Watches Blog Wrist Watch Reviews

Cartier made huge progress with their own calibers during the last 9 years.?Complication after complication was presented at the SIHH in Geneva and I think I am right in saying that with the launch of the new Cl de Cartier watch powered by?their new automatic 1847MC movement the total amount of Made by Cartier calibers reaches over 40 now.Cartier?has since the beginning of 1900 a beautiful collection of watch cases, of which many are still in production. Most of them however, were rectangle or square shaped and since more and more calibers with complications are being developed by Cartier, the need?for round mens cases, to house these calibers, became more urgent. Besides that, men in gen [...]

Welcome back to Wrist Game or Crying Shame, the weekly must-read event that has become the internets Clash of the Keyboard Warriors This week, well have some fun with the Patek Philippe 5524G and see if its worth spending your frequent flier miles. But firstLast week, I showed you what has to be the most polarizing Speedmaster Limited Edition to date with the Apollo XVII 40th Anniversary model. Polarizing means that you like it or not. Or, in the case of sunglasses, it means you cant see sh*t on your heads-up display. And folks, you did not see or like this watch. This Speedy was routed in an 85% Crying Shame loss.Yes, Ive embraced schadenfreudeMe? I enjoyed giving Gerard youll recall that [...]

A lot of times, Vacheron Constantins Overseas watches are mentioned in the same sentence as Audemars Piguets Royal Oak, Patek Philippes Nautilus and the IWC Ingenieur SL watches. It was actually believed by a former CEO of Vacheron Constantin, that G rald Genta was involved in the design of the 222, predecessor of the Overseas, as he stated in an interview with The Purists. We now know, that it was Jorg Hysek who influenced the design of the 222 time piece that evolved to the current Overseas line of watches.I guess it is a compliment for both designers, Hysek and Genta, that people are confused about who designed what. The Overseas models are just as iconic as the Royal Oak and Nautilus des [...]

All jokes and stereotypes aside, we all know Sinn as the go-to brand for those looking for no-nonsense, bomb-proof, functional tool watches. This is a brand that is not afraid to err on the side of utility. However, it's not all deadpan, business-only, no fun allowed. More and more, Sinn has started tentatively bending its knees up and down to the beat, shaking its hips, and even swinging its elbows from side to side in the corner of the disco. The Sinn U50 S mother-of-pearl serves as a clear example of this newfound bravery and desire to get groovy. If the brand keeps this up, they'll be dancing like Travolta on the colorful dance floor of watchmaking before we have time to say Perlmuttziff [...]

King Willem-Alexander And His Omega Speedmaster ProIts Speedy Tuesday By coincidence I came across the photo below, where you can see Dutch King Willem-Alexander and his wife Queen Mexima on the stand?cheering for the Dutch national soccer team during the World Championship of 2010 in South-Africa. You can see Queen Mexima wearing her Rolex, which has been covered elsewhere in the past, but my eyes were drawn to the wrist of King Willem-Alexander. Although the resolution of this published ANP photo is too low to study the watch in detail, my nose for Speedmaster?spotting?is rarely off. It was time to investigate.Most of our readers probably know that we are based in The Netherlands. Only few [...]

In this podcast, I talk with OMEGAs Mr. Andreas Hobmeier, Vice President of Production and Procurement, about Master Chronometer and the role of METAS. We speak about all the facets of Master Chronometer, and why precision and anti-magnetism is such an important topic.I recently had a wonderful conversation with Mr. Ansdreas Hobmeier, to which you can listen below, or use one of the many platforms out there. Our Fratello on Air podcast is available via Buzzsprout, Soundcloud, Apple Podcast, Google Podcast, Deezer,? Stitcher, and Spotify. Below, you can also find an overview of what Master Chronometer is about, and the role METAS plays.Podcast with Andreas HobmeierMr. Andreas Hobmeier, Omegas [...]

The first Rolex Cosmograph Daytona was introduced in 1963, which leads into this 50th anniversary of this highly sought-after chronograph. Both new and pre-loved. Although Rolex did not came up with the limited or special anniversary edition that many people expected, they did introduce for the first time a platinum version of their Rolex Cosmograph Daytona and have it reference number 116506.Rolex Cosmograph Daytona Ref. 116506When I first saw (and tried) the watch during the Baselworld exhibition, I was impressed by the rather high weight (286 grams) due to the use of platinum, but the colours (ice blue dial and brown ceramic bezel) didnt do it for me at this first encounter.The Rolex Da [...]

Now that I think of it, it has been almost 8 years since I have this watch. And finally, completed A few weeks back I noticed this reference 1039 bracelet for sale, which belongs to this type of Speedmaster. According to most sources that is, you are never sure with those vintage Omega watches. My watch left the Omega factory in 1968 (October 22nd to be exact) on a journey to Norway. The reference 1039 was used on this model in 1968 according to information by Omega. However, I have also seen them on earlier models as well. 1968 is also the year that the reference 1171 bracelet got introduced for its successor, the Speedmaster Pro with caliber 861 movement. Earlier models of the Speedmaster, [...]

Omega Gen�� ve Dynamic watches from the '70s are fun, exciting and still very much under the radar.Mind you; it's not an easy task to search for Omega Dynamics on the web. The brand released various models at a different point in time, all under the name; Dynamic. Most of you probably remember the latest Dynamics (III) that first came out around 1995. It went on to a few years with the last model (a Targa Florio edition) coming out in 1999 if I'm correct. You had time-only and chronograph version, with large pump pushers and vintage-style dials. They came in a capsule; collectors often refer to as the tin can. I have to say, while those watches are not everyone's favourite, they represent exc [...]

During the Space Shuttle STS-128 mission, Swedish ESA astronaut Christer Fuglesang was not only wearing his trusty old Omega Speedmaster Professional X-33 watch but on his other wrist, he was wearing an at that time ?unfamiliar?watch, the Halda Space Discovery watch. Developed with the help of astronauts aboard of the STS-128, Swedish watch manufacturer Halda was able to fine-tune their Halda Space Discovery watch and finish the production of this timepiece. They are limiting the number of timepieces to 128,?referring?to the flight number of the NASA Space Shuttle mission in 2009.Whether the Halda Space Watch will eventually replace the Speedmaster Professional (X-33) remains uncertain, but [...]

Fratello has some nice give aways coming up, and this Mario Paci MP XVIII strap is one of them Together with TC Straps and ViaPaneristi, long time friends of FratelloWatches, I can offer you this great give away for your Panerai time piece.Leave a comment with your name and a valid e-mail address, and a winner will be picked on the 15th of July. You will be contacted in order to ask you what colour strap and which size you prefer. The following sizes are available (width at the lug buckle and long part length short part length):24/24 115/7524/24 125/8024/24 130/8526/26 125/80The MP XVIII strap will be available in the following colours: Camel, Cappuccino and Nero (as seen below).Thanks to [...]

One of my first encounters with Ulysse Nardin was in 1999, when Gerard showed me his?Ulysse Nardin GMT ? �� Perpetual watch. He wrote about it recently in detail, on Christmas day (find it here). At the time, Gerards watch shop in The Hague was official retailer for Ulysse Nardin, so once in a while when I visited his store (more often than he probably liked) I had the opportunity to have a closer look at these watches.At some point, when he didnt carry Ulysse Nardin anymore in his shop, I didnt come across them much. Until I started to write about watches on this website. Somehow I lost interest in the brand, especially when the brand from Le Locle came up with things like this Chairman phon [...]

Fortuna in New York is hosting their April Exchange auction on April 11th. 15 watch lots included!Auctions are fun to follow, live or online, to see what certain watches will do on the market and what will happen if two bidders cant stop. Fortuna is an auction house based in New York and started with jewellery only. Today, you will also find watches at their auctions. Lets have a look at three watches that will be auctioned tomorrow by them.1966 Rolex GMT-Master ref. 1675I have a weak spot for the GMT-Master and owned several, including two reference 1675 models. It is the watch by Rolex that gave them a name in aviation, as the GMT-Master is forever linked to the Pan Am days. Pan Am needed [...]

Roll up, roll up The summer has hit The Hague, and Fratello is keen to celebrate. After the fizzing success of March Mania, we are back with a new knock-out competition conceived to find the very best summer watch out there, according to YOU, the Fratelli. And guess what? You can win prizes No, there wont be a watch available this time, but there WILL be some of the finest water-firing weapons money can buy: the Spyra 2 water cannon is reputedly the strongest of its kind ever made. Fancy getting your hands on one? Read on and take part in the poll and comments section of the Summer Splash.Eight Fratelli editors will choose three of their favorite summer watches and pitch them to you this tim [...]

The design of the Submariner 114060, is unmistakably Rolex, despite the size and use of modern materials such as ceramics. Compare the modern 114060 to the 1953 Rolex Submariner 6204 and you will immediately notice that these watches share the same DNA.Owning and wearing a Rolex Submariner is one thing, but to dive into the history of this watch is quite a task. To make it somewhat easier for you, we hereby show you the history of the Submariner in a nutshell, including a table with most important references since 1953 till the current line-up of Submariner watches.Diving Into Rolex SubmarinerThe Rolex Submariner is a watch with an interesting story. Introduced over 60 years ago, the current [...]

For IWC, 2009 is the year of the Aquatimer relaunch. IWCs first Aquatimer saw daylight in 1967 and I doubt that one of these first models ever saw some water, because they didnt look very water resistant. However, looks might be deceiving because IWC claimed it to be water resistant to 200 meters. Anyway, between 1967 and now, IWC has had several sports watches (GST, Ocean, Aquatimer) suitable for use below the surface.The new line of Aquatimers have been presented at SIHH 2009 and a number of jewelers organized introduction events for their customers (click here for the Ace Jewelers presentation earlier this year). One of my personal favorites this year, is the IWC Aquatimer Chronograph Edi [...]

We take time with the Rado Golden Horse 1957.If you're following along here at Fratello, you'll note that this is the second review of a Rado within a rather brief period of time.? Recently, I reviewed a green-dialed Golden Horse, a watch that I concluded would make a great daily wearer.? I'll keep saying this until the effect wears off, but it's really nice to have Rado in the mix of brands that people like myself (whatever that means) would actually consider for a purchase.? Yes, the brand's modern watches are definitely turning in the right direction.? Today, though, we're going decidedly retro as we take a close look at the limited edition Rado Golden Horse 1957.The Rado Golden Horse 195 [...]

Recently, I chatted with one of my favorite artists, Misha Mansoor, about his newfound interest in watches and how it all started. Misha is the founder and one of three guitarists in the American metal band, Periphery. His collection starts with an interest in watch mechanisms and grows to the appreciation of design and history. Whether you're into this type of music or not, Misha is a highly knowledgeable and passionate collector of watches and one of the nicest guys in the music business.Periphery is one of my favorite rock bands in existence. As soon as I heard the opening riff to Icarus Lives from Periphery's eponymous first album, I was hooked. The music is heavy for many tastes but is [...]

With the dust having settled after the first four days of Watches Wonders 2022, we can see clearly see the impressive number of new releases from all the different brands. Hublot, of course, also brought the heat with an array of new model variations and an entirely new line. As usual, the brand does not shy away from loud colors and cutting-edge materials for its Big Bang collection. On top of that, Hublot introduces the new Square Bang with a familiar but new shape for the brand. Finally, there are some remarkable one-offs that combine materials, colors, and watchmaking magic. So lets find out more about the new Hublot releases.The great thing about seeing all the new Hublot releases is t [...]

The watch industry is full of trends. Brands and companies typically move in a similar direction, guided by the flow of the current preferences of the watch-buying public. If you've been paying attention, you've more than likely identified some of the preferences to which this newly re-designed Oris Big Crown Pointerdate Calibre 403 caters. With this latest release from the H?lstein brand, it seems that less is more in terms of size, and more is more in terms of in-house engineered movements. I won't overstep and be so bold as to claim that these preferences apply to everyone. But to the large majority of you who are in tune with these latest trends, you can start getting excited right about [...]