This Week in Watches includes Frederique Constant, Mühle-Glashütte, Chopard and Oris.
Frederique Constant
Horological Smartwatch
This latest version of Frederique Constant’s 2015 entry into the smartwatch market is actually a Baselworld 2016 preview. It offers a navy blue dial, a blue alligator strap and a polished rose gold-plated 42mm steel case. The watch echoes the look of the green-dialed solid gold Only Watch model that earlier this month sold (with an iPhone, and for charity) for $14,000, but offers it with a gold-plated case and a much lower price. This blue dialed model also features applied indexes and roman numerals. Like all of the brand’s Horological Smartwatches you’ll find MotionX-365 and Sleeptracker technology inside to collects activity and sleep data. At a glance, the daily data is visible at 6 o’clock. For timekeeping, the 42mm case houses a quartz caliber with a battery that will last for more than two years. A convex sapphire crystal protects the dial. Price: $1,295.
Mühle-Glashütte
Teutonia III Handaufzug Kleine Sekunde
Translated as ‘hand-wound small second,’ this 42mm steel watch with fluted bezel recalls vintage German pocket watches, a determination seconded by the woodpecker neck regulation, Glashütte three-quarter plate and characteristic Mühle surface finishes all visible through the clear sapphire caseback. Watch functions include a stop-second and fast date correction. The white dial is enameled with five layers of varnish and features a minute track with hour indices and Roman numerals. The hands are blued. The MU 9415 caliber holds a 42-hour power reserve. The watch comes on a crocodile strap with steel butterfly clasp ($3,399) or with a steel bracelet ($3,599).
Chopard
L.U.C XP Urushi ‘Year of the Monkey’
To mark the upcoming Year for the Monkey on the Chinese zodiac calendar, Chopard has created a new watch with firm Yamada Heiando, master lacquer artisans and official purveyor to the Japanese imperial family. Urushi master Minori Koizumi applied many layers of lacquer on the dial using the Maki-technique to create a monkey gathering eight peaches believed to bring good luck and health. This watch is also beautiful inside: It’s fitted with ultra-thin movement L.U.C Calibre 96.17-L with 22-karat gold micro-rotor set inside a 39.5mm rose gold case. This movement powers central hours and minute hands using two barrels to ensure a 65-hour power reserve.
Price: $24,290
Oris
Divers Sixty-Five
Presented this year at Baselworld, this watch draws design cues from the original Oris dive watch that dates to 1965. Building on this introduction, Oris this week adds a retro-inspired dial option combining grey with a light “Deauville’ blue referencing the French seaside resort. The new dial complements the SuperLuminova numerals, indices and hands while upholding the style of the 1960s. Inside the 40mm stainless steel case is automatic Oris Calibre 733 (based on Sellita SW200) with date. This watch has a black aluminum unidirectional rotating bezel and maintains water resistance to 100 meters. The final touches that complete the vintage look are a domed crystal and a black textile or rubber strap. Price: $1,850.
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