Watches - another OCD problem
-
@tigerpac there are indeed 6 engravers working at Lange & Sohne and they all have their own distinct style. If you turn up at the factory the engravers can look at your watch and tell you who worked on that particular piece.
There is a good article on one of the Lange forums showing you their manufacturing process. There is a nice picture within the article showing the six engravers next to examples of their unique style of balance cock engraving.
The more I study the Lange in person the more detail pops out at me. This one is a keeper!
-
Whoa… huge congrats @ddtrash . Beautiful piece and it looks great on your wrist.
-
The Lange that @ddtrash got is an older model. He told me that it's not so highly regarded amongst the more snobbish elements because it uses the movement from the smaller Lange 1. This means that the subdials overlap. However, we both agreed that this gave the watch more character compared to the newer versions.
I'm waiting for him to tell me that he's getting a Zeitwerk, which is a mechanical digital watch. But that would upset Mrs ddtrash, so probably not something that'll happen
soonbefore next weekend.
-
The Zeitwork is a nice piece. Had one in my hands recently while on a watch scouting mission in London. Seriously impressed with all the Lange watches I looked at. I will be keeping tabs on the pre owned and grey market pricing for Zeitwork watches, but for now at least the cheque book is closed. Home improvements is the next sizeable investment, so I have been told.
-
It's Basel time again, and new temptations are being trotted out for those of us who haven't been buying shiny things recently.
Hodinkee got hands on with the Tudor North Flag, and there are no surprises there except that the price is $3550 on a strap, and $3675 on a bracelet.
I like the industrial finishing on the movement. It's a nice piece, and the price is very good for something with an in-house calibre. Shame about the lugs.
I get really nerdy about movements, and prefer designs from the tool end of the spectrum, but I love the Fiona Krueger Celebration Skull. The lume on the dial is really cool. There's a bit more coverage over at aBlogToWatch.
Also at aBlogToWatch is the Omega Speedmaster White Side of the Moon. It's probably not going to appeal to the IH demographic, though I think it's cool.
Unfortunately it's not got one of their antimagnetic movements yet. Probably worth holding off for a year or two if you're considering one.
Lastly, Breitling have unveiled the B55 Connected. It's their take on a smart-ish watch, and aBlogToWatch has a piece on it.
There's also a video showing off various functions.
I feel as though Breitling have missed a trick here. With slightly more sophisticated software they could have picked up notifications from your phone, such as SMS messages or email headers. If I was greedy, I'd like the activity tracking functionality of the MMT platform in it too.
Maybe that's something we'll see in the next generation.
-
The Zeitwork is a nice piece. Had one in my hands recently while on a watch scouting mission in London. Seriously impressed with all the Lange watches I looked at. I will be keeping tabs on the pre owned and grey market pricing for Zeitwork watches, but for now at least the cheque book is closed. Home improvements is the next sizeable investment, so I have been told.
Kitchen from Ikea, another watch from Glashütte.
-
The Speedy is hideous, but I was admiring that Tudor on the blog.
-
I like the knurled case back on the North Flag, but that movement isn't worth having a display back. They should have tarted it up a bit and then put it in a watch with a more upscale aesthetic.
And while I'd never wear it, that skull watch is ridiculously fun. One of the best integrated date displays I've ever seen, too.
-
I disagree about the movement, it's not ostentatious but it has an industrial aesthetic that I find appealing.
-
NO. that omega looks hideous. and NO swiss watch brands like breitling should have some sort of dignity to not go into the smart watch market. that's what i feel.
ddtrash's lange with the overlapping dial feels much better than the new lange. somehow i feel that the overlapping dial has much more aesthetics than the non overlapping. i remember quite a few years ago, my friend told me to look into lange as they were one of 5 upcoming watch brands but i never heeded it. the older lange is really a tempting piece for me.
-
I'm holding out for a Blue Moon. Or maybe the Moon Is Made Of Green Cheese edition. Yellow/Red/Purple/Orange Side Of The Moon, maybe? The possibilities are endless.
-
I like the Omega because it's subverting the machismo of a lot of sports watches. That probably wasn't the designer's intention.
Conversely I dislike a lot of Rolexes (the exceptions being the Milgauss and Perpetual), and think that the Submariner is a clunky cliché, except when it's got the green dial. That's probably me banned from most watch forums.
Yeah, a Green Cheese Side of the Moon would appeal to me. I have no shame.
I'd disagree about the Swiss getting involved in smart watches, but the examples that we've seen so far aren't very impressive. And that WiFi symbol on the Breitling is hideous, though I do like the strap / case colour combination.
What I don't get is why all the companies are saying they outsourced development to Silicon Valley. There are good, innovative coders everywhere, and they could have set up a small team to do the work in-house. It probably wouldn't have cost any more.
-
I'm holding out for a Blue Moon. Or maybe the Moon Is Made Of Green Cheese edition. Yellow/Red/Purple/Orange Side Of The Moon, maybe? The possibilities are endless.
From Hodinkee, Omega are well ahead of you…
Patek have brought out a new Pilot's watch, which is rather tasty. Also via Hodinkee. I'd be after one if it wasn't $50K! :o
-
The new broad arrow coax chronograph is awesome.
http://www.hodinkee.com/blog/the-omega-speedmaster-57-broad-arrow-hands -
@Graeme i would love to know what's your thoughts on the swiss companies going into the smart watch market. what i feel is that it doesn't really represent the haute horlogerie symbol that started these companies.
-
@Graeme i would love to know what's your thoughts on the swiss companies going into the smart watch market. what i feel is that it doesn't really represent the haute horlogerie symbol that started these companies.
I don't think that anyone has really figured out what a smart watch is for. Apple's take seems to be getting a lot of press because it's another iThing, but the Android wearables have been out since the middle of last year and don't seem to have captured a lot of mindshare.
Someone probably has to figure out the use cases, but the useful functions for a connected watch would be:
-
Activity and sleep tracker.
-
Automatically setting time. (A smartphone is typically hooked up to a time server, and so it's as accurate as an atomic clock.)
-
Receiving notifications from a smartphone or online service.
The MMT platform does the first two, but otherwise seems like a more expensive version of the Withings Activité. The Breitling B55 does the second. The Android and Apple smart watches do the above, and a whole lot more which probably isn't that useful.
What I think that the Swiss should be building is something like an Omega X33 that does all of the above. For example, if I set up an event in Google Calendar my phone will squawk up a notification shortly beforehand. Now imagine your watch beeps or triggers an alarm for the ten minute warning, and does it without prompting. That'd be useful, and fit with the notion of what a watch does.
If the movement was modular then it could be upgraded, though I've heard of the X33s getting improvements when serviced. You'd then get the lifespan of a Swiss watch, and the higher quality of case, but have something that keeps up with technology.
OK, that doesn't really answer the question, but it's more a roadmap of where the industry could go. Perhaps I need to raise a few million in VC funding and do it myself.
My take is that watches have two uses: They're tools for telling time, and they're jewellery. A compelling smart watch might overcome the snobbery of a quartz versus mechanical movement at the lower end, so I could see my idea (above) eating the bottom end of the mechanical market.
So Tudor, Tag, Omega and Breitling might suffer.
I think at the higher end, the likes of Patek would be OK. That's where image and craftsmanship are more important than functionality. I guess that the true haute horologie brands will be doing the same sort of thing a century from now.
-
-
More from Basel. No smartwatches were harmed in the production of this post.
The IH forum likes diving watches, and the IH forum likes Tudors. So the new Pelagos will go down well. It's been updated with their in-house calibre and will be available with a blue dial as well as the black one. Looks rather nice.
Hodinkee are saying that it'll come in at $4400, a slight bump up from the existing model.
If you're into your chronometers then COSC regulate watches to -4 / +6 seconds a day. According to Monochrome, the Tudors are regulated to -3 / +3. Rolex apparently are -2 / +3, so the junior brand is virtually as good.
There's yet another Speedmaster, the Silver Snoopy Award. It's a celebration of Apollo 13, but the coolest thing is that Snoopy is painted in lume, so he'll glow in the dark. More at aBlogToWatch.
Hodinkee have a report on the new Zenith Elite. It's a simple watch with a hundred hour power reserve. I like it.
SalonQP have a preview of the new Hermes Slim range. Again, it's a simple, clean watch, and relatively slim due to a micro rotor, though there's also a perpetual calender. It's not a brand that the WIS get excited about, but I find they do a few quirky pieces that have a real sense of fun.
Lastly, I like pocket watches that convert to wrist watches; quirky, modern designs; titanium cases; and in-house movements. So Urwerk have designed a piece that's ideal for me. Unfortunately aBlogToWatch are reporting that it's about $400K, so firmly out of my price range.
Then again, looking at it I might have had a lucky escape!
-
@Seul I think that it does look like something out of a bad sci-fi film too.
So does the Romain Jerome Subcraft. More over at Monochrome.
For those of us who're not living in the future, Omega have announced the Globemaster. It's a simple three-hander with a pie-pan dial, and meets their new in-house certification process. Nice looking piece, though I'm not sure about the fluted bezel. That said, it's in tungsten carbide on the steel model, so will take a bit of abuse. Prices start at around $7700 according to Hodinkee.
For those who like their diving watches a bit less subtle, or are trying out for the next Expendables flick, Omega have brought back the Ploprof. No real information yet, but it's now available in titanium for those who aren't built like Stallone.
-
So the Globemaster…
I didn't get the name but apparently it is the name they used for some original Connies in some markets, including the US. Nice that it has some historical reference.
Also the bezel, I'm right there with you. Again, Omega says they used it on early Connies. Which makes me feel better about it but I'm not sure I actually like it lol.
Other than the bezel I love it. Especially the Connie badge on the back!
