Fratello On Air comes back with another brand-focused episode, and this time, it s Oris! The independent watch company from H?lstein is in play, and as always, we ve picked some unique models. Settle in and enjoy! This podcast player is blocked because you did not accept marketing cookies. Change cookie settings There s no doubt that Oris is a Fratello favorite. From the FratellOris to the Divers Sixty-Five, we re fully locked into this fan-friendly brand. Most of us, though, know the company from the last decade or so. Are there some interesting gems from the past? Of course, there are!Handgelenks KontrolleTradition calls, and that means that after some healthy banter, it s time for the...
Its time for another installment of Fratello EDC, where were sharing our editorial teams everyday carry essentials. This time, the Fratello editor to share the contents of his bag and pockets is the next-door neighbor. Does Jorg pack a lot of stuff, knowing that he practically lives next to the Fratello offices?Nacho: Jorg, you re up next in our series of EDC articles. Me: My what…?? I m not in the military, Nacho! I m joking of course. But everyday carry, or EDC, is a term I never used before we started talking about this series of articles. I would define the contents of my bag as a collection of random things. There are things that I need and use every day and things that are in my ...
This new ArtyA dive watch uses a colorful dial combined with a phenomenon known as selective absorption to tell you how deep under the water s surface you are. It s shocking that no one has done this before. Forget any special technology or last-minute, super-secret innovation. It s just good old physics and natural laws. Well, and the never-sleeping creative genius Yvan Arpa. Meet the ArtyA Depth Gauge.When I worked in advertising, brainstorming ideas for TV commercials was part of my daily responsibilities. It was fun. In the early days of my copywriting career, one brief came in. My creative partner and I worked on it for a few days, but we still couldn t come up with anything special. Th...
The Tour de France, 2022: A bolt of green emerges from the accelerating pack. Hitting a top speed of 54km on the gradual incline towards the finish line, the beguiling Belgian Wout Van Aert sits up in his saddle, head tilted towards the sky, eyes closed. His arms stretch out behind his torso as he arches his back to touch the line with his chest. Its a glorious celebratory pose. Like an Eagle flexing for flight, he sits proudly atop the mountain. Another stage win. His lead in the Green Jersey competition extended. Ten bonus seconds for his irrelevant placement in the GC. A hard day. A good day. And most certainly, a job well done.By this point, I am on the top deck of a VIP spectators area...
Part of the schedule at Oris s New York Harbor LE release event with Billion Oyster Project allowed for interaction with Rolf Studer, the co-CEO of Oris. He was gracious enough to sit down with me and talk about the brand, sustainability, and what it means to be a citoyen.I sat down with Rolf Studer at the back of the Oris Airstream trailer that had been towed to the New York Harbor release event. What had been an RV has been converted into an intimate Oris showroom on wheels. There s a small dinette at the back, existing seemingly for exactly this kind of interaction. Studer is a laid-back individual but full of intensity, like a mainspring that is eternally wound but feels no stress about ...
This is not the first time I ve written about the Straum Opphav in one shape or form here on Fratello. I can clearly recall sitting in a Dresden train station last summer when I first came across the Norwegian start-up. I was impressed by the visuals alone and the apparent attention to detail. When I saw the prototypes in the metal in mid-Autumn, I was even more impressed. Straum had launched two models - the regular Opphav and the limited-edition Rastarkalv with its dial made of fossilized wood. Apart from the unique dial, the Rastarkalv also features a case made of beautiful Damascus steel. After feedback from its vocal and active fan community, Straum has now released the Opphav with that...
During Watches And Wonders 2022, released a number of updated models. By now, you ve most certainly seen these releases, like the GMT-Master II Destro, the Air-King, the Yacht-Master (with and without Falcon Eye), and the new platinum Day-Date. What you may not know, however, is that released a number of new Day-Date dials as well. Here are a few that may have flown under your radar.During meetings at Watches And Wonders, only shows its real novelties. A simple dial change wont make the cut for the presentation of new watches. As such, the brand only shows us new references and relegates other minor updates to the booth s display cases. Today, we d like to show you the newest dials that ...
After reading this article, you will have a very thin story to tell in the coffee corner. It will be wafer-thin. Just 1.75mm, in fact, but thats record-breaking, so its also highly impressive. You will also be able to introduce a new word - Gr?nograaf. Thats the name of Gr?nefelds latest creation, the brands first-ever chronograph. And if you want to show your sustainable side, you could bring up the Zenith Defy Extreme E Island X Prix Edition, a watch made for an electric off-road race. The most sustainable part of the watch is the strap thats made of old racing tires. What a great start to the week.Theres a new world order. Not too long ago, the 1.8mm-slim?Bvlgari Octo Finissimo Ultra took...
In recent years, we have seen a massive resurgence in appreciation for integrated-bracelet sports watches. And rightfully so, since the genre arguably saved the Swiss watch industry in the 70s. Omegas current catalog does feature the Constellation, but this is hardly a sporty-looking range. A quick dive into the brands history reveals an absolute gem, though. Reference ST 366.0847 has everything to become an absolutely huge hit in todays market.So Omega, please bring back your beautiful historic reference ST 366.0847 - the day-date Seamaster with an integrated bracelet. I promise you will sell a ton of them!A Nautilus and a Royal Oak side by sideA recap on the integrated braceletYou probabl...
In this Sunday morning column, two writers go head-to-head in an epic showdown. Strong opinions and hysterical hyperbole are welcome (so feel free to join in with the fun in the comments section below). And don t forget to let us know which watches you d like to see torn to shreds/effusively exalted next week. We ll try to feature as many of our readers choices as possible. This week, we ve got another head-to-head for you. The focus? Watches from and Grand Seiko with dials inspired by nature.This week, we re taking a leaf (literally) out of Grand Seiko s book and featuring watches inspired by nature. We, of course, feature the name-dropped Grand Seiko, but also joins the floral flourish ...
Praesidus is bringing back the A-11, a wristwatch manufactured during World War II in accordance with the U.S. military standard. The American microbrand reinterprets those historic specifications to build modern-day A-11 watches as a medium for untold wartime stories. Praesidus conveys its latest D-Day story through the Marston Mat Limited Edition of 100 pieces. The brand has divided the release into two drops, releasing the last remaining 30 pieces in the next few days.Just to be clear, we are not talking about the vintage A-11 watches that Elgin, Waltham, and Bulova produced for the Allied Forces in the 1940s. Praesidus is creating new collections derived from the A-11 specifications. The...
It s funny just how different experiences can be from one watch enthusiast to another. Not too long ago, Nacho confessed that until recently, he had never actually visited an authorized dealer (AD). Just like him, I also thought they looked quite unwelcoming at first. But, after having visited numerous ones and having bought a few watches from them, I can actually say that I now very much enjoy visiting them. I could even go as far as to say that some of them have become (watch) friends. If you re just like Nacho and hesitant to go in, let me help you out with some quick tips.As I ve already shared with you numerous times, my gateway drug into this hobby was the Oris Art Blakey. Before buyin...
I would not be lying if I said that the new Awake Mission To Earth watch is balancing on a precipice of hype. Whether it will tumble down the crevasse of one-hit wonders or become a future-proof microbrand legend remains to be seen. But the premise is a cool one, even if we are slightly colored by our own love for Moonwatches (and MoonSwatches, for that matter).Even with nearly half a century since the last time man set foot on the Moon, space travel remains hugely influential and inspiring. Take away the hype and secondary-market scalpers, and the MoonSwatch with all its mission iterations is simply cool. Add NASA to the picture and the potential is even bigger.What does blockchain have to ...
Switzerland, again. The mood on the train changes dramatically as we depart Basel Badischer Bahnhof in Germany and sidle over the border. Masks are removed and suddenly the carriage erupts with a chatter that had been previously stunted by the face coverings still mandatory in Deutschland. Soon, the wide, sun-scorched landscape of Baden-Wrttemberg gives way to the lusher, greener fields of Neuchatel. The fields soon fold into one another, becoming hills that eventually pluck up the courage to form mountains. As we zip through endless valleys and around countless bends in the line, glimpses of a tree-lined lake start to come into view. Suddenly, the Alps rise up in the distance, their snow-c...
It s been over a year since I said my final goodbyes to the idea of buying a new . Firstly, the issue of not being able to buy one at an authorized dealer remains. Secondly, paying over the list price for a new just seems like a weird thing to do. Combining the two, it was an easy choice with prices going through the roof on the parallel market. But I didn t say goodbye to the idea of owning a altogether. There are still a select number of models that I have set my sights on. With prices now coming down, I had a check on which ones to chase in the near future.When I said goodbye to the idea of buying a new , I mentioned the vintage alternatives that I would pick over them. But some of tho...
In July of 1952, Commander James Simpson of the British Royal Navy led a group of scientists and military personnel on a mission to Northern Greenland. This mission, known as the British North Greenland Expedition (or BNGE) involved conducting seismological and gravimetric surveys. Additionally, a number of scientific studies in geology, meteorology, physiology, and glaciology were also carried out. The mission took place over a period of two years and claimed the life of one of the men involved. Of the 30 men who participated, 26 were equipped with Tudor Oyster-Prince wristwatches. During their stay in Northern Greenland, they used BBC radio signals to keep track of the accuracy of these ti...
There werent a lot of classes that I liked during high school, but I did enjoy the history lessons. I hope you felt and still feel the same because you need to know history to fully appreciate the Waltham brand. The Waltham Watch Company, also known as American Waltham Watch Co. and American Watch Co.,was an American company from Waltham, Massachusetts - why think of a fancy brand name, right? The company was founded in 1849, and by the time Waltham went out of business in 1957, it had produced about 40 million watches in addition to clocks, speedometers, compasses, time-delay fuses, and other precision instruments. Watch Angels, a company from the Swiss town of Mendrisio, has brought the br...
Just like that, the 2022 edition of the Fratello Summer Splash has come to an end. But dont be sad, my dear reader. Theres no need to fret! While the Summer Splash may be over, the summer has only just begun! We hope that this month-long quest has inspired you to keep things colorful this summer. I say this despite the fact that our finalists were a little bit on the conservative side. Thankfully, our lovely Fratelli, despite their tendency to go for blue, also picked a bright orange wild card in the form of the Seiko 5 Sports GMT (SSK005). A worthy contender, but one that sadly didnt manage to measure up to our two finalists. So, without giving any more away, lets jump into a recap of the c...
When I think of young, small, independent watch brands, two spring to mind as particularly interesting - Serica and Baltic. I do not know what it is about the French, but they just seem to have the aesthetics down to a tee. You may like or dislike their work, but you cannot deny that they have an eye for design. Baltics new release is no exception. So let s have a look at the brand-new Baltic Aquascaphe Titanium.The concept behind the Aquascaphe Titanium is simple. It is a more hardcore Aquascaphe Classique. It is the AMG or M version, if you will. A bit more performance-focused. Everything dialed up a notch.It is not all in the nameIt seems like the name might say it all. This is just a Bal...
On the imaginative expectations vs. reality chart, the Fortis Marinemaster ref. 8001 was instantly catapulted to one of the supreme positions. It s a killer summer vintage chronograph. I invite you to take a look at the best shots ever taken of a GRAY Marinemaster.You see, there are two different Fortis Marinemaster ref. 8001 models. The first is the one with red-accented hands and striking yellow/red sub-registers - Mike already introduced it on #TBT a long seven years ago. And then, there is another one with blue-accented hands and black/blue sub-registers. I have to say that the yellow/red 8001 was unequivocally my preferred option. Well, it s not anymore.Image source: www.romainrea.comTh...
