Watches Blog Wrist Watch Reviews

Wow, have things changed at Breitling. A few short years ago, if I told you that reasonably sized, gorgeous manual wind chronographs were on the horizon, would you have believed me? Well, the Premier Chronograph 40 line is hereMy how the worm has turned regarding Breitling. Just several short years ago, the brand seemed intent on producing the biggest most garish watches on the planet. Since that time, bit by bit, the quality releases have just kept coming. Watches like the Premier, the Chronomat, the Aviator 8, and the Superocean Heritage 57 are just some of the renaissance pieces. Breitling has faithfully grasped its heritage while focusing on finishing that can easily party with other bra [...]

Hamilton further expands its collection with a new jazzy case to showcase the H-10-S movement. The Jazzmaster occupies the dressy-casual void that seems distant from the Khaki Field and Scuba watches. With a variety of dial hues and case shades, the Jazzmaster is sure to complement a plethora of styles.Jazz may not be an obvious inspiration for a wristwatch, yet it is not uncommon. Just this year, I went hands-on with the Oris James Morrison. While the Hamilton may be less overt in displaying the source of inspiration the Oris has a trumpet symbol on the back the roots remain. Hamilton has a longstanding association with the arts, mostly in Cinema. But watches like the Ventura are well-remem [...]

Its This Week in Watches for June 27, 2020 the variety edition. Weve got serious diversity this week, so without further adoTAG Heuer Carrera 160 Years Montreal Limited EditionOur first entry in this variety edition comes from TAG Heuer. I got a bit excited when the press release came in and I saw a 1972 Montreal chronograph. Well, it turns out that were getting a 39mm Carrera with the familiar Glassbox construction in the guise of a Montreal. This 1,000-piece limited edition features blue, yellow, and red highlights on its dial and a blue leather alligator strap. The in-house Calibre 02 automatic powers the three-register chronograph. The 6,400 watch will begin hitting boutiques and online [...]

It is the last day of the year, time to share with you the Top 10 best read articles on Fratello in 2018. In total, we published just over 450 posts on watches.2018 was a very important year for us, as we made a number of important decisions for the future of Fratello, which we will tell you more about soon. Also, of course, there was the release of another Speedmaster Speedy Tuesday (Ultraman) which means a great deal to us. We very much enjoyed doing watch reviews (a big thank you to all brands that cooperate with us on that) and hosting watch events (another thank you to the brands and boutiques involved). We will do more events in the future, starting next week actually.For 2019, we hope [...]

Today, Steef notified the Dutch RolexForum members about a website that covers diving watches and diving stories. The owner of the website, Michael OLeary, military and commercial (COMEX) diver, is also a watch aficionado. Most interesting is his story about the Rolex COMEX ref.16600 Sea Dweller and the fact that he dives with his Double Red Sea Dweller (ref.1665) from 1972. It all started with his Rolex Submariner ref.5513 that he got for his 21st birthday in 1978, and from there on, he built this impressive collection of (vintage and COMEX) Rolex watches.Be sure to visit Michaels website at: [...]

Grand Seiko seems to be the communitys darling. Since?a few years, collectors and watch journalists are all over it and it seems to be increasing by the day. With in-house GS ambassadors such as Joe Kirk, who happens to be Director of the Seiko Boutique Miami Design district and puts out beautiful images on his Instagram and Facebook account, we get to see how the community responds to the amazingly well-finished Grand Seiko watches.The enthusiasm for Grand Seiko is so huge, that some people do wonder whats going on. Is it all paid-for content that is being published? Is Seiko giving away free stuff to press who talks positively about them? Grand Seiko is all over the place on social media, [...]

Grail watches are supposed to embody the best. Best, however, is a subjective term. Thats why everyones grail is different. What I consider best for me is a watch that doesnt require careful handling. My best is a watch that can keep up with me in all that I do. Beyond that, I want the ultimate expression of capability in specs and design, as well as efficiency of material and cost. Thus, as far as my judgment is concerned, I want an Oris. And if Im buying tomorrow, I want an Oris Aquis Date Calibre 400.If my grail is a watch, the tower that keeps it is Oris, and I admit Im more enamored with the tower than the various potential grails within. Oris has spoiled me these past couple of years, [...]

Im starting to think I might have a very specific type when it comes to watches. The Omega Seamaster GMT Great White 2538.20.00 is a watch that certainly ticks all the boxes. Its a rugged stainless steel sports watch with plenty of water resistance and a GMT function. It has the classic Seamaster looks, but with a twist or two that make this a very attractive piece indeed. However, the fact that Im writing about it in this article means one thing it's no longer in production. Omega axed this particular model sometime in the early 2000s, and that makes me very sad indeed. But I'm sure we can all agree that the Omega Seamaster GMT's comeback is long overdue. And when the time (hopefully) comes [...]

If you are in favour of big and bold diving watches, think Deepsea or Ploprof, you can add another to that list: the Ulysse Nardin Diver Deep Dive. Theres nothing much toned down about this particular watch, but I assume that this is also not intended by the Le Locle based manufacture.Ulysse Nardin Diver Deep Dive It Will Not Go UnnoticedThere are more watches on the market with a case as big as 46mm, or even larger. But even my approx.50mm Seiko Tuna 6159-7010 looks less bold. The 46mm isnt that extreme these days, but the two extensions on the Ulysse Nardin Diver Deep Dive creates a watch that will not go unnoticed. But I believe that is exactly what Ulysse Nardins team of designers had i [...]

Hello homebound friends, we welcome you to another episode of This Week in Watches for April 4, 2020. We have a decent amount of news today, so lets get to it!Ollech Wajs COVID-19 AidIts nice to know that while youre homebound, there are companies at work trying to do the right thing. Zurich-based Ollech Wajs sent a couple emails over the last week. Firstly, theyve announced that every watch sold will result in a donation of 100 CHF to the Italian Protezione Civile.?If you head to their site, youll learn that equates to roughly 10% of the sales price of most watches. Second, OW is in the process of making and donating 10,000 surgical masks to front line professionals. Will this save the wo [...]

Hamilton is releasing a new military-inspired piece, the Khaki Pilot Pioneer Mechanical, after the remarkable success of the Khaki Field Mechanical.That watch took the industry by storm for its originality and price. The Khaki Field Mechanical looked almost exactly as its vintage counterpart and this was a huge chunk of the charm. The other favorable factor was the hand-wound movement inside and last not but least, the super affordable price tag. Today we have a look at the evolution of this model. Yet another re-edition, yet another military watch. But you dont hear us complaining. The Hamilton Khaki Pilot Pioneer Mechanical is the modern reinterpretation of the legendary Hamilton W10. You' [...]

You guys seem to enjoy our Top 10 articles, so we thought it would be interesting to do another one. This time we would focus on watches below the 2k mark. But heres the twist: instead of just listing ten watches that I love, I decided to open this up to the team. Our editors got one choice and one choice only. Lets see what theyd spend their 2,000 onI asked nine of our editors to send me their favorite picks under 2k. Its a pretty exciting list that reflects the versatility we have at Fratello. Youll see each editors selection with a quote from the person explaining why they went with it. Additionally, Ive included the price and a few thoughts about the watch from me. As always, wed love to [...]

Oris introduced a number of watches during Baselworld 2019 that are worth checking out. We were able to invite some of our readers to have a first look at them.Last Thursday we organized an event with Oris for our readers. In the center of Amsterdam, in the Oris boutique. We already showed you some of the new Oris watches here on Fratello, but nothing beats it seeing them in the flesh and giving them a try. It was a wonderful evening, with approximately 45 guests in total and in the presence of Dutch Oris representative Gijs van Hoorn and the Oris boutique staff.If youre ever visiting Amsterdam, make sure to visit the Oris boutique (Rokin 48), aside from the watches, they have great coffee a [...]

Dirk Claassen over at www.horlogenieuws.nl (Dutch) reports that Corum introduced the Admirals Cup Competition 48 especially for nautical sports.The watch has a La Joux Perret caliber 8235 movement, which is based on the famous and often discussed valjoux 7750??movement. It is chronometer-certified (COSC), with 24 jewels, high-end finish and personalised rotor.The watch case is 48mm in diameter and is made out of titanium. The Corum has a vulcanised rubber strap and the water resistancy is 300 meters. The watch is available in either black or blue. Dirk notes that the watch has this stunning twelve-facetted sapphire crystal.Although the Corum website??does not show the Admirals Cup Competitio [...]

Aurel Bacs Livia Russo in association with Phillips auction house are back for their seventh Geneva watch auction together. In addition, they assembled a special Rolex Daytona thematic auction they have dubbed The Daytona Ultimatum.Although it is Mr. Bacs' second Daytona thematic auction (Lesson One at Christie's in 2013), it will be the first one for Phillips and is set to be their most successful thematic sale to date.The Geneva Watch Auction: Seven also packs quite a punch with some interesting, stunning and rare timepieces from a variety of brands. Many of these have important provenance and it was fascinating to research several of these.I was excited to get an early preview last week [...]

Some people may be surprised to hear that reviewing watches isnt always a walk in a park. Its not a binary process Is this watch good? Yes/No. Theres more to it than that. Watchmaking and design is an art form, which you have to consider when reviewing a watch. Just because you dont inherently love a watch, it doesnt make it wrong. Art is meant to evoke some kind of emotion or discussion, so if a watch does that, then surely its a success? This philosophical question was very much at the fore of my mind when I spent some time with the Rado True Square Designer Collection watches.Obviously, I will look at the raw details of these pieces, as thats always a must when trying to describe watches [...]

Date displays are one of those complications that divide the community. Some people swear by them; others hate them. Im in the former camp, and I find myself at a bit of a loss without a date indicator at times. I find myself often looking down at my watch to check the date, only to come up short. So, today Im looking at some of my favorite types of date displays: what works best and what leaves me out in the cold?There are, of course, several different methods that watch brands use to display the date on watches. Some are more suited to certain watch styles, and others are more easily legible at a glance. That said, they still all have their uses. Still, I definitely seem to prefer some ove [...]

We like to talk about vintage watches a lot within the Fratello team. Though most of what we write about is largely focused on the most recent releases and developments, for many of us, a lot of the fun can be found in the sometimes weird and often wonderful 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 are priceless, some of them still affordable. In this installment, we will take a look at the best IWC watches from the 1980s.While the 1970s were a decade filled with tremendous change in [...]

There is no question that Cartier is hot property at the moment. In the last two years especially, things have gotten rather crazy. And rightfully so If you look at the sheer number of great Cartier releases, you can see why there are many fans of the brand. In all honesty, though, I wasnt one until this year. Dont get me wrong. I have great respect for Cartier, and I love what the brand stands for. But up until recently, my respect never turned into a great love for one of the brands timepieces, no matter how much I wanted it to. But during Watches And Wonders 2022, that changed. The new Cartier Tank Louis Cartier in yellow gold and black represents all I love about Cartier captured in one [...]

Often overlooked by collectors, but never lacking respect from them either. Cartier: One of the most influential brands when it comes to the history of the wristwatch.When a friend writes a book on a subject hes so passionate about, it is very difficult to write something about it. What if the book isnt very good, or not worth spending your money on? Well, I can be very short about this: the book that George Cramer wrote on Cartier watches is actually the only book you need to have on the subject. Only if your interest goes very deep, it might be interesting to explore some other Cartier books that might go more in-depth on certain topics (the Cartier The Tank Watch book comes to mind). Geo [...]