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There is no denying how significantly Louis Vuitton’s watchmaking at La Fabrique Du Temps has evolved. This culminated in the new 40mm Tambour, where Vuitton revitalised the integrated bracelet genre. That may sound overwrought, but the brand’s emphasis on modernity is significant in a world of reissues. What then of the Louis Vuitton Tambour Convergence?

Ahead of LVMH Watch Week, we were expecting a delightful twist on the much-lauded Tambour. But these first images of the Tambour Convergence have surprised us. With this significant release, Louis Vuitton has taken 2025 by the horns with an unexpectedly new and understated look. Where the Tambour is modern in size and execution, the Tambour Convergence has its very own identity. This includes a smaller size (37mm) and, frankly, lugs to die for. If pressed for a term, call it retro-modern, but that doesn’t do justice to this important move by Vuitton.

The first impression is of rakish charm and a big presence for its goldilocks size of only 37mm. Visible at first glance, the case of the Convergence is an all-new design by Vuitton. In a world of vintage reissues, LV offers a sleek emphasis on minimalism, taking inspiration from vintage ‘montres a guichet’ or ‘aperture watches’. This was a niche trend instigated in the thirties and often referenced in the desirable Cartier Tank a Guichet.

There is much to unpack within the new Tambour Convergence, and its beauty lies in exquisite detail work. The cambered, slightly tapering case shape and polished tapering crown are the only recognisable family traits in the 8mm case. There are two distinct models in the debut range, one in solid pink gold and the other a gem set version in platinum. Both have a distinctly brushed sides and the tambour case has a brand-new set of soldered lugs that gives a strong juxtaposed sense of modernity to the recognisable Tambour shape. Instead of a sapphire crystal, the slim brushed bezel frames a curved, solid precious metal plate with a fan-shaped twin display at 12 o’clock

What makes the Tambour Convergence so distinct is the modern, sculpted lugs. With their scalloped, sandblasted sides they contrast the flamboyant guichets or windows. The hour window offers a view of engraved serifed numerals on a circular-brushed disc, with the minute disc underneath. The numerals are filled with a deep blue lacquer, and the distinct Art Deco-inspired windows are set within a fan-shaped recess. In the pink gold reference W9PG11 this is sandblasted, as is a ring between the outer and inner parts of the polished precious metal front.

The French term guichet comes from a grill opening or ticket window, where two rotating discs with the hours and minutes are visible through small openings. We will forgive you if you haven’t seen this bygone concept before. Vuitton takes the idea of the Cartier, most collectors’ reference point, transforming the niche genre to perhaps spark an exciting new trend. You could also cite other independents like the visually similar but fundamentally different Andersen Geneve Jumping Hours. The Tambour Convergence has a quiet and balanced sense of proportionate elegance, with a refined play on contrasting finishes that is taken to another level with the ref. W9PT11 in platinum.

Both Louis Vuitton Convergence references have a capitalised logo at six o’clock. On the platinum version this is crafted into a fan-shaped plaque that balances out the guichets at 12. The entire centre section is set with a dazzling array of diamonds totalling 795, using a technique known as snow-setting, where all stones are fixed so closely that their settings cannot be discerned. It involves a highly experienced gem-setter who combines stones of various sizes to create one seamless glittering surface by hand. The Tambour Convergence in platinum utilises stones in seven sizes and requires 32 hours to complete. The watch is presented on a deep blue calf leather strap echoing the blue lacquer-filled hour and minute numerals.

The case of the Tambour Convergence is made in-house at the newly inaugurated La Fabrique des Boitiers. This is Vuitton’s new case-making facility, and the movement within is also new for the Convergence. The compact Calibre LFT MA01.01 is a slim, automatic movement developed entirely in-house, marking a significant step for the Manufacture. With sandblasted bridgework that exhibits micro-sandblasted edges, the juxtaposition of traditional and modern is continued from the case itself.

Contemporary chronometry standards are ensured by features that include a free-sprung balance with high-precision inertia blocks (masselots). For those who appreciate traditional watchmaking touches, details like the elegantly arched barrel click enhance the visual refinement of the Calibre LFT MA01.01. With this surprising release, we are already looking forward to seeing what other aces Louis Vuitton has up its bespoke sleeves this year.

More details at Louis Vuitton

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Amazon.com has the upcoming Casio AE-1600 series available for pre-ordering with a February 1 release date, but with an inexplicably high price of $77.94 for each model. In comparison, Casio Singapore has each model listed as coming soon for S$55 (around US$40). The very similar AE-1500 series has a list price of $29.95 per model […]

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Gerald Charles is turning 25. As most collectors will know, the man behind the brand is Gerald Genta (yes, that Gerald Genta), who made his legendary name in the 70s. But most of those famous designs – your Oaks Royale, Nautili, etc. – were commissions, not under his own label. Gerald Charles on the other hand was founded by him in 2000 and given the designer’s first and second name. So here we are, two-and-a-half decades later, and Gerald Charles are celebrating that fact with two new timepieces. On the one hand we have a magnificent tourbillon with a painstakingly hand-hammered dial; on the other, an ultra-thin number with a painstakingly made Lapis dial. They really don’t make things easy on themselves, do they?

Gerald Charles Maestro 9.0 Roman Tourbillon

The Maestro is one of the most distinctive watches in its rarefied realm of sports-adjacent dress watches. Created in 2005, the stepped, technically octagonal case was designed to show off a 6 o’clock tourbillon with that distinctive smile. In that sense, while the brand’s 2024 flagship finally brought in what Genta’s best known for – a gorgeous integrated bracelet – the Maestro 9.0 tourbillon is arguably the modern brand’s signature.

What sets this new version apart however is the dial. As alluded to earlier, rather than being engraved with some kind of pattern or texture, the white gold has been hammered by hand. The result is a beautiful, grained dial that by its very nature is irreplicable. And while I say ‘hammered’, the actual technique involved something more similar to a blunt chisel, a tiny, delicate tool that requires patience, precision and 23 hours minimum per dial. ‘Hammered’ suddenly doesn’t seem like the right word.

It’s worth pointing out that this isn’t the first time Gerald Charles has used this technique, with a previous version of the Maestro 9.0 offering the same in rose gold. Personally though, the cooler, white metal here showcases the hammered finish much better, especially with the colour matching stainless steel case. Not that it’s monochromatic, of course.

To add some punch and readability to the dial, the oversized Roman numerals at 12, 3 and 9 – the 60-second tourbillon takes over 6 – are stark white and bordered in blue, matching the Maestro’s stepped bezel, which has been given a blue coating for both hardness and colour. Though let’s be honest, mainly colour.

That said, there are some nods to practicality in the Maestro 9.0. It has 100m water resistance, a rarity for a tourbillon, and the case is made from a combination of steel and titanium. It also has 5G shock resistance, which is even rarer. Top that off with a 50-hour power reserve and you have a surprisingly durable, everyday wearable tourbillon. I mean, it’s no field watch, but it’s good to know.

Gerald Charles Maestro 2.0 Ultra-Thin Lapis Lazuli

While artisan hammering gets a lovely, natural grain, you can’t get better finishing than nature. Or at least geology. Semi-precious stone dials have been gaining popularity of late, but as is the case with most of his work, Gerald Genta was a fan before it was cool. Indeed, he had a particular penchant for Lapis Lazuli, the watchmaking world’s blue stone of choice. So what better gift for Gerald Charles’ 25^th anniversary and a Lapis dial?

Rather than a tourbillon, which would cut out too much of the dial to make sense, the base here is the Maestro 2.0 Ultra-Thin. It still has the same case shape as the rest of the Maestro line, but just 9mm thick. It’s not record breaking but my goodness it feels skinny on your wrist.

That thinness and the stone dial would obviously make you assume that this is a dress watch. But again, with 100m water resistance, some serious shock resistance and a 50-hour power reserve, it’s a good deal more practical than your standard gold number. The 39 x 41mm case is also in stainless steel, so it can take a knock or two if you’re particularly careless.

Set on a dial-matched blue rubber strap with its own splash of Clous de Paris, this is a watch that proves why Gerald Genta, even if under a slightly different name, was the master of sports luxe.

More details at Gerald Charles.

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The latest G-Shock collaboration with the Hiroshima Toyo Carp professional baseball team is a G-Shock GA-2100 in black and red. The limited edition watch is made in Japan and features the Carp logo on the dial and the Carp Boy mascot engraved on the stainless steel case back. The watch offers a unique colorway with […]

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If you’re unfamiliar with Sartory Billard, I recommend checking out our brand introduction from last summer. But the short version of the story is that they’re a French brand who specialise in bespoke and custom watches designed and built in collaboration with their customers. However, they also produce a handful of ‘ready to buy’ watches known as the Editions Collection. They recently expanded this collection with the new SB04-E Ruby Platinum limited edition and the non-limited SB04-E Tantalum Hand-Engraved.

The SB04-E is the replacement for the now discontinued SB04 model. Eventually you’ll be able to customise it as part of the bespoke range, but at time of writing it’s still listed as coming soon in the bespoke section. The new model has a 39.5mm case in stainless steel with a smooth bezel, polished bevels and brushed sides. It’s also nice and svelte with a thickness of 10.3mm while also retaining a solid level of robustness thanks to a 100m water resistance rating.

Where the two models differ are the dials. Starting with the SB04-E Ruby Platinum, it has a central disk of ruby with a delicate crystalline pattern. While we’re used to seeing synthetic rubies used in horology (providing much needed friction protection in movements), it’s not often that you see the natural gemstone used for decorative elements. Its extreme rarity and high value make it impractical to use, plus its notoriously difficult to cut to the 0.5mm thickness most watches use for stone dials.

It makes for a striking and impressive centrepiece to the dial. Around the edge of the ruby heart is the broad hour and minute scales, which here are presented in a dark grey fumé with sunray brushing. The ring is actually platinum plated, hence the name SB04-E Ruby Platinum, adding an extra layer of luxury to the piece and adding a brilliance to the polished elements such as the small, inner lip around the ruby disk.

Moving to the SB04-E Tantalum Hand-Engraved edition, its central disk is made from tantalum delicately engraved with a feather-like finish. The hour and minute ring is also produced in tantalum but this time with sunray brushing for the finish. Tantalum is an interesting material that’s steadily seeing more and more use in the watch industry – it’s very hard, making it suitable for watches, while also having a high lustre, giving it a good aesthetic appeal.

Below the dials of both versions, you’ll find the La Joux-Perret G101 automatic movement with 68-hour power reserve. LJP’s movements have become the go to for watchmakers looking for third party movements with higher specs and a touch more prestige than anything offered by Sellita or ETA. It operates at a 4Hz frequency and is wound by a tungsten rotor decorated with Geneva stripes.

The SB04-E Ruby Platinum is limited to 150 pieces at a price of €4,700 excl. VAT (approx. £3,970) and the non-limited SB04-E Tantalum Hand-Engraved is €3,500 excl. VAT (approx. £2,960). Those are pretty incredible prices considering the delicate craftsmanship involved and high quality movement. It really highlights the value or rather lack of value, some other mid-range luxury brands offer.

More details at Sartory Billard.

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One of Tudor’s unexpected hits of 2024 was the Black Bay Chrono “Pink”. I say unexpected because initially Tudor made it incredibly difficult to get hold of one but demand was so high that eventually they relented and added it to general sale. They aren’t making the same mistake with the new follow up to the colourful chrono, dubbed the Tudor Black Bay Chrono “Blue Flamingo”, which is available to purchase immediately.

This watch was first teased online when David Beckham and Jay Chou, two Tudor ambassadors, were spotted wearing the turquoise dialled timepiece in promotional material. It has the standard dimensions of the Black Bay Chrono measuring 41mm in diameter and 14.4mm in thickness and is made from stainless steel. It also has the signature screw-down pushers seen on popular chronographs like the Black Bay Chrono’s more famous sister the Rolex Daytona.

The colour of the Tudor Black Bay Chrono “Blue Flamingo”s dial has multiple inspirations. While Tudor don’t acknowledge it directly, there’s clearly a link to Inter Miami’s third kit which is a very similar shade of turquoise. Inter Miami is the team owned by David Beckham and the original pink Chrono was dedicated to the team. Tudor instead call the colour “Blue Flamingo” based on the rather fanciful notion that if you asked anyone what this made-up colour would look like, it would be this.

On social media I have already seen the term Tiffany blue bandied about and it’s difficult to judge whether the tones are the same or if there’s a notable difference without seeing the Tudor side by side with a genuine Tiffany blue timepiece like the Patek Philippe Nautilus. Coincidentally that would be a killer two-watch collection if LeBron James or Jay-Z happen to be reading this.

Tudor have paired the “Blue Flamingo” dial with black chronograph subdials and a black tachymeter bezel. The chronograph complication is powered by the manufacture calibre MT5813, which has a 70-hour power reserve indicator. It’s one of Tudor’s COSC chronometer movements rather than their recent forays into METAS master chronometer certification.

As for price, the Tudor Black Bay Chrono “Blue Flamingo” is £5,020 and Tudor state that the watch is available to purchase immediately. Although at time of writing there is no online purchase portal on the website, suggesting it’s a boutique exclusive or only available through direct enquiry.

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If you persist with your argument, the heading of this story alone will spark much debate around the bar or even fisticuffs at your local RedBar GTG. No one can deny the pure functionality of a watch date window, and we forget that it is an actual complication with a purpose. But in our world of having all the information at our swiping fingertips, the watch has, for many, become something else—a talisman, even a male piece of jewellery where the date is an unbalanced distraction.

We firmly disagree and embrace the still important and frankly necessary information a date window provides. Even if many of you only think it’s needed on a sun-drenched holiday when you forget what day it is. Because you don’t want to arrive at the airport a day late for your return flight, right? Some brands agree wholeheartedly with us and eschew the plain square opening at three for elaborate celebrations of this small but significant complication, while others attempt to hide it within complex open-worked marvels.

Date at 3 O’Clock

The most prevalent position of a watch date window is at three o’clock, where, in many cases, it supplants the Roman or Arabic numeral altogether. Its functional look has become divisive on pure tool watches and minimal dress pieces, but it doesn’t take away from its useful nature. Laurent Ferrier has gone against the current, making the actual window a strong part of its brand identity, and it works like a charm. With a slope starting from just right of the dial centre and its crosshair design, it widens to become a big part of the dial, with the crosshair becoming a pinstripe frame. You’ll find this delightful feature in their Sport models, spectacularly making a dressy cameo in the Classic Auto Sandstone Série Atelier VI this summer.

Big Date

The concept of a Big Date is mostly associated with the German watchmaking enclave of Glashütte, and grail watches like the A.Lange & Söhne Datograph Flyback Chronograph. This is a Godsend for date window lovers, as there is no mistaking the big twin-window display just below 12 o’clock. With twin date wheels synched as only Lange knows how to, a curvaceous serifed font fills the twin windows with a crisp black-on-white date. The big date’s prominence is needed when fitted to an immaculate dial in a weighty platinum case, as it will have its work cut out to catch your attention.

Circular Date

A pertinent question to the watch brands might be why most watch date windows are square when dials are circular. Being familiar with even the briefest design vocabularies, logic would dictate a square opening on a square dial and a circular cut-out on a round dial, right? Dior seems to have got the memo, to the extent that their Chiffre Rouge has smugly underlined its shape-matching perfection. Each watch in the range features a black aesthetic and a prominent bullseye date at four o’clock. With a healthy dose of French sartorial chic, each window is framed by three red circles, with a vivid red font for the eighth, which is Monsieur Dior’s lucky number.

Open-Worked Date

Hublot plays a strong open-worked game, with nigh-on 90% of their watches offering a tantalising glimpse into their inner workings. The Aerofusion Black Magic is a prime example of its stealthy splendour, boasting a scratch-proof black ceramic case that is part of the more restrained Classic Fusion line. You might have to search within its dark architecture, but the in-house HUB1155 self-winding movement features a skeletonised date wheel. It resides behind the sapphire dial and is shown in its micro-engineered entirety, with a white square behind the toothed wheel at six o’clock, implying today’s date. It’s not easy to combine an all-black aesthetic with a sense of clarity, but Hublot does it with dark-toned aplomb.

Subdial Date

I’m a big fan of the big 44mm IWC Portugieser Perpetual Calendar in its ice-blue version, despite its oddly asymmetric date window at 7:30, which throws the quad-circular design off its info-packed balance. Subtly rendered in a matching blue, it is a date window but not as we know it. It marks the year with four digits, while the day and date are shown within the twin opposed sub-dials at three and nine. They also include the running seconds and a seven-day power reserve, offering exemplary legibility.

Twin Date Wheels

Microbrand, Zelos is known for its playful designs and love of materials we normally see in much more expensive watches. In their titanium Spearfish Dual Time, we are treated to the German touch of a twin-wheel watch date window display at 12 o’clock with a difference. The dial is clear sapphire, which shows the machine-made perlage on the Swiss Sellita SW300 calibre with a TT651 Module. Its most prominent feature is seeing the small twin date wheels and their modern fonts as they meet under a small, framed window cut out of the sapphire.

Non-Date Date

If two words were not meant to be together, it’s these two. But back in 2023, Rolex threw caution to the wind. And they did so with a watch that made some of us sit up and notice, if only for its out-there design. The Rolex Day-Date Puzzle Dial smashed all preconceptions of the grounded brand with a puzzle-enamel dial and a thorough rethink of the traditional day and watch date windows. Consider it a cheeky nod to the fact that a solid gold Day-Date is perceived more as jewellery than a timepiece. The day window offers inspiring capitalised words like LOVE and the date window at three. Well, it boasts emojis rather than dates. Yes, an actual Rolex timepiece with a smiley, a ladybird and other symbols appearing under the storied cyclops, changing at midnight for your delight.

Abstract Date

Having been in conversation with half of the tech-watchmaking brand’s duo, Martin Frei, in Geneva, their ethos of innovation is clear. The UR-1001 is a great example of their big but wearable output, which we’re not sure we can even call wristwatches. The stealthy machine is perhaps their only model offering a date indication. Within an opening at 11 that offers a glimpse of the complexities within, a central star-shaped indicator has four months on each rotating arm, the current one acting as an indicator to a retrograde date display. And like all of Urwerk’s stealthy creations it has a beguiling blend of legibility and spacecraft-cool that’ll make you the talking point of any local RedBar GTG.

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If the headline grabbing Swatch x Omega MoonSwatch and Swatch x Blancpain Scuba Fifty Fathoms have taught us anything, then it’s that fun, accessible watches can be just as influential as haute horology. Sure, they’re controversial collections that some believe are discrediting the original creations, but that hasn’t stopped them from being successful. Even when the Blancpain edition didn’t quite catch fire as hot as the Omega, it’s still not accurate to call it a failure. Now though, if you’re in the mood for a fun, accessible timepiece without the weight of multiple sub-reddit’s worth of discussion, check out the new Bulova Snorkel collection.

Each watch in the four piece collection measures 41mm in diameter with 100m water resistance rating. At that rating it’s more suited to swimming at the surface than going anywhere near a scuba tank but for less than £300, that’s not exactly surprising. It’s a fun holiday companion, not a deep depth diving instrument. The case is made from what Bulova are calling “Hybrid Ceramic”, and it’s the first time they’ve used this material. Details of its composition are thin on the ground but based on context clues such as Swatch’s own bioceramic, we can hazard a guess that it’s likely plastic reinforced with some ceramic powder to make it more scratch resistant.

Regardless, it’s available in a variety of colours depending on the reference of the watch. On top of which each reference has a fun name and its own distinct colour scheme. There’s Blue Tang, (that’s the type of fish Dory is in Finding Nemo) with its royal blue design and accents in yellow. Sea Turtle with a combination of brown and sea green. Clown Fish with a white dial and orange strap. And last but by no means least, Great White with its monochromatic white and grey.

All four of them have wave style dials that add a flowing motion to the design of the dial. Though it remains nice and legible with large, dive watch style baton hour markers and strips of lume. They’re also equipped with dive timer bezels in colours as bright as the rest of the watch. for calculating immersion time.

The movement inside is the Miyota 2115, an accessible Japanese quartz movement. That helps it keep the price very low at £249. That puts it in direct competition with the previously mentioned Swatch watches. Which one comes out ahead? That depends if you are a fan of the classic watch designs of the Swatches or something that’s a bit more original.

More details at Bulova.

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Back in the late 2000s until now, before the DW-5000R-1A when modern G-Shock DW-5000 models were constrained to limited anniversary editions, the GW-5000 was known as the readily available origin-tribute model with a stainless steel center case and screw lock back like the original DW-5000C from 1983. This special “square” combined the classic metal interior […]

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Almost exactly a year ago Tissot launched the PR516 collection, consisting of a single automatic chronograph and a trio of quartz editions. At the start of 2025 they’re expanding both versions of the watch with new colourways and updated aesthetics. The PR516 Automatic Chronograph takes on the sporty charm of a white and blue colour scheme while the quartz editions turn up the luxury with rose gold PVD designs.

Tissot PR516 Automatic Chronograph

The PR516 collection is dedicated to the world of motoring, fast paced and frenetic. That’s why the blue bezel atop the 41mm steel case features both a tachymeter and a pulsometer. So you can track how fast you are going and how fast your blood is pumping after a few adrenaline-filled laps. The well sized case also means the dial is nice and wide, giving plenty of room to the tricompax chronograph subdials, making it super legible.

For the new colourway, they’ve swapped the dial from black to white and given it blue accents on the subdial scales and the aforementioned bezel. Notably they’ve done away with the two-tone bezel design, removing the white portion that used to sit on the first quarter of the scale. The updated blue and white design of the piece as a whole works really well for a sports watch like a chronograph because it feels bright and energetic to look at. The central chronograph hand is also blue, contrasting to the steel grey of the syringe hour and minute hands.

The killer feature of the Tissot PR516 Automatic Chronograph is that it houses the Valjoux A05 chronograph movement. It has a 68-hour power reserve, which is solid at this price point (£1,935). One key difference between this version of the A05 and the one that was in the 2024 edition of the PR516 is that the new version is automatic while the previous one was manual. The movements are otherwise identical but it’s a nice quality of life improvement for daily wear. Although, the addition of the rotor has made the case thicker at 14.19mm compared to 13.67mm.

Tissot PR516 Quartz

On the quartz side of things there are less dramatic changes. The bezels have lost their two tone design and the cases have fresh rose gold PVD coatings. One is bi-colour, retaining some elements of exposed steel, while the other is full gold for max bling. There was a yellow gold bi-colour edition in the original release so it’s cool to see it with a new, coppery hue. The PVD is also used for the chronograph subdials, which are arranged around the centre of the dial in a manner that is easily identifiable as a quartz chrono.

Despite the additional PVD coating the quartz models are substantially more accessible than their mechanical counterparts. The full gold is £560 while the bi-colour is only £515.

More details at Tissot.

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