Jacob and co Astronomia Nova Watch

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Jacob & Co. Defies Physics Again: The Jacob and co Astronomia Nova Watch Launches Today, Rewriting the Relationship Between Time and SpaceNEW YORK, September 15, 2025—At 10:00 a.m. EST the sun rose over Manhattan, but inside the Jacob & Co. flagship on 57th Street the stars came out. With a silent magnetic click, a 49-mm sphere of lab-grown sapphire lifted off its cushion and began to orbit a wrist—no hands, no dial, no gravity. The Jacob and co Astronomia Nova Watch is officially here, and it does not merely tell time; it re-stages the Big Bang every 60 seconds.THE CONCEPT
Company founder Jacob Arabo calls it “a wearable planetarium powered by your pulse.” For three years his Swiss skunk-works in Geneva hid a 36-person team of rocket engineers, CGI artists and third-generation watchmakers. Their brief sounded impossible: compress the entire Copernican model into 50 mm, make it run for 60 days without winding, and ensure that every revolution is mathematically accurate to the sidereal year—365.25636 rotations—within 0.0002 %. Today that brief is a patent portfolio 41 pages thick.THE ENGINE
At the heart of the Jacob and co Astronomia Nova Watch beats the new manufacture caliber JCAM80, a 585-component micro-city. Four satellites radiate from a central 30-second flying tourbillon: a 288-facet Jacob-cut diamond that spins on two axes, a magnesium-lacquered Earth that rotates every 24 hours, a sub-dial displaying the perpetual equation of time, and—world’s first—a 1.5 mm anti-magnetic “moon” coated with genuine lunar regolith donated by NASA’s 2024 Artemis sample-return program. The entire assembly levitates on a 0.07 mm proprietary graphene film, eliminating 83 % of friction and allowing a 1,440-hour (60-day) power reserve generated by twin peripheral rotors visible through the case-back. The watch is accurate to ±0.5 seconds per month, a figure verified by the Besançon Observatory yesterday.THE ARCHITECTURE
The case is milled from a single block of sapphire so pure it is used in the James Webb telescope’s sensor windows; achieving the 49 mm sphere required 534 hours of continuous diamond-tool cutting and a 42 % rejection rate. Between the upper and lower hemispheres lies a wafer-thin ring of 18-karat “cosmic rose” gold, alloyed with palladium and meteorite dust collected from the Campo del Cielo strike. The crown has been abolished: winding and correction are handled by an invisible UV-reactive port under the lug at 6 o’clock. Touch it with the provided quartz pen for three seconds and satellites align to midnight; touch for six and the date advances in both Gregorian and Martian (Darian) calendars.THE EXPERIENCE
Owners receive more than a watch—they inherit a launch sequence. Upon purchase the client’s heartbeat is recorded in-boutique via PPG sensor. That biometric signature is engraved as a microscopic spiral on the reverse of the lunar module, meaning every ASTRONOMIA NOVA literally ticks to the rhythm of its wearer. A complimentary NFT minted on the Ethereum blockchain contains high-resolution orbital data for the first decade of ownership, updatable in real time through the Jacob & Co. metaverse lounge. Physical service intervals? Ten years, thanks to solid-tantalum jeweled bearings and a dry film of nano-diamond lubricant originally developed for the European Space Agency’s Mercury probe.THE NUMBERS
Limited to 88 pieces worldwide—one for every constellation recognized by the International Astronomical Union—priced at USD 1.88 million. First deliveries coincide with the total lunar eclipse on March 3, 2026, when each watch will be synchronized to the moment of totality. Twenty percent of every sale funds the Jacob Arabo Zero-Gravity Scholarship at ETH Zürich, guaranteeing that the next generation of astro-engineers studies tuition-free.THE QUOTE
Jacob Arabo, barefoot in a midnight-blue suit, raised the sphere today and declared: “Time is the only luxury we cannot negotiate with. So I built something that negotiates with the universe on our behalf.”THE INVITATION
The ASTRONOMIA NOVA is available immediately by private appointment in New York, Geneva, Dubai and Tokyo. No walk-ins, no waiting list, no compromises. Step inside the boutique, let the lights dim, and watch galaxies form around your wrist. After all, the stars arrive on schedule—but they never wait.

Jacob and co Astronomia Nova watch

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Jacob & Co. Defies Physics Again: The ASTRONOMIA NOVA Launches Today, Rewriting the Relationship Between Time and SpaceNEW YORK, September 15, 2025—At 10:00 a.m. EST the sun rose over Manhattan, but inside the Jacob & Co. flagship on 57th Street the stars came out. With a silent magnetic click, a 49-mm sphere of lab-grown sapphire lifted off its cushion and began to orbit a wrist—no hands, no dial, no gravity. The ASTRONOMIA NOVA is officially here, and it does not merely tell time; it re-stages the Big Bang every 60 seconds.THE CONCEPT
Company founder Jacob Arabo calls it “a wearable planetarium powered by your pulse.” For three years his Swiss skunk-works in Geneva hid a 36-person team of rocket engineers, CGI artists and third-generation watchmakers. Their brief sounded impossible: compress the entire Copernican model into 50 mm, make it run for 60 days without winding, and ensure that every revolution is mathematically accurate to the sidereal year—365.25636 rotations—within 0.0002 %. Today that brief is a patent portfolio 41 pages thick.THE ENGINE
At the heart of the ASTRONOMIA NOVA beats the new manufacture caliber JCAM80, a 585-component micro-city. Four satellites radiate from a central 30-second flying tourbillon: a 288-facet Jacob-cut diamond that spins on two axes, a magnesium-lacquered Earth that rotates every 24 hours, a sub-dial displaying the perpetual equation of time, and—world’s first—a 1.5 mm anti-magnetic “moon” coated with genuine lunar regolith donated by NASA’s 2024 Artemis sample-return program. The entire assembly levitates on a 0.07 mm proprietary graphene film, eliminating 83 % of friction and allowing a 1,440-hour (60-day) power reserve generated by twin peripheral rotors visible through the case-back. The watch is accurate to ±0.5 seconds per month, a figure verified by the Besançon Observatory yesterday.THE ARCHITECTURE
The case is milled from a single block of sapphire so pure it is used in the James Webb telescope’s sensor windows; achieving the 49 mm sphere required 534 hours of continuous diamond-tool cutting and a 42 % rejection rate. Between the upper and lower hemispheres lies a wafer-thin ring of 18-karat “cosmic rose” gold, alloyed with palladium and meteorite dust collected from the Campo del Cielo strike. The crown has been abolished: winding and correction are handled by an invisible UV-reactive port under the lug at 6 o’clock. Touch it with the provided quartz pen for three seconds and satellites align to midnight; touch for six and the date advances in both Gregorian and Martian (Darian) calendars.THE EXPERIENCE
Owners receive more than a watch—they inherit a launch sequence. Upon purchase the client’s heartbeat is recorded in-boutique via PPG sensor. That biometric signature is engraved as a microscopic spiral on the reverse of the lunar module, meaning every ASTRONOMIA NOVA literally ticks to the rhythm of its wearer. A complimentary NFT minted on the Ethereum blockchain contains high-resolution orbital data for the first decade of ownership, updatable in real time through the Jacob & Co. metaverse lounge. Physical service intervals? Ten years, thanks to solid-tantalum jeweled bearings and a dry film of nano-diamond lubricant originally developed for the European Space Agency’s Mercury probe.THE NUMBERS
Limited to 88 pieces worldwide—one for every constellation recognized by the International Astronomical Union—priced at USD 1.88 million. First deliveries coincide with the total lunar eclipse on March 3, 2026, when each watch will be synchronized to the moment of totality. Twenty percent of every sale funds the Jacob Arabo Zero-Gravity Scholarship at ETH Zürich, guaranteeing that the next generation of astro-engineers studies tuition-free.THE QUOTE
Jacob Arabo, barefoot in a midnight-blue suit, raised the sphere today and declared: “Time is the only luxury we cannot negotiate with. So I built something that negotiates with the universe on our behalf.”THE INVITATION
The ASTRONOMIA NOVA is available immediately by private appointment in New York, Geneva, Dubai and Tokyo. No walk-ins, no waiting list, no compromises. Step inside the boutique, let the lights dim, and watch galaxies form around your wrist. After all, the stars arrive on schedule—but they never wait.

Harry Winston Ocean Date Moon Phase

When Harry Winston debuted the Harry Winston Ocean Collection back in 1998, it was immediately clear that, despite the name, these were not like the other aquatic watches on the market. While undoubtedly sports watches, powered by calibres that promised a host of handy mechanical complications should you be headed for the high seas, these were not rugged timepieces destined for the wrists of deep-sea divers and professional sailors. They were sleek, refined, elegant. Some of them even featured diamonds for heaven’s sake.
No, these were Harry Winston Ocean watches created for those for whom the term ‘ocean’ conjured up visions of sunny days in the Hamptons or yachting in the Caribbean. Sure, they could stand up to squally showers and quick dips if required, but really, these were watches best admired at the bar rather than on-board ship.

None of which should be interpreted as a dig. Harry Winston’s sport-luxe approach to the Harry Winston Ocean Collection has clearly chimed with its well-heeled audience. This year, the collection celebrates its 25th anniversary and remains the house’s signature sports watch range. So, how best to celebrate such an occasion? With diamonds, of course.
This summer, Harry Winston unveiled two new editions of the Ocean Date Moon Phase Automatic, designed to celebrate the anniversary – each of which puts precious stones front and centre.

While both feature the signature three arches surrounding the winding crown – inspired by the entrance to Harry Winston’s New York flagship store – fans of the collection will instantly notice the reconfigured dial. Breaking with the collection’s traditional symmetrical designs, a fresh, modern asymmetric layout offers sub-dials displaying the time, date and moon phase embellished with shimmering mother-of-pearl or an abundance of round-cut and baguette diamonds.
Likewise, both Harry Winston Ocean watches feature in-house calibre HW3202 automatic movements (which can be admired through sapphire crystal casebacks) housed in 42mm 18k white gold cases alternately set with brilliant- or baguette-cut diamonds. In keeping with the aquatic heritage, both references are also water resistant to 100 metres; whether you’re brave enough to actually take them diving is a conversation to be had between you and your bank manager.

Bracelet-wise, you have a choice between a blue alligator leather strap finished with a diamond-set white-gold buckle or a full white gold bracelet set with 558 baguette-cut diamonds. It will probably come as no surprise that the latter, which boasts a total diamond weight of more than 38 carats, is limited to just five pieces. As for the price? Strictly on application, naturally.

MAURICE LACROIX Fiaba Trio

The Swiss marque’s creative team has worked with three friends of the brand, namely Hannah, Marina, and Nadia, to conceive a trio of elegant watches. Offered in a choice of three vibrant dial shades and enriched with a circlet of 46 diamonds, the new model shines with a bold statement.
Maurice Lacroix has reimagined the brand’s Fiaba model, upholding its distinctive character while at the same time imbuing it with a sizeable dose of urban chic. Harnessing the talents of its creative team, Maurice Lacroix unveils the Fiaba Trio, a captivating story expressed in three different ways.

The Fiaba, meaning ‘fairy tale’ in Italian, has proved a popular choice for individuals seeking an unabashed feminine timepiece. Inspired by the smooth shape of a pebble that’s been refined over time by the gentle caress of sand and sea, the contours of the Fiaba prove smooth and sensual. Offered in different sizes, dial colours and, in some cases, equipped with a moon phase display, the Fiaba has always been a byword for ‘sophistication’. The Fiaba’s steel bracelet complements the model’s round case and neat crown.
Always keen to hear customer feedback, Maurice Lacroix commissioned various focus groups, asking ladies what they sought from a watch. This led to the creation of a smooth, ergonomic bracelet that cossets the wrist. The underside of each link is endowed with a small recess, augmenting wearer comfort. Beyond such practical considerations, the bracelet sits in concert with the rest of the watch while at the same time making the Fiaba stand out from the crowd. In designing the Fiaba Trio, the creative team at Maurice Lacroix have worked with three friends of the brand, members of the ML Crew: Hannah Lucy, Marina and Nadia.

Hannah Lucy Williams is an elite British athlete who regularly competes on the world stage, participating in 200m and 400m races. She came to prominence in 2020 when she won the 200-metre sprint at the British Championships. Continuously seeking to optimise her performance, Hannah always remains focussed in her pursuit of podium glory.

Marina Correira is known for her skills in longboard dancing and freestyle. Her prowess on the longboard can be attributed to her capacity to unite seemingly disparate traits, e.g. smooth and fast, elegant and wild. It is these characteristics that Marina has mastered and made her own; talents that led to her being crowned world champion.
Along with her partner Dakota, Nadia artfully expresses emotion by delivering thought-provoking performances through the medium of dance. No words are spoken, yet meaning is articulated with the precise movement of limbs, flowing in sequence with the rhythm of the moment. One half of the award-winning dance duo, Nadia has gained a reputation for saying much without uttering a word.

All three women have active lifestyles that inspired Maurice Lacroix to create three distinctive iterations of the Fiaba, each expressed in a cool, vibrant shade.
Leaf-shaped hour and minute hands, together with a lithe centre seconds hand, impart meaning. Each hour is denoted with either a tear-shaped index or an Arabic numeral, save for 12 o’clock where the brand’s M-logo indicates the midnight hour. The central area of the dial is framed with a gleaming circlet playing host to 46 SI diamonds (total 0.1242 carats), granting a tasteful quotient of glamour to this sumptuous ensemble.

Housed in a 32 mm stainless steel case, the new Fiaba Trio is available in a choice of three dial hues: Baby Blue, Blush Pink and Pistachio Green. Each colour is an expression of beauty and was inspired by said members of the ML Crew; all independent women who continuously explore the limits of human performance while still knowing when to have fun.

Breitling Endurance Pro 38 Watches

One of the things I admire most about Breitling is that while the brand is a blue-chip luxury marque, it still produces contemporary sport and tool watches powered by high-tech quartz movements. While models like the Aerospace and Emergency arguably best epitomize this side of Breitling’s catalog, the Endurance Pro is the brand’s entry-level collection of multi-purpose sports watches offering lightweight carbon composite cases and highly accurate thermo-compensated movements. While the original series of models debuted back in 2020 and was exclusively offered in a 44mm format, Breitling has created a new 38mm midsize version of its entry-level quartz chronograph as its latest release of 2024, and the new Breitling Endurance Pro 38 makes its debut appearance in five different colorways.
At the time of launch, the new Breitling Endurance Pro 38 lineup is available in purple (ref. X83310F61B1S1), pink (ref. X83310D41B1S1), white (ref. X83310A71B1S1), light blue (ref. X83310281B1S1), and red (X83310D91B2S1). Additionally, while white, blue, and red previously existed as options among the full-size Endurance Pro 44 models, the purple and pink colorways represent entirely new options for the collection. Like their larger 44mm counterparts, the new Breitling Endurance Pro 38 models feature their respective colors on their dials and straps, along with the rubberized grips for their crowns and the small contrasting rings that adorn their pushers. With that in mind, aside from their colorways, the five new Endurance Pro 38 models are otherwise identical, and they closely follow the blueprint established by the full-size models that have become a cornerstone offering within the Swiss brand’s modern lineup.
Crafted from Breitlight, which is the brand’s proprietary carbon composite material that is three times lighter than titanium and six times lighter than stainless steel, the case of the new Breitling Endurance Pro 38 watches measures 38mm in diameter by 12.1mm thick, with 18mm lugs and an overall lug-to-lug profile of 44.7mm. The use of Breitlight for the case components combined with its reduced dimensions results in an incredibly lightweight overall package of just 26.5 grams (or 49.4 grams if you include the rubber strap), and just like the larger 44mm models, the new Breitling Endurance Pro 38 watches feature flat sapphire crystals above their dials, bidirectional bezels with compass scales, screw-on casebacks crafted from Breitlight, and 100 meters of water resistance to protect against most forms of moisture contact.
Just like their cases, the dials fitted to the new Breitling Endurance Pro 38 watches are essentially just smaller versions of what can be found among the full-size 44mm models, and they feature Arabic numeral hour markers, a trio of registers, and a date window at the 4:30 position. As the Endurance Pro series is intended for athletes, a pulsometer scale is printed along a color-coordinated angled chapter ring surrounding the periphery of the dial, and the hands and hour markers are finished with Super-LumiNova for increased legibility in dark settings. Just like a standard chronograph, two of the three sub-dials on the Breitling Endurance Pro models are occupied by a running seconds register and a 30-minute totalizer; however, rather than counting the elapsed hours, the third register measures times down to 1/10th of a second to allow users to take advantage of the Endurance Pro’s high-accuracy quartz chronograph movement.
While the full-size 44mm models are powered by the Caliber 82, the new Breitling Endurance Pro 38 watches receive the brand’s Caliber 83 thermo-compensated SuperQuartz movement, which offers a smaller diameter to better correspond to the collection’s reduced sizing. Despite being quartz, the Breitling Cal. 83 is a COSC-certified chronometer, which means that it adheres to the accuracy standards of -/+10 seconds per year, and as one of the brand’s SuperQuartz designs, the Cal. 83 features an integrated regulation system that counteracts the effects of temperature fluctuations that would normally impact the timekeeping of a traditional quartz movement. However, just like the Cal. 82 used inside the larger 44mm models, the Breitling Cal. 83 is listed as having a battery life of approximately two years, and this undeniably seems rather short compared to what can be found elsewhere within the industry.
Fitted to the 18mm lugs of the new Breitling Endurance Pro 38 watches are rubber straps that match the colorway of each model. Unlike the straps found on the original 44mm Endurance Pro watches that have the “Breitling” name boldly embossed into their outer surfaces, the straps fitted to the new midsize models offer an updated textured design that more closely mirrors what can be found on the latest generation of the Superocean. That said, rather than having a chunky folding clasp, the straps fitted to the new Endurance Pro 38 models are completed by tang-style buckles crafted from Breitlight to further lean into the lightweight structure of the collection. In addition to debuting on the new Endurance Pro 38, this new style of rubber strap is also being carried over to the 44mm models, and Breitling has also released updated versions of the Endurance Pro 44 in dark blue, orange, white, and light blue with updated rubber straps.

Breitling Endurance Pro 44

Whether you’re a fighter pilot, a civilian aviator, or just a dyed-in-the-wool tool watch enthusiast, there’s a pretty good chance that your first brush with Breitling was one of its Professional watches – a broad line of stylish quartz-powered references that has remained one of the brand’s core collections since its informal debut as the Aerospace in 1985. Over the last three and a half decades, the Professional umbrella has evolved dramatically, from the entry-level Aerospace to more feature-rich offerings like the rugged Chronospace, the state-of-the-art Exospace, and the mighty Emergency – a legendary adventure watch capable of summoning a helicopter (ie: the world’s most expensive Uber ride) for when things go really sideways. Given its cool, modern aesthetic and long legacy of highly accurate, multi-function utility watches, the Professional line is a natural home for Breitling Endurance Pro – another category-specific tool watch, this time designed with athletes in mind.
With regards to its Professional collection stablemates, the new Endurance Pro probably has the most in common in both proportion and functionality with the Chronospace Evo – a fully analog spin-off of the ana-digi hybrid Aerospace Evo. Though marketed at pilots, the modern Aerospace was already an excellent multi-sport & adventure watch (and a perfect cycling watch, I’ll add), thanks to its light weight, easy wearability, and multiple functions. The new Breitling Endurance Pro carries that torch, reportedly with design input from Breitling ambassador and three-time Ironman World Champion Jan Frodeno, yielding a reference that mixes in a few new elements, including a Breitlight carbon fiber composite case that’s 30% lighter than titanium, a bi-directional rotating compass bezel (likely cribbed from the Chronospace Military), and a subtly updated aesthetic, which appears to be reflecting the new art direction for the Professional collection as a whole.
Now it doesn’t matter if you’re a professional athlete like Frodeno or a fitness enthusiast logging miles between a regular nine-to-five, if you run, swim, or ride bikes and appreciate watches, you already know that finding just the ‘right’ watch to keep you on-time and your wrist tanline dutifully maintained during training season can be a tricky affair. An oversized dive or pilot watch might have the shock countermeasures requisite to keep an automatic movement running accurately, but these larger designs often trade legibility for weight – and a distracting, top-heavy watch is hardly the right choice, especially during longer or harder efforts. Conversely, though a cheap, battery-powered watch might be the safest concession (especially in the instance of a crash or a fall) in this instance, it undoubtedly lacks that certain ‘je ne sais quoi’ that many athletes seek out when it comes time to personalize their gear or riding kit.
Obviously, most professional athletes tend to train or race with GPS-enabled digital devices that measure efforts and comprehensively track workout data, but just as a professional divemaster might wear a digital dive computer on every outing, the Breitling Endurance Pro isn’t meant to replace such a device, it’s meant to supplement it. By the same token, I ride with a Wahoo Roam, which displays power, heart rate, VAM (when climbing), along with distance and elevation metrics, but I leave the day’s timekeeping to the wrist, as I simply prefer to wear a watch. Plus, I’ve had head units die on me while out on a ride, and at least being able to get home in time for brunch is never a bad thing. Two is one, and one is none, right?
Ultimately, I’m particularly impressed that Breitling has actually touched on the elements of not just what makes a sports watch cool, but one that’s actually useful in practice – y’know, as a sports watch. In keeping with the traditions I’d come to expect from Breitling, it’s detail-rich, quite masculine by design, and extremely well made. And in the same traditions, it’s also large and legible at a glance, but hardly unwearable – thanks to the impressive lightness of its 44mm x 12.5mm Breitlight case, which weighs a scant 35 grams without its rubber strap (funnily enough, the strap weighs about the same, adding 30 grams to the total package). And it’s powered by a quartz movement – which, though perhaps not the first choice for many watch enthusiasts, is actually in practice, a much safer and more accurate option from workout to workout.
Piggy-backing off the Chronospace Evo, the Breitling Endurance Pro movement in question deployed for the Endurance is an in-house manufactured 1/10th of a second quartz chronograph calibre, though unlike the aforementioned, the Endurance uses Breitling’s Caliber 82, which trades the Evo’s 24-hour register at 9:00 for a 30 minute counter. This is a thermo-compensated, COSC-certified Chronometer movement, and it’s awfully nice to see some brands still catering to HAQ (high-accuracy quartz) watch fans – in addition to the athlete community.

Breitling Adds A Trio Of Aviation-Inspired Chronographs To Its Avenger Collection

Last year, Breitling introduced its updated Avenger collection, a slightly scaled-down, sleeker take on the original Avenger. That collection included a ceramic “Night Mission” chronograph. Now, Breitling Night Mission Avenger has added a trio of chronographs that pay homage to the U.S. Navy.
Like last year’s Breitling Night Mission Avenger, this trio uses a 44mm (15.2mm thick, 53mm lug-to-lug) black ceramic case and is powered by Breitling’s manufacturer caliber B01 chronograph. It’s a COSC-certified, column-wheel, vertical-clutch movement with a 70-hour power reserve. The manufacture movement represents a technical leap forward for the Avenger chronograph. It’s still a big watch that won’t be for everyone, but that’s what we expect – even ask – of Breitling. And with downsized offerings in other corners of the catalog, this keeps the Avenger true to its original purpose.
This new trio is differentiated, I suppose, by a military tie-in with the U.S. Naval Academy and two of its elite flying squadrons, the Dust Devils and the Bloodhounds. Their respective logos sit on the nine o’clock subdial, and there are also some engravings around around the sapphire caseback.

Of course, special edition also means special price, and these have an MSRP of $10,200, a $500 premium over the standard Night Missions. When I wrote about a collection of 17 vintage Breitlings a few weeks ago, I mentioned that a little 34mm gold Premier chrono was my favorite of the bunch. So a 44mm ceramic chronograph that leans into military and aviation is decidedly not for me, which is fine. But a $10,000 chronograph that leans into Breitling’s history of aviation and military in a pretty specific way also feels like it might have a niche appeal. I don’t mind the Navy tie-in, but the logos at nine o’clock just seem a bit random and loud. At their best – and back in the day – these military watches have subtle nods to their purpose as a tool for service men and women. Perhaps even just a caseback engraving. But beyond the logos, the combination of colors, straps, and ceramic on these new Avengers do look cool and covert.

Besides that, I actually like the updated Avenger and the ceramic “Night Mission” might be the best executed – it manages to sit somewhere between the Breitling Night Mission Avenger of 20 years ago and the Breitling of today in a way that feels true to the brand.

Grand Seiko Evolution 9 H-Beat

You may or may not be surprised to know that Grand Seiko was the only non-European watchmaker to have a booth at Watches & Wonders 2024. Even though the other Japanese timepiece companies haven’t quite figured out what their relationship with Switzerland’s watch tradeshows should be, Grand Seiko is firmly dedicated to the fact that its brand and products are just as good (if not often better) than much of what you’ll see in the expansive Palexpo hall each year. I like that attitude, even if the luxury offshoot of Seiko as a concept has not quite settled into what its long-term brand personality or image is necessarily going to be. What is certain is that Grand Seiko is confident in its deserved reputation for craftsmanship and detailing, along with the position of its products in the market. That means Grand Seiko is, in many ways, different from the brand I first got to know about 20 years ago, and that, as a concept, Grand Seiko has a lot more stories to tell and innovations to offer.

One of the new Grand Seiko watches for 2024 is an extension of the Evolution 9 case family known as the Evolution 9 Hi-Beat “Genbi Valley” SLGH021. Genbi Valley is a place in Japan whose green-blue waterways inspired the textured dial of this particular Grand Seiko watch. I will be the first to admit that while most limited-edition Grand Seiko dials are beautiful, I don’t really know precisely what Grand Seiko was always thinking when it designed them. I suppose the true mystery to me is whether the brand saw something in nature and then wanted to remember it in wristwatch form, or alternatively, if it was simply experimenting with interesting textures, materials, and colors. Once it settled on something it liked, it then polled the team to ask, “Does this remind you guys of anything?” Eventually, I will learn the answer as to whether the dial or the inspiration comes first.
The Evolution 9 case is supposed to be a slightly sporty, albeit still elegant, dressy watch. Here it is in Grand Seiko’s “Ever-Brilliant Steel” and sized at 40mm wide, 11.7mm thick, and with a modest 47mm-long lug-to-lug distance. It has a 22mm wide (at the lugs) matching steel bracelet that is quite comfortable and closed on a Grand Seiko folding deployant clasp. At this time, the bracelet does not have a micro-adjust feature, but I understand that Grand Seiko has been developing one for a while. I would like to think that when it comes out with a modern micro-adjust system for its bracelets, such a deployant will be (as much as is practical) backward-compatible with existing bracelet hardware.

The Evolution 9 case is also water resistant to 100 meters and has a flat, AR-coated sapphire crystal over the dial. While not particularly distinct from many other Grand Seiko dials, the Evolution 9 face is clean, classic, and very legible. Inside the SLGH021 watch is one Grand Seiko’s in-house made “hi-beat” (high-beat) automatic movements which operate at 5Hz (36,000 bph). This makes the Hi-Beat movements a bit more accurate over time than a 4Hz mechanical movement because the faster speed is better at averaging out rate result errors that can occur in the spinning balance wheel. That said, for more accuracy, there are Grand Seiko’s Spring Drive movement models, as well as its high-accuracy quartz watches, as well. If you want the most sophisticated fully mechanical movements Grand Seiko makes, the 5Hz calibers are for you.
You can view the nicely decorated caliber 9SA5 automatic movement through the sapphire crystal window on the back of the case. In addition to its 36,000 bph operating speed, the movement has 80 hours of power reserve. Grand Seiko claims accuracy of +5/-3 seconds per day, but many people who wear these watches suggest even more accuracy than that. The 9SA5 movement features indication of the time with central seconds and the date. I really enjoy Grand Seiko Spring Drive and quartz movements very much, but if I wanted to go mechanical in a Grand Seiko, the 9SA5 mechanism is beautiful to look at, and no slouch performance-wise.

Bell & Ross BR 03 Diver

In 2017, Bell & Ross launched the BR03-92 Diver, bringing the “circle in a square” aesthetic to the underwater world. It was a proper dive watch with a rotating bezel and 300-metre depth rating, and it met the international standard ISO 6425 requirements. There are now five new models for 2024 that bring improvements such as upgraded mechanics, updated typography, enlarged indices, redesigned hands and adaptable straps. Both ceramic and steel cases are offered, although ceramic options like the BR 03-92 Diver Tara in Blue Ceramic have been available since 2019. Let’s take a closer look at the 2024 collection of the Bell & Ross BR 03 Diver.
The case dimensions remain as previous editions of the BR 03 Diver, at 42mm x 42mm with an approximate thickness of 12mm. This new collection comes in satin/polished stainless steel or black ceramic. The steel options feature three dial colours, black, blue and white, while the ceramic model has either a matte black or pale blue all Super-LumiNova dial. For the steel models, there’s a 60-minute unidirectional rotating bezel with colour-coordinated ceramic bezel inserts – black with the black and white dials, and blue with the blue dial. A detailed 15-minute scale is included for diving.
Larger applied indices and new arrow hour and minute hands have white Super-LumiNova inserts (pale green on the white dial) and a circular, dial-matching date window blends in well between 4 and 5 o’clock. The familiar arrangement of an exposed screw at each corner of the square case remains, while the screw-down crown is fully guarded and matches the bezel colour. Water resistance is again rated at 300 metres with ISO 6425 compliance.
The black ceramic models follow the same aesthetic as their steel counterparts, but with a stealthier vibe. The standout is the pale blue Super-LumiNova dial that glows in tandem with the indices and hands for maximum legibility in darkness. This was first seen in 2020 with full-lume ceramic BR 03 Diver models, although those were limited editions. All five models have AR sapphire crystals and solid casebacks secured via four screws. While the BR 03 Diver collection included bronze models as well in the past, like the BR 03-92 Diver Bronze introduced in 2018, this style hasn’t been renewed (yet). Straps are black textured rubber or black ultra-resistant synthetic canvas, with the blue steel model getting a matching blue strap.
Powering all of the new BR 03 Diver models is the Caliber BR-CAL.302-1 automatic, based on the Sellita SW300-1. It has 25 jewels, a beat rate of 28,800vph (4Hz) and an extended power reserve of 54 hours – an upgrade we’ve also seen on the classic BR 03 Collection update last year. Functions include central hours, minutes, hacking seconds and date. This is a proven workhorse and solid performer, and has been used with the entire BR 03 Diver collection.

RICHARD MILLE RM 65-01 Automatic Split-Seconds Chronograph

Richard Mille is presenting the RM 65-01 Automatic Split-Seconds Chronograph Pastel Blue Quartz TPT and the RM 65-01 Automatic Split-Seconds Chronograph Dark Yellow Quartz TPT, two new executions of its high-frequency rattrapante chronograph.
The first model comes in a case crafted of pastel blue Quartz TPT and will join the collection. The second version, issued in a limited edition of 120 pieces, features a dark yellow Quartz TPT. Measuring 44.50 x 49.94 x 16.10 mm and water resistant to 50 metres / 165 feet, their tripartite cases frame skeletonised dials that stand out for the use of vibrant colours to enhance legibility despite numerous indications. Each colour is associated with a function on the dial, thereby enhancing ease of reading. This colour code is shared with the pushers and crown.
Bezel, caseband and caseback are crafted from Quartz TPT, developed by NTPT (North Thin Ply Technology), a composite material made of multiple layers of silica fibres, saturated with resins specially developed for Richard Mille and heated to 120° at a pressure of 6 bars. The result is not only aesthetically pleasing but also remarkable for its extreme resistance. The large crown in microblasted, polished and satin-finished Grade 5 titanium is framed by the chronograph buttons, also in polished and satin-finished Grade 5 titanium. The same material and finish are used for the plate engraved with RM 65-01 on the caseband. The rapid-winding pusher at 8 o’clock stands out with its red or blue Quartz TPT button.
Pressing this pusher 125 times fully winds the barrel, ensuring a power reserve of up to 60 hours (without the chronograph running). This practical and ‘playful’ function was challenging to develop due to its high torque transfer. During the ageing tests, the function was activated thousands of times.

Equipped with a six-column wheel, the calibre RMAC4 features a high-frequency balance with variable inertia, oscillating at 36,000 vibrations per hour with stopwatch calculations to 1/10th of a second. The function selector on the crown enables the wearer to switch quickly from traditional
winding mode (W) to setting the semi-instantaneous date (D) or the hours and minutes (H). The RM 65-01 uses a variable geometry to optimise the rotor’s winding motion. By adjusting the 3-position weight, the rotor’s inertia can be adjusted to either speed up the winding process in the case of leisurely arm movements, or to slow it down during sporting activities. The new models add to the other RM 65-01 versions in Red Gold, Titanium, Grey Quartz TPT and Carbon TPT.