With recent Speedmaster and Seamaster releases, Omega quietly put the new watches on its ambassadors wrists to hint at what was coming. We could have missed it, but we don t think the same happened with the newly revised Railmaster. Supposedly, there was a leaked image, but it came with very little information. Luckily, we ve recently spent some time with the new Railmaster models and can tell you all about them. That s right; there are multiple versions. Both have gradient dials, but one is gray, and the other is beige.This video is blocked because you did not accept marketing cookies. Change cookie settings The original Omega Railmaster (ref. CK2914) debuted in 1957 as part of the br...

It s no secret that we re Speedmaster fans here at Fratello. RJ, our founder, is an avid collector of these chronographs and the mind behind #SpeedyTuesday. But not all Speedies are created equal. Today, we re looking at some of the best modern Omega Speedmaster models. RJ, Thomas, and Nacho have tasked themselves with selecting their top five favorites. Now, as mentioned, we re focusing only on modern models, meaning only those introduced or available during the past 25 years. Though the watch has been around for nearly 70 years, a quarter century still leaves us with plenty to pick from. Omega produced countless special and limited editions over the last two and a half decades, so we re tr...

Many love an excellent mecaquartz chronograph. Brands can spend more money on the looks of such watches thanks to their affordable movements. These watches often punch above their weight, at least visually. Others say they are cheap interpretations of the real deal, a timepiece with a mechanical movement. I received the new Nivada Chronosport Blue (automatic) and the Chronosport Mecaquartz Salmon simultaneously, and the latter felt as good as the former. Now, just a few days after publishing my review of the Chronosport Blue, here are my thoughts on the Chronosport Mecaquartz Salmon.Before we get into it, you should know that the Salmon version pictured here is, sadly, no longer available. I...

As many of you know, the late 60s and the first half of the 70s were an era of design experimentation in the watch industry. While Girard-Perregaux might not be the first name on people s tongues when it comes to funky watches from this period, don t think the brand didn t have any. With the Casquette and the Deep Diver series, Girard-Perregaux released several outstanding watches that perfectly represent the era s style. Today, GP brings back the Deep Diver ref. 9108, which debuted in 1969. This 350-piece limited edition is a collaborative effort with Bamford Watch Department and is the latest addition to Girard-Perregauxs Legacy Editions.Honestly, when I first laid my eyes on the new Gir...

What happens when you take the 2755 QP movement out of the 2017 Traditionnelle Calibre 2755 (ref. 80172/000R-B406), update the design so it caters to an audience with a more contemporary taste, and put it in the sportiest of watch designs available? You get the Vacheron Constantin Overseas Grand Complication Openface. This limited-production watch is the first minute repeater in the Overseas collection. The functions of the caliber that also beats inside the Traditionelle didnt change, so it also features a perpetual calendar and a tourbillon. Still, because of the transparent sapphire crystal dial, the complicated movement now shows itself from both the back and the front.What a combination...

Welcome back to another episode of Fratello On Air! This week, we discuss a recent news story about another questionable vintage watch. We aren t taking sides, but it allows us to mention, yet again, the pain it causes the hobby. Still, plenty of great pieces are out there if you do your homework.This podcast player is blocked because you did not accept marketing cookies. Change cookie settings Another week, another newsworthy big-ticket vintage watch with incorrect, fake, or swapped parts. It s the kind of news vintage collectors hate to read! Then again, it s nice to see that the hobby has matured to the point where photographic evidence of prior sales is surfacing and helping to prove...

Maybe you cant call it a comeback - thanks, LL Cool J - but in a way, Corum is making a comeback. Founded in 1955 in La Chaux-de-Fonds, the brand recently announced a return to Swiss ownership. It was part of the Hong Kong-based Citychamp Watch & Jewellery Group for 12 years. But following a management buyout backed by a group of experienced Swiss investors, it will now be led by CEO Haso Mehmedovic, a 32-year-old Swiss national who has spent his entire 13-year career at Corum after graduating from watchmaking school in Le Locle in 2011. What can we expect from Swiss-owned Corum? Surprising and creative talking pieces are what we hope for because the brand has/had a reputation for doing ...

It was the Land-Dweller that stole the limelight, and understandably so. After all, it s not often that The Crown presents an entirely new collection with a groundbreaking movement innovation to boot. I did feel sorry for the other novelties, though. The pastel-tinted Oyster Perpetual watches were quite lovely, for instance, but they got trampled on by the mighty Land-Dweller. Another watch that went under the radar was a reference that would typically have stood out. It was a watch with a glorious heritage and even presented a first for the brand. Neither the watch nor the feature was debated. Im talking about the green Cerachrom dial in the left-handed white gold GMT-Master II Sprite.Lets...

Vertex is a brand with a storied past. It was one of the watchmakers that provided watches to the British Ministry of Defence (MoD) during World War II. The watch we are looking at today, the Vertex M36, pays homage to that watch from the 1940s. Let s take a look.Recently, I spent several weeks with a watch from the British brand Vertex. Founded in 1916 by Mr. Claude Lyons in Hatton Gardens, Vertex also had production facilities in the La Chaux-de-Fonds region of Switzerland. Mr. Lyons son worked with the company from 1938 and went on to serve in WWII. From fairly early on, then, there was a connection between Vertex and the military.Vertex and a connection to the British military?This conn...

Tusen? has been making a name for itself with the Shellback V2 dive watch. The Swedish brand has been around for a decade this year, but the Shellback has done the most to get the Tusen? name out there. With cleverly designed details and solid build quality, this dive watch has become a fan favorite in the microbrand world. I had a chance to go hands-on with two new additions to the Shellback V2 lineup. The first has a bright yellow dial, and the second has a black/gilt dial. It s time to find out more!These two new Shellback models are my physical introduction to the Tusen? diver. Vincent did a hands-on review of the white-dial version in early 2024, but I didn t get to see that model in th...

BA111OD is a young Swiss brand with a bold mission - to bring high-end watchmaking complications like the tourbillon to enthusiasts at a far more attainable price point. Since its founding in 2019, BA111OD has gained a reputation as a rising force in contemporary Swiss independent watch brands. It blends innovation with a commitment to making higher-end watchmaking more accessible.? The latest release, the Chapter 4 Skeleton Tourbillon Ice White, perfectly encapsulates that mission. Its a fresh and bright new take on the brands existing Chapter 4 Skeleton model, offering a cooler aesthetic twist while keeping the serious horological chops.The 44mm BA111OD Chapter 4.1 T.V.D. from 2022The Chap...

Spring started strong for Nivada. The Swiss watch brand released two new models in its Chronosport line, expanding it to five watches. We were lucky enough to try both the automatic and the mecaquartz versions. In this review, I ll go hands-on with the former, namely, the Chronosport Blue. But before we get into that, let me give you a quick rundown of the new and existing timepieces.You may have read my review from last August about the then-new Nivada Grenchen Chronosport. The new Chronosport Blue is the latest version of this model. However, let s look at the model line as a whole.The Nivada ChronosportNivada s modern Chronosport line consists of four regular models and one limited editio...

It s Sunday morning, and you all know what that means. It s time for another Sunday Morning Showdown. This week, we paired two legendary chronographs because we found that we hadn t pitted these particular versions against each other. It s been roughly a year since Omega released the white-dial Moonwatch, but it feels like it was much longer ago, highlighting the incredible pace at which brands release new watches. The white-dial Speedy will go up against the white-dial Cosmograph Daytona. The current version came out in 2023, but it feels like it has been here forever. It s time to find out which of these two famous chronographs will take the crown in this week s Sunday Morning Showdown.Wh...

Last month, at Watches and Wonders 2025, I visited the Trilobe booth. It was my first time seeing the brand s watches, and they impressed me. The Parisian company depicts time uniquely through its pieces. The latest Une Folle Journee Rhodium-plated Green is a wearable modern watch in a new colorway.I m always skeptical when I see watches with unorthodox displays. Is it possible to improve on the ages-old two- or three-hand setup? Trilobe makes a case for a different style of easily reading the time. The latest Une Folle Journee in green may appear confusing from a distance, but the concept works.The Trilobe Une Folle Journee Rhodium-plated GreenTrilobe presented a green and rhodium version o...

Next weekend, on May 17th and 18th, TimeFest will once again take place in Bordeaux, France. This is the second year for the event, and it promises to be even bigger and better than last time. The number of exhibiting brands went up from almost 50 to 65, and because the event moved to the Matmut Atlantique Stadium, up to 3,000 people can attend. Again, there is a nice mix between younger brands, such as Serica, Baltic, and Furlan Marri, as well as more mature ones, like Oris, Sinn, and Citizen. Among the new brands joining TimeFest are names like M.A.D. Edition, Kuoe Kyoto, and Laventure. And the great thing is: it s still a free event.Last year, 2,000 watch enthusiasts attended TimeFest, wh...

Have you ever thought about summering in H?lstein? After seeing the Oris Aquis Date Taste of Summer Capsule Collection, you might want to consider it. The colors of the Swiss town in the warmest months of the year inspired the dials of these watches. One version shows a gradient sunrise-like red-pink dial, while the other houses a violet dial that tells of a warm night in which the light never completely dies. You might associate capsule collections with trendy fashion houses, but Oris also wanted to introduce a curated pick of special items, and the brand does so very confidently and colorfully.Last year, Oris treated us to two Aquis dive watches with watermelon-green and red dials matched ...

Covering watches offers me an excellent opportunity to witness the evolution of products. While turnaround times for major watch upgrades can be years or decades, accessories such as straps evolve before your eyes. It feels like only yesterday that Artem achieved its zenith with the Loop-Less Sailcloth strap. But taking that design and producing it in full FKM rubber with the HydroFlex raised the bar even higher. Then, combining both concepts into the Loop-Less Hydroflex set a new standard for quality and comfort.Mike covered the details of the inaugural Loop-Less Hydroflex here, but now Artem caters to more wrist types with a dramatic taper to 16mm. Also, Artem introduces two more lug width...

HTD is one of those watch companies that, once in a while, will pop up on people s radars. The Italian brand has shown a great eye for design over the five years it has been around. However, with the two new Hesagraph 2025 models, HTD shows how far the watches have come. These two variations of the brand s popular chronograph were redesigned to celebrate the brand s fifth anniversary. It s time to find out more about the HTD Hesagraph Cannoli and Hesagraph Variante B and discover what makes them so good. I can already reveal that I fell in love with one of them.My first experience with HTD was four years ago when we had the brand s Safarigraph in the office for review. The watch immediately ...

I like simple things, but they are often the hardest to design, whether thats a pen, camera, bag, knife, phone, or watch. In my opinion, a dress watch should be simple. Complications are often just distractions. While they are admirable ones, especially when perfectly executed by a skilled watchmaker, they have no place in a simple dress watch. At least, thats my requirement for a perfect dress watch. Even a seconds hand is too much.Daniel Roth Extra Plat Rose GoldI tried on the Daniel Roth Extra Plat Souscription watch in yellow gold earlier this year (click here), and it left me smitten. It features just two hands, a beautiful handmade guilloche dial, and a 35.5 38.6mm double-ellipse cas...

When I was asked to compile my list of favorite Watches and Wonders 2025 releases, the Angelus Chronographe Telemetre Steel Rose was the first that sprang to mind. So, when I got the opportunity to spend some decent time with it, I jumped on it. I spent a couple of days with this beauty on the wrist; this is how we got along.The Angelus Chronographe Telemetre Steel Rose costs CHF 17,900. The brand has produced only 25 of these. A gray-dial version, also limited to 25 pieces, and a yellow gold model, limited to 15, came out alongside this one.The Angelus Chronographe Telemetre Steel Roses specificationsThe Angelus Chronographe Telemetre Steel Rose piqued my interest as soon as I read about it...