Watches Blog Wrist Watch Reviews

I am excited and honored to write my first article for Fratello Magazine. I have been thinking a lot about the first topic to talk about and, in the end, I decided to write about the iconic Rolex Daytona ref. 16520.Because from my point of view, this model really stands-out in the history of Rolex and represents one of the timepieces whose value increased more over the years. In 1988, after the discontinued production of the manual winding Cosmograph, Rolex launched the first references of the self-winding chronograph with sapphire crystal on the market: 16520 for the stainless steel model, 16523 for the steel and gold model, and 16528 for the gold model.Rolex 16520-Mark 1 to 8The main chara [...]

We brought you quite the handful in TBT this year. To help you decide which vintage watches you should push higher on your bucket lists, I?created 10 interesting vintage watch categories and nominated my winners. Looking back through our weekly Thursday vintage boost, I am proud to say that it was a great mix of watches. They ranged from previously unseen pieces and $100 bargain to bizarre quartz watches, eye-watering provenance, and all-original, never-before-touched grail timepieces. Which parameter is the most important for you when choosing your next acquisition? Here are 10 categories showcasing how rich and diverse the passion for vintage watches can be. 1: Complication of the year: M [...]

Among many novelties, three of them from Vacheron Constantin are extremely limited. The Vacheron Constantin M tiers d'Art line is a tribute to some of the World's most famous explorers, and, as one would expect from this holiest of brands, each one of these pieces has been caressed into being by the hands of a trained artisan. Its hard to associate work like this with the majority of the industry. This is real art. And while it is, like the kind of art wed expect to see hanging on the walls of galleries around the world, divisive, no one could realistically disparage the effort and skill put into these models creation.?To commemorate the greatest Portuguese explorers of the 15th century, Vac [...]

My girlfriend bought me this box, suitable for 4 (large) watches. The Panerai is 44mm, the Sinn is 44mm as well I guess and the other two are 40mm. There was also a cloth with it to clean the box, it is made out of wood and has a sort of piano finish on it which makes it very shiny [...]

LL Cool Js lyrics Dont call it a comeback, Ive been here for years are very much in place when it comes to Bvlgaris watches. With the recent Octo Finissimo watches, they are throwing some good punches. Weve been raving about the Bvlgari Octo Finissimo watches a number of times, it has become one of our favorite new watches.You are probably also aware that Bvlgari is a proper watch manufacture, located in several places in Switzerland. We visited the P?le Habillage in Saignel gier,? the assembly atelier in Neuchatel, and the Bvlgari Manufacture de Haute Horlogerie in Le Sentier. In this article, we show you how things are done at Bvlgari.Bvlgari Manufacture Visit ReportOur trip starts with a [...]

I thought the Royal Oak Jumbo (or Extra-Thin) had hit its peak a few years ago, but it clearly hadnt. Prices are going through the roof, as you will see in this article.Ive been writing about the Royal Oak (and the Jumbo in particular) a lot over the years here on Fratello. It was my dream watch for a long time, I had a few Royal Oak variations, including the 15202 Jumbo and I saw the development of the market value from roughly 7,000 to 40,000. In a period of 15 years, I have to add.For this series, we select pre-owned watches from Chrono24, the largest online marketplace for watches in the world. In todays article, I included the 15202 similar to the model I had in my own collection, the s [...]

Welcome back to Wrist Game or Crying Shame, the online voting serial where playing along doesnt require social distancing. Today, well take a look at the limited edition Omega Speedmaster Apollo XVII 40th Anniversary and get your thoughts. But firstLast week, I decided to give you a two-part cocktail made from equal parts of rarity and controversy. It was a stiff drink in the end, but apparently youd order another as the Grand Seiko SBGX115 triumphed in a 55% Wrist Game win. Today, with the Speedmaster Apollo XVII 40th Anniversary, well look at another limited watch. The bigger question well ask is if its appeal is also limited.The Speedmaster L.E. BattleBefore we get into the Speedmaster Ap [...]

Koen Simon is a 26-year old reader of Fratello, and he has been a fan of watches from an early age. When he was 12 years old, he noticed his uncle wearing a mechanical watch, an IWC from the 1960s. The smooth sweep of the second hand fascinated Koen and triggered him to learn more about watches.Just recently, Koen Simon came to the Fratello office to show some of his collection. One of these watches he brought is an IWC caliber 61 in a Hermet case. Truth to be told, I had never previously heard of this watch, but Koen explained to me in detail what it was all about. We decided that it would be fun to have him feature his story on the IWC Hermet case with caliber 61 on Fratello, so were here [...]

Its Speedy Tuesday and I?could just rant and rave about the newly introduced Speedmaster Grey Side of the Moon with meteorite dial (introduced here) or I could involve the new and much appraised Rolex Daytona 116500LN with ceramic bezel in this article. Lets go with the latter, to add a bit of punch.The Rolex Daytona doesnt need much introduction, we did an extensive bit of coverage here and the Omega Speedmaster Grey Side of the Moon was reviewed in-depth in this article. However, both models I discuss here today are BaselWorld 2016 novelties and seem to be in the same price range (CHF 11,800 Swiss Francs for the Daytona, 13.500 Euro for the Speedmaster). Two?watches?with in-house develope [...]

And we're back with part 2 of our Summer Special: 60's Vintage Diver Shootout featuring four archetypal watches from brands that are still here today. To recap, in the first episode, we provided a rundown on the specs of our combatants while providing a little flavor on each watch's history. The frontrunners, in most minds would clearly be either the Rolex Red Submariner Date or the Omega Seamaster 300 Big Triangle, two classics that tend to find themselves at the tops of many collector's want lists. The other horses in this race may come off as long shots, but both the Doxa 300 Searambler and the Seiko 6159 Professional bring their own unique merits to the derby. Let's walk through the part [...]

There are many different ways to illuminate a watch face at night. Different materials, different styles of application, different methods entirely. And within those different methods, there are vastly different qualities of execution. Lets take a look at some of the lume styles available.You may rarely use your watch at night. Thats fine. Im not sure I do either, to be honest. Regardless, there are few things I scrutinize more thoroughly prior to purchase than lume performance, and even more importantly for me, lume homogeny. I like to see a clean, crisp glow from the hour markers. And almost as important, I want that glow to be on the same level of intensity as the hands. So often, hands b [...]

When I started collecting watches in the late 1990s, my watch dealer and now Fratello contributor Gerard told me that I needed a Rolex Datejust. Cant go wrong with a Rolex Datejust as they always work. With anything.. A short and simple statement from someone who had by that time already seen and tried it all. A few years later, just after graduation, I got my first Datejust. It was a vintage Datejust from 1969, with reference 1600, on a jubilee bracelet that was clearly added later. I managed to find a couple of extra bezels, including the fluted white gold one, so I could change it to a reference 1601 when I felt like it. It was also an easy watch to wear on a leather strap.Rolex Datej [...]

We often think that having a long history and a rich heritage guarantees success in the modern world of wristwatches. But as powerful a position as such attributes may provide, there is still work to be done. If Spiderman taught us one thing, its that with great power comes great responsibility. And being the custodian of a history as peerless as Breguets is surely a huge responsibility. I caught up with Team Breguet to find out how the new Breguet Tradition 7597 is keeping things fresh for a modern audience interested in the brands past.The new Tradition collection was launched in 2005. The models that populate this collection are heavily inspired by the watches made by Breguet towards the [...]

Hublot Big Bang Unico Titanium CeramicWe had the opportunity to test drive the Hublot Big Bang Unico Titanium Ceramic for a while. Before we continue with the actual review, lets spend some words on this remarkable manufacturer first.HistoryWhen it comes to fashionable manufactures, Hublot is easily in the top 3. The industry considers them one of the hippest brands despite their relatively short history. Even though the company was established in 1980 it had mediocre success. Until 2003, when Jean-Claude Biver went on-board. Before, Jean-Claude Biver was responsible for Swatch Group brands.His approach to the brand was different and revolutionary. As a result, the Big Bang was released in 2 [...]

The German based R-L-X forum has a number of excellent authors aboard. One of them is Percy, also known by his initials PCS. Percy wrote a great review on three (later on four) Rolex watches that are priced just over 7000 euro in the current Rolex catalogue.The Cosmograph Daytona is only marginally available. Although the waiting lists arent as ridicilous anymore as a few years ago (when you had to watch 6 years to get one, if you could get on the list at all), you still have to wait for one a few months at the authorized dealer (7200 Euro). In the grey circuit, you can get one for approximately 8000 euro. The Sea-Dweller DeepSea has been introduced during the last Basel Fair, and its availa [...]

Another week, another butt-load of news in the watch industry. I get the almighty power of deciding what was cool enough to make it into my column. This week, it was a celebratory Minase, a new Urwerk, and a deep blue Credor that really caught my eyeplus I couldnt ignore the GPHG Awards 2020. Read on!Minase's celebratory sweet 15!Who doesn't love a good birthday celebration? There's usually cake, sweets and other treats involved. When Minase got in touch to tell us a little more about their birthday celebrations, they indeed treated us to a rather stunning new release. For its 15th birthday, the brand has produced a limited edition of its signature 5 Windows model, limited to just 15 pieces, [...]

This is part II of our Speedmaster Professional 145.022 Buyers Guide (part 1 can be found here), with a number of updates since the previous publications (2015 and 2017).This second part of the 145.022 Buyers Guide goes into the details of the Speedmaster Professional 145.022, details you should pay attention to when you are in the market for this reference. We are receiving a healthy amount of e-mails and messages to help some of our readers with their quest for a Speedmaster Professional 145.022. There are quite some of these watches out there that have been tampered with or have been serviced with authentic parts but from a later era. That also affects the value of the watch.As always, th [...]

When it comes to watch design, vintage has been the magic word for quite some time. Call it a re-issue, a modern re-interpretation, or simply an updated version of a classic. Its hard to think of a watch industry without vintage-inspired pieces. One of the brands that has mastered the art of vintage-inspired timepieces superbly is Longines. The brands Heritage collection is full of great watches that link to Longines estimable past. We dived into the collection to find out why the designs make them such great pieces.Retro design is here to stay. Its hard to think of a watch industry without newly introduced watches inspired by the archives of all the illustrious brands. It has been a great s [...]

I cant express how happy I was to see this Omega release in our inbox. Ive been waiting for this a long time, as the original Seamaster 300M Chronograph in tantalum, titanium, and rose gold from 1993 is one of my favorite eccentric watches.Soon after I purchased the full titanium Seamaster 300M Chronograph (2298.80), I decided my grail Seamaster 300M would be the version made of titanium, tantalum, and rose gold. A few years ago, I made the purchase. It turns out it was more than nostalgia talking. In fact, I wear it quite often.When Omega released the new 300M collection in 2018, the brand also introduced a limited edition model in titanium, tantalum, and Sedna gold. Now, two years later, w [...]

Oris is a sympathetic brand in my opinion. Independent (but not small) and very strong in the sub 2000 price range. We covered their Aquis and Sixty-Five Divers watches a number of times, as these are great value propositions. What also helps for us watch journalists, is that the people behind Oris are also sympathetic and real watch enthusiasts. That doesnt help or mean much for the end-consumer perhaps, at least not directly, but believe me, it does for us when the people behind a brand share the (true) love for watches. However, being very strong in that 1000 to 2000 segment, what happens if a brand like Oris creates a watch that retails for nearly 5000?For that kind of money, you are ent [...]