Yes, I know what you are thinking. I have had the pleasure of trying on the Royal Oak, the Laureato, and the Nautilus, so I too understand where the inspiration is coming from. But even in a world of octagonal homage, the new MAEN Manhattan 37 brings its own style. Lets face it, we all love everything touched by the genius and sharp pencil of Gerald Genta, and we cant get enough.Just remember, Genta did not invent the fashion of octagons. The late 60s and early 70s had everything from octagon-patterned shirts to large octagonal sunglasses and yes, even houses. Genta was tapping into the zeitgeist of the time, and today, we are in the middle of a big renaissance. Thankfully not for the wall...

It has been over half a year since I joined the team here at Fratello. And as I slowly but surely close the gap to my 100th published article (I believe this is number 90), I decided that it was time to treat myself. Not to a new watch. Not yet! But rather, to review a watch that, though no longer new, has always caught my eye. Im talking, of course, about the Bremont Supermarine S302. This watch combines my favorite watch style (diver) with what I consider one of the most useful complications, the GMT. Though there are many excellent dive watches and brilliant GMTs out there, there are nowhere near as many models that combine both functionalities in an ideal manner. After wearing the S302 f...

In recent times, we have seen the popularity of smaller watches surge. Compared to the previous norm of watches ranging from 42C47mm (Im looking at you Panerai, Breitling, and Hublot), this reduction in size has been welcomed by most. Personally, I love the more proportional look of watches under 40mm on the average wrist. This doesnt mean I enjoy my 42mm Speedmaster any less, but it does mean that I can enjoy smaller watches without getting any odd looks. These shifts in perception are not instant. In fact, they can take several years. And though early re-adoption of the 34C38mm watches likely came from the rise in popularity of vintage watches, brands have been quick to catch up to the tre...

On today s #TBT, I d like to share this beautifully aged Oriosa Superautomatic with its really unusual snowflake hour hand. If only it had a nice bezel, it would definitely be one of the shining stars in my collection. You regularly ask me privately where and how I go fishing for watches. Well, this Oriosa, which I had never heard of before I saw it, is a good example of one of my wish-list expansion techniques. Some auction houses allow you to save your searches and will notify you by email when a new listing that fits your keywords is added. You have to think carefully, though, because many auction sites limit your searches and you can t have an unlimited number of saved search entries.Ori...

Welcome to Strap Check, a new column on Fratello where our editors showcase their favorite watch/strap combinations. We all know the feeling. When youve been wearing a watch for weeks on the same strap, there comes a time when the excitement starts to fade a little bit. Maybe thats the time when you start looking - but looking for what? A brand new watch? Sometimes the answer lies not in the watch, but the strap on which you wear it! From the classic to the unique. From cheap NATOs to bespoke leather and special bracelets. This is where we get excited about perfect combinations that make you feel like youve got a brand new watch on your wrist. So tune in every week for a new combination. Are...

When I saw the introduction of this new Grand Seiko White Birch watch last month, my initial response was mainly one of surprise. It was the same watch as last years Hi-Beat SLGH005, but with a Spring Drive movement. What in the world…But it wasnt just the switch to a Spring Drive caliber that separated the new SLGA009 from the SLGH005. The dial also changed, and upon further inspection, there were also several changes in the hour markers, the lugs, and the bezel. These changes only became apparent to me when seeing the new White Birch in real life.The Grand Seiko White BirchLast year, upon receiving the watch in our office for a review, I concluded that the Grand Seiko White Birch SLG...

We re back again with another edition of Watch Dating Profiles. This time we re going to Russia, where the vodka is cold and the watches are jettisoned into outer space. Seriously, Russian watches today either look back in history or towards the future, but almost always to space. There s a lot of space to look at with Russian watches too. With the longest history of space exploration of any country, there s been time for many different watches to leave the atmosphere. So who s it gonna be? The Sturmanskie Gagarin 60 Years, a remake of the first watch in space? The vintage Poljot 3133 Chronograph, another space record-setter with a 1970 s design? Or perhaps contemporary is your speed. The Ra...

I love the visionary idea that Carlo Crocco had in the late 1970s to create a watch that combined different materials. With the Hublot Classic that came out in 1980, Crocco created a watch that combined a yellow gold case with a rubber strap. Back then, it was considered pure blasphemy. To combine a precious metal with the material generally associated with cheap quartz watches was unheard of. Four decades later, however, it is an often-seen combination of materials. Additionally, the Classic Fusion is still part of the current Hublot collection, and it is a great reminder of Crocco s legacy. I had a chance to try the current 45mm green Classic Fusion in titanium and determine if his visiona...

When it comes to creating mesmerizing and original dials, Grand Seiko is an industry benchmark. Snowflakes, white and green birches, the brilliant blue sky over Mt. Iwate at dawn - its the beauty surrounding the Grand Seiko Studio Shizukuishi translated into dial art. But GS is not the only brand with an obsession for dials. Thats why its time to present you with five dialed-in alternatives to Grand Seiko watches. We ll start in Japan with Minase, fly to Malaysia to visit MING, then head over to Glasgow in Scotland to check out AnOrdain. Then we ll travel to a small German town to take a look at Glashtte Original, and end up back in Japan because Seikos Presage collection could offer a few ...

You may have recently read my collector s week article from last weekend. If you did, you d know that I got into this hobby by collecting microbrands, and I still follow the microbrand sector very closely. Why? Well, there are some great brands out there making excellent watches and having a positive impact on the industry as a whole. One of those brands is Zelos. Today, I am looking at the Zelos Spearfish, the latest model in its collection with an exciting new movement.When it comes to microbrands, Zelos is one of the more prominent names in the game. The Singaporean brand has built up a very loyal following over the years, and many collectors have built up vast collections of Zelos watche...

As watch enthusiasts, we all know and understand that transporting our precious watches can be logistically challenging. Watches are generally tougher than we give them credit for. Nevertheless, they can easily sustain aesthetic or superficial damage if not properly protected. Most of us wouldnt just throw a watch into our backpack unprotected; keys, pens, coins, and other objects could potentially scratch it or cause greater damage. Luxury watches are expensive, and as expensive objects, we tend to treat them with a little more care. Luckily for us, there are about as many accessories for watch transportation as there are watches, including pouches, clamshell cases, boxes, and rolls. Perhap...

Your weekly installment of Fratello On Air is here. This time, Balazs and Mike handle a reader question about a few rather different chronographs. This podcast player is blocked because you did not accept marketing cookies. Change cookie settings We love a good reader question, and this week, our faithful listener John sent us a great one! Firstly, thanks, John! John works at a hospital and we re thankful for the efforts he s putting in during these trying times. We re glad that our podcast helps just a little during those tough days.Handgelenks KontrolleBefore getting to our reader question, though, we talk a bit about bicycles and then get into our Handgelenks Kontrolle. Mike is still ...

Seiko s The Black Series is back, now featuring four of the brand s $1,000+ professional divers. The first three in the new lineup are the Mechanical Diver s Modern Re-interpretation models SPB253J1, SPB255J1, and SPB257J1. The watches take inspiration from some of Seiko s classic diver s watches from 1965, 1968, and 1970 respectively. The fourth and crowning piece is the 1970 Mechanical Diver s Modern Re-Interpretation SLA061J1, a recent, fully reinterpreted design with Seiko s caliber 8L35. Who knew that what the world needed was more black and orange? Seiko did.Seiko has done it again. By done it, I mean the brand has made some radical aesthetic changes to a few established models and suc...

When Piaget created the Polo in 1979, the aim was everyday sophistication. But the new Piaget Polo Skeleton Diamond Paved is anything but an everyday watch. Could I wear this delectable Piaget? That is the question of the day. I am a 6 2 Norwegian with a beard, just back from hacking big lumps of ice and snow from my car (feel free to stereotype me). Im not a big fan of the term metrosexual, which is what came to mind when I saw the first images of this new Piaget in white gold. Could I pull it off?While writing this, I am wearing a Seiko Marinemaster 300, one of only two 44mm+ watches left in my collection. Did I put it on today to saw a hole in the ice and go diving with my speargun? No, I...

A white gold case, a gray dial with day, date, and month indicators, and the added bonus of a moonphase give the Vacheron Constantin Traditionnelle Complete Calendar its name. Traditional in its layout and fashionable in its dial color - slate gray is the new black - this white gold Vacheron appears both complicated and understated.Lets talk calendars before going deeper into the Vacheron Constantin Traditionnelle Complete Calendar ($41,200). There are watches out there with simple, double, triple, full, complete, annual, semi-, and fully perpetual calendars. Sometimes, the differences are purely semantic. Most of the time, however, the functions are different. So, it all starts with the sim...

Valentine s Day is upon us once again. And if you re looking for the perfect gift for that special someone, Swatch has you covered. Whether you want to declare your love to your crush with a grand romantic gesture or to celebrate the day of love and romance with your significant other, nothing quite says I love you like offering someone half of your heart. No, not your actual heart! And I m also not talking about one of those half-heart necklaces (they re just a tiny bit passe). I m talking about a wonderful ticking piece of Swiss watchmaking in the form of the new Swatch Half <3 Red and Half <3 White!To celebrate this year s loveliest of holidays, Swatch has gone all-in with the roman...

I know, is seriously hyped up these days. That doesnt change the fact that the brand makes superb watches. For those with an adventurous imagination and a love for avant-garde design, the glacial visual progression of The Crown s models might make you yawn. But have another look and consider the sweet 60s or the vintage limbo of the 80s and 90s. If you can live with a well-loved appearance, slightly scruffy hands, and faded dials, you will find a good for under $5,000. My opening search got nearly 280 hits, so the choices are out there. Me? Well, I bought a manual-wind 6694 once, and the mainspring snapped after a day. It was still worth it for $2000, but those days are gone.The design ...

As watch reviewers, we are exposed to some of the most luxurious accessories with which one may pamper their collection should they so please. Finding the companies that can take an already privileged hobby and add that extra personal touch to it is a real joy. Discovering Genteel Handmade (which I also did through the pages of Fratello) was a treat. I must say, however, that it is a relationship that has benefited not just from time, but also a hands-on experience of the products and what to consider when designing the perfect strap for oneself.You might think it s easy. Perhaps, you think it s obvious. I certainly did. I was wrong. That in itself is nothing to write home about, but what I ...

Back in November, when winter was just around the corner, Lex advocated for a bit of color on your wrist during wintertime with the colorful G-Shock MTG-B2000XMG. I definitely agree with the principle of a bit of color on the wrist, especially when it comes to G-Shock. But I also feel that colors need to match the season s colors. G-Shock has understood that perfectly and has released the Mystic Forest series. The series was first released in Asia at the end of 2021 and is now available in Europe and the United States as well. The series takes inspiration from the colors of nature and is perfect for all your winter outdoor expeditions.We re only a little over a month into 2022, and the strea...

Not every story into watch collecting starts with a fortuitous inheritance of a beautiful vintage Omega or stumbling across an all-original Submariner 6538 at a yard sale. While there are some lucky people out there who stumbled into watch collecting quite high up the ladder, my story started a little more innocuously. I started out collecting microbrands, mainly because, for my budget, they were more affordable and accessible. That said, I also found something with microbrands that the macrobrands didn t seem to offer.What was that thing I found? Fearless creativity. Now, let me caveat this by acknowledging the sheer number of fly-by-night brands that start up thinking they can make a quic...