Watches Blog Wrist Watch Reviews

We really don't want to instill fear into your hearts and minds, our valued readers. But after reading about yet another watch robbery this weekend here in the Netherlands, we think it's time for a word of warning. Please keep your Rolex to yourself and don't flaunt it online. That also goes for easy-to-spot luxury watches like the Nautilus and the Royal Oak. Social media has become an online shopping catalog for wrong-doers, it seems. Of course, watches have always been a target for thieves, but the times, they are a-changing for the worse. How did it come to this?When you're proud of your new/vintage Rolex GMT-Master II, you want to show it. Because you're happy with your watch, you want t [...]

It has been a while that we reported on the Omega Speedmaster Speedy Tuesday Limited Edition. Weve been overwhelmed with all the responses and comments on this watch, and are thankful for all the positive messages we have received thus far. Omega gave us a prototype just before the official release date (January 10th 2017) so we have been able to play around with it, take photos and show it to some of our readers, colleagues and friends.The first Omega Speedmaster Speedy Tuesday Limited Edition models have been produced in Bienne and are currently being shipped to their new owners. Watches are not produced in chronological order, so it might very well be that number 13 (for example) is being [...]

Three of us recently got together from three different countries to talk about our favorite pieces from Watches and Wonders 2021. As youll see, the choices are eclectic!Balazs, Jorg, and Mike came together to talk about their favorite novelties from Watches and Wonder 2021. The picks were surprising Just like the recent episode on Watches and Wonder from Robert-Jan and Rob, a Rolex did not make the cut. That didnt stop the team from discussing the newest wares from the untouchable brand, though.Pick six Watches and Wonders 2021You can also listen to this Fratello on Air podcast via Soundcloud,?Apple Podcast,?Google Podcast,?Deezer,??Stitcher, and?Spotify. Please subscribe to the channel so y [...]

We spend time with the new Rado Golden Horse, a serial production model that just might change your thoughts about the brand.I know our readers come from all over, but I often wonder how many of you hail from my home region of South Florida.? And if you do, were you alive and cognizant during the late 80's into the 90's?? If you were, you'd no doubt recall this special time.? Blousy silk shirts, billowy pleated chinos, gold chains, and slim loafers were all the rage.? And the cars?- Forgetting the semi-performance rides that sported colors such as teal and mauve, this was the brief period of the gold package. ?If you could pony up for something like a Cadillac, Lexus or Infiniti (in pearl wh [...]

With the exception of the newly released Reverso?Ultra Thin Tribute to 1931, the Classique is perhaps in many ways the quintessential Reverso: its been in JLCs catalog for many, many years; it can be appreciated by both men and women (the size is a nice in-between that makes it a largish ladies watch but a slim mens dress watch) and is powered by a hand-wound caliber 846.Its also perhaps the closest thing we have to the original size, too. The bracelet is very flexible and comfortable for all wrist sizes; highly recommended over the strap if you have small wrists. (Fratello Tip: If you have very small wrists like my wife, you can make the extra links into a ring, see below.)Interestingly, de [...]

The trend of ultra thin watches continues After weve seen Vacheron Constantin, Piaget and Audemars Piguet introducing thin timepieces (again), next in line is Parmigiani Fleurier. The Tonda 1950 is the subject of my weekly watch article over at Motoring Exposure. Parmigiani has developed a brand new in-house movement for the Tonda 1950, being only 2.6mm in height. I dont have pictures of the caliber PF700 movement yet, but I am very curious about the platinum micro-rotor and level of finish on its bridges and wheels.Parmigiani will introduce this watch during the upcoming SIHH in January 2011.Click on this link to go my article on Parmigianis thinnest timepiece. [...]

????I feel lucky that I live very close to The Hague. The city where Christiaan Huygens lived in the 17th century. He was a Dutch mathematician, astronomer and physicist; born in The Hague on April the 14th 1629. Besides his other impressive (mostly astronomical work),????he also worked on the construction of accurate clocks, suitable for naval navigation. In 1658 he published a book on this topic called Horologium. In fact his invention on Christmas 1656, the pendulum clock (patented 1657), was a breakthrough in timekeeping. Devices known as escapements regulate the rate of a watch or clock, and the anchor escapement represented a major step in the development of accurate watches. You can r [...]

This year, we visited 7 different locations to host a Speedy Tuesday Event. The kick-off took place in Biel, at the headquarters of Omega to introduce the new caliber 321 to the Speedy Tuesday community.What followed were events in Milan, Frankfurt, Singapore, Hong Kong, New York, and last but certainly not least, Tokyo. We spent countless hours in preparing these events, but the results have been amazing. Hundreds of Speedmaster fans signed up for these events, even though we had limited capacity, and we received (and still do) many requests for other locations to host these events.Last week, we did the last Speedy Tuesday event of this year in Tokyo.Speedy Tuesday Tokyo EventJapan is an im [...]

After all the Rolex violence last two weeks of Pre-Owned Picks, we will go a bit into another direction with watches from Audemars Piguet and Patek Philippe in the selection of this week.Not picking the obvious pre-owned Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Jumbo and Patek Philippe Nautilus (Jumbo), but something a bit more under the radar with this 26300ST Royal Oak chronograph and a Calatrava 5096J. But, we also did a few picks that are more wallet-friendly (and yes, this is also relative) for you. In any case, all are watches that I admire. Two of them (actually three) used to be in my collection but had to make room for something else. In close collaboration with the worlds leading watch market pla [...]

It could be argued that since Baselworld 2017, the most highly anticipated new watch releases are actually a trio of very old watches. If you've been living under a proverbial rock I'll help to bring you current; I'm referring to Omega's 60th Anniversary group of near carbon copies of the original Speedmaster, Railmaster and Seamaster. Perhaps it's disheartening to new watch designers that these reissued pieces are the talk of the town, but I can assure you that they're very very good. Personally, and I've mentioned this, I have ordered the Speedmaster, but I could be happy with any one of the three. For testing purposes, though, we thought it wise to ask Omega to send different anniversary [...]

We welcome you back to Wrist Game or Crying Shame with a take on the Cartier Ballon Bleu. Will you take it or leave it? Well have to see, but before we get thereA couple of weeks back, I showed you the JLC Master Control Ultra Thin, and an overwhelming 93% of you did the right thing by awarding that watch a Wrist Game win. Hey, 7%-ers, its ok to be flat-out wrong sometimes This week, with the Cartier Ballon Bleu 36 on deck, we will talk about something decidedly more divisive. Its just the kind of article that should help blow some time while you wait for New Years Eve (seriously, this period between Christmas and NYE just feels like a weird no mans land).Cartier and suchIf you havent notice [...]

Welcome to the Speedmaster World Cup. In the absence of Euro 2020, we thought our beloved readers might enjoy a tournament of a different kind. We've assembled eight groups (A CH), each governed by a different Fratello team member. Each writer has been assigned four watches, which they will pitch to you during the group stages.All we need you to do is vote for your favorite to move on in the competition. The next round will be the quarter-finals, which will see the eight group winners go head-to-head for your votes. The four winners progress to the semis. Following that, a third-place play-off will precede the final round, due to be held on Sunday, December 13th (get the beers in-). If you h [...]

Welcome to the Speedmaster World Cup. In the absence of Euro 2020, we thought our beloved readers might enjoy a tournament of a different kind. Weve assembled eight groups (A CH), each governed by a different Fratello team member. Each writer has been assigned four watches, which they will pitch to you during the group stages.All we need you to do is vote for your favorite to move on in the competition. The next round will be the quarter-finals, which will see the eight group winners go head-to-head for your votes. The four winners progress to the semis. Following that, a third-place play-off will precede the final round, due to be held on Sunday, December 13th (get the beers in).If you have [...]

Unfortunately, a 37mm looks kind of silly on my 7.5 wrist. Otherwise, a Jaeger-LeCoultre Master Moon like Robs (friend of the show since 2004) would be a perfect timepiece for formal occasions. Although Jaeger-LeCoultre seems to have entered a different route to approach its clients since a while, with big bulky watches or with high-tech materials, this Master Moon with a diameter of 37mm and a height of just 10mm is a true classic that at least will look good on you in a few decades from now. Will the Compressor watches do to? I think not.For around 3000 Euro, you should be able to find a nice Master Moon (young occasion) in good condition, complete with box and papers. Make sure the alliga [...]

When joining Fratello at the beginning of this year, I knew I was entering a Speedmaster-enthusiast stronghold. Quickly after joining and trying on the 2021 Speedmaster Professional in the office, I was convinced and swapped my First Omega in Space for one. And now, only about a month later, Im adding yet another Speedmaster to the collection. Not just any Speedmaster, though. Its the Mission to Saturn Speedmaster MoonSwatch, launched about two weeks ago. And boy, is it a joy to wear!But before we get into it, Id like to suggest a soundtrack for while youre reading this hymn to the MoonSwatch. Is anyone familiar with Gustav Holsts orchestral suite called The Planets? Well, Holst composed a p [...]

Ok, this is going to be fun. Nowadays you cannot put all of your eggs in one basket. Meaning, content creation is at its peak so it's not enough to concentrate on one type of channel. That's why Fratello Watches is not only an online magazine but also on most of your favorite social media platforms. I'm talking about the usual suspects like Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, and of course Instagram. Enter: Watch On Your WristThe rules are simple. Every week we will pick four watch images from Instagram. All you need to do to be eligible for selection is tag your watch shots with fratellowatches. We will publish these four images here on the Magazine with a bit of a background story. You can vote i [...]

Traveling out of the central GWD hub to visit Jaeger-LeCoultre might sound like a slog when you consider how packed our schedule was, but trust me, this is a brand that rarely leaves me wanting. While Im often a bit on the fence when it comes to press shots of JLCs master collection, they truly come to life in the metal. Jaeger-LeCoultre has a magic touch. When it comes to imbuing the simplest almost plain designs with just enough je ne sais quoi to transform them into wearable classics, there are few brands able to compete.When I saw the new Master collection released online earlier this year, I wasnt just unbothered. I was actively bored by it. Flat, lifeless white dials in pedestrian, uni [...]

Earlier this year we visited the Breitling roadshow in Zurich, Switzerland, and had a sit-down with CEO Georges Kern. He was incredibly open to us (as you can read here) and the new collections were well received, including the new Navitimer 8 models.Worlds leading online marketplace of watches Chrono24, did a profile on Breitling and put it in an interesting infographic. We would like to share this infographic with you, and perhaps you see something that is new to you and might spark your interest in them.This infographic was made by Chrono24.com. [...]

Theres something to be said for a classic, simple watch design. Sure, we enthusiasts could easily spend hours ogling complicated offerings from watch brands well never be able to afford. But at the end of the day, some of us demand nothing more from our own watch than legibility, good build quality, and timeless good looks. And TAG Heuers latest new additions to the Carrera Three Hands line provide exactly that. The refreshing new offerings bring some refinements to the design while staying true to the classic Carrera design language.Back in 1958, Jack Heuer learned the importance of simplicity. When he was unable to read his dashboard timer correctly at a glance, Heuer lost his first-place [...]

We like to talk about vintage watches a lot within the Fratello team. While the daily routine is largely focused on the most recent developments in the world of watches, the most fun for many of us lies in the world of vintage watches. It's a world full of history, remarkable watches, incredible stories, and quirky details. It inspired us to come up with a series of articles focusing on the best watches per decade from a select group of brands. Some of them priceless, some of them still affordable. But all of them are interesting watches. In this second installment, we will take a look at the best Rolex watches from the 1960s.This article is the first of a series to cover the most important [...]