” the system of world timekeeping based on the calculation of mean solar time from the Royal ...

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H. Moser & Cie. Launches the Streamliner Cylindrical Tourbillon Skeleton “Alpine” SJX Watches
H. Moser & Cie Launches Apr 24, 2024

H. Moser & Cie. Launches the Streamliner Cylindrical Tourbillon Skeleton “Alpine”

With its sponsorship of Renault’s Formula 1 team, H. Moser & Cie. has created a limited edition for the occasion, the Streamliner Cylindrical Tourbillon Skeleton Alpine Limited Edition. This combines the brand’s unusual cylindrical tourbillon with its sporty Streamliner presented for the first on a strap instead of a bracelet. Initial thoughts  In the wake of its deal with the Alpine Motorsports, Renault’s sports car division, Moser’s latest limited edition is hardly a surprise. The concept of an open-worked tourbillon in a modern, sporty case is not a new one, but this is technically novel thanks to the tall cylindrical hairspring inside the tourbillon carriage, made possible thanks to Moser’s sister company that produces hairsprings. Fortunately this is not a typical F1 watch dressed in team colours and sporting a logo. The entire face is devoid of branding and Alpine’s trademark blue instead forms the transparent sub-dial at 12 that contrasts with the anthracite bridges below.  The removal of the bracelet, however, also removes some of the character of the Streamliner. This looks less distinctive than the typical Streamliner on a bracelet. That is not a permanent problem since a bracelet can be installed, and since the case is steel, at presumably moderate cost. The Alpine edition retails for CHF89,000, a CHF10,000 increase over the recent Streamliner Tourbillon Skeleton that has a bracelet but no cylindrical hairspring. All things consider, the premium is...

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Thomas Aubert Wins 2024 F.P. Journe Young Talent Competition SJX Watches
F.P. Journe Young Talent Competition Established Apr 21, 2024

Thomas Aubert Wins 2024 F.P. Journe Young Talent Competition

Established in 2015, the F.P. Journe Young Talent Competition is an annual affair to recognise the next generation of watchmakers. Applicants present a timepiece of their own design and construction, which is judged by on its complexity, craftsmanship, and aesthetics by a jury including Philippe Dufour, Giulio Papi, and Francois-Paul Journe. While last year’s winner was a Swiss-Italian clockmaker, this year’s winner is 23-year-old Frenchman Thomas Aubert, who entered his wristwatch Séléné, a unique piece crafted in his final year at the Edgar Faure High School in Morteau, France. Amongst the standout features of the Séléné is its key-winding and -setting as well as the clever “shooting star” display on the back. The Séléné pays tribute to classical watchmaking in both style and technique, but each reinterpreted with a modern twist. As is often the case with such school watches, the movement is based on the Unitas 6497, although it underwent extensive reworking. For example, the timepiece doesn’t feature a crown; instead winding and time-setting are done via a key that goes into dedicated slots on the case back.  The front of the Séléné is classical and tastefully done, with a “grated” finish on the dial that is set on a frosted plate backdrop. The exposed balance bridge is mirror polished and chamfered. The screwed balance beats at 2.5 Hz and features a prominent Breguet overcoil hairspring. Mr Aubert is fascinated by astronomy, a passion that he...

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Recap – The Best Travel and GMT Watches of Watches & Wonders 2024 and The Geneva Week Monochrome
Apr 18, 2024

Recap – The Best Travel and GMT Watches of Watches & Wonders 2024 and The Geneva Week

Long praised for being some of the most practical and relevant timepieces around, Travel and GMT watches are classics that most brands need to have somewhere in their collections. Whether we’re talking about classic multi-time zone watches with a central 24-hour hand, dual-time models with additional indications on their dials or complex world-time timepieces, the […]

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#TBT A Virgin-Like Zodiac Hermetic Small Seconds Fratello
Zodiac Hermetic Small Seconds Today Apr 18, 2024

#TBT A Virgin-Like Zodiac Hermetic Small Seconds

Today, the Zodiac brand is predominantly associated with dive watches. But if we look back in time, we can find the Zodiac Hermetic family, which hides a few very interesting non-diving models. Among the Valjoux 72-powered chronographs and 24-hour Aerospace Jets sits one very appealing dresser that got my attention about four years ago. In […] Visit #TBT A Virgin-Like Zodiac Hermetic Small Seconds to read the full article.

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Editorial: Observations and Takeaways at Watches & Wonders 2024 SJX Watches
Cartier s Cyrille Vignernon retire Apr 17, 2024

Editorial: Observations and Takeaways at Watches & Wonders 2024

Watches & Wonders 2024 just closed its doors earlier this week, and as usual attendance was up. Visitors increased 14% over last year, reaching some 49,000. It certainly felt more crowded, though sentiment was muted. Glamour, however, was delivered by the visits of Gisele Bündchen and Kylian Mbappé at IWC and Hublot respectively. Interestingly, there seemed to be fewer notable independent watchmakers walking around the halls then before, perhaps reflecting their success (which means they needed to meet clients). Gisele Bündchen sporting the new Portugieser chronograph. Image – Watches & Wonders Destiny On the topic of people, the inevitable questions about who’s going where were circulating as usual. When will Cartier’s Cyrille Vignernon retire and who will replace him? Will there be management changes at the LVMH watch division with Frederic Arnault in charge? Insiders have some idea and the rest of us will have to wait. Questions were also asked about brands, specifically smaller players with mixed fortunes – whether they will be sold or simply shut down, like Rebellion was a few months ago. There is of course the perennial sale of Parmigiani, but that isn’t really news – the brand has been quietly on the market for years with no takers. Some brands might have been lucrative exits for their owners a year ago, but now the discussion about a dimmer fate reflects the palpably normalised watch business. Where the outlook is always bright. Image – Watches & W...

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Introducing: The Updated Oris Aquis Date Range Fratello
Oris Aquis Date Range Apr 12, 2024

Introducing: The Updated Oris Aquis Date Range

In 2013, Oris released the Aquis Depth Gauge, which spawned a new collection of modern dive watches. This deep diver had a unique mechanical depth gauge, highlighting the brand’s ambition to create practical applications rather than superfluous complications. The Aquis was made a bona fide collection when the core design cues of the Depth Gauge […] Visit Introducing: The Updated Oris Aquis Date Range to read the full article.

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First Look – The Hypnotic De Bethune DB28XS Purple Rain Monochrome
De Bethune DB28XS Purple Rain Denis Apr 11, 2024

First Look – The Hypnotic De Bethune DB28XS Purple Rain

Denis Flageollet, the founder of De Bethune, is renowned as a master watchmaker who has steered his reverence for ancestral horological craftsmanship into radically contemporary settings. Perhaps his credentials should also include ‘master alchemist’ because when Flageollet starts playing with fire in his workshop (which includes a blacksmith), the results are out-of-this-world spectacular. The latest […]

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