Breaking Audemars Piguet Wins the Aiguille dOr at GPHG 2019
This is it, the 2019 edition of the GPHG, known as the Oscars of the watchmaking industry, has come to a close and the prize for the best watch of the year, also known as the?Aiguille d'Or, has been awarded. This year again, the Grand Prix aims at rewarding creativity, innovation and haute horlogerie – in short, the best the watchmaking industry can produce. So here’s the best watch of 2019, the Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Selfwinding Perpetual Calendar Ultra-Thin (based on the RD#2 concept), reviewed here, also known as the thinnest perpetual calendar watch ever – as well as all the other prize winners of the GPHG 2019.Quick takeAs often, the Grand Prix tends, in the normal categories, to award some impressively complicated (and expensive) watches. The GPHG 2019 doesn’t make an exception, with most of the winning watches being a demonstration of the best skills of the industry. While last year independent watchmakers were at centre stage, this year it appears tha

Industry Watches & Wonders Shanghai, China, September 2020
While the centre of attraction for Watches & Wonders – previously known as SIHH or Salon International de la Haute Horlogerie – has always been Geneva, Switzerland, the show has been held in other locations such as Hong Kong or in Miami. For 2020, this relocated extension of W&W will take place in Shanghai, China – from September 9th to September 13th, 2020 – a strategic choice considering the importance of the Asian market for Richemont (and other brands) sales.?After three mini-SIHH editions (2013, 2014 and 2015) in Hong Kong and a relocation of the additional show to Miami in 2018 and 2019, the Watches & Wonders ecosystem has decided to add yet another – but highly strategic – location to its portfolio of shows with the upcoming Watches & Wonders Shanghai 2020. While this year’s edition of the main Geneva-based event has been cancelled due to the pandemic, Shanghai will be an important venue for participating brands as it is

First Look: IWC Portugieser Automatic 40 & 42
This year is all about the Portugieser for IWC, and the brand brings several spending novelties to the table, including updated icons within the already iconic collection. Next to the Portugieser Chronograph receiving an aesthetic update, there are a couple more things to talk about. As a collection, the Portugieser can trace back its roots to the 1930s, when IWC adopted highly precise pocket watch movements in wrist-worn watches. In the decades that followed, the Portugieser has evolved into one of IWC’s evergreens, known for its style and refinement. The range comprises simple automatic watches all the way to tourbillons and perpetual calendars. But in the case of the simpler Portugieser, there’s plenty to be discovered with the new IWC Portugieser Automatic 40mm & 42mm editions.For the Portugieser Automatic 40mm and 42mm versions, IWC has again adopted the play of colour, with dials inspired by the passing of the day into night and back into day again. Besides that,

Longines Heritage Classic With Black Sector Dial - Hands-On, Price
Longines’ Heritage collection, the brand’s playground for vintage re-editions, has become a reference for anyone looking for a retro-styled watch. Well-executed and loyal to the originals, the watches in the Heritage collection also come with relatively accessible prices. There’s a wide choice in this collection, ranging from elegant models to more instrumental watches?or military-inspired pieces. Most of them deserve attention, but one, in particular, stands out for us at MONOCHROME, and that is the Heritage Classic Sector Dial. First launched in a serene silver edition, it now returns with a striking black dial and cool BoR bracelet, and we gave it a test on the wrist.Knowing the extent of the brand’s vintage collection, the Longines Heritage could be an endless story. There are hundreds of models, from historically important pilot’s watches to handsome chronographs or attractive dive watches. And Longines is well aware that it is sitting on a gold mine,

Hands-On - Frederique Constant Vintage Rally Healey Automatic Small Seconds
For more than 15 years, Frederique Constant has been associated with the world of vintage sports cars and historic rallies. The limited Vintage Rally collection pays tribute to one of the most emblematic British sports cars, the Austin-Healey. Since 2004, Frederique Constant and the Austin-Healey car brand have been partners resulting in one of the most enduring associations in the industry. A new year means a new collection, and for 2021 Frederique Constant releases a series of Vintage Rally Healey watches. Following the models with centre seconds last year, here are the new Vintage Rally Healey Automatic Small Seconds models.The HEALEY 100S NOJ 393Just like last year’s models, the new 2021 edition pay tribute to one of the most important Healey cars. Ten years ago, the NOJ 393 ex-Works 1953-55 Austin-Healey Special Test Car/100S set a world record. Not a speed record, but a record price at auction for an Austin-Healey when Bonhams sold it for GBP 843,000 (close to USD 1 million