Monochrome
After the now-cult-classic MIH Watch of 2005, an overtly minimalist Annual Calendar Chronograph developed by Ludwig Oechslin and Paul Gerber, and the Gaïa Watch series launched in 2019, the 2024 edition continues the museum’s approach to watchmaking. Indeed, before launching his own brand, Ochs und Junior, Oechslin was the curator of the Musée International d’Horologerie […]
Two Broke Watch Snobs
Seiko celebrates 145 years with four anniversary watches, from enamel-dial dress pieces to mechanical and GPS chronographs.
Fratello
In this video, we go hands-on with Omega’s recently released Speedmaster Grey Side of the Moon. We covered it in-depth here, but also decided to shoot a video with this new ceramic Speedmaster. If the video above doesn’t play, please visit our YouTube channel to watch it there. Inspired by Apollo 8 In this video, I went […] Visit Video: Hands-On With The Omega Speedmaster Grey Side Of The Moon to read the full article.
SJX Watches
Seiko founder established a watch store in Tokyo’s Ginza district in 1881, and for the occasion the watchmaker has unveiled a quartet of 145th anniversary watches representing the best of its affordable offerings. While each model is different, all share gilded elements as a unifying motif. The collection is led by a pair of three-hand watches, the King Seiko KS1969 SJE121 and Presage Classic Series “Craftsmanship” Enamel Dial SPB538. While the two three-hand editions are arguably the more interesting of the 145th anniversary line-up, the collection also includes a pair of chronographs, the automatic Prospex Speedtimer SRQ059 and solar-powered Astron GPS SSH186. King Seiko SJE12 (left), and Presage Classic SPB538 Initial thoughts Seiko rolls out numerous anniversary watches on a frequent basis, so the anniversary theme itself isn’t a big deal. The 145th anniversary models, however, are appealing in themselves, especially the pair of three-hand models. The top-of-the-line anniversary edition is the King Seiko KS1969, which is far more striking than the regular production model, and certainly worth the modest premium in price. The Presage, on the other hand, is another iteration of the early-wristwatch-style case that Seiko has done before, but not that often. Gold plating is not appropriate on an expensive watch, but the Presage is affordable so it gets a pass. The enamel dial and cuff-style strap are a nice touch that gives the watch a surprisingly vintage feel. ...
Teddy Baldassarre
One of the first hurdles to clear for newcomers to watch appreciation is the clarification of two very common horological categories: chronograph vs. chronometer. Quite simply, a chronometer (from the Greek chronos, meaning time, and meter, meaning measure) is any watch or clock that keeps reliably accurate time, usually as determined by an outside independent testing agency, whereas a chronograph (from chronos and graph, i.e., to “write time”) is any watch or clock with the ability to track and record intervals of time, aka a stopwatch. This is, again, the simplest way to look at it. But there’s a bit more to both chronometers and chronographs that a knowledge-hungry watch enthusiast might want to digest - including the fact that the terms are not interchangeable but also not mutually exclusive. [toc-section heading="Chronometers Defined"] Our original, classical definition of a chronometer can be traced back to the golden age of seafaring exploration in the 18th Century, when ships required the use of a highly accurate onboard clock that enabled their navigators to determine longitude in order to avoid the perils of running aground or veering hopelessly off course. The man credited with developing the first of these “marine chronometers” was legendary British watchmaker John Harrison; his invention facilitated the celestial navigation used at the time by navigators at sea to determine their ship’s position in coordination with a sextant. Marine chronome...
Deployant
TAG Heuer's release for the Chinese New Year of the Horse is now released and available immediately. The watch is based on the Carrera Chronograph.
Two Broke Watch Snobs
The new Citizen Endeavor Chrono pairs Eco-Drive solar power with a rugged sports chronograph design aimed at low-maintenance, everyday wear.
Two Broke Watch Snobs
Explore the best affordable racing chronographs based on real wrist-time, honest testing, and hands-on impressions.
Fratello
The story of the Omega Speedmaster and the enigmatic Alaska Project begins not with the Moon landing but seven years earlier, long before Neil Armstrong uttered his legendary “one small step” phrase. In 1962, during the Mercury-Atlas 8 mission, astronaut Wally Schirra found himself orbiting Earth with his Omega Speedmaster 2998 strapped to his wrist. […] Visit A Close Look At The Omega Speedmaster Alaska Project - An Apex Predator Among Space-Dwelling Chronographs to read the full article.
Deployant
Luminox continues with their partnership with Bear Grylls with a new colourway in the Survival Master limited edition chronograph.
Fratello
Note from the Managing Editor: As part of our end-of-year process, the editorial team and I look back on the year to see (among other things) what some of the best-read stories of the year have been. Although this is usually an internal process, I thought it would be interesting to share it with you, […] Visit Fratello’s Most-Read Story Of The Year 2025 - Introducing: The Omega × Swatch Speedmaster MoonSwatch 1965 to read the full article.
WatchAdvice
Rado has recently released the new Captain Cook High-Tech Ceramic Chronograph in black ceramic, and we wanted to test the latest iteration from the brand. What We Love The combination of matte and polished ceramic looks good The colourway is highly versatile The dial & bezel are highly legible during both day and nighttime thanks to the Super-LumiNova What We Don’t The bracelet clasp design is a little fiddly to open and close The screw-down pushers are not the easiest to operate when on the wrist It is a thick watch and won’t suit smaller wrists Overall Rating: 7.75/10 Value for money: 7.5/10 Wearability: 7.5/10 Design: 8.5/10 Build quality: 7.5/10 As a watch enthusiast, there’s plenty of pieces out there to choose from. From low-end entry-level models to super high-end grand complications, the range is vast. But if you’re looking for a mid-level piece as a daily wearer, then the Captain Cook has always been the go-to model from Rado. As their tagline suggests, they are the Master of Materials when it comes to High-Tech ceramic, and as a material, ceramic is both versatile and robust. So much so that I bought my wife an all-white High-Tech Ceramic Rado True Thinline about 10 years ago, and it looks the same as the day I walked out of Wallace Bishop in Brisbane. The last Rado I personally reviewed was over 2 years ago now – the Bronze Captain Cook Chronograph which you can read about here, and I was quietly impressed with the watch and the value for money at the ...
Worn & Wound
For decades now, watch collectors have become enamored with the significance, popularity, and (perhaps most importantly) the absurd affordability of Soviet-era watches. There’s the ingenious Vostok Amphibia dive watch; the various Poljot and Strela chronographs vital to the Russian space program; and the minimalist, glossy-white Raketa Big Zero that signified “the end of history.” What’s lesser known are the timepieces from another part of the Iron Curtain-East Germany, which once encompassed two of the most significant areas of the historic watch industry. Today we associate German watches with the town of Glashütte, where Walter Lange set up a watchmaking school in 1841 and evolved it into one of the great horological houses. Meanwhile, about 300 kilometers to the west is the town of Ruhla. Like Glashütte, Ruhla was also known for metal mining and a tradition of blacksmithing and metalworking. After World War II, it also happened to fall into the Soviet occupation zone, even though it was as far west as one could get. Perhaps it was always fated for this. Image via Ostalgie-Ruhla: Watches of the GDR Both sides faced the evolution of pocket watches to wristwatches, on opposite sides of the World Wars. After 1945, the watch factories in Glashütte and Ruhla were reorganized into publicly-owned enterprises-having endured reparations back to Moscow (to jump-start the USSR’s own watch industry) and the general devastation of the war. Glashütte was a mor...
Time+Tide
The trailer for the upcoming James Bond video game, 007: First Light, teases an unreleased Omega Seamaster Diver 300M Chronograph.The post The most interesting Omega watch of 2025, that hasn’t actually released… yet appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.
Hodinkee
The new model is starting to be delivered, and it's more than just another kind of green dial. We go in-depth to compare old vs. new.
Deployant
Reviewing the Parmigiani Fleurier Tonda PF Minute Rattrapante Arctic Rose. An indepth look into the maison's latest watch that whispers "discreet luxury".
Teddy Baldassarre
Chronographs are one of the most popular and yet under-appreciated watches out there. While we might take them for granted due to the relative ease of finding a nice one at just about any price point, the watchmaking on display can be as impressive as that from more exotic complications. 2025 was a fantastic year for fans of the chronograph with Omega releasing a manual wind iteration of their sportier ceramic take on the Speedmaster. And then there’s Breguet, who have been on a roll all year. Let’s take a look at our favorite new chronographs for this year and while not all of them made the list, there are some particularly robust honorable mentions here. [toc-section heading="Longines Spirit Flyback Chronograph"] The Longines Spirit Flyback Chronograph was given a refresh that, in my opinion, puts it in the running for one of the best chronographs out there period. It was previously offered only in a 42mm case but now comes in a fantastic compact 39.5mm wide stainless steel case that comes in at a lug-to-lug height of just around 47.4mm. Of course, it’s not just the case diameter that matters, it’s also the thickness and the reduction from a hefty 17mm to 13.4mm is truly transformative. The L792.4 calibre movement is a manual wind take on the Valjoux 7750 that also gets a contemporary makeover with a silicon balance spring and COSC certification on top of the 68-hour power reserve. While the price of $5,350 on strap and $5,500 might not shout “value” to some,...
Worn & Wound
I’m long on record saying the mark of a genuine enthusiast is being able to get just as excited about a $100 Timex or G-Shock as about a $100,000 Rolex or Patek. I still think there’s something to that. Still, I also recognize that summing it up so patly, though convenient, ignores a huge amount of the nuance that undeniably exists in the watch space. It also ignores some of the fundamental impacts of price, including, crucially, attainability. After all, there are very few enthusiast pursuits (or, really, pursuits of any kind) where price and pursuit can be wholly siloed, and watches are not some rare example where we can afford to be price agnostic - at least, not most of us. Still, once in a while, it can be fun to just say screw it and enjoy watches for what they can be at their most extreme. Which brings us to the topic of today’s 2025 round-up, “F**k You Money” watches. The concept of a “F**k You Money” watch can be a bit nebulous. Unlike dive watches or chronographs, say, which either are or are not what they say they are, there’s no real set definition for what qualifies as “F**k You Money,” but like Supreme Court Justice Potter Stewart and pornography, I may not be able to specifically articulate what qualifies as a F**k You Money watch, but I know it when I see it. gérald genta Geneva Minute Repeater You thought I was gonna start with some crazy Richard Mille or Jacob & Co., didn’t you? Well, this probably isn’t going to be that kind of...
Monochrome
More a complication than a category or style of watch per se, the chronograph still ranks high in brands’ portfolios. As the end of the year is fast approaching, it’s time for the MONOCHROME team to elect its favourite watches of 2025, and that includes the best chronographs we’ve seen over the year. Plenty of […]
Hodinkee
This watch is lush. And important. Does the arc of the 5370 stand as the archetype of what has happened to high-end watchmaking in the last decade?
Hodinkee
A data-driven deep dive into the most collectible Rolex ever made.
SJX Watches
After a slow year for complications last year, big brands showed up in force in 2025. Spurred by a number of major anniversaries celebrated by the likes of Vacheron Constantin and Audemars Piguet, the year witnessed a range of record-setting and never-before-seen complications. The breadth and ambition of new complicated watches, some from unexpected corners, proved to be one of the defining themes of the year. Within this crowded field, a few stood out. Vacheron Constantin Solaria Ultra Grand Complication – Brandon Moore For collectors who keep a close eye on the record books, the year ended almost as soon as it began. At Watches & Wonders 2025, Vacheron Constantin unveiled the Les Cabinotiers Solaria Ultra Grand Complication – La Première, a unique wristwatch that immediately became one of the most talked-about watches of the fair. The buzz was justified: the Solaria is the most complicated wristwatch ever made. Developed over eight years, the Solaria leverages 13 patents to bring together 41 complications across two dials. While the headline figure is the sheer number of functions, the Solaria’s true distinction lies in its astronomical indications. Four of its rare complications track the apparent path of the Sun, displaying its position, height, culmination, and declination – as observed from a specific location on Earth. Turning the watch over reveals another first: a celestial object tracker linked to a split-seconds chronograph. Twin rotating sapphire disc...
Teddy Baldassarre
Seiko has a well known and understood design language that is expansive in nature. It’s a style that feels just as at home on a humble skin diver as it does in the context of a field watch or chronograph. It always feels comfortable, but never derivative. Like a perfectly well worn-in pair of jeans that you keep coming back to. The Speedtimer name is a perfect example of this originality since it was first used by the brand in 1969, and it largely remains so today. The modern Speedtimer SSC813 within the Prospex collection is not entirely reliant on that history, rather, it presents a contemporary vision of a Seiko chronograph at its most accessible. [toc-section heading="Seiko And Chronographs"] Seiko plays an important role in the history of the chronograph as we experience it today. The Japanese brand’s mechanical timers of the mid ‘60s showed off a modern vision for a highly focused design that would open the door for a new generation of watches. These designs did not use a host of subdials, but rather a single timing hand and a single pusher. This is a focus that would be retained until 1969, when Seiko introduced the reference 6139, one of three automatic chronographs to be revealed that year that would shape the genre for the coming decades. Unlike the other two, the Seiko used just a single subdial which would totalize up to 30 minutes. The 6139 would have a cultural impact just as big as its horological impact, appearing in films and, in the case of the so...
Fratello
Our friends over at Monochrome and Habring² are building quite a history together. Their first collaboration, in 2021, celebrated Monochrome’s 15th anniversary. The online watch magazine and the Austrian watchmaking couple teamed up once more in 2023. Their sophomore release, a split-seconds chronograph, raised money for charity. Today, we get a third collaboration in the […] Visit Introducing: The Monochrome Montre De Souscription 4 By Habring² to read the full article.
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