Introducing the Smoky Green Santos De Cartier MM & LM Models
Revamped entirely in 2018, with a sportier design and a clever set of interchangeable straps and bracelet, the Santos de Cartier (not to be confused with its more elegant sister, the Santos-Dumont) has been first launched, classically, with silver dials, and in Large Model (LM) and Medium Model (MM), both powered by automatic movements. Then followed a cool gradient blue dial, and bold versions mixing steel and rubber, either in black or in blue. This year, the Santos de Cartier will have a new edition, and be prepared, we might look at possibly the coolest edition so far. Here are the Smoky Green Santos LM and MM.On the side of the specs, nothing changes. The Santos de Cartier is still the sports watch with a French touch, typical of Cartier, yet with a more robust twist. And there’s still the super practical QuickSwitch?interchangeability system, as the two editions come with a steel bracelet and a green alligator strap as standard. The steel bracelet also features the SmartLin

IWC Big Pilot's Watch Perpetual Calendar Lewis Hamilton IW503002
Last year, I had the chance to interview F1 superstar Lewis Hamilton, just before the French Grand-Prix. Part of the discussion was, of course, his impressive racing results but also something more in line with our usual topics; watches. I asked him what if he had the opportunity to design his own IWC watch. He answered “red gold is my favourite (…) I love the Big Pilot's watch, I love heavier watches (…) Most likely it would be a perpetual calendar (…) A watch as mechanical as possible.” Well, it seems that his idea has come to life, with the new IWC “Lewis Hamilton” Big Pilot’s Watch Perpetual Calendar.?Let’s get it straight… This new IWC Lewis Hamilton edition is bold. Colours are louder than your usual Pilot’s watch, the mix of materials brings a lot of contrast, the watch is large, heavy, complex and far from accessible. In short, it’s quite in line with the image Hamilton sends – even though, to my bigg

Longines Legend Diver Black PVD with new movement - Baselworld 2018 (Specs)
For Baselworld 2018, Longines brings a few updates to one of its most iconic modern watches, the Legend Diver. Not only is now comes with a new and more performant movement, but mainly, it now available in full black – case, dial, strap. And while, here at MONOCHROME, we’re usually not huge fans of full black watches, this new Longines Legend Diver Black PVD has quite some appeal.The basics are still the same: a vintage-inspired dive watch with compressor-style case, designed after a legendary 1960s watch, with internal rotating bezel and two crowns on the right side of the case. The watch retains its lacquered black dial, its signature indexes and hands, its 300m water resistance and its overall very cool look. Ad - Scroll to continue with article What’s new then? First and foremost, the 42mm case of the?Longines Legend Diver is now coated in

Hands-On - Seiko Prospex Captain Willard SPB151-SPB153 (Specs Price)
There is more than one icon at Seiko… Far more. Not surprisingly, most of them are part of the Prospex collection and relate to the world of divers. Think 62Mas, Hi-Beat 300m and Tuna Professional (all of them recently re-created). And there’s the ‘Turtle’, the watch known under the reference 6105, a watch that has defined Seiko’s modern and accessible dive watch… and the watch that was worn in legendary 1979 movie Apocalypse Now. And today, the ‘Captain Willard’ could be yours, with the new SPB151 and SPB153.Left: SPB151, black dial/bezel on steel bracelet. Right: SPB153, olive green dial/bezel on silicone strapIt isn’t the first time we see a re-edition of the 1970s Seiko ‘Turtle’ 6105. In fact, it is widely available in a modern interpretation with the Prospex Automatic Diver SRP series. Much more accurate was the watch launched at Baselworld 2019, the Seiko 1970 Diver's Re-Creation SLA033. Superbly executed, manufact

The Speedmaster Chronicles #4 - Aurel Bacs, Auctioneer at Phillips Watches
The Former NASA Program Manager and Aerospace Engineer who certified the Speedmaster, the journalist turned watch-designer who initiated “Speedy Tuesday”, a seasoned Speedy collector… What could have been the next step when it comes to the Omega Speedmaster? At a certain point, when you look at such an iconic watch, you have to talk auctions and markets. So no shortcuts, we asked renowned auctioneer Aurel Bacs from Phillips Watches to join us and talk about the Speedmaster. And the best surprise was that not only he talked about his professional view on this piece of history, but this movie ended up to be much more personal than expected. Please meet Aurel and his personal Omega Speedmaster.If Aurel Bacs and Phillips Watches are in the spotlights these days, it’s not by surprise. Aurel and his team members are all, without exception, watch enthusiasts. They love watches, they know watches, they have true confidence in the watches they sell. This knowledge is cru