Watches and Wonders is over, and its time to pick my favorite releases from Geneva. Fratello was there with a team of eight people to ensure we covered all the new watches we thought were interesting to read about. The Watches and Wonders show is also an excellent opportunity to meet with other people in the watch industry, both from brands and other media outlets.Overall, the venue was filled with positive vibes, which continued even after the news broke on the import tariffs in the USA. The watch industry seems resilient, but we will closely monitor how this develops. In total, more than 55,000 people visited Watches and Wonders in Geneva, which was a 12% increase compared to last year. Th...
Although I became a big Depeche Mode fan later, the most annoying song of the 1980s was Just Cant Get Enough. The overly simple melody by the English electronic band haunted me when it played on the radio and when it wasnt on. That simple song, with its sharp synthesizer sounds, square and steady disco beat, and chorus that chanted the title over and over again, annoyingly played on repeat in my head whatever I was doing. Depeche Mode created an earworm I only got rid of after way too long. AP has done the same. The brand from Le Brassus presented the new Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Perpetual Calendar during the event celebrating the 150th anniversary of the maison. I was there, and ever since...
Amid the flurry of news over the past week, it s easy to miss some of the key releases at Watches and Wonders 2025. Today, we ll recap Panerai s latest introductions with a roundup of all the new models. It was a good year for the maker of dive-inspired watches!We always look forward to novelties from Panerai at Watches and Wonders. In the past, the brand brought loads of limited-edition models. That was a lot of fun, but for 2025, the focus was on updating a core collection. Of course, an upscale, complicated model debuted along with a wild table clock. Here s our roundup of all the newest Panerai offerings.A roundup of all the watchesBefore we get into a roundup of the models, I ll provide...
Watches and Wonders 2025 might be done and dusted, but some watches continue to haunt me. Patek Philippe is always impressive, but this time, it wasnt something complicated that struck a nerve. Rather, it was the introverted Calatrava 6196P, a classic with a contemporary twist. The Chanel J12 Bleu collection surprised me in the metal - sorry, the ceramic - and the tourbillon version impressed me. At Roger Dubuis, it wasnt the 45mm Grande Complication that stole the show but, instead, the 40mm Excalibur Biretrograde Calendar with its semi-historical appearance and soft touches of mother-of-pearl on the dial. Read on to find out more about the best Watches and Wonders 2025 releases according t...
Were back with another set of releases from Watches and Wonders 2025. We re here to fill you in if you missed these in all the coverage youve read. The new Eberhard Contodat watches are straight out of the 70s, yet theyre anything but kitschy. These were some of my favorite novelties.Eberhard is a plucky Swiss brand with Italian flair. Indeed, Italy is still its most popular market. Still, with online sales and several retailers, it is possible to find and try the companys offerings. The latest additions to the catalog warrant closer inspection because theyre good - really good. Balazs and I were fortunate to check them out at Watches and Wonders, and we snapped some hands-on photos.Eberhar...
Welcome back to a special episode of Fratello On Air! This week, we bring you a compilation of recordings from Watches and Wonders 2025. We patched together several segments and even had a guest! Enjoy this inside look at the world s largest watch event.This podcast player is blocked because you did not accept marketing cookies. Change cookie settings Watches and Wonders 2025 may be over, but it s still fresh in our minds. As we did for the last Geneva Watch Days, this episode is a collection of small recordings from the conference. It reflects our thoughts about the latest releases, people, and trends. Enjoy the content, and remember, this show was recorded on the floor in a crowded spa...
Last year, Anoma founder Matteo Violet-Vianello launched his first watch, the A1. The triangular timepiece earned quite some hype on social media, and he sold many A1s to the lucky people who pre-ordered one. A few weeks ago, Matteo presented the Anoma A1 Slate, a refined version of the same watch with a brushed, engraved, and lacquered dial. We briefly had the watch in the office, and I got a chance to go hands-on with it.My mother s triangular Ventura, which she still wears every dayTriangular watches have a special place in my heart. For as long as I can remember, my mother has worn a triangular watch with the Ventura brand on the back. It s part of a series, and each watch represents a d...
Watches and Wonders 2025 has left us, but did it leave an impression? The simple answer is yes. This was a much better show than the 2024 rendition. Proper new releases came to Geneva, and, overall, we left feeling satisfied. Without further ado, here are my picks for the best watches from the show.Patek Philippe 6196P - kicking off the best Watches and Wonders 2025 releasesSince Ive become aware of and interested in Patek Philippe, Im not sure if the brand has released anything that Ive truly liked. Big, flashy pieces with loads of glitz have been the standard, and honestly, I havent loved any of them. Ive pleaded for a plain-Jane Calatrava, and one finally debuted this year at Watches and ...
The Cartier Santos medium represents, to me, some of the best the brand has to offer. Recently, I spent some quality time with the Santos. Here are my thoughts.Cartier is a watch brand that represents many things to many people. Like , it has developed a little baggage simply because it has been so iconic, successful, and prominent. There have been ups and downs, but Cartier is now firmly positioned as one of the strongest luxury watch brands out there. It is also a watch brand with which I have long been fascinated, but I never had the chance to spend much time with its watches.Why the Cartier Santos is truly iconic?There are multiple reasons for this. First, no one in my family owns a Cart...
Watches and Wonders may have drawn most of our attention last week, but that doesnt mean nothing is happening elsewhere in the watch world. Baltic, one of the young guns making waves in recent years, announced a new limited edition. I got the chance to try it out. This is the new Baltic Scalegraph Tour Auto 2025 Limited Edition. It celebrates the brands sponsorship of and participation in the yearly French Tour Auto rally.The Baltic Scalegraph Tour Auto 2025 Limited Edition is limited to 400 pieces. The watch costs $2,117.50 (including 21% VAT), and the limited run is available now. Lets have a closer look.Baltic and motorsportsDaan covered last years Baltic Tour Auto edition, and Nacho even...
The team at IFL Watches loves urban art. Quite a few of the brand s hand-decorated dials are inspired by the colorful art that has graced New York City s buildings, bridges, and metro trains through the decades. The iconic street art found its roots in NYC in the early 1970s and, from there, spread all over the world. So it makes sense that IFLW has picked the 70s-inspired Bulova Super Seville as the canvas for its latest creation. The new Bulova Super Seville Mural pays tribute to New York s iconic street art with a colorful dial. Let s find out more about this latest 300-piece limited edition from IFLW.If you have paid attention to IFLW s releases, you will know that this is not its first...
Another historic French watch brand has been revived, and this time, it s in a way we ve never seen. Chronofixe, initially founded in the 1850s, became a well-known altimeter and Type 20 chronograph maker in the 1960s. After that, though, the brand went quiet. A virtually unknown Chronofixe watch, model Flight 1952, already surfaced a few years ago. However, the Asterix 65th Anniversary Limited Edition should be the brand s breakthrough.Chronofixe seconde/seconde/ Asterix 65th Anniversary Limited EditionBefore diving into the Asterix watch, I want to explain a bit more about the Chronofixe brand. The history of Chronofixe dates back to the mid-19th century. It was founded in 1857 in La Ras...
While my colleagues and most of the industry have been in Geneva, enjoying Watches and Wonders and devouring the sights and sounds of the years biggest trade fair, I have been watching on from home this year. I welcomed my firstborn son into the world and moved house less than two weeks later (apparently, I am a glutton for punishment, but I digress). As a result, Ive had time to digest broader world news as Ive not been rushing from meeting to meeting all day. One such story that has dominated the news has been the introduction of Trumps new tariffs on global exports to the US. The initial response to these has been- negative, to say the least.It all began with a financial thunderclap: stoc...
The King Seiko 45KS is a lesson in finding value in vintage. Unlike its modern counterparts, this King Seiko offers a fiercely large amount of watch for the money. Depending on its condition, the 45KS can be found on the secondary market for $900C1,500.Modern Seiko has a problem. It s not rival brands, such as Citizen; no, Seiko s biggest problem is Seiko - vintage Seiko, to be precise. Today, we re looking at the King Seiko 45KS. This is a watch that has been covered on Fratello before; my colleague Balazs waxed lyrical about the design of this King Seiko here. My colleague Mike also wrote about it way back in 2015, right here.King Seiko 44-9990Some background on King SeikoBefore going furt...
If your favorite cologne is Bleu de Chanel, look no further. Chanel dresses the J12 Bleu in matte blue ceramic this year to celebrate the watchs birthday. With 2025 marking a quarter century since the first J12 in black ceramic (and 22 years since the first white ceramic version), its time for a new color. Blue is not just a random color, though - in the Chanel universe, everything has meaning. Rather, it harks back to the boxes of the 1932 Bijoux de Diamants collection. Chanel has interpreted the color today in a new shade exclusively for watchmaking. Fratello selected a few models to highlight from many celebratory blue J12s. Pick the one that goes best with your aromatic-woody perfume, na...
The Vacheron Constantin Les Cabinotiers Solaria Ultra Grand Complication is a piece unique that showcases its maker s horological muscle. The world s most complicated wristwatch brings to the fore several groundbreaking features. Let s take a look.The Vacheron Constantin Les Cabinotiers SolariaVacheron Constantin is a watchmaker that needs no introduction. One of the Holy Trinity (alongside Patek Philippe and Audemars Piguet), the brand is a titan in the industry. So it seems fitting that Vacheron is turning heads this year at Watches and Wonders with the worlds most complicated wristwatch. The Les Cabinotiers Solaria Ultra Grand Complication not only has 41(!) complications but manages to s...
There are always surprises at the major watch shows. This year, one of the unexpected releases was the Alpina Heritage Tropic-Proof, a recreation of a manual-wind 60s watch. The size and some other touches are true to the original.The big names dominate the scene at a show like Watches and Wonders. We spend hours predicting their releases, but it s good to look at the news from the smaller brands. Alpina isn t small, but the brand releases watches throughout the year. Perhaps this is why news of the new Heritage Tropic-Proof came as such a surprise.The original Alpina Tropic-ProofIn the 60s, it seems that all brands were offering watches that could withstand some level of water exposure. W...
The Frederique Constant Classic Perpetual Calendar Manufacture debuted in 2016. At that time, it was the most affordable perpetual calendar wristwatch on the market. Now the brand has made some welcome updates to it, so let s take a look.Frederique Constant is a brand that always brings value when it comes to perpetual calendars. The Highlife is a fan favorite and an impressive watch that we have discussed here at Fratello before. Today, the FC is giving customers another attractive option in the realm of perpetual calendars while introducing a new caliber. Let s dive in.Frederique Constant s Classic Perpetual Calendar ManufactureThe Frederique Constant Classic Perpetual Calendar Manufacture...
The 25th-anniversary celebration at Gerald Charles continues with the new Maestro GC Sport Tennis. This limited-edition watch offers a unique surface finish, a vibrant dial, and a comfortable strap. For those who play the game regularly, this watch was made to take on the courts instead of living in the spectators booth. We were fortunate to go hands-on with this new release and are happy to share our thoughts.Gerald Charles continues to adapt its unique case shape to different use cases. Highly complicated movements, precious metal cases, and innovative dial finishes describe some of the options within the ever-growing catalog. Todays new Maestro GC Sport Tennis is a more casual take on th...
At times, it s hard to keep up with all the new releases during Watches and Wonders. A good example is the stream of great ones from Patek Philippe. The brand unveiled a total of 15 new references this week that all deserve our attention. But where do you start? One glance made that very clear for me. Forget everything called Cubitus or Calatrava. The 5370R Split-Seconds Chronograph in rose gold is the absolute highlight from Patek Philippe this year for me. One look was enough to stop my world from turning for a minute. The brown Grand Feu enamel dial with sub-dials and a tachymeter scale in beige champleve enamel is breathtakingly beautiful. Let s find out what the story is behind the gorg...
