Watch Features

Welcome to WatchTime’s watch features section. Here you will find watch feature stories, watch reports, interesting watch technology coverage, interviews with watch brands, background articles about watches, watch brands and technical stories.

Whirlwind Romance: The 220-Year History of the Tourbillon

From its utilitarian roots in the 19th century, the tourbillon has evolved in the modern era to become the ultimate expression of watchmakers’ technical prowess and avant-garde creativity. We trace its fascinating two-century-plus evolution in this feature from the WatchTime archives. Throughout the centuries-long history of timekeeping, mechanisms originally developed for entirely practical purposes have...

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Nov 28, 2021 by Mark Bernardo

Sponsored: Back for Another Round, CODE41 Launches the NB24 Edition 2 with an Exclusive Swiss Caliber

When Lausanne-based CODE41 launched the NB24 Chronograph in 2020, the watch made significant waves with the exceptional level of technicality and expertise it represented for its price— a defining combination of traits that has characterized each of the brand’s timepieces. Led by the value proposition of its avant-garde design, the NB24 struck a serious chord...

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Nov 25, 2021 by Caleb Anderson

Colorful Gray: 14 Watches With Gray Dials

Trendy watches of the past few years have been mainly blue and green. Now we’re seeing something completely new: gray. So take a few minutes to view some of today’s most exciting gray watches and immerse yourself in the diversity of color. It’s time well spent. Watches have become noticeably more colorful during the past...

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Nov 27, 2021 by Ruediger Bucher

Black Friday Special: 26 Ladies’ Watches for the Holidays

Women today have more options than ever when it comes to choosing their favorite watch. These new models designed for women have a sparkle and appeal all their own and are a perfect holiday gift. BELL & ROSSThe new Bell & Ross BR 05 Diamonds brings a shimmering look to the modern architectural lines of...

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Nov 26, 2021 by Dara Hinshaw

Sponsored: Citizen Ushers In “Purposeful Power” Campaign with Limited-Edition Promaster Navihawk

Citizen Watch Company has launched a new brand campaign, focused on its groundbreaking Eco-Drive technology, to remind consumers of the Japanese watchmaker’s core values and to re-emphasize its commitment to environmental sustainability. Dubbed “Purposeful Power,” the campaign kicks off with the release of an exciting new watch from its Promaster series, the Limited Edition Navihawk....

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Nov 24, 2021 by WatchTime

Overseas Mission: The History and Evolution of the Vacheron Constantin Overseas

Vacheron Constantin’s sport-luxury Overseas collection, tracing its roots to an anniversary model in the 1970s, has become a versatile and resolutely modern cornerstone of the historical maison’s portfolio. The mid-1970s are widely regarded as a regrettable era for fashion, but one fashion accessory, the wristwatch, was having what is now acknowledged as a renaissance. More...

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Nov 23, 2021 by Mark Bernardo

Back in Black: Hands-on with the Longines Heritage Classic Black “Sector Dial”

Few brands have seen as much sustained success with their vintage-inspired designs as has Longines. With a slew of recent additions to retro-chic Heritage collection — among them the Heritage Classic Chronograph 1946, Heritage Military 1938, and Heritage Classic Tuxedo — the Saint-Imier based brand has built upon its long history to enhance its contemporary...

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Nov 23, 2021 by Caleb Anderson

Sponsored: Past Meets Present in New Rado Captain Cook High-Tech Ceramic

Pioneering Swiss watchmaker Rado has deemed 2021 “a year of hope and reinvention,” and chosen it for the launch of an unprecedented, revolutionary timepiece. The Captain Cook High-Tech Ceramic is the culmination of many years of research and development that seamlessly fits within the history and tradition of the Captain Cook watch. This latest watch...

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Nov 23, 2021 by Mark Bernardo

Silver Treasure: Testing the Tudor Black Bay Fifty Eight 925

Tudor is bringing silver back onto the scene with its Black Bay Fifty Eight 925. How good is this watch with the striking taupe dial? We find out in this in-depth, hands-on review. Tudor is one of the few brands whose desirability has increased significantly in recent years. This is mainly due to the attractiveness...

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Nov 22, 2021 by Jens Koch

FEATURE

Wake-Up Call: Five Watches With Mechanical Alarms

They’re not as sexy as tourbillons or as impressively complicated as perpetual calendars, but mechanical alarm watches possess one of the more useful complications for a weary traveler or an overworked executive needing a reminder about that big board meeting. In a way, it’s curious that more watch brands haven’t embraced them. Here are five that are on the market now.

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Nov 22, 2021 by Mark Bernardo

No Date, No Problem: Six Watches Without Date Displays

While a date display is usually regarded as one of the most popular complications, some purists are opting more and more for harmony and symmetry on their dials by choosing a watch without a date window. Here are six notable recent examples. Back to the Forties: IWC Big Pilot’s Watch 43IWC downsized the case of...

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Nov 20, 2021 by Alexander Krupp

School Project: Spotlighting the Glashütte Original Alfred Helwig Tourbillon 1920

Glashütte Original’s Alfred Helwig Tourbillon 1920 pays tribute to the legendary Saxon schoolmaster who invented the flying tourbillon, on the occasion of the device’s 100th anniversary in 2020. It was the Swiss who invented the tourbillon, but it was a German who taught it to fly. One of the most significant horological inventions of the...

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Nov 18, 2021 by Mark Bernardo

FEATURE

Zooming in: 7 Watch Movements in Extreme Close-Up

Finely finished watch movements come to life under magnification. The seven shown here were certainly ready for their close-ups.

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Nov 18, 2021 by Alexander Krupp

No Ordinary Times: Five Watches With Unusual Hours and Minutes Displays

However complex a watch may be in its array of functions, or how individual in its design, the vast majority of them still adhere to the familiar two-handed analog style when it comes to the basics of displaying hours and minutes. Here are five that do it a little differently. MB&F HM3 FROGX Max Büsser...

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Nov 16, 2021 by WatchTime

Darker is Lighter: Reviewing the Zenith Defy Classic Carbon

With the Defy Classic Carbon, Zenith shoots for design boldness, lightweight comfort, and unprecedented price accessibility. We gave the watch a test run and got some insight into its origins from Zenith’s CEO. Zenith celebrated its most historically significant anniversary in years in 2019, marking 50 years of El Primero, the automatic, high frequency chronograph...

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Nov 15, 2021 by Mark Bernardo

PORTFOLIO

Movement Artistry: Up Close with the Decorative Finishes of A. Lange & Söhne

What makes a watch even more exclusive? One factor is the finishes lavished on its movement, especially if they’re handcrafted. A. Lange & Söhne decorates especially beautifully. Here’s a look at the Saxon manufacture’s famed finishing techniques. Manual Engraving The hand-engraved balance cock is a Glashütte specialty that’s still mastered and practiced by only a...

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Nov 15, 2021 by Jens Koch

The Extra-Terrestrials: 5 Timepieces with Meteorite Dials

Meteorites are extraterrestrial objects that have passed through the atmosphere and landed on Earth. They can be divided into two different types: stone meteorites and iron meteorites. Most meteorite dials are made from the latter, which make up only four percent of all meteorites. Iron meteorites were born in the core of four-billion-year-old asteroids that...

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Nov 14, 2021 by Jens Koch

The 5 Most Expensive Timepieces Sold at Geneva’s Fall 2021 Auction Weekend

You might not have known it, but this past weekend was one of the biggest weekends for the watch industry this year — at least in Geneva. Kicking off with the annual Grand Prix d’Horlogerie Genève (GPHG, aka the “Oscars” of the watch world) which awarded 18 prizes to some of the best watches of...

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Nov 11, 2021 by Caleb Anderson

Borrowed Time: Reviewing the Alpina Alpiner Regulator Automatic

Alpina was founded in 1883 and revived as the rugged, sporty sister brand of Frederique Constant in 2002 by the latter’s founders. One of the models that put the contemporary Alpina brand on the map was the skiing-themed Avalanche Regulator, which debuted in 2005 and married an unusual, semi-cushion-shaped steel case with a rare-for-its-time regulator-style...

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Nov 11, 2021 by Mark Bernardo

FEATURE

Dive Watches in Depth: A Dive Watch FAQ

"How water-resistant does it need to be?" "How does a depth gauge work?" We answer your FAQs about dive watches: learn about water resistance, diving bezels, depth gauges, and more in this feature from the WatchTime archives.

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Nov 11, 2021 by WatchTime

Classically Complete: Vacheron Constantin Launches the Traditionnelle Complete Calendar in White Gold

Few watchmakers have had as full a year as Vacheron Constantin. With popular updates to its sport-luxury Overseas collection, an unprecedented vintage revival milestone in its American 1921 Pièce Unique, and major business developments, including the opening of its sumptuous New York City flagship boutique, the historical Swiss maison has been on a serious riff...

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Nov 10, 2021 by Caleb Anderson

THE WATCH LIST

Deco by Design: Six of Our Favorite Watches Inspired by Art Deco

Art Deco, as a descriptor, has become a little overused in the luxe-focused world of watch marketing. Too often, in the absence of a better term, the style is used as a catch-all word for any blend of geometric forms and vintage air. While the verbiage has no doubt worn away its welcome for many,...

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Nov 9, 2021 by WatchTime

Competition in the Sea: Rolex vs. Omega Dive Watches

Rolex and Omega are renowned and admired for their dive watches. In direct comparison, which one of the two leading brands dives deeper, offers more value for the money and performs better? The Submariner divers’ watch has been one of Rolex’s most popular models, and not only since its redesign in 2020. Omega has also...

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Nov 8, 2021 by Jens Koch

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