What is the meaning of life? Is there a god? When will I finally get the call from my AD about that steel sports model? These are questions that (for the most part) have puzzled humans for centuries. For millennia - eons even! Some will spend a lifetime consulting gurus, traveling the world, or even analyzing every single subreddit under the sun to uncover the answers. Others, however, seem like they were effortlessly handed the knowledge. Like a salt shaker at the dinner table. More often than not, though, the latter folk have simply been fortunate enough to learn from the best teacher one could ask for - Experience.Learning by doing, learning by failing, learning by living. It is these me...
In this video, I talk about one of my favorite wearers of the last two years. The Omega Seamaster PloProf 1200M, reference 224.30.55.21.01.001.I never thought I would say this, but the Seamaster PloProf 1200M could - despite the dimensions of 48mm x 55mm x 17.5mm and weighing nearly 280 grams - be my daily wearer. Yes, it is heavy and yes, it is a chunk of steel, but on the wrist, it wears relatively compact. In the video we made I explain to you all the details about the stainless steel Seamaster PloProf 1200M and talk about some of the PloProf history as well.Now discontinued, but it should still be possible to source one of these watches from an authorized dealer or boutique. This Seamast...
The Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games are fully underway! And what better opportunity to have a look at this extraordinary set of watches? Omega already introduced (and released) them during the Summer of 2018 in anticipation of the 2020 Games. Little did we know back then that the Games of the XXXII Olympiad would be postponed. However, thanks to Omega s precocity, we have been lucky enough to enjoy these watches three years in advance.Before we start, I just want to remind you that Omega introduced all five of these Speedmaster Tokyo 2020 limited editions separately, but also as a set. Each individual watch was limited to 2020 pieces, and only 55 sets were produced. They were all intended for sale ...
Serica is a young French microbrand based out of Paris. The brand released its first version of its military-style 4512 back in 2019 to great critical acclaim. After their initial success, the guys at Serica updated the 4512 last year. With new dial options and a new movement, the watch has seen some remarkable improvements-time to find out more about this great military-style Serica 4512.It was somewhere late last year when Thor from Time+Tide and I discussed some of our favorite new watches when the name Serica came up. Thor told the story of having the Serica 4512 W.W.W. (Wrist Watch Waterproof) for review and how impressed he was with the watch. Fast forward a couple of months, and Thor ...
Were back again with the MING 17.09, but this time its a hands-on look with a highly anticipated watch. Lets jump into it-These days, its tough to discuss MING without stirring up some strong emotions. Proponents are huge fans of their designs, build quality and even the scarcity. Naysayers begrudge the use of third-party movements and the challenging ordering process. That process has had people up early or late with nothing but a sold-out sign on the screen. With the MING 17.09, though, the brand made an unlimited watch - sort of. Essentially there was an ordering window without restriction and, as a result, everyone I know who wanted one got one.The MING 17.09 is the last of the lineThe M...
The Swiss masters of Savoir-Faire are back with another creation. Over the last 12 months, I have come to enjoy the work that Artisans de Geneve does. So, when the brand reached out to let me know about its latest project, The Maggiore Challenge, I was pretty excited. What would we see this time? Well, the answer? A masterpiece in the form of a skeletonized rose gold Daytona.Of late, the Swiss atelier Artisans de Geneve has made a real name for itself with superb and stunning customization projects and unfettered artistic genius. You may recall The Sea Shepherd Challenge, a Submariner with moonphase complication and a beautiful aventurine glass dial and bezel. Then there was The Black Pearl...
When you see two crowns and an internal diving bezel, your watch enthusiast brain thinks: Super Compressor. Its a Pavlov effect and, though very understandable, it s not entirely correct. Its not about the number of crows and the bezel, you see, its actually all about the case construction. Well dive deeper into the subject while having a look at the limited edition Milus Archimedes Orange Coral Diver C A True Super Compressor Or A Compressor-style watch?A Super Compressor (SC) is any watch that has twin crowns and an internal rotating diving bezel, right? If only it were that simple. The SC denomination says something about the case construction of a watch and not really any other element. ...
The Covid-19 pandemic has accelerated an already ongoing trend: the world of mechanical watches is becoming more and more digital. 2020 was mostly a virtual watch year due to the pandemic, and 2021 hasn t been much different so far. Everything takes place online. From virtual watch fairs to appointments with brands, discussions, and even sales. Something else that s also taking place online is the growth of watch-related social media channels and other specialized watch websites. A development that has boosted people s interest in watches to new heights. So, will luxury watches exist in the future? I think that they will. But the real question is: what exactly does the future of watches look...
I can hardly believe it has already been 20 years since MeisterSinger entered the stage with something completely different. The MeisterSinger No.1 - a pretty good name for a first watch - only had one hand. With this hand, you re able to tell both the hours and minutes. Using 144 indexes on the dial, you can read the time more accurately than you d think. Every 5-minute interval has its own marking, so you re only ever just a few minutes off at best.Although it doesn t seem like that long ago that Manfred Brassler introduced the MeisterSinger No. 1, the one-hand watch has become world-renown and even gone on to win many prizes, including the Red Dot Design Award for the Perigraph we will be...
When all s said and done, I m a very lucky chap. I have a lot of nice watches that I ve spent the last couple of decades accruing. In the last few years especially, my collection has ballooned suddenly. Now with somewhere in the region of 75 timepieces to my name, spread around various locations on the big blue marble, hidden in safes, attics, and one particularly valuable sock drawer, I ve decided to move on from the majority of these pieces to make way for the next generation. Find out what I ll be chasing down over the next few years if all goes according to plan.I m not going to list my collection here, but let me make this clear: of those 75 or so pieces, a great many of them are inexpe...
If someone were to ask you to name the watch worlds most famous one-trick pony, how many of you would answer, Audemars Piguet? To be honest, until just a few weeks ago, I would probably have been one of those?people. As a collector with a modest budget, historically, I always had a tendency to learn mostly about brands I could actually afford. Because of this, I had remained ignorant of Audemars Piguet for far too long. And what a mistake that was.Sure, looking at the current catalog alone, it could seem like theres nothing much to brand other than the Royal Oak. However, while you wouldnt be totally unjustified to make that assumption (just mostly), everybody knows what happens when you ass...
With everything going on at Fratello HQ over the last couple of weeks, this one nearly slipped under our radar. In the end, it didn t, but we haven t really had a chance to rave about it, until now. I am, of course, talking about the new MING 20.11 with the incredible mosaic sapphire dial. We are no strangers to MING s watches here at Fratello. Our editor Mike is a big fan and even owns a couple of pieces. I have also reserved one of the recent 17.09 (blue) for myself, and I cannot wait to receive it at some point next year!MING is one of those brands that never fails to excite me with each new release. There are many watch brands out there that plod along with stuff that is, in my opinion, ...
We like to talk about vintage watches a lot within the Fratello team. While the daily routine is largely focused on the most recent developments in the world of watches, the most fun for many of us lies in the sometimes weird and often wonderful world of vintage watches. Its a world full of history, remarkable watches, incredible stories, and quirky details. It inspired us to come up with a series of articles focusing on the best watches per decade from a select group of brands. Some of them are priceless, some of them still affordable. In this installment, we will take a look at the best Seiko watches from the 1980s.While the 1970s were a decade filled with tremendous change in the watch in...
Postponed, but not abandoned, the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games are finally here! You read that right, the Tokyo 2020 name remains despite their taking place in 2021. The land of the Rising Sun will host the Summer Olympics for the second time in history, the first being in 1964. Omega will be the official timekeeper for all events at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games and has been for nearly all editions of the Games dating all the way back to 1932.This video is blocked because you did not accept marketing cookies. Change cookie settings Tokyo 2020 Olympic GamesStarting today, July 23rd, 339 events in 33 sports will take place in the host country of Japan. Including some new additions to the usua...
Panerai is a brand that has delved deep into its historical catalog many times to reinstate and solidify the importance of its Radiomir collection. The line harnesses the manufacturers maritime references, as well as its historical ones. Panerai s prototype of the Radiomir watch underscored the beginnings of what would become one of the worlds most recognizable designs. The embryo of a concept centered around legibility. A watch initially conceived as a military tool but one that has since become a part of many a self-respecting horophiles collections.Now, Panerai merges the Radiomir design DNA with another important chapter in the brands story. The Radiomir Eilean brings together the signat...
Sometimes its nice to force yourself to like something. When you intuitively know something is good, but you cant see it or feel it right away. Sporadically, if you try long and hard enough, that feeling will eventually come. And when it does, it just feels so darn good! Back in the 90s and early 2000s, IWC made pilots watches that looked like flight instruments. Almost a bit boring, even, but beneath that dull layer of functionality lay a world full of adventure waiting to be discovered by those who persevered. And I did just that. From the Zeros comes this IWC Doppelchronograph Ref. 3713 C a watch that s double the fun for those who dare.Back in the 90s ?I lusted over three IWC pilots watc...
The other day I reached a little bit deeper into the safe than I usually do. I ended up with the cheapest blue plastic digital watch you can imagine in my grasp. Rolling it around in my hand, every single bit of it still felt familiar despite not having seen it for about three years (and 20 years before that). It was my first watch ever and it holds a special place in my heart.That was the very moment that sparked the idea for this article: a write-up in which each of the Fratello editors could share their earliest memories of their first watches. I pitched the idea to Rob and RJ. They loved it and instantly sent me back their stories. It didn t even take a full week for me to collect the fi...
When you see that little mushroom-like cap sticking out from the case somewhere around the 2 oclock position, you may instantly expect the watch to be chronograph. Well, it wouldnt be the art of watchmaking if decades of invention and innovation hadnt found other uses for them, right? Here is what the 4 most creative pushers can do!If you have been a reader of Fratello Magazine for some time, you know very well that I am the weirdo within the editorial team that gets excited by any bizarre, creative, and quirky watch complications. Since I like to break stereotypes, you can also imagine how amused I am to come across a pusher that does anything other than starting or resetting a chronograph....
Back in March, I reviewed the Forstner Rivet bracelet. A version which, as you may remember, features fixed links throughout. An exception is made at the final link on the 12 o clock side of the. I praised that single link as providing the fixed-link version of this vintage-inspired rivet bracelet with the best of both worlds. Now, I ve had more of a chance to wear the full-stretch version (a model featuring the same stretch technology in every link). Which one did I prefer and which one (as a fuzzy little watch reviewer) claimed more of my wrist hair than the other?Hair snagging is a big deal when it comes to bracelet style and, probably, more importantly, the finishing quality. It s one of...
Welcome back to Wrist Game or Crying Shame. This week, we focus on what Id call an overshadowed watch. The Datejust 18K is here. But first-Last week, we looked at the TAG Heuer Carrera Telemeter from back in 2015. I mentioned that this watch kicked off a series of glass box pieces, but was a bit of an oddity styling-wise. You didnt seem to care at all, though, because this watch rolled to an 83% Wrist Game triumph. We switch things up in a big way today, though, with a look at the Datejust 18K.The Datejust 18K has internal competitionAt times, there are products that are simply so powerful that they leave no room for competition. Its even more surprising when the power is so great that wat...
