Fratello
First impressions matter, but they aren’t always the last word. In the watch world, some of the most enduring designs are also among the most divisive. A watch that initially seems too large, too unconventional, or simply not to your taste can slowly grow on you as your experience develops. In many cases, understanding a […] Visit Fratello Talks: The Watches That Won Us Over to read the full article.
Fratello
Artisans de Genève is an independent watchmaking workshop offering handcrafted timepiece customization and restoration services. AdG is neither associated nor affiliated with the makers/brands of those timepieces. Artisans de Genève carries out work at the sole request of its customers, on their timepieces, for their private use only. The Artisans de Genève are a group […] Visit Video: Meet The Artisans De Genève And Discover Their Exceptional Craft to read the full article.
Fratello
Nomos is very dear to my heart, and the brand’s Tetra collection must be one of my favorites. The clean Bauhaus dial design works so well in these square watches with subtle, almost Art Deco-style lugs. Currently, you can get a Nomos Tetra with either a 27.5mm or 29.5mm case. For this summer, the brand […] Visit The Nomos Tetra 27 Is The Ultimate Style Flex to read the full article.
Fratello
If you clicked on this article, it probably means that Swatch didn’t select you as one of the 1,969 lucky people who can buy the MoonSwatch Mission To The Moon 1969 with its Moonshine Gold dial, hands, and pushers. If it is of any comfort to you, none of us at Fratello got one either. […] Visit Didn’t Get Picked For The MoonSwatch 1969? Here Are Five Watches You Can Buy Instead to read the full article.
Fratello
Welcome to another episode of Fratello On Air! This week, Mike is in Florida, and Balazs is in Hungary. But we’re here for you! In today’s discussion, we tackle a listener suggestion. We’re talking about entry-level watches and how brands approach this. Hint: it’s very different today, with greater expectations from the buyer. This podcast […] Visit Fratello On Air: Rethinking The Definition Of Entry-Level Watches to read the full article.
Fratello
The Chinese watch brand CIGA Design expands its most industrial line, the Hunter, with warmer tones. New Sand Gold, Rose Gold, and Brown Gold configurations allow the new Hunter Vintage to soften and bring warmth to the collection’s openworked design. The three colorways draw on visuals recalling the grand clock faces of the machine age, […] Visit CIGA Design’s Warmer Take On Its Most Industrial Line — The Hunter Vintage to read the full article.
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Making a dive watch stand out today is genuinely tough. The archetype has been reinterpreted so many times that most releases blur together. The Aera D-1 Diver, however, managed to catch my attention with its less-is-more design philosophy. This modern diver uses fairly minimalist visual cues and combines them with a beautifully sculpted case. Add […] Visit A Promising First Encounter With The Updated Aera D-1 Diver to read the full article.
Fratello
It’s summer, and many of us are getting away for a well-deserved break from work. If you are looking for a special timepiece to accompany you during your travels, IFL Watches and Perrelet present the Weekend GMT Atlas. This special collaborative effort transforms Perrelet’s Weekend GMT into a colorful travel watch that will be produced […] Visit Traveling All Corners Of The Globe With The IFL Watches × Perrelet Weekend GMT Atlas to read the full article.
Fratello
I have seen a lot of significant Rolex pieces over the years, from steel Daytonas to military-issued Submariners and GMT-Masters that have literally flown around the globe (thank you, Cliff Tait). Now, I’ve also been lucky enough to see a Deepsea that went to the bottom of the Mariana Trench. I love museums, and the […] Visit Seeing James Cameron’s Historic Rolex Deepsea Challenge Up Close to read the full article.
Fratello
There is a particular kind of relish in finding a watch that makes it feel as if the Quartz Crisis never happened. That was exactly the case with the new Caravelle Sea Hunter. At €270 delivered to me in Sydney, Australia, this is not a particularly expensive mechanical dive watch, nor is it one that […] Visit The Value Proposition: Caravelle Sea Hunter By Bulova to read the full article.
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It’s Sunday morning, which means it’s time for a cup of coffee and a battle between two watches to start your day. For this week’s Sunday Morning Showdown, we have picked two chronographs from sister brands. Daan picked the new Tudor Black Bay Chrono 39 “Bumblebee.” This smaller version of the Black Bay Chrono gained […] Visit Sunday Morning Showdown: Tudor Black Bay Chrono 39 Vs. Rolex Cosmograph Daytona to read the full article.
Fratello
Orient is giving fans more of what they want by expanding its Bambino lineup. The new Bambino 38 adds six references, including five stainless steel models and a no-date dial for the first time in the mechanical collection. Joining them is a webstore-exclusive purple dial paired with a gold-plated case. The familiar Roman-numeral layout retains […] Visit Orient Expands The Bambino Range, Including No-Date 38mm Options to read the full article.
Fratello
Admit it: you have one too! The mythic grail watch lives rent-free in any watch enthusiast’s mind. It’s that one watch that would be the pinnacle of our collecting lifestyle, fulfilling our wildest horological dreams. Maybe it could even be the endgame watch, finally keeping our hungry bellies filled forever. Unfortunately, we’re fighting our biological […] Visit Grail Creep — The Myth Of The Endgame Watch to read the full article.
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If you thought MoonSwatch madness had finally cooled down, think again. Swatch CEO Nick Hayek has pulled off another headline-grabbing marketing masterclass, leaving the watch world in equal parts awe and amusement. To commemorate the Apollo 11 Moon landing, Swatch quietly opened applications for an ultra-exclusive edition of the MoonSwatch. The catch? Swatch is capping […] Visit A Real Gold Rush — Swatch’s Apollo 11 MoonSwatch Sets A Wild New Record: 1.2 Million Applicants For 1,969 Pieces to read the full article.
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Lebois & Co doesn’t need an introduction here on Fratello. We’ve been covering the brand since its (re)introduction in 2014. Last year, Lebois & Co introduced the Heritage Small Seconds collection, inspired by the original models from the 1940s and 1950s. Today, we see two new variations featuring special dials made by Swiss dial specialist […] Visit Ready For A Treat? Hands-On With The Lebois & Co Heritage Atelier Small Seconds to read the full article.
Fratello
When I went hands-on with the Ulysse Nardin × Urwerk UR-Freak late last year, I walked away genuinely surprised, and that doesn’t happen to me much anymore. I never saw that partnership coming. Ulysse Nardin had never made a collaboration watch in its modern history, and Urwerk has always felt like a creative universe of […] Visit Five High-End Watch Collaborations I’d Love To See Happen to read the full article.
Fratello
It’s been a little over four years since Swatch and Omega surprised us with the MoonSwatch. The hype was tremendous after the official announcement that the two brands would release a series of Bioceramic watches inspired by the iconic Speedmaster. Four years later, the hype might have died down somewhat, but people are still interested […] Visit The Top 5 Omega × Swatch MoonSwatch Models to read the full article.
Fratello
Summer is in full swing, and most of us are already in warmer climates or are getting ready to go there. That’s why we created a list of our favorite dive watches for the summer. We all know that dive watches don’t need color to work underwater. But summer isn’t just asking for water resistance. […] Visit The Top 10 Colorful Dive Watches For The Summer Of 2026 to read the full article.
Fratello
During lunch with Aurel Bacs and Alex Ghotbi from the auction house Phillips, I started wondering out loud, “When are watches art?” What sparked my question was last month’s Phillips auction, which was the highest-grossing watch auction in US history. The sale made a record US$75.8 million, and every single lot was sold. No fewer […] Visit A Difficult Question That Needs Answering: When Are Watches Art? to read the full article.
Fratello
Ask any seasoned collector what his or her grail watch was upon first entering the hobby, and chances are the answer will be very different from what it is today. As our knowledge grows and our tastes mature, so too do the watches we aspire to own. Sometimes the grail gets bigger, sometimes it gets […] Visit Fratello Talks: How Our Grail Watches Have Evolved Over Time to read the full article.
Fratello
Confession time: I hardly ever play golf anymore. With my busy schedule, tennis has completely taken over. But when a dedicated golf watch landed on my desk, it was a great reminder that I should play more. The Vaer G2 Fairway GMT is a clever golf watch with a bezel that lets you keep track […] Visit Get Out On The Green With The New Vaer G2 Fairway GMT to read the full article.
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Put an IWC Mark XV next to a Rolex Explorer ref. 114270 on a table, and you might wonder why anyone would bother comparing them. One is a Schaffhausen pilot’s watch built around a military lineage. The other is Rolex’s purest expression of the no-nonsense sports watch, worn by mountaineers and geologists long before it […] Visit We Had It So Good: The IWC Mark XV And The Rolex Explorer Ref. 114270 to read the full article.
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Just like an actual bumblebee, Tudor’s new Black Bay Chrono 39 appeared out of nowhere at the beginning of June. We hadn’t even had a chance to recover properly from Watches and Wonders yet. Tudor, on the other hand, was ready to go again with one of the most exciting releases of the year. Following […] Visit Hands-On With The Daring And Downsized Tudor Black Bay Chrono 39 “Bumblebee” to read the full article.
Fratello
Welcome to another episode of Fratello On Air! This week, we discuss sleeper watches from the ’90s and ’00s. It was an interesting period for timepieces, representing a transition from smaller, often quartz-powered models to mechanical ones. Let’s just say that watchmakers were finding their collective feet again with interesting results. Still, there were gems, […] Visit Fratello On Air: Sleeper ’90s And ’00s Watches Worth Waking Up For to read the full article.
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I always thought of Glashütte Original as a modest watch brand. However, the German watchmaker does indeed use its Vintage Collection to experiment with more than the usual black, silver, and blue dials. This is where the new Glashütte Original Sixties Chronograph Annual Edition comes in with its groovy purple dial. I even got to […] Visit Get Your Groove On With The Grape-Dial Glashütte Original Sixties Chronograph to read the full article.
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Breitling has announced a series of limited-edition Top Time B01 Chronograph models celebrating the Aston Martin DB5. These three motoring-inspired chronographs feature a cushion-shaped case with subtle Art Deco grooves in each corner. Combined with pump pushers, the design delivers a distinct 1960s character, making the connection to Aston Martin’s legendary British grand tourer feel […] Visit Breitling Launches A Top Time Trio Paying Tribute To The Aston Martin DB5 to read the full article.
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The breakaway is five minutes ahead of the peloton. It’s a strong group, and you’d better do your best to catch the four Bravur Team Heritage watches that are in the lead. They look strong and stylish in their historical team kit colors of St. Raphaël, Peugeot, Renault, and Mercier. Forget about the ultra-aero Lycra […] Visit Catch The Four Bravur Team Heritage Watches In The Breakaway to read the full article.
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In an age when luxury brands seem incapable of subtlety, there is something deeply seductive about a watch dial that says… nothing at all. Just form, texture, proportion, and confidence. Increasingly, some of the coolest watchmakers in the world are discovering that the ultimate flex is silence. It is a fascinating reversal of decades of […] Visit The Ultimate Flex: When Watch Brands Leave Their Names Off The Dial to read the full article.
Fratello
If you collect vintage Angelus watches or are simply interested in the brand, there are a handful of pieces you must hold in your hands. One is the mighty Angelus Chrono-Datoluxe. Another, some argue, is the Medical. The third place on my imaginary podium goes to the Tinkler. Sadly, all three are as rare as […] Visit What Dreams Are Made Of: The Angelus Tinkler 1958 Steel Quarter Repeater to read the full article.
Fratello
Welcome to this week’s installment of our Sunday Morning Showdown series. For today’s matchup, we pitted two Swatch Group divers against each other. You can take both to great depths, and even better, neither will cost you an arm and a leg. So, if any of you have any deep-sea adventures in mind, these two […] Visit Sunday Morning Showdown: Certina DS Super PH2000M STC Vs. Tissot Seastar 2000 44mm to read the full article.
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