Zenith Introduces The Chronomaster Sport Titanium
The 2024 tennis season is getting started, and Zenith is ready for it with a new titanium version of its Chronomaster Sport. The lightest and most robust version of the Chronomaster Sport is a great match for the highly intense and entertaining Ultimate Tennis Showdown (UTS) championship. Zenith is the main sponsor and official timekeeper of the championship, in which time (pressure) plays an essential role.Unlike a traditional tennis match, a UTS match is played over four quarters of eight minutes each. This creates time pressure, which makes the matches more intense for the players and increases the entertainment for the audience. In addition, the atmosphere at the tournaments is more info...
What Would Make Us Buy A New Seiko?
This week, Fratello On Air returns with an episode featuring a hypothetical question. This is a recurring series, and this time, we ask what would make us buy a new Seiko. We’ll cover more than just sports watches and settle on a few key asks to one of our favorite brands. Enjoy the show!...
So, You're Into Watches, But You Aren't Rich?
Watches can get expensive - seriously expensive. There are no two ways about it. Luxury watch brands naturally aim their efforts at an affluent clientele. I have noticed, however, that most watch aficionados I meet have pretty regular jobs. And with pretty regular jobs come pretty regular incomes. So, if you are into watches but not on a Wall Street banker’s income, are you treading on thin ice? Are you playing a rich person's game? Just asking for a friend, you know.Not necessarily. But there are some pitfalls to be wary of. In this article, I want to explore some ideas that you can apply to ensure this largely money-driven hobby doesn't become a liability.There is no “rightR...
Atelier Wen Kicks Off Its "Inside The Atelier" Video Series
Today, we won’t talk about the latest release from Atelier Wen. We will briefly discuss a new venture from the Chinese marque called Inside the Atelier. This is a behind-the-scenes look at the various suppliers supporting the brand’s watches. It focuses on the people, their inspiration, and where they work. The first episode is out, and it’s a highly satisfying way to spend 25 minutes.Atelier Wen has proven highly popular over the past few years. The Hong Kong-based microbrand has captured fans with its focus on handmade guilloche-patterned dials and overall attention to detail. All of this comes together at an incredibly attractive price. I mentioned in my recent article o...
Tomas Reveals His Secret Kasper Watches Collection
Buying an engagement ring for my now-wife was not a problem at all. That’s because I never intended to do so. I have often had problems with stereotypes and boxed solutions, so it’s no wonder I was looking for something different than an engagement ring. Guess what…I google a lot. I google watches a lot too. When I think of a gift for someone dear to me, I try to put his or her name into Google. At a certain point, just for the fun of it, I started to google the names or surnames of my friends along with “vintage watches.” Sometimes I get lucky. Following this method, I gifted a tiny diver branded Tara to a childhood friend when I was looking for an original gif...
New: Speedmaster Calibre 321 With Platinum Flat-Link Bracelet
The first Speedmaster to hit retail with a six-figure price is here! Well, that’s if you don't count the complicated Speedmaster Chrono Chime. Omega introduces the platinum Speedmaster Calibre 321? with a material-matching flat-link bracelet, and at our local AD in The Hague, the price of that most prestigious Speedy is $107,500. If you're in the United States, the price is still expressed in five figures, but that’s only because it doesn't include the sales tax. If you go to your watch dealer, you will read $96,900 on the price tag of the very heavy platinum bracelet and a six-figure final price on the credit card machine - unless you’re in Alaska, Delaware, New Hampshire,...
Fratello Talks: Building A $15,000 Watch Collection
Hello, and welcome to Fratello Talks. In today’s episode, we’re taking on the challenge of building a $15,000 watch collection. Nacho, RJ, and Lex have crunched the numbers and leafed through the catalogs and each selected three modern (currently available at retail) watches that they would buy if they had a $15K budget. It’s a hypothetical exercise and meant to be just a bit of fun, but ultimately, it’s still a challenge trying to leverage the budget to get the most bang for their buck. So, if you want to know which watches these three members of the Fratello team would go for today, tune in to find out. But now, it’s time for a wrist check....
Gerald Genta's Vacheron Constantin '222'
Note: Yes, we know, the Vacheron ‘222’ was not designed by Gerald Genta but by Hysek. We stand corrected.Since the early days of my watch addiction (I admit), I am a sucker for the designs of Gerald Genta in the 1970s. Most of the time, I neglect the Vacheron and drool on pictures of ‘his’ Patek Philippe Nautilus, Audemars Piguet Royal Oak and IWC Ingenieur SL.I always found it hard to get proper information and pictures of the Vacheron Constantin ‘222’, nowadays known as the Vacheron Constantin Overseas. The ‘222’ was the last icon that Gerald Genta designed in the 1970s, just one year after the Patek Philippe Nautilus 3700 and IWC Ingenieur S...
Urwerk UR-110 Torpedo You Will Know When It's Time For A Service
Urwerk is one of the manufacturers of haute horlogerie with the most futuristic timepieces you will find today. This manufacture from Geneva, lead by Baumgartner and Frei, introduces the UR-110 Torpedo timepiece. Or better yet, timemachine. Having seen a few in the flesh in Singapore and during the BaselWorld shows, creations from Urwerk always give me the same euphoric feeling regardless how often I see them.Their new UR-110 Torpedo timepiece is an amazing piece of craftsmanship from Geneva. The arrow shaped “Torpedo”-hour indicators increase with one hour by rotating just before they are up next to display time on the scale on the right side of the dial. Urwerk has created a su...
Speedy Tuesday Early Bird Speedmaster Professional 105.012-63
For a long time, it was assumed that the Speedmaster became ‘Professional’ after the watch was certified by NASA. However, the earlier use of the ‘Professional’ addition has been discovered some time ago. An example is this early bird Omega Speedmaster Professional 105.012-63 from 1964.Speedmaster Professional 105.012-63Yesterday, one of our readers and Speedmaster enthusiast came to our office in The Hague to show his Speedmaster Professional 105.012-63. It always good fun to meet our readers and other Speedmaster collectors. So if you are around, shoot us a message and you are welcome to talk Speedies and enjoy a coffee.What we have here is a very early Speedmaster ...
The New Cartier Santos A Legend Returns (Warning: Opinionated)
My first encounter with a Cartier Santos was in my late teens (early-mid 1990s). The owners of the local cafeteria annex snooker place were completely Cartier powered. Cartier Santos on the wrist, wearing Cartier glasses, fingers covered with Cartier rings, and on the other wrist Cartier bracelets and so on. I knew about this watch, but I can’t recall where this specific knowledge came from. I guess this is applicable for a lot of people that would recognize a Cartier Santos for just being a Cartier Santos. I actually do remember that I asked the end-boss of the cafeteria about his Santos watch. He proudly told me he was a Cartier fan, and collected many things Cartier. When I dig a bi...
Hands On With The Breitling Premier B01 Chronograph
It's now been well over a year since the arrival of Georges Kern as CEO of Breitling.? The first releases after his arrival fell into the new Navitimer 8 series and while they were nice, some felt that they were a touch plain.Personally speaking, I like them and I think the neutral reception from most was based more upon the shock of seeing Breitlings that weren't in the vein of the blingy Bentley series than anything else.? Still, it was clear that the watch world was waiting for something earth shaking and triumphant as a result of Kern's leadership.? While today's subject still likely lacks the shock and awe that most seemingly desire, a closer look will hopefully convince you that Breitl...
#TBT Automatic Wyler Crichettino
For the first time in my watch collecting life, I wasn't sure if the watch I just bought will work. It wasn't the traditional stress that the watch might come dysfunctional or broken somehow. My concern was related to the construction of the watch, the way it was supposed to be operated and the movement itself. I couldn't imagine the watch functioning as a daily watch based on its description. Why? Its winding system is completely lunatic and totally different from anything I knew. Grab some popcorn and let's dive into the most incredible early automatic movement patented by Wyler.Bumping into Wyler Automatic I wasn't reading any book on early automats, nor was I doing due diligence on the W...
Pre-Owned Picks Our Selection Of Watches For This Week
This week’s pre-owned line-up is a bit of a bold combination of watches - Vintage and new, dress and sports. I even included a watch I’d never seen before: The Jaeger-LeCoultre chronograph from the 1970s.Every week we pick a few pre-owned watches from Chrono24, the largest market place for wristwatches in the world - watches that we love ourselves, or think they will be interesting to you. So to be clear, we picked the watches, Chrono24 only sent us the images without their watermark and in a proper resolution.Pre-Owned Picks Of Week 7This week we go from $2,350 (Tudor) to tenfold that amount for a with a moonphase complication. A with moonphase? Yes, there’s more in thei...
Union Glashutte Belisar Datum Sport A Classic Diver
It seems to be new release season for much of the Swatch Group and with the announcement of the new Union Glashutte Belisar Datum Sport, the German maker has also gotten in on the act. Today’s focus just happens to be a large 45mm diver with strong legible looks and an approachable price level.The Belisar Datum Sport Comes in One VariantAs of now, the Union Glashutte Belisar Datum Sport is only available with a black dial and matching sapphire crystal bezel. It’s a safe starting point for a brand that usually focuses on a different style of watch. Conveniently, the brand will supply two different 22mm-wide straps with the watch. Both use quick release spring bars for easy changin...
The Sinn 158 The legendary aviator
Originally known as the “wristwatch with double stopwatch,” ?no one could have predicted the rise of the now-legendary 158 pilot chronograph. Back in the 1980s and early 1990s, it wasn’t a bestseller. As with many classic models, it needed more time. ?Among collectors, it is now one of the most sought-after watches ever produced by Sinn.Behind every good watch, there seems to be an equally good story. The origins of the Sinn 158 are so unusual because the model’s predecessor wasn’t born in the Sinn factory at all. Nowadays, it is commonplace to assume nothing but vertical production. But the meandering past of the watch industry often has a historical treat in s...
MeisterSinger Astroscope Watch Released At Inhorgenta Fair
MeisterSinger is welcoming a new model to its line-up. Building on the success of the recent Lunascope, the MeisterSinger Astroscope keeps the focus well and truly on the skies above.I like MeisterSinger for its uniqueness, but I often find it hard to get excited about the watches themselves. Why? The single-hand concept is cool (and brand-defining) but, for me, it is too limited for many novelties to be, well, novel. Here, however, with the release of the MeisterSinger Astroscope, the brand succeeds in presenting useful dial information without sacrificing its core values. That’s a lot harder to do than one might think. And whenever a brand succeeds in pulling off a clever fix in a to...
Sunday Morning Showdown: Mosh Pit Madness Omega Speedmaster X-33 Vs. Breitling Aerospace
In our Sunday Morning Showdown, two of our writers go head-to-head in an epic showdown for the ages. Strong opinions and hysterical hyperbole are welcome (so feel free to join in with the fun in the comments section below). And don’t forget to let us know which watches you’d like to see torn to shreds/effusively exalted next week. This week sees us (mosh)pit two quartz-regulated titanium barnstormers in a battle like no other - the Omega Speedmaster X-33 and Breitling Aerospace. Life in the ISS and above the clouds may be the primary intent of these watches, but Jorg and Ben share a passion for music, which led them to uncover an unintentional benefit of both the Omega and Breitl...
Piaget Polo Skeleton Diamond Paved Challenging Perceptions
When Piaget created the Polo in 1979, the aim was everyday sophistication. But the new Piaget Polo Skeleton Diamond Paved is anything but an everyday watch. Could I wear this delectable Piaget? That is the question of the day. I am a 6’2 Norwegian with a beard, just back from hacking big lumps of ice and snow from my car (feel free to stereotype me). I'm not a big fan of the term “metrosexual”, which is what came to mind when I saw the first images of this new Piaget in white gold. Could I pull it off?While writing this, I am wearing a Seiko Marinemaster 300, one of only two 44mm+ watches left in my collection. Did I put it on today to saw a hole in the ice and go diving wi...
Vacheron Constantin Traditionnelle Complete Calendar
A white gold case, a gray dial with day, date, and month indicators, and the added bonus of a moonphase give the Vacheron Constantin Traditionnelle Complete Calendar its name. Traditional in its layout and fashionable in its dial color - slate gray is the new black - this white gold Vacheron appears both complicated and understated.Let's talk calendars before going deeper into the Vacheron Constantin Traditionnelle Complete Calendar ($41,200). There are watches out there with simple, double, triple, full, complete, annual, semi-, and fully perpetual calendars. Sometimes, the differences are purely semantic. Most of the time, however, the functions are different. So, it all starts with the si...