Datograph Lumen by A. Lange & Sohne With Live Pictures
When you receive an announcement about a new watch from A. Lange & Sohne you know you can expect something stunning. It's not often you actually get to see the watch before the official launch, which is today in Dresden, but on this occasion we did. And amazing it is in all its facets. Let’s have a look at the new limited edition A. Lange & Sohne Datograph Up/Down Lumen.About the DatographFirst launched in 2012 as a refined version of the classic column-wheel chronograph, the Datograph has been created in different versions through the years. Starting out as the Lange chronograph with flyback it has been upgraded with different complications. Current models either feature a pow...
Hands-On With The A. Lange & Sohne Odysseus
We usually don't find an NDA document in our mailbox. I can't remember having to sign a nondisclosure agreement before any event. So when you receive one from A. Lange & Sohne, you know something big is about to happen.A. Lange & Sohne invited us to Dresden last week, to meet up with Anthony De Haas (Director of Product Development). He talked us through the latest family member of the Glashutte company that re-established in 1990: the A. Lange & Sohne Odysseus. According to A. Lange & Sohne, there was demand from their existing clientele for a sportier watch in steel. They listened and designed an A. Lange & Sohne in stainless steel. Without further ado.A. Lange & So...
#TBT Tourist Everlight Part #1: Origins
The tender to become NASA’s chronograph for astronauts wasn't the only breath-taking watch race in history. The underrated and often overlooked Swiss brand Tourist was the first brand to market a mechanical watch with a light function. No need to rub your eyes twice, you read that correctly. Forget about the 1980's backlit displays. Imagine we are in 1956, and somebody dreams about a mechanical watch with a little light bulb to be activated when you want to read the time at night. You would need a battery, right? The battery, a small lead DEAC dry accumulator, was built into the case back. After I learned about this smart solution, I immediately dug into the research and hunt. Here is ...
This Week in Watches: October 24, 2020 The Colorful Edition
As always, a lot happened this week in the watch world. COVID-19 ain't gonna stop us! Some cool watches launched, and it's challenging to pick just a few things. We did get some colorful releases, so I'm christening this the colorful edition. Here are some of my favorites from the past week.Zenith Pilot Type 20I'm a big fan of Zenith and what they've been doing lately. As ever, watch design is very subjective, but Zenith has been ticking a lot of boxes for me. This week they launched a new version of their Type 20 Pilot's watch. It has a fascinating blue dial, and when looking at it, the nickname Blueprint makes sense. It adds a nice colorful flash to the model lineup.…a matte blue bas...
Forstner Brings the Classic 1450 Bracelet Back To Life
It’s been a long time coming but in the best of ways. I first saw the prototype for this bracelet more than six months ago and it got me pretty excited. Why? Because it looked to me to be a perfect reproduction of the bracelet many of us Speedy fanatics miss so dearly. I personally call it the Omega POTUS because of its similarity to the “President” bracelet. Welcome, one and all, to the Forstner 1450, and the happiest day for many die-hard Speedmaster collectors in a long time.Let’s not pretend Omega hasn’t made massive strides in the bracelet department with the latest Omega Speedmaster update. The brand smashed it out of the park with the recent modification...
Hands-On: IWC Big Pilot's Watch Top Gun Edition "Mojave Desert"
China Lake is a dry lake in the scorching hot Mojave Desert in California. It's also the place where Naval Air Weapons Station China Lake is situated. This immense 51,000 km2 base 240 kilometers north of Los Angeles is home to many pilots. Pilots that don't wear green flight suits, but beige ones. This color better blends in with the desert sand of the Mojave Desert. As does the sand-colored ceramic case of IWC's camouflaged “BP”. I tried my best blending in with the IWC Big Pilot's Watch Top Gun Edition “Mojave Desert”. Not in the desert but in my natural habitat, the city.You might be thinking “China Lake in California?” Yep, California in the US of A. T...
A Brief History Of Time: Bvlgari Watches Part Two (2011-2015)
Welcome back to A Brief History of Time. Our spotlight this week is on the story and watches of Bvlgari. In Part One, we saw the founding of the brand by Sotirio Bulgari as a Greco-Roman silver specialist in 1884. We learned about its rise to international acclaim in the early 1900s examined its first important watch design, the Serpenti, in the 1940s. We looked at the release of several high-fashion watch icons, like the Roma, the Aluminium, and the Diagono in the ’70s, ’80s, and ’90s. Finally, we saw Bvlgari get serious about watchmaking, as it acquired Gerald Genta and Daniel Roth, began production of in-house, high horology movements, and became a vertically integrated ...
Event Report: Fratello Grand Seiko Paris
Last Friday, we held our Fratello Grand Seiko event in the Paris boutique at Place Vend?me. For approximately 20 readers of Fratello, Grand Seiko organized touch-and-feel sessions with the latest collections as well as a workshop on watch photography. This marks the second time that Fratello and Grand Seiko have hosted an event at the flagship boutique in Paris.Breaking a sake barrel as part of the inauguration ceremonyInauguration of the Grand Seiko boutique in ParisOne day earlier, the stunning-looking Grand Seiko boutique was inaugurated by the management of the brand. A special delegation from Grand Seiko Japan, including Mr. Shinji Hattori, flew to France to officially open the flagship...
The Best Of The Omega Seamaster Diver 300M Collection
The Seamaster Diver 300M is one of the most popular watches in Omega’s entire collection. Not only that, but did you know that the Seamaster Diver 300M and the Constellation ’95 also saved the company in the 1990s? Like most other watch companies, Omega wasn’t in the best shape. The brand’s 1980s catalog was as thick as a phone book, and Omega even considered dropping the Speedmaster Professional. Thankfully, with the introduction of the Seamaster Diver 300M and Constellation ’95, the brand received a lot of interest (again).Three generations of Seamaster Diver 300M watchesThe Omega Seamaster Diver 300MToday, the Speedmaster and Seamaster Diver 300M are Omega...
Hamilton Revives Its Railroad Pocket Watch (2022)
The launch of a pocket watch from Hamilton… Who would have imagined we’d see that in 2022? On second thought, maybe it shouldn’t be the least bit surprising given the now-130-year-old brand's history. With a tagline The Railroad Timekeeper of America” at the turn of the 20th century, it is almost Hamilton's birthright to bring us a remake of its Railway Special pocket watch in the modern day. The brand’s new Railroad Pocket Watch pays homage to the company's roots as one of the chief manufacturers of precision timekeepers for the American railway industry. The series is limited to 917 pieces in reference to Hamilton's founding address at 917 Columbia Avenue in L...
Citizen Radio-Controlled World Time CB594 Series
How accurate do you want your watch to be? Try a margin of error of one second every 100,000 years. Citizen has just launched in Europe a new design for its Radio-Controlled watches touting such precise timekeeping. The CB594 trio features a perpetual calendar, world-time function, and auto-correction. On top of that, the sleek instruments boast the Japanese giant's core patented technologies with a light-powered Eco-Drive movement and Super Titanium construction. The CB594 thus eliminates the need to replace watch batteries and offers remarkable build quality.A European debutThe CB594 is the European mutant of the PCAT (Perpetual Calendar Atomic Timekeeping) series for the US market. The ne...
Hands-On With The Dryden Heartlander
Whenever I think of James Bond - any version of him - I don't think about the watches he wears. Instead, I think about the watch that Ian Fleming was known to have worn, the Explorer ref. 1016. To me, the 1016 exemplifies versatility in an everyday watch. It was capable, small, and elegant. In my personal quest to find a similar watch, I've come across many models at many price points. But none of them satisfied my yearning for a small sports watch that flies under the radar and, more importantly, comes at a price that I can afford. That was the case until I came across Dryden and its new collection, the Heartlander. The latter comes with different dial layouts, but they all share the same ...
Hot Take: The New A. Lange & Sohne Zeitwerk
The A. Lange & Sohne Zeitwerk is one of my favorite models from the high-end brand from Glashutte, Germany. I’ve had the pleasure of handling it a few times, and it never failed to amaze me every time I put it on my wrist. It’s a charming and quirky piece with a distinguished way of integrating a mechanical digital display into a luxury watch. Since its release in 2009, there have been a few variations of the Zeitwerk: Minute Repeater, Decimal Strike, and Date.Now, thirteen years after its initial introduction, A. Lange & Sohne comes up with a new and improved version of the original Zeitwerk. One in platinum and one in 18kt pink gold.The new ZeitwerkOne of the major chan...
Why I Bought It: Zenith Chronomaster Open Power Reserve
Zenith is a brand on the up and one that I have followed for quite some time. The brand’s famous El Primero movement is a beautiful piece of horological history and makes a fascinating point of entry into collecting Zenith. That said, I’d never quite found “the model” for me. True enough, there have been several releases over the past year or two that I would love to add to my carefully curated collection, but finances and budgets have all too often meant that they were out of my reach. When the recent opportunity arose to add the Zenith El Primero Chronomaster Open Power Reserve to my collection for an excellent deal, I didn’t think twice and snapped it up.Rath...
Roger Dubuis Excalibur MB Black Ceramic On The Wrist
Do you like Lamborghinis? Come on, admit it. As a kid, you probably had a poster of a Countach in your bedroom. If you're older, you desired a Miura, and if you're younger, it was perhaps a Diablo or a Reventon. Isn't it strange that saying you like a certain Lamborghini model is frowned upon in certain circles, but declaring your love for, let's say, the Ferrari Testarossa isn't? It's like stating you lust after the Roger Dubuis Excalibur MB Black Ceramic 42mm. Why is that considered a no-go in certain watch circles? It’s an interesting matter to discuss in the coffee corner this morning. After that has been addressed, you can also throw in the puzzling hyper-reality of NFT watches or...
New: A. Lange & Sohne Zeitwerk Minute Repeater In Honeygold
I am all eyes and ears when A. Lange & Sohne announces a new timepiece. Even if it’s “just” a new version of a current model, there is more than enough reason to pay close attention. First of all, the Glashutte-based brand never misses the mark in finding striking combinations of colors and materials for cases, dials, and straps. And second, each release is a great reminder of the brilliance of Lange’s incredible timepieces. With the new Zeitwerk Minute Repeater Honeygold, the Saxon brand announces the best version of the Zeitwerk Minute Repeater to date. Not only is it a jaw-dropping looker on the outside, but it’s as aesthetically and technically stunning ...
The Omega Speedmaster Mark II Racing 145.014
One of the most overlooked Speedmaster models is the Mark II. Whether it’s the original from the late 1960s/early 1970s or one of the re-editions from 2014 or later, watch enthusiasts love to ignore this model. Omega introduced it as a modernized Speedmaster Professional in 1969, but it never gained the same iconic status as the original Moonwatch. The brand tried again in 2014, introducing a new Mark II with a modern self-winding Co-Axial chronometer movement. Today, though, I think it’s time to put the spotlight on the original Speedmaster Mark II reference 145.014 once more.For a long time, I neglected the Speedmaster Professional Mark II as well. It was mainly because of the ...
New: The Panerai Radiomir Officine PAM01385
After a sea of complex and intricate releases from Panerai this year, the brand’s latest unveiling is a refreshing nod to its heritage. The new Panerai Radiomir Officine PAM01385 in stainless steel harks back to Panerai’s 1935 prototype with vintage touches, a sparse layout, and oversized Arabic numerals. While it’s not a 1:1 remake of the prototype, it takes heavy inspiration from the influential watches commissioned by the Regia Marina (or Royal Italian Navy) in the first half of the last century. This new model also reflects Panerai’s more recent past and timepieces from the late ’90s and early ’00s that are now considered neo-vintage classics. So, does...
The Omega Planet Ocean: A Historical Overview
The Seamaster Planet Ocean is an often-overlooked collection within Omega's catalog. Perhaps it lacks the legend of the Speedmaster or the universal appeal of the Seamaster Diver 300M. But there are some true gems in the Planet Ocean lineup, so we felt it was about time to look at the different generations and write a compact buying guide.Omega is known for releasing many versions and occasional special editions of its watches. The Planet Ocean is no exception. So let me preface this by admitting that the following is nowhere near a complete overview. Nonetheless, it should provide you with some context and perspective on Omega's serious diver.The origin and inspiration of the Seamaster Plan...
Hands-On: The Nostalgic Casio CA-500 Calculator Watch
The 1980s were a decade of brilliant style. Yes, some will debate that statement, but I’ll stand behind it wholeheartedly. When it comes to watches, the 1980s were mainly the era of cheap, new quartz pieces. Some of them were forgettable, while others brought us many great memories. If you are over 40, you will probably feel an instant sense of nostalgia when seeing the incredibly popular Casio calculator watches. I am no different, and I have always loved them, so seeing the new metal Casio CA-500 models brings back many great memories. Unsurprisingly, I had a blast going hands-on with Casio’s latest series of calculator watches.The history of Casio calculator watches goes back ...