The Grand Seiko Hi-Beat 36000 GMT was awarded the “Petite Aiguille” prize for best watch under 8,000 swiss francs by the jury of the 2015 Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève

Grand Seiko: Already Big In Japan And Getting Bigger Near You (Archive)

Seiko’s story is much more complicated than most people might think. This is a manufacturer that doesn’t follow trends, but has created a few of its own, capitalizing on various types of expertise and knowledge that were the mother of necessity for a manufacturer located so far away from the established centers of watchmaking in Europe. Grand Seiko is the most appealing line to connoisseurs of fine watchmaking, and we look at it in some depth here.

Australia

2,000-Kilometer Australian Road Trip With Two Friends: Ulysse Nardin Dual Time And De Bethune DB28

I’m an expat Aussie who has now lived longer out of Australia than in, but in a few years my (Swiss) wife and I are planning on moving from Switzerland to Airlie Beach in North Queensland, Australia. In September 2016, I flew to the region for a week’s worth of face-to-face meetings to help lay the groundwork for our move.

It was a tight schedule, especially as I was sure to be suffering from jetlag, but it was doable. Especially with the Ulysse Nardin Dual Time on my wrist to help keep track of time there and at home.

Chanel Premíère Camellia Skeleton Set

Chanel Introduces Première Camellia Skeleton With Manufacture Movement

The Chanel Première line celebrates its thirtieth anniversary this year, and it does so with more imaginative mechanical style than usual. The new Premíère Camellia Skeleton features the brand’s second in-house movement with camellia-inspired bridges within a Place Vendôme-inspired case.

Richard Mille RM 35-01 Rafael Nadal

Exotic Timepieces At Christie’s Dubai Auction, Including Unique Boucheron Hawk Powered By Girard-Perregaux Three Bridges Tourbillon (Updated With Results)

Many watch auctions appear to be dominated by notable sales of Rolex and Patek Philippe timepieces. And I’ve nothing against those two lovely brands, but the world of big auctions is becoming ever more monotone. Here are some genuinely exotic, decidedly out-of-the-ordinary timepieces currently on offer at Christie’s Important Watches auction, which takes place in Dubai on March 19, 2017.

Panerai Luminor 1950 Regatta Oracle Team USA 3 Days Chrono Flyback Automatic Titanio 47 mm

Panerai Sails Into The 35th America’s Cup With Oracle Team USA . . . And More

Most brands celebrate or commemorate a prestigious partnership with an event like the 35th America’s Cup with just one watch, but Panerai presented an incredible number of five watches. Come with me to Bermuda, where Panerai introduces its involvement in the oldest trophied sporting even in the world.

Yard-O-Led mechanical pencils

Yard-O-Led: The Most Traditional Writing Instruments You’ve Never Heard Of

Yard-O-Led is not exactly your average, everyday, run-of-the-mill brand name. And it’s especially not an everyday, run-of-the-mill luxury brand name. However, although Yard-O-Led is an unusual name, it also happens to be a very practical one as it states right up front precisely what made it famous.

Garrick Portsmouth

Give Me Five! 5 British Watches From SalonQP 2016 From Bremont, Garrick, Schofield, Robert Loomes, And A Ring-In

If you’re ever going to find five great British watches anywhere, it most certainly would be at SalonQP, the UK’s premier watch event. So without further ado, I present you five British watches on show at the 2016 SalonQP in London.

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? (Archive)

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.

Swatch Touch Zero One

Swatch Group Gets Serious About Connected Watches, Plans Launch Of New Products Late 2018

Swatch Group and CSEM (Swiss Center for Electronics and Microtechnology) announced on February 5, 2017 that the two entities have collaborated to develop a Swiss made “ecosystem” for “connected objects.”

Konstantin Chaykin Moscow Comptus Clock

A Mechanical Masterpiece By A Mechanical Mastermind: The Konstantin Chaykin Moscow Comptus Easter Clock

Konstantin Chaykin’s latest masterpiece, the Moscow Comptus Easter Clock, isn’t designed for the wrist but for the mantel, and it presents further evidence that the man I dubbed the “Wonderboy Russian Watchmaker” is one of the greatest watch and clockmakers in the game today.