Celine Simon

In the luxury watch realm, there are a handful of icons that go by a single name without needing a reminder of which brand makes it—and the legendary Navitimer is most certainly one of them. Launched in 1952 with a slide-rule bezel to compute complex navigational calculations, the Navitimer was designed with professional pilots in mind.

Ask a Rolex enthusiast what they think is Rolex’s most popular watch model and they’ll likely reply “Submariner.” Nope, it is the Lady-Datejust. If this is indeed true, then why is the Lady-Datejust one of the most undervalued Rolex models in the secondary market?

Catchy nicknames are part and parcel of watch collecting. You’ll often hear names like the Rolex “Hulk”, the Omega “Speedy”, and the Audemars Piguet “Beast.” Panerai is another brand with plenty of unique monikers. Today, we’ll be looking at the Panerai “La Bomba.”

In vintage Rolex watch collecting circles, the Daytona is basically a brand on its own. In fact, Paul Newman’s very own vintage Rolex Daytona set a new world record for the most expensive wristwatch sold at auction when it fetched $17.8 million. But what about modern Rolex Daytona chronographs; how will they fare 30 years from now in the watch collecting community?

In watch collecting circles, it is not uncommon to hear nicknames being thrown around when discussing important models. And one such moniker you may have come across is the Omega FOIS; also known as the First Omega in Space.

For five days in March, the Messeplatz exhibition space in Basel, Switzerland hosted Baselworld, the watch industry’s biggest annual fair. While there was plenty of trepidation leading up to this year’s edition following Swatch Group’s surprising announcement that it would be pulling its dozen or so famous watch brands from the show, the fair’s management kept calm and carried on.

By and large, the most popular luxury watch brands are those that manage to balance strong design codes with a solid assortment of options. This is no small feat; after all, sticking to a signature look and offering plenty of choices are on opposite ends of the spectrum. Yet, some brands like Panerai have mastered this approach.

For dive watch enthusiasts, it’s hard to beat the appeal of Seiko dive watches. Rather than so-called desk divers, which may look and work like a dive watch but have probably never been deeper than a hot tub, Seiko dive watches are constructed for actual scuba diving by adhering to the ISO 6425 standard.

If you like the blacked-out sports watch look, then the Tudor Heritage Black Bay Dark may be right up your alley. Less expensive than full black ceramic watches, this factory black PVD coated steel Tudor dive watch is a modern take on the brand’s vintage-inspired diver collection.

Okay, I’ll admit, these are not the most elegant labels when discussing luxury watches. But if you hang out with Paneristi long enough, you’re bound to hear the terms “sausage” and “sandwich” being used when discussing Panerai watches and their different dials. So what exactly are Panerai sandwich and sausage dials? Let’s dig in, shall we?

Despite the scaled-down size of this year’s Baselworld, some watch brands unveiled a solid assortment of luxury women’s watches geared towards the growing female watch enthusiast crowd.

When a luxury watch brand has a hit on their hands, it is not uncommon for the company to create a spin-off of the popular model. It’s a way to create a new, often brasher, version of the watch for a new audience without alienating the fans of the original. For example, the original Audemars Piguet Royal Oak and its younger but beefier brother, the Royal Oak Offshore.

Speak to anyone who either attended this edition of Baselworld or followed closely along online and you’ll start to understand that it wasn’t the best year for what is supposed to be the watch industry’s biggest fair. Yet, there were still some solid new watches to note. Here are our top picks for five of the coolest watches from Baselworld 2019.

MB&F is no stranger to making unexpected and whimsical timepiece creations (or as the brand likes to like to call them, horological machines). Now, in perhaps their most surprising move yet, MB&F releases its first ladies’ timepiece—and it is a beauty!

Baselworld 2019 is finally upon us, which means a whole batch of novelties to comb through. As is the case every year, most eyes are on Rolex’s new releases. While most of the attention is undoubtedly on their new sports watches, some of Rolex’s new dress watches are worth a discussion too.