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Watches – News, Reviews, Brands and Releases
Launched only 15 years ago in 2005, the Hublot Big Bang has since had a tremendous impact on the Swiss watch industry. Now, for the first time, the Big Bang is paired with an integrated bracelet in 3 different materials.Start by Breaking the RulesAround the 1980s, the Swiss were still coming to terms with a luxury sports watch in steel. Not to be outdone, Hublot ruffled more feathers with a gold watch on a rubber strap. What was once a real novelty for the industry, seems fairly commonplace now. But 40 years ago, there was a level of uncertainty for the future of Swiss luxury timepieces. Hublot, a relative newcomer, set-out to shatter centuries-old traditions. More established brands eventua [...]
During the last watch event we attended, Bvlgari introduced to us its Octo Finissimo Tourbillon Chronograph Skeleton Automatic. According to them, it broke another world record, that of developing an ultra-complicated movement with a thickness of just 3.5mm.Somehow, I feel that this new watch got a bit snowed under by the introduction of the more affordable Bvlgari-Bvlgari Aluminium collection. Of course, watches with a price tag under 5,000 speak a bit more to the public than a watch that is for the lucky few. However, the new Bvlgari Octo Finissimo Tourbillon Chronograph Skeleton Automatic deserves a proper amount of attention as well.Octo Finissimo Tourbillon Chronograph Skeleton Automati [...]
A Rolex GMT-Master ofcourse!Hannes treats the R-L-X.de forum visitors on these two screenshots from the Discovery channel:The fellow above is Brian Trubshaw, British Concorde Testpilot.Thanks Hannes!If you want over 80 pages of famous (and less famous) Rolex wearers, click here (you might need to register). [...]
We just entered the semi-finals of this The Fast And The Fratelli contest, with a wonderful Traxxas Bandit RC car (scale 1:10) at stake. Now it is getting tough, with two Speedmasters racing each other in this round. The Omega Speedmaster Calibre 321 meets our own Speedmaster Speedy Tuesday Ultraman edition. RJs Speedmaster Calibre 321 is in the left lane, Balazss Speedy Tuesday Ultraman is in the right. Start your engines.RJ: I was wearing the Speedmaster Calibre 321 yesterday during the F1 GP in Abu Dhabi. It just felt like an appropriate thing to do. I enjoyed watching F1 this season, although some of the decisions were highly questionable. But the racing has become more interesting, for [...]
We thought it would be time to compare the new Rolex Explorer II Ref. 216570 to the much sought-after vintage Explorer II Freccione' or Steve McQueen'. The Explorer II has always been a watch that sat in the shadow of the GMT-Master and Submariner models. Undeserved in our humble opinion.Is there much to compare? Is the new Explorer II a tribute to the Freccione' (orange hand) or is it a new watch that has been influenced by the very first Explorer II that was introduced in 1971, 40 years ago?Let's start with some history on the Explorer II. Introduced in 1971 as ref.1655, the watch was equipped with an orange hand to be used as a day/night indicator for those who professionally didn't see d [...]
Welcome one and all to our new Sunday afternoon Pod-Column, Watching Sports (Or WASP, for short).To celebrate this new Fratello feature, host Rob Nudds welcomes fellow sports fanatic Balazs to the virtual booth. This week, the despicable duo look back on Super Bowl LV and the remarkable achievements of 43-year old Tom Brady, as he guided the Buccs to their second championship while picking up his seventh (seventh) in the process.We talk about team building, Bradys place in both NFL and general sports history, and why the heck the GOAT is wearing an IWC these days?Well be indulging one of our favorite pastimes and picking the perfect watch for several of the leagues biggest stars. What would [...]
The question in that subtitle is directed at Longines. Its not that I dont think 40mm is a good size, but this is just so much better. Don't get me wrong, there are plenty of folks out there who are still uncertain about wearing any sub-40mm wristwear. But just dont use the term unisex or even mention the fact that it works on both men and women. In the face of watchfemme and the new wave of 36-38mm sweetness, does that make the new Longines Spirit 37 perfectly pitched at everyone?Just the other day, I had a client meeting in which a woman was wearing a 42mm Explorer II while I was wearing my 37.7mm Serica 4512. Did I feel emasculated? Nope. This is reality, and the fact that brands still m [...]
Panerai ManufactureA few weeks ago, we were invited to visit the Officine Panerai Manufacture in Neuchatel. This manufacture was opened in 2014, but only few media have been invited to have a look in the actual production facility. Officine Panerai has a total of 600 employees world wide, of which 260 are located in this new manufacture in Neuchatel. The Panerai Manufacture is a large building, offering 10.000 square meters for the production of a number of their in-house developed calibers.AmazedBefore I continue my visitors report of the Panerai Manufacture, I have to admit that I was a bit sceptic at first. Sure, Officine Panerai has been making in-house movements since 2005. But to me, i [...]
Postponed, but not abandoned, the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games are finally here You read that right, the Tokyo 2020 name remains despite their taking place in 2021. The land of the Rising Sun will host the Summer Olympics for the second time in history, the first being in 1964. Omega will be the official timekeeper for all events at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games and has been for nearly all editions of the Games dating all the way back to 1932.Tokyo 2020 Olympic GamesStarting today, July 23rd, 339 events in 33 sports will take place in the host country of Japan. Including some new additions to the usual list, like karate, sport climbing, baseball, softball, and skateboarding. All of which, will al [...]
A Merry Christmas to all our readers who are celebrating This year, we return to where I essentially started with Fratello Watches and that's with a look at a Rolex. It was three years ago that I wrote about the Submariner 14060M and it's time for a repeat engagement ? with a twist. Yes, this is an examination of a diving Rolex, but of the deepest of them all: the Sea-Dweller. Kick up your feet, pour a glass and relax, it's time for a Holiday installment of TBT with the vintage Rolex Sea-Dweller 1665.My mind works in mysterious ways. It mines an extensive backlog of trivial information, often making tangential (read: loose at best) connections between what are essentially disparate subjects [...]
Rare Berries: Rolex GMT-Master BlueberryWhen you're doing a deep dive into specific watches?you often encounter iterations with small variations compared to their root model. Visually and with financial consequences. This episode is about?a watch that?stands out in terms of a specific alternative coloured element: the Rolex GMT-Master (ref. 1675) variant with a blue bezel, alias the blueberry GMT-Master'. Such a distinctive color and element. It is one single element that instantly made this watch a true rare berry:Accent or Not?I'm truly fascinated by the art of creating accents. How do you let specific elements stand out without taking the spectator as hostage and let him/her forget about [...]
Picture this; you're clutching four aces in a game of Texas hold em poker. It's down to you and a single opponent with all other players either folding or busting out. The only possible hand that could trump you at this point is a straight flush. Your chips are low, and it's all on the table, but your opponent has just pushed. It is not with more chips, but their wristwatch, which they remove from their wrist and gently slide to the middle. It just so happens this is your grail watch, the unicorn, the one that's hard to find, let alone purchase.Your eyes flicker from your hand to the table. You don't have enough chips to match the bet, but you also don't want to split the pot. It's too late [...]
Christmas is always that perfect time to wear a dress watch. Or better said, the time you realize you really need a dress watch in your collection. Last Christmas, I was actually prepared and instead of wearing my Speedmaster or Submariner, I found myself wearing a dress watch almost the entire holiday period. Of course, you dont just purchase a (dress) watch to wear it during Christmas only, but I can think of more appropriate occasions where you might prefer a more classic watch over a sports watch. Then, there are people like my younger step-brother for example, who wear a dress watch every single day of the year. It is not for me personally, although I do wear my Globemaster a lot, which [...]
Welcome to Wrist Game or Crying Shame where we take the vote to the streets each and every week.? This week we go in a very different direction with the one and only Cartier Santos.Before we class things up, let's focus on last week's subject, the Omega Ploprof.? We featured an all-steel 1200 meter modern Ploprof for your perusal and guess what?? Despite those persistent hipsters, stylemakers and influencers telling you that little watches are back in style, you still like to bring muscle to the party.? It seems that a full 61% of you would rather strap this creature from the black lagoon to your arm versus not.? Maybe that will make Omega rethink its decision to pull its plug on this big ca [...]
With three special edition releases under their collective belt already, Zenith and Land Rover explore a new direction, dressing the Defy 21 model in an ultra-contemporary color scheme.It was way back in 2016 that Zenith first announced its partnership with Land Rover. The model that celebrated this collaboration was called the Zenith Chronomaster El Primero Range Rover Special Edition. It was quickly followed by the brands second effort (the Chronomaster El Primero Range Rover Velar), which was little more than a color update to the first. The third watch produced by these two powerhouses, however, was something rather special. The Zenith Defy Classic Range Rover special edition watch made [...]
Lets talk about the Crown Rolex is, without a doubt the most divisive brand amongst our readers. We have seen an increasing number of people turn their back on Rolex for the way it conducts its business. The steady unavailability of their watches at authorized dealers and skyrocketing grey market prices have become a reason for many to say goodbye to the Geneva brand. But there are still plenty of watch enthusiasts that love the brand for its rich history and for creating great products. So we decided to put down some of the reasons why you do and dont need a Rolex in writing. The final question is simple: what camp are you in? Let us know your thoughts.We have some very passionate readers t [...]
How do you spend 10,000 to start a watch collection? Its a question so abstract that it took me a long time to find the answers. First of all, in the previous articles in the series, many great solutions were already offered. On top of that, how do you follow Fratellos resident minence grise Gerard who perfectly explained how to start your Speedmaster collection? Reading through Gerards article, I still have a Speedmaster or two to add to my collection. But maybe even more importantly, its a question that has a very personal answer. I cant answer the question of how to spend 10K wisely, simply because my answer doesnt fit this three watches for 10K format. Let me explain why and how I would [...]
Oris Big Crown ProPilot AltimeterIf you have been on Fratello Watches recently, youve probably seen our review of the Breva Genie watches with their altimeter functionality. Of course in an entirely different [price] segment, Oris is now introducing their Oris Big Crown ProPilot Altimeter watch. It is the first time that a mechanical altimeter complication is used in an automatic watch.The Oris Big Crown ProPilot Altimeter uses an extra crown, located at 4 oclock, to activate, correct and deactivate the altimeter indication. When entirely screwed-down, the altimeter is inactive and the watch remains water resistant to 100 meters. When unscrewed, the altimeter is being activated. The yellow i [...]
A bit cryptic perhaps, but thats what Audemars Piguet does???? The company has taken action against all the plastic fashion copies of their watches. The plastic imitations (mostly Rolex, to be honest I havent seen an AP copy yet) are very populair here in Europe. Besides the violation of their copyright on design, I wouldnt bother too much about these cheap see-through plastic copies. It doesnt reflect the real thing and it also doesnt try to be the real thing. A different view than the imitations made in the Asian regions, which can be sold as an authentic watch (including box and papers!).I wouldnt spend too much money on lawyers and investigators if I were AP ??Click here for the full sto [...]
In 2021, Omega updated the iconic Speedmaster Professional Moonwatch with the caliber 3861 movement. A very good reason to update our Speedmaster Buyers Guide as well!This guide dates all the way back to 2014, and since then, a lot happened. Not only did we have our own way with Omega and the two Speedmaster Speedy Tuesday watches (in 2017 and 2018), Omega also introduced a number of interesting Speedmaster watches to the collection. What about the Speedmaster Calibre 321 from 2020, or the new Moonwatch Master Chronometer models in gold? Time for us to update this Speedmaster Buyers Guide.In this Speedmaster Buyers Guide, we give you an overview of the most important references of the Speedm [...]
