The Artemis Racing America's Cup sailing team, which is sponsored by Ulysse Nardin, training in Bermuda

Understanding The America’s Cup’s Fascination With Time

The America’s Cup, the world’s oldest international sporting trophy, first became a serious topic in the world of watches back in 2003, when Audemars Piguet became the partner of Cup challenger ‘Alinghi.’ In this thirty-fifth edition of the America’s Cup, we see a number of watch brands involved aside from principal sponsor, Louis Vuitton. Beginning with Ulysse Nardin, the timing partner of Artemis Racing.

De Bethune DB28 Digitale on the wrist

A Love Letter To De Bethune

Dear De Bethune,

Can I call you Thunie? Or, even better, just DB?

I have decided to place quill upon pad after all these years of watching you . . . no, I’m neither a stalker nor a star-struck groupie.

But more often than not you have intrigued, baffled, dazzled, and surprised me.

You do not remember our first meeting; how could you? You were just a baby, very different from what you are today. You had rather classic looks inside and out, but there was a je ne sais quoi implying that you might grow into something more interesting and perhaps flamboyant . . .

Sports watches pre-selected for the 2015 GPHG. Clockwise from top left: Royal Oak Offshore Selfwinding Tourbillon Chronograph, Blancpain Fifty Fathoms Bathyscaphe, Harry Winston Project Z9, Seiko Prospex Marinemaster Professional Diver's 1000m Hi-Beat 36000, Zenith El Primero Sport, and Tudor Pelagos

Quill & Pad’s Predictions For The Sports Category Of The 2015 Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève

Welcome to the 2015 edition of Quill & Pad’s early Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève (GPHG) predictions in which we pick our favorites and explain why. The six pre-selected finalists in the Sports category are the Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Offshore Selfwinding Tourbillon Chronograph, Blancpain’s Fifty Fathoms Bathyscaphe, the Harry Winston Project Z9, Seiko’s Prospex Marinemaster Professional Diver’s 1000m Hi-Beat 36000, the Tudor Pelagos, and the Zenith El Primero Sport.

Greubel Forsey Tourbillon 24-Secondes Vision

Video: An In-Depth Look At The Greubel Forsey 24 Secondes Vision

Greubel Forsey’s timepieces usually have much of the movement on display on the dial side, which is all the better to appreciate the beauty of its design and sublime hand-finishing. But the 24 Secondes Vision is altogether more discreet and it does not fully reveal its magic until it is turned over. That’s where the micro-mechanical ballet beneath the transparent dome takes place.

Romain Gauthier Logical One in red gold with black enamel dial

Why Do Ultra-High-End Watches Cost So Much? Hand-Finishing At Romain Gauthier Sheds Some Light

In this article I look at why high end watches cost so much by examining one of the most important factors. To answer this question, there are quite a few reasons, including low production numbers (mass manufacture brings prices down) and high complexity, but the one I will focus on here is hand-finishing, because unlike low production numbers and high complexity, ultra-high-level hand-finishing is not usually easy to appreciate.

Pre-selected Jewellery watches in the 2015 Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève

Quill & Pad’s Predictions For The Jewellery Category Of The 2015 Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Geneve

Welcome to the 2015 edition of Quill & Pad’s early Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève (GPHG) predictions in which we pick our favorites and explain why. The six pre-selected finalists in the Jewellery category are the audacious Audemars Piguet Diamond Punk, Bulgari’s MVSA High Jewellery Watch, the Chaumet Joséphine Aigrette Impériale, de Grisogono’s fluid Grappoli, the colorful Fabergé Summer in Provence Multicoloured Sapphire, and the Piaget Extremely Piaget Double Sided Cuff Watch.

MCT Frequential One F110 looking good on the wrist

A Xenomorph From Continuing Evolution: MCT Frequential One F110

The MCT Frequential One F110 shares DNA and some familiar form with its neighboring population of the Sequential One and Sequential Two, but it is an end population that is truly itself. It’s something new.

New mechanics with familiar form

Mechanically speaking, the Frequential One F110 is a very new watch. Stylistically speaking, it is clearly a co-evolved result of what has come before. Gone are the rotating prisms, the large minute hand indicating the jump hour, and the three-quarter ring that jumps to uncover the current hour. But what replaces them?

Artistic crafts pre-selected for the 2015 GPHG. Clockwise from top left: Romain Gauthier Logical one Secret Kakau Höfke, Blancpain Villeret with Shakudo dial, Girard-Perregaux The Chambers of Wonders - The New World, Hermès Slim d'Hermès Koma Kurabé, Piaget Altiplano Scrimshaw, and Harry Winston Premier Precious Butterfly Automatic 36mm

Quill & Pad’s Predictions For The Artistic Crafts Category Of The 2015 Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève

Welcome to the 2015 edition of Quill & Pad’s early Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève (GPHG) predictions in which we pick our favorites and explain why. The six finalists in the Artistic Crafts category are the Blancpain Villeret cadran Shakudo, Girard-Perregaux The Chambers of Wonders – The New World, Harry Winston Premier Precious Butterfly Automatic 36mm, Hermès Slim d’Hermès Koma Kurabe, Piaget Altiplano Scrimshaw, and the Romain Gauthier Logical One Secret Kakau Höfke.

All of the Nomos Glashütte Neomatik have a splash of bright orange

How Does Nomos Glashütte Make A Beautiful Watch With Manufacture Movement For Under $3,000?

How can Nomos Glashütte make a watch with a manufacture movement for about €1,000 when most Swiss brands can’t? To get the details, I asked managing director and partner in the Saxon brand, Uwe Ahrendt, to explain some of the elements that go into such calculations. You might be surprised at his logical answers.

Nomos Glashütte Tangente Neomatik Champagner

Nomos Glashütte Neomatik: A Sensibly Priced, Efficient, Fashionable, And Mechanically Sound Tribute To The Past And Future Of Glashütte

To celebrate the arrival of Nomos Glashütte’s brand-new automatic movement, the Saxon brand introduces its largest collection ever at one time: the Neomatik. But perhaps the most important element of the Neomatik watches is the movement that powers them: automatic Caliber DUW 3001, which is Nomos Glashütte’s second automatic mechanism in its 25-year history.