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6,794 articles  ·  Page 2 of 227
Introducing: The MING Polymesh Straight Brings The Wild Hybrid Strap/Bracelet To More Watches Hodinkee
Massena Lab all part Apr 23, 2026

Introducing: The MING Polymesh Straight Brings The Wild Hybrid Strap/Bracelet To More Watches

What We Know Fans of titanium watches now have another truly notable bracelet/strap option for their favorite titanium watches, as Ming has just announced that the brand's frankly jaw-dropping Polymesh bracelet will now be sold in a straight springbar setup. Ming launched the original Polymesh spec back in October of last year, with curved links designed to work well with the brand's own watches. As of today, all 1742 components of this impressive design are now compatible with watches featuring 20mm lug widths, no curved spring bar needed.  For those who need a refresher, the Polymesh is a titanium design that is technically a bracelet but wears like a piece of fabric. It's soft, flowy, and incredibly comfortable. As mentioned, it's a 3D-printed design printed in place using laser sintering with titanium powder. This includes the buckle and endlinks. There are no pins or screws in the design; only the quick-change spring bars are added after the grade-5 titanium bracelet has been printed (which takes about 20 hours).  Just as with the original curved-end version, the Polymesh Straight will retail for CHF $1,500 (~$1,900) with first-week availability limited to Ming, Fears, and Massena LAB (all part of the Alternative Horological Alliance), after which, availability will also include Ming's own retail locations and partners.  What We Think I'll cut to the chase here: I love a good strap and/or bracelet, I have a handful of titanium watches, and this is a release I have ...

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Hands-On: The Vacheron Constantin Overseas Ultra-Thin 2500V Hodinkee
Vacheron Constantin Overseas Ultra-Thin 2500V Apr 22, 2026

Hands-On: The Vacheron Constantin Overseas Ultra-Thin 2500V

The new Vacheron Constantin Overseas Ultra-Thin 2500V is a release from the brand at this year's Watches and Wonders that's gotten quite a bit of chatter, deservedly so. After all, it is the brand's thinnest-ever Overseas, thanks to a brand-new in-house movement developed over seven years, which means what I assume to be an ungodly amount of R&D; dollars per millimeter shaved. It's also come at a time when Vacheron seems to be really having a moment - the passion I saw amongst Vacheron collectors when I was in Miami last month for the opening of the brand's largest U.S. boutique was very much an exciting sight to see.  But is the final result worth all the effort? Very much so, if we take the new Overseas Ultra-Thin 2500V as an ultra-limited, ultra-expensive halo product to mark the development of this new caliber. This 2500V and the Overseas Dual-Time Cardinal Points released alongside it at Watches and Wonders are already seeing very strong demand, and I think that's a sign of a good showing in Geneva. To many collectors of Vacheron over the years, the previous ultra-thin, time-only Overseas 2000V might feel like it had just come out, but in fact, a decade has passed since its introduction. Coming in white gold, the case measured 40mm in diameter, with a thickness of 7.5mm. Inside was the Vacheron 1120 caliber, a version of the JLC caliber 920 that had found its way in many watches amongst the Holy Trinity of brands, thanks to its superlative of being the thinnest aut...

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Business News: Breitling’s House Of Brands Unveils New Executive Leadership With Georges Kern As Group CEO Hodinkee
Roger Dubuis Apr 22, 2026

Business News: Breitling’s House Of Brands Unveils New Executive Leadership With Georges Kern As Group CEO

'House of Brands,' the group of watchmakers including Breitling, Universal Genéve, and the soon-to-be-revived Gallet, announced executive changes that will see the flagship brand led by new leadership, with Georges Kern becoming the group's Chief Executive Officer. Jean-Marc Pontroué, a long-time Richemont executive and the former CEO of Panerai and Roger Dubuis, is the new Chief Executive Officer of Breitling, the group says in a statement. The changes take effect in May.  Georges Kern Georges Kern, who has led Breitling under new ownership since 2017, overseeing a more than doubling of annual sales to above CHF 800 million, according to analyst estimates, and one of the most dramatic turnarounds in modern watchmaking, becomes the new CEO of the House of Brands, overseeing the three marques and their leadership in a newly created role.At Universal Genève, which relaunched this month in the high-end segment in what's likely the most ambitious watch brand return and repositioning in decades, Grégory Bruttin remains Managing Director. Meanwhile, at Gallet, the approachable-priced brand known for its Flying Officer and Multichron models, to be revived in August this year, Erwan Rossignol, who is already leading the team preparing the relaunch, becomes Managing Director. The changes confirm the multi-brand ambitions of the private-equity-backed Grenchen, Switzerland-based company, and provide a structure similar to that of other groups with portfolios of several watch bra...

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Happenings: Claude Greisler To Lecture At The Horological Society Of New York Hodinkee
Armin Strom Co-Founder Apr 22, 2026

Happenings: Claude Greisler To Lecture At The Horological Society Of New York

Resonance is one of the most fascinating physical phenomena explored in watchmaking, where two oscillators influence each other and eventually synchronize. Since Christiaan Huygens' 17th‑century observations with pendulum clocks, watchmakers have sought to harness it in wristwatches. At the May 2026 lecture of the Horological Society of New York (HSNY), Armin Strom Co-Founder and Master Watchmaker Claude Greisler will share how the brand successfully achieved resonance in 2016 with the caliber ARF15. Central to this innovation is the patented resonance clutch, which links the two hairsprings, allowing them to synchronize quickly and continuously average out rate deviations. Join Greisler as he explores the journey from theory to mechanism and the creation of a modern resonance system. About Claude Greisler "A passion for 'transparent mechanics', both from an aesthetic perspective and to showcase how our watches actually work, has always guided my design sensibility. From a watchmaking perspective, I honor the many generations of Swiss-German watchmakers in my family with an uncompromising commitment to perfection in both movement quality and finishing." - Claude Greisler Born into a watchmaker family, Claude Greisler began his formal watchmaking education at a watchmaker school in Solothurn, Switzerland, followed by advanced programs at the Centre Interrégional de Formation des Montagnes (CIFOM) in Le Locle. He graduated in watch restoration and watch development, com...

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Introducing: Rado Celebrates Four Decades Of Ceramic With The Integral 40-Year Anniversary Edition Hodinkee
Rolex Apr 22, 2026

Introducing: Rado Celebrates Four Decades Of Ceramic With The Integral 40-Year Anniversary Edition

What We Know Rado is a brand that's synonymous with ceramic. If I think about the brand's catalog, the weird, quirky shapes in glossy blacks and whites are what shine above the rest, both metaphorically and literally speaking. But it speaks to the brand and its long history with the material, 40 years in fact, as well as its share of the ceramic watch market around the sub-ten-thousand-dollar price point. Now, Rado is a curious brand within the Swatch Group, as it's not talked about as much in the United States compared to many of the other brands at its price point. And that's certainly due to America being the brand's smallest market by far. Its nickname of "the Rolex of India" certainly carries some weight, thanks to 42% of its business being in India, the Middle East, and Africa. In India, the most populous country in the world, the market share is a whopping 50% of watches between CHF 1,000 and 3,700 (per the brand). This year marks a big anniversary for Rado, commemorating 40 years since the debut of the Integral, the brand's first watch featuring ceramic. And so this occasion brings forth the Integral 40-Year Anniversary edition, an absolute throwback to the original that retains its very definitely 80s look. Clad in shiny black and gold, it preserves the original design's rectangular case, albeit in slightly larger dimensions each way, with a 28mm width and 39.8mm length. The new Integral 40-Year Anniversary (left) and the original (right). Thanks to the Rado R279 ...

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Business News: Timothée Chalamet Joins Urban Jürgensen As Minority Partner And Creative Advisor Hodinkee
Urban Jürgensen Apr 22, 2026

Business News: Timothée Chalamet Joins Urban Jürgensen As Minority Partner And Creative Advisor

Timothée Chalamet has gotten really deep into independent watchmaking lately. He's shown up at press events, basketball games, and on the red carpet, wearing everything from a Simon Brette to a Franck Muller and even an Akrivia AK-06. He's also been wearing a neo-vintage Urban Jürgensen from time to time. But it seems like he's always rotated back to his trusty Urban Jürgensen UJ-2, the time-only watch that launched with the brand's revival last summer. He wore the watch promoting the movie Marty Supreme, and again later, when he won the Golden Globe for Best Male Actor in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy for that same film. And now, in a move that makes his passion for the brand official, he's gotten on board as a minority partner and creative advisor. Timothée Chalamet wears an Urban Jürgensen UJ-2 as he attends the 83rd annual Golden Globe Awards at The Beverly Hilton on January 11, 2026 in Beverly Hills, California. (Photo by Kevin Mazur/Getty Images) In a press release provided by the brand, Alex Rosenfield, CEO of Urban Jürgensen, says that Chalamet's passion for independent watchmaking isn't just him hopping on a trend, but rather a part of his passion for craft and quality of work. "We want to work together to advance our mission of bringing a contemporary perspective to the world of independent watchmaking while remaining grounded in what has always defined it," says Rosenfield. The Urban Jürgensen UJ-2, UJ-1, and UJ-3, from our story on the brand rev...

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Introducing: TAG Heuer Formula 1 'Solargraph' Softens Up With New Pastels Hodinkee
TAG Heuer Formula 1 Solargraph Softens Apr 21, 2026

Introducing: TAG Heuer Formula 1 'Solargraph' Softens Up With New Pastels

What We Know It's easy to argue that the relaunch of the TAG Heuer Formula 1 (with the added bonus of a solar-powered movement) was both highly anticipated and resulted in one of the most fun summer watches of 2025. Some of the watches stuck around, and some were short-term limited editions tied to different Formula 1 races throughout the year. But if you were waiting for alternative watches (especially vintage-inspired ones), you're in luck, because the brand has dozens of previous variations they haven't tapped to re-release yet. So with that in mind, TAG Heuer has gone for more pastel-inspired releases that start pre-sale on April 28. The new Formula 1 models come in five variations. In a pastel blue, beige/yellow, or pink TH-Polylight cases (TAG Heuer's proprietary bio-polyamide plastic) that are color matched to their opaline dials and Polylight bezels or with sandblasted steel cases with violet-blue dials/bezel with pink accents or pastel green dials/bezels (with eight VS-grade diamonds in place of the circular hour markers), there's a lot of variations available. There's no doubt that these watches lean a bit more feminine than previous releases. The sizing is pretty unisex, however, measuring 38mm by 9.9mm with solid casebacks and screw-down crowns, giving the watch 100m of water resistance. The watches with the Polylight cases come on color-matched rubber straps with pin buckles, while the stainless steel versions have matching sandblasted stainless steel three-ro...

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Photo Report: A Week In Japan With Citizen Celebrating 50 Years Of Eco-Drive Hodinkee
Citizen Celebrating 50 Years Apr 21, 2026

Photo Report: A Week In Japan With Citizen Celebrating 50 Years Of Eco-Drive

We're not paying enough attention to Citizen. Or, at least, I haven't been. Sure, the occasional Aqualand or Promaster might sneak through my net, but if I'm being totally honest, going into my week spent exploring Japan with Citizen in celebration of 50 years of Eco-Drive, Citizen is not a brand I'd ever felt much urgency to think about. It seemed too ubiquitous, too familiar, to register as something enthusiasts were meant to seriously consider. That perception is probably common for a reason. For plenty of people, Eco-Drive was the watch you first saw in a mall case, on a relative's wrist, or that was explained to you by someone excited about it being powered by the sun. Citizen has sold Eco-Drive watches on an enormous scale, and that kind of visibility can sometimes obscure what's actually interesting about them.  Eco-Drive's popularity is substantial. Since its introduction in 1976, Citizen estimates that the technology has prevented the use of roughly 100 million watch batteries. Stacked end to end, that's the equivalent of about 3,600 Mount Everests. But it turns out that achievement only scratches the surface. What I hadn't appreciated is that ubiquity and serious watchmaking aren't mutually exclusive. Beneath the scale and familiarity is a product backed by a half-century of innovation and, what surprised me most, a watch that still involves a meaningful amount of hand assembly. The original Eco-Drive watch, the Citizen Crystron Solar Cell, from 1976. A "reflect...

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Introducing: De Bethune DB25Vxs Silver Moon And DB28xs Dark Sand Hodinkee
De Bethune DB25Vxs Silver Moon Apr 21, 2026

Introducing: De Bethune DB25Vxs Silver Moon And DB28xs Dark Sand

What We Know While not at Watches and Wonders this year, De Bethune was one of a number of brands jumping on the release bandwagon this week with a few new versions. Today, we're taking a look at two new pieces from the brand. De Bethune's DB25Vxs Silver Moon keeps some of the brand's futuristic design with the skeletonized lugs, while DB28xs Dark Sand picks up where the brand's DB28xs "Steel Wheels" left off. Let's start with the slightly more traditional watch first. The DB25Vxs Silver Moon trims the DB25L case size down to 40mm and changes the dial around a bit. It's been 17 years since the DB25L came out, so it was time for an update. The watch features a mirrored blued-titanium surround with gold stars, drawing the eye to the mirror-polished steel and blued-titanium spherical moonphase at 12 o'clock, which is accurate to 1 day every 122 years. The domed outer track features printed, slightly dressy Breguet numerals and a minute track for the gold hour and minute hands (in Breguet style as well) while the central dial features a barleycorn guilloché. Inside the 40.6mm by 11.2mm mirror-polished grade 5 titanium case is a caliber running at 4Hz with a 6-day power reserve. While a lot of my friends gravitate more toward that traditional aesthetic from De Bethune, my eyes immediately go for the more extreme De Bethunes, like the DB28xs Dark Sand, with the hinged lugs and (yes, somewhat divisive) arch design on the front. The DB28xs Dark Sand also has a 6-day power reserve...

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Introducing: The New Chopard L.U.C. Chopard Strike One In Titanium (Live Pics) Hodinkee
Chopard L.U.C Chopard Strike One Apr 20, 2026

Introducing: The New Chopard L.U.C. Chopard Strike One In Titanium (Live Pics)

What We Know Among the more attractive releases from Watches and Wonders this year is the new Chopard L.U.C. Strike One Titanium, now with a beautiful new dial treatment. In ethical 18k rose gold with salmon-colored galvanic treatment, with a hand-guilloché central medallion with a honeycomb motif, the Strike One is a watch that may fly under the radar for some. Not a minute repeater, not a grande et petite sonnerie, but rather a beautiful watch that chimes once at the top of the hour (a sonnerie au passage), it's still got a very romantic quality about it. Despite being a chiming watch, Chopard has (as they usually do) minimized the size as much as possible with a 40mm by 9.86mm case in Grade 5 titanium. That light metal should help emphasize the chime's sound, with the hammer on the dial side visible through an aperture for the full experience. Even better, the gong is made of sapphire and is connected in a monobloc construction (one piece) to the dial crystal to emphasize sound transmission. The dial itself is capped by a snail-shaped chapter ring and has rhodium-plated hour markers and hands, plus anthracite-colored printed transfers. This is all powered by the L.U.C. 96.32-L. With a two-barrel construction and micro-rotor, you get 65 hours of power reserve, automatic winding, and a 4Hz beat rate, all chronometer-certified by COSC, with Poinçon de Genève-certified quality. Chopard really shows bigger brands how to do it when it comes to finishing, so this is the kin...

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Auctions: Previewing The Monaco Legend Spring 2026 Auction Hodinkee
F.P. Journe Répétition Souveraine – €400,000 Apr 20, 2026

Auctions: Previewing The Monaco Legend Spring 2026 Auction

The spring auction season is sneaking up on us quickly. Things start early with Sotheby's Hong Kong auction (with its boatload of Cartier), which slightly edges Monaco Legend Group out of the gate, as their auction starts one day earlier. But on April 25 and 26, MLG will open its spring auction, which promises to be one of the more interesting and eclectic vintage-focused auctions of the season. That's not to say it's all vintage, of course. The auction starts out with a Bamford-modified blackout GMT (that the Parmegiani family behind the auction house seems to have an affinity for), an RM35-02 Nadal, a Journe Répétition Souveraine, and more Patek 5004s than you can shake a stick at, keeping things spicy. Lot 109 – F.P. Journe Répétition Souveraine – €400,000 to €800,000. There are 288 lots, and while the top lots sometimes feel a bit obvious to call out (mostly because everyone likely peers longingly at these watches and wishes they could bid), it's incredibly important to examine what is driving the top end of the market. And if you weren't paying close enough attention, you'd potentially miss the top lot. While it might look like a Rolex Daytona, like the ref. 116509 with a Tahitian mother-of-pearl dial and different indices, this is a whole different ballgame. Lot 78 of the auction is one of the "FAB 4" Daytonas, four unique platinum Zenith Daytonas, each executed with a hardstone dial (one with turquoise, one with lapis lazuli, two mother-of-pearl) made at...

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