The Five Best IWC Watches Released In 2021
The year 2021 was an amazing one for IWC, thanks to so many great Pilot watch releases and the brand’s innovative way to show its new watches to the world. By using large containers located in several cities around the globe with live connections to Schaffhausen, it gives those viewing the watches the chance to directly ask questions about the new IWC Pilot's watch collection. But the brand has a long-standing history and reputation when it comes to its pilot's watches. In fact, IWC has been designing and manufacturing them since 1936.IWC delivered the 55mm pilot watch ref. IW431 to the German Luftwaffe in 1940 and the Pilot's Mark 11 to the British Royal Air Force in 1948. You will fi...
To Restore, Or Not To Restore That Is The Question
Occasionally, we get an email from someone with a vintage watch who is wondering whether to restore it or not. Recently, someone found a Speedmaster CK2998 in his drawer and wondered if he should send it off to the spa in Switzerland.As it may be important in judging whether to restore this Speedmaster or not, it’s important to know that this was his dad’s watch. His father bought it new in 1960 and was the sole owner until he passed it on to his son, who still is the current owner. He basically forgot about the watch and found it in the back of a drawer when he was looking for something else. Together with the original paperwork, the watch sat there for nearly 15 years.Restoring...
Buying Your First Luxury Watch Part Two: Watch Options
Recently, I wrote an article with a few pointers on what to consider when buying your first luxury watch. I planned to include some good watch options as well, but there are so many that it would’ve made the article too long. Therefore, I decided to just make a small series out of it. Today, I’ll name a few “entry-level” watches ranging from under $1,000 up to almost $3,000. In the next installment, I’ll include some options for a higher budget.If you haven’t yet read the first part of this series, you can still do so, or you can skip to the options below. Based on the comments from that article, I think it’s most important to keep one thing in mind,...
Balazs And Mike With Way-Too-Early Hopes For 2023
Fratello On Air comes at you with a new episode. This time, we’re talking about our horological hopes for 2023. Of course, there’s some typical banter along with some pre-holiday cheer. Settle in by the fireplace (or at the beach, perhaps) and enjoy our last episode before Christmas....
A Condensed Guide To Seiko Releases In 2023
At the end of the year, we like to look back at all the watch goodness we have seen in 2023. In good tradition, Seiko has graced us with a steady stream of new releases. That’s why we decided to do another overview article like last year. This article will discuss the different Seiko releases we covered on Fratello in 2023. While it is nowhere near a complete list, it gives a good overview of the great diversity of novelties. So, without further ado, let’s check out some of this year’s best Seiko watches.As most of you will know, Seiko releases hundreds of new references yearly. Sometimes, keeping up with all the new Seiko watches we see in the office is challenging. If you...
The Best Watches Of 2023 Thomas's Picks
It's that time of the year! The days are short, and Christmas is fast approaching. If you weren't already in a sentimental mood, here is a personal year's overview to bring you there. Grab some hot chocolate milk, throw on your ugliest sweater, and gather around the screen. These are my favorite watches of 2023, a highly subjective assortment of pieces that impressed me over the past year.I have followed no guidelines other than my gut feeling. A watch makes my list if it tempted me to buy it for my own wearing pleasure. But before I share my 2023 favorites, let me briefly describe the overall impression that the watch world made on me in 2023.The watch world in 2023This year has?been an int...
Test Driving The Robot Aerodynamic Titanium Green
This past November, I had the opportunity to attend the WatchPro event in London. It was a great evening of seeing both old and new faces along with some fantastic watches. One of the pieces that caught my eye came from a small Czech company. The Robot Aerodynamic treads a dangerous path with its auto-inspired details, but it struck me as unique and very well done.It was toward the end of the night at WatchPro when a group of us, including our own Dave Sergeant, were finishing our rounds. We were well into the open bar when we strode past Robot Watches, an up-and-coming Czech brand. The team engaged us and asked if we’d like to take a look at their pieces. After scanning the showcases,...
Fratello's Top 5 Affordable Watches Of 2024
Another Friday, another Top 5! This week, we continue our series of best-of-the-year lists with our favorite affordable watches of 2024. This has been a great year for fans of affordable watches, with tons of releases over the last 12 months. We have seen many well-executed affordable tool watches over the past couple of years, but 2024 also gave us several wonderful dress watches, showing how this side of the price spectrum continues to get more and more interesting. So let’s find out our sub-$1,500 favorites from this year!In the vast avalanche of yearly watch releases, it is interesting to see how the affordable segment evolves. As mentioned, we have seen more affordable dress watch...
New: Omega Seamaster Aqua Terra With Gradient Turquoise Dial
Well, 2024 has been quite a year for Omega, hasn’t it? The brand fulfilled its role as the official timekeeper of the Paris Olympics with verve. In the meantime, it also presented numerous special-edition watches. But somehow, it seems Omega just can’t stop unveiling new references. Right now, it’s in the middle of a strong sprint toward the end of the year. We saw various new iterations of the Omega Seamaster Diver 300M last month, and last week, we finally saw the consumer version of the new Speedmaster Pilot Flight Qualified. There was quite some buzz around all these releases, but one that went a little under the radar was the Omega Seamaster Aqua Terra with a gradient ...
The Speedmaster Forum
A while ago, I mentioned that The (Dutch) Speedmaster Club is being revived. The first step is here.. a dedicated forum for Omega Speedmaster watches.I installed a PHPBB forum system on my omega-addict.com site and since today it is up and running. For other non-Speedmaster watches, I suggest you (still) go to WatchUseek’s Omega Forum ofcourse.Click the banner below or click here to go to the Speedmaster Forum! It is a bit sparse ofcourse, but it’s new ??To prevent confusion, you don’t have to be Dutch to join!!...
R.O.1 SPACE Limited Edition Dutch ESA Astronaut Andre Kuipers' Watch
There have been numerous watches in space and we try to give them some attention once in a while as well, but we give Roland Oostwegel some extra attention here. Roland Oostwegel (The Netherlands) met Dutch ESA astronaut Andre Kuipers (his blog can be found here) in 2010 during testing activities of the R.O.1 Shock-System for watches.During this encounter at the ESA/ESTEC building in Noordwijk (The Netherlands), Andre Kuipers told Roland Oostwegel about losing his sense of time when he was on his first space mission in 2004. He told Roland Oostwegel that he wasn’t the only astronaut complaining about this phenomenon. After Andre Kuipers shared this experience with Oostwegel, he decided...
TAG Heuer Visit Report
About a month ago we drove to Switzerland to visit a few watch brands. One of these brands was TAG Heuer, located in La Chaux-de-Fonds. Since our publication of the TAG Heuer Carrera CH80 review, a lot of things changed. Jean-Claude Biver, interim CEO of TAG Heuer and head of LVMH’s watchmaking division decided that it was time for a change at TAG Heuer. In short, Jean-Claude Biver has set a clear focus on affordable TAG Heuer watches in the range of $1,500.- – $5,000.- USD (~ $1225,- – $4000,- Euro).A very competitive and interest price range we think. Not only because some other big brands increased their prices over the last few years so much that they are not competing ...
Watch Strap Review Part 15. Kami Leather
The last month of the year is going on full swing and we have two more?Watch Strap Reviews for you. We are still touring around the world and now arrived to a beautiful Scandinavian country to check out their own strap maker. The country I'm talking about is Norway and the craftsman is Vladimir. He operates by the name of Kami Leather. Vladimir hails from Oslo, capital of Norway and beside straps he also makes accessories like wallets, pen holders and so on. We will look at some of his amazing straps as well as a few other things. So join us on?our imaginary trip to the icy north, put on your warmest Helly Hansen parka and enjoy the leather goodness coming your way.Kami LeatherI found Kami L...
Watches & Pencils #9 Frankenwatch: Why we all will meet him
We've all heard about this guy. The name originates from Frankenstein' and implicitly points to some kind of evilness. How, I assume we want, do we defend ourselves against Frankenwatches? Is it even possible? Behold, I will reveal and discuss some dark places and founded a theory why we most likely will all meet him some day.First of all, this was my first stereotype creative reaction when the term Frankenwatch' was served to my brains:I guess everbody knows Frankenstein', but do we really?know the story? Furthermore, did the most fanatic and strict collectors do before they came up with this name for watches that have been tempered with? Before we zoom into Frankenwatch', let's briefly rev...
Hands-On Victorinox I.N.O.X. Professional Diver Review
Not that long ago, we reviewed the Victorinox I.N.O.X Paracord watch. Today, we have a look at the I.N.O.X Professional Diver.?This is basically the bigger (45mm) brother of the 43mm I.N.O.X (Paracord) and comes with a uni-directional rotating?bezel.I.N.O.X. Professional DiverThis watch is very similar to the I.N.O.X. Paracord that we reviewed in this article. However, the styling is somewhat different, the size is different and in the end, the I.N.O.X. Professional Diver is a tad bit cheaper than the 43mm Paracord model. It retails for 589 Euro instead of 599 Euro for the Paracord model. Only 10 Euros, but still. You don’t get the fancy box or the Paracord strap though.However, if you...
#TBT 18 Carat Gold Omega Constellation Manhattan With Omani Swords
During one of the get-togethers we organized, we came across this very special Omega Constellation that one of the guests brought in. Now, I have to admit that I have a weak spot for the Constellation. Not only the Constellation pie-pan models from the 1950’s or the recent Constellation Globemaster, but I also happen to like the Constellation Manhattan and Constellation’95. Some call this a guilty pleasure, but I don’t feel uncomfortable at all to admit this. Actually, I even own a Constellation’95 in gold & stainless steel.Constellation ManhattanThis type of Constellation, that is still in production today and referred to as the Constellation Manhattan, celebrate...
Aquascaphe Diving Watch by Baltic Hands On Review
Today we go hands-on with the Baltic Aquascaphe divers watch. After the success of their Bicompax (three-hander and chronograph models), they introduced their divers watch a while ago for pre-order. Baltic sent us a watch and we take a closer look.Crowdfunding is an awesome initiative. It allows people or small companies who have great ideas but not the means to still bring those projects to life. At one point, Kickstarter (and Indiegogo) were the hottest thing around on the internet. Many brands that we nowadays know and use came from those sites. They provided (and still provide) opportunities not only for those brands but also for us, the crowd. An opportunity to be a part of something sp...
This Week in Watches: December 21, 2019
Welcome to This Week in Watches for December 21, 2019!? As you’ll see, this week’s news already has us looking forward to next year in certain parts of? the world.? Let’s get to it…Tissot T-Race MotoGP Limited Edition WatchesTissot sent us word of a couple limited edition watches in support of their MotoGP 2020 sponsorship.? First up is a 45mm automatic chronograph that appears to be powered by a 7750.? It’s a stainless piece with a leather and rubber strap that will be made in an edition of 3,333 pieces.? Pricing will come in at 1,240 Euros.The next piece is similar but quartz-powered.? It’s similarly sized, also good for 100 meters of water resistance, b...
Rob's Top 3 Watch Storage Solutions For Christmas
As the festive season approaches, many of us are gearing up for some serious gift-giving. But before you get to give those gifts, you’ve got to decide what to buy! If there is a dedicated watch nut in your life, I’ve got a few slick storage suggestions for him or her. And if you feel you’ve been particularly good this year, but doubt Santa cares given you’re the distinguished side of 40, feel free to treat yourself. No one’s going to hold it against you. It’s been a rough year, after all…Despite the madness of this pandemic, I’ve had a pretty fun year. Sure, I miss my family, my friends, and my home, but I’m happily settled in Germany wit...
HODINKEE Insurance Offers Enthusiasts A New Way To Protect Their Watches
If you collect watches (or are thinking of starting a collection), keeping them safe and protected is wise. Finding adequate coverage for a collection that could very quickly be worth thousands is essential. In the past, however, finding sufficient coverage from a company with the necessary understanding of and experience in the watch industry was just about impossible. With that in mind, HODINKEE set out to change the insurance experience.The company formed its own insurance agency, partnered with the world’s largest publicly traded property and casualty insurance company, Chubb, and created HODINKEE Insurance, a modern, streamlined insurance for watch collectors.Like many watch enthu...