I can’t believe it is already two years ago that I was visiting Matera to see the set of No Time To Die. A beautiful village in Italy, where parts of the James Bond movie have been shot. It was there, where Omega showed us (I was there together with Hodinkee’s Ben Clymer and Revolution’s Wei Koh) the new Seamaster 300M No Time To Die edition.We were also invited to come to the se

Talk about coincidences… On the same day last week, both Fratello and our good friends at Ace Jewelers in Amsterdam announced NOMOS collaboration watches. For Fratello, it was the first attempt; for Ace, it was their sixth in five years. That’s no mean feat given the notoriously exacting standards of NOMOS Glashutte collectors, but Ace has managed to pivot and push ahead in new directi

As watch enthusiasts, we love to appreciate the mechanical marvels with which we adorn our wrists. We love to appreciate their technical prowess and their visual beauty. We turn them over, and through a beautiful sapphire display caseback, we can see the movement that powers the horological contraption. It’s beautiful, it’s wonderful. You’re likely to find a range of finishes and

How many different hand styles do you know? Well, listing them off could keep us here all night. Yet, if you’re anything like me, you can’t stop staring in wonder when you see Juvenia Architect “Protractor.” It is unprecedentedly innocent, simple, amusing, different, and powerful all at the same time.I promised myself that on #TBT, I would only feature watches I’ve wo

No, I’m not being ironic here. Embrace your inner child and let a cartoon watch liven up your day. It doesn’t have to be a cheeky-colored kid’s watch, either. The best cartoon watches can be discreet, and truly legit horology at that.For many people, cartoons are a blissful memory of childhood lost. Others, however, carry the enthusiasm to our grave… literally. The Japanese

It has now been six months since the launch of one of the year's most talked about watches. The Omega Swatch Speedmaster MoonSwatch sent shockwaves through the watch community after its announcement on the 24th of March. We all witnessed the phenomenon of people queueing overnight for the launch, hoping to get their hands on one. I witnessed this with my own eyes at the Rotterdam boutique, where h

American watchmaking, watch culture, and watch market were in the spotlight during the Dubai Watch Week Horology Forum 8 Moves New York. The watch event, which took place last weekend in NYC's Meatpacking District, was comprised of panels, debates, and watchmaking and watch-photography masterclasses. And yes, while discussing the present state and future perspective of American watchmaking, the sp

Another Friday, another Top 5! Last week saw us picking out our favorite blacked-out watches that have come out recently. There seems to be a lot of love for blacked-out watches, which is great. This week, we will focus on recently released field watches. We have seen several new releases with great variations and different styles, but they are still very recognizable as the functional field watch

Welcome to this week’s episode of Fratello Talks. Today, we’re talking all about Japanese watches. What makes them special, brands we enjoy, and why they keep the Swiss on their toes. We cover a broad range of brands and price points available from Japan. From the humble Seiko to high-end brands like Credor and Minase. Whether you are just starting your journey with watches, or you are

A long time ago, my watch journey began with dive watches. I was lucky to grow feet in the water, and I loved everything related to the sea. Plus, I've always been obsessed with watches, so the decision to buy divers was a no-brainer. Many of my watch friends own dive watches. Three Fratello writers’ GADA watches are divers. And much of the outstanding watch photography that populates Instag

I have no stats on this, but I’d bet that round and roundish watches beat square and rectangular watches in sales by a ratio of 9:1. And I’m just as guilty as the next man of not buying one yet, even if it’s only due to laziness on my part. But I’ve had a change of heart, and in fact, it’s hip to be square in 2023.Square or rectangular watches wear larger than their d

The 1972 Porsche Design Chronograph 1 is revered as one of the great racing chronographs. It may not enjoy the mainstream adulation of a Speedmaster or a Daytona, but it is certainly a niche icon. Any designer would be lucky to have a watch like this in his/her portfolio. But F.A. Porsche was no ordinary designer. Before he drew the Chronograph 1, he already had a certain little sports car to his

I am a big fan of vintage Tudor, as many of you will probably already know. Tudor, to me, is a brand that represents the very best of Hans Wilsdorf’s vision of creating mechanical excellence but without the posh baggage of . The vintage Tudor Prince Oysterdate “Jumbo” will scratch the Datejust itch but with a wonderful and modern case size.Some out there will poo-poo vintage Tudo

Last week's Sunday Morning Showdown saw two very dressy watches pitted against each other. We continue the formal streak this week but in a much more wallet-friendly manner. These two dressy numbers were positively received here at Fratello, even if they don't represent the ultimate in horology. The big question today is: if you want to buy a reasonably priced formal watch, do you go with Frederiq

Besides watches made by fellow Dutch citizen Christiaan van der Klaauw, we now also have watches from another Dutch company called Van der Gang Watches. Their main model looks (to me) a lot like the IWC Portugieser Chronograph, I could be insulting them by writing this, but even the price is about the same. ?? If I had to design a watch for my brand new company, I wouldn’t design a watch tha

The much talked about Only Watch 2013 show raised a mind blowing 5mio Euro for research on?Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy. Over 300 people (including bidders) witnessed the auction in person and numerous bidders on-line and by telephone. A number of watches did not fetch their estimate, but some of them compensated for that, in full. What about the Patek Philippe 5004T that was estimated between $400

We already showed you the Omega Speedmaster Grey Side of the Moon, or Lunar Dust as it was called at the time of introduction in BaselWorld. However, Omega is now officially introducing it to the public as ‘Grey Side of the Moon’, on Speedy Tuesday.The Speedmaster Grey Side of the Moon didn’t change since we’ve seen it in Basel actually. The platinum dial, the grey ceramic

Since Mike and I are both hail from Germany it was only logical that we hook up with the brands around. So what brands you have here? Obviously some of the most influential non-Swiss watchmaking powerhouses in the history of horology. Companies like A.Lange & Sohne, Nomos, Glashutte Original, Tutima, Hanhart, Sinn and Junghans among many others. Since Junghans isn't far from me the trip was pl

NASA astronaut Dave Scott (1932) was the 7th person to walk on the Moon during the Apollo 15 mission in 1971. Before the Apollo 15 mission, Scott was also pilot of the Gemini 8 mission and Command Module Pilot aboard the Apollo 9. On the Apollo 15 mission, he became the first to drive on the Moon in the Lunar Rover.Just like every other Apollo astronaut, Dave Scott was given an Omega Speedmaster P

At Fratello Watches we show a lot of?love for?Omega’s Speedmaster watch. But there is a new watch that?is accelerating and heading for a position at the top: Yema Rallye. This year there were several articles about this extravagant watch with a true motorsports connection. Michael wrote about his Obrey branded Rallye and Balazs revealed the fact that Mario Andretti's Rallye is actually a one