A Rose Gold by Any Other Name…
An oft-discussed topic among watch aficionados – and one that arises for us reporters each year during Basel and Geneva – is what differentiates rose gold from pink gold from red gold. I’ve been looking into how the brands use these terms, and this year, as in the past, the answers I come away with are: Everything. Or nothing. Clear?
Just Say the Word: Pronouncing Tough Watch Terms
Parlay voo fransay? If not, you may be having a helluva time pronouncing many common watch terms. That’s because French isn’t just the language of lovemaking, it’s also the language of watchmaking. Here’s a pronunciation guide for some hard-to-say watch terms (two of them, “tachymeter” and “telemeter” aren’t French, but they’re so often mispronounced they may as well be).
Downturn Batters Watch Industry
The evidence is mounting that the long and bitter global recession is taking a severe toll on the Swiss watch industry. With demand for watches down nearly everywhere, Swiss watch firms are cutting production and jobs. So far this year, Swiss watch firms have laid off more than 1,000 people, according to Swiss press reports.
Carl F. Bucherer’s In-House Outrunner Caliber Goes to Work
In July, 2007, Carl F. Bucherer acquired its long-time movement collaborator Techniques Horlogères Appliquées SA and renamed it Carl F. Bucherer Technologies SA. The team got to work straightaway, and at BASELWORLD 2008, they announced their first in-house movement, the CFB A1000. Not content to create a standard, cookie-cutter movement, CFB instead introduced something truly innovative: an automatic movement with a peripheral winding rotor. Fast forward to 2009, and the movement, with some added complications, finds a home in the new Patravi EvoTec DayDate.
Ulysse Nardin’s Smartphone: Where Tech Meets Mech
As exciting as it is to experience all the new watches at the Baselworld watch fair, there is always the risk of “watch overload” setting in, which is why the occasional, rare foray into Accessories Land is often a welcome diversion. Usually, these items are limited to devices such as winders and clocks, but I found this year’s most intriguing accessory gleaming under a spotlight behind one of the porthole-shaped vitrines of Ulysse Nardin’s nautical-themed booth: namely, the company’s new Chairman Smartphone.
