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Meteorite dials are cool. I own a quartz chronograph that has a single meteorite subdial and while the rest of the watch is demonstrably subpar, the fact that it contains material that has flown through space for millions of years before completing its journey here on Earth means it’s still a proud member of my personal collection. However, it pales to absolute nothing in the face of a watch like the new Formex Essence Space Glacier, which presents meteorite as you’ve never seen it before.

Specifically, its meteorite dial features a hand-applied, ice blue lacquer. Coloured meteorite as a concept isn’t new, even Formex themselves have done it before with the Space Gold and other brands like Czapek & Cie. have tackled the concept to award winning effect with the Antarctique Green Meteor. What makes the Space Glacier special is that Formex have developed new in-house techniques to achieve the specific icy blue tone seen here.

The raw surface of meteorite isn’t suitable to take a lacquer due to its imperfections and darker iron colour, which means lacquers look much duller than they should. Therefore, Formex give the material an ultra-thin electroplated coating of a metal that is suitable for lacquer, which is most commonly rhodium. However, after some experimentation, the six layers of hand-applied blue lacquer just didn’t look right over a rhodium base. So, for the first time ever, Formex tried a 98% pure sterling silver plating and it worked perfectly. It results in a rich, clear colour while also highlighting and emphasising the individual details of the signature Widmanstätten pattern.

It looks great. The organically formed striations of the meteor – the specific meteorite used is the Muonionalusta, the most common commercially available meteorite – create a fractured appearance like the surface of a glacier, hence Formex Essence Space Glacier. It’s also an intentional reference to the fact that Muonionalusta was discovered in what is modern day northern Scandinavia, inside the arctic circle.

As for the actual timekeeping elements, it features applied indices with Super-LumiNova inserts for low light legibility and matching hands. There’s also a date window at 6 o’clock carved into the meteorite of the dial. The date wheel itself is a dark grey colour with black numerals so that it doesn’t create a stark white eyesore at the bottom of the display.

The Formex Essence Space Glacier is available in two sizes, either 39mm or 43mm. I’m more a 39mm type of person but even though the 43mm is large by most people’s standards, it’s on the more wearable side with a thickness of just 10.6mm. The 39mm is thinner still at a round 10mm. The Essence itself is a versatile watch that is suitable for all occasions with a combination of brushed and polished finishing, exposed screws and a steel construction. Robust but also smart.

Beneath the surface of the meteorite dial is housed the Swiss Sellita SW200-1. It’s the higher grade COSC chronometer version, which means it has been tested in multiple positions to ensure a high accuracy. It’s also the newer edition of the movement that launched a few years ago with an improved 41-hour power reserve.

As for price, the Formex Essence Space Glacier is £1,680 on leather strap with deployant clasp or £1,790 on steel bracelet. Formex have also made a note that for customers in the US they are not currently planning to raise their prices during the uncertainty of tariff changes, tanking any raised costs themselves so that you can enjoy your watches at the current great value. If you’re in the UK you don’t have to worry about that but what you could do is come and see Formex yourself at London’s new premier watch exhibition and showcase, Hands On Horology.

More details at Formex.

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When Christopher Ward unveiled the Bel Canto in 2022 to rave reviews and sell out production run after sell out production run, one of the questions that must have been in the back of the minds of the CW team is “how on Earth do we follow this up?” The Bel Canto in many ways is the ultimate representation of Christopher Ward’s brand identity, taking aspects of horology that were once considered exclusive and making them accessible. In early days that meant Swiss-made movements and with the Bel Canto it meant chiming complications. For their new project, it means an open balance wheel and a new in-house movement for the Christopher Ward C12 The Loco.

I suppose the first question is: what is an open balance? In as simple terms as possible, it’s a method of constructing a watch’s movement so that the balance wheel (the beating heart of a watch that controls the impulse of power through the mechanical system) is moved from the internal structure of the calibre to being isolated on the dial. The most famous example is the MB&F flying balance, which pushes the design even further by suspending the balance above the dial over the top of any subdials and timekeeping displays. Christopher Ward haven’t gone quite that far but for them to even attempt an open balance at an accessible price point is ambitious. Plus, what they have done is a damn sight more impressive than an open-heart aperture where the dial is openworked to show the balance inside the movement from the dial side.

While wearing the Christopher Ward C12 The Loco, it is very, very difficult to look away from the constant movement of the balance on my wrist. Positioned at 6 o’clock on the dial, held in place by dual bridges, it’s the definition of captivating. As a brief aside, the YouTube channel The Slow Mo Guys recently released a video where they filmed a watch’s balance using a macro lens at 1,000 frames per second, which gives me a brand new appreciation of the forces involved in the balance mechanism and a fresh understanding of what I’m actually looking at on the CW’s dial.

The open balance is positioned on the lower section of the stepped dial with the higher portion occupied at 12 o’clock by the hour and minute display, also partially openworked. In terms of style, the hands, hour markers and minute scale are a miniaturised version of The Twelve’s design. That’s because The Loco is technically a variant of The Twelve – they even share a capitalised “The” in their official names. It has the same dodecagon bezel and facetted, steel case with integrated bracelet, though it has been specially adapted for this model. It now measures 41mm in diameter (the largest The Twelve case has ever been) and the lugs have been redesigned to have a steeper angle so that the bracelet or rubber strap contours to the edge of your wrist better.

Of course, another significant difference between The Loco and The Twelve is the finishing of the dial. Instead of the dual flag texture of The Twelve it has vertical brushing on the upper layer, a polished step and then a sand-blasted style graining to the lower layer. It provides a nice amount of contrast to the polishing of the steel elements such as the bridges and exposed screws. Colour-wise, there are four options to choose from. Here, I have the metallic orange variant, which is particularly vibrant and eye-catching. The other versions are classic white, black and electric blue.

Undoing the rubber strap, which is very comfortable and easy to adjust, allows you to see the movement through the exhibition caseback. As I briefly mentioned in the introduction, it’s a new in-house movement called the CW-003. It’s an adapted and upgraded version of their other in-house movement, the SH21, which has been re-branded as the CW-001. It’s manual winding with a power reserve of 144-hours, equivalent to 6-days, that’s a whole day more than the CW-001. It’s also accurate to -0/+7 seconds per day, which is seriously impressive given the mechanical difficulties of producing an open balance.

Aesthetically it looks great through the caseback too with its double barrels positioned cleanly on the vertical axis. There’s also a nice mixture of brushing and polishing across the plate and bridges, which are bevelled. Ironically because the balance has been moved to the dial side, the caseback is positively sedate by comparison. Though that’s not necessarily a bad thing as the wide sapphire crystal really lets you appreciate the detail of the finishing at your leisure.

That crystal has a height of 0.4mm from the rear of the case and the case itself has a thickness of 9.75mm, combined with the 3.55mm domed crystal on the front, that leads to a total thickness of 13.7mm. It’s not a petite watch by any stretch of the imagination but it does feel proportionate, and it is comfortable to wear.

Importantly, unlike the original Bel Canto, the Christopher Ward C12 The Loco is not a limited edition, meaning there won’t be the same level of scalping on the secondary market. Even if the initial production run sells out quickly don’t panic, more will be produced. At a price of £3,795, it’s going to sell incredibly well. On specs alone that’s impressive value, never mind the added details of the open balance.

More details at Christopher Ward.

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Right at the start of 2024 British watchmaker Garrick released one of their most unusual watches, the S2 Deadbeat Seconds. It’s a watch that purposely takes the iconic sweeping motion of an automatic seconds hand and replaces it with the pausing intervals most commonly seen on cheaper quartz movements. However, this novelty has proven to be so popular that they’re introducing it on another of their models, the S3. This of course results in the new Garrick S3 Deadbeat Seconds.

It’s worth noting that a deadbeat seconds does have a practical purpose beyond confusing people trying to identify if your watch is quartz or not from across the room. It actually traces its history to the medical profession, where the pause of the seconds hand at each marker makes it easier to time short intervals, such as when you are counting a patient’s pulse rate. Plus, a well-paid doctor is one of the careers where you might eventually be able to afford a Garrick with smart saving.

When talking about Garricks it’s also important to remember that they produce an extremely limited number of watches on a made to order basis. Only three to five S3 Deadbeat Seconds watches will be produced each year and as such, Garrick take pains to ensure that each model is customised to their owner’s preferences. That means the 42mm x 11mm case can be produced from a variety of materials such as frosted or polished steel as well as gold.

The display consists of Breguet hands over a handcrafted German silver dial. As an S3 model it features an openworked display with Garrick’s signature Trinity free-sprung balance at 6 o’clock, one of the largest in horology. The movement is the DB-G07, which is tested and regulated over the course of three weeks, ensuring a daily variance of just +3 seconds meaning it sits within chronometer tolerances. There’s also a power reserve indicator at 2 o’clock. Again, the amount of customisation for the finishes across the dial, bridges and components is basically endless.

With the level of detail and attention lovingly lavished on each watch by Garrick’s in-house team, it’s no surprise that the price is pretty exclusive. £48,000 incl. VAT. However, that doesn’t stop their order book being completely filled year after year.

More details at Garrick.

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The latest drop from Studio Underd0g is here and, rather than their high-end experiment in floral guilloché they’re back where they belong: quirky colour and a cheek full of tongue. This time however, the one thing they can’t be accused of is originality. Say hello to the best homage pieces on the planet, the Studio Underdog Av0cado and Guacam0le.

The Copycats

Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery and it turns out that Studio Underd0g have cause to be very, very flattered. Like any hyped success story, it wasn’t long into their first clutch of colourful releases that the British brand started seeing some… uncomfortably similar designs on the cheap, white-label market. And in true Baudrillard fashion, they just weren’t right. In the same way the darkest parts of r/cooking just aren’t right.

Colours that didn’t work, attempts at the Big-Eye that would insult Quasimodo, the Underd0g imitators are a mess of quick cash-ins that just don’t get it. Nothing makes you realise how hard it is to design a watch than to see some of these ‘brands’ flailing. The thing is, one of them, the aptly-named Proxima, had an original idea in there somewhere: the humble, millennial-baiting avocado.

Their twist on the theme didn’t work of course. This isn’t some redemption story. But when Rich Benc of Studio Underd0g saw it, he decided to give the copycats a taste of their own smashed medicine on toast and made the Av0cado and, mashing things up even further (sorry), the Guacam0le.

The Av0cado

Let’s start with the ‘original’. The Av0cado takes Studio Underd0g’s classic big-eye chronograph and combines a yellow fume main dial, bright green chapter ring (with avocado markers, of course) and reddish brown segmented big eye subdial at 3 o’clock for the pit. The 9 o’clock subdial is also in yellow, but circular grained to stand out. Hands are in light green to finish the look.

Inside is Studio Underd0g’s new bespoke Seagull number, created when the Chinese manufacturer started limiting their third party movements. That means a handsome manual-wind number that’s been given the once-over by the British chronometrists at Horologium. Finishing it off is an equally British black grained leather strap from The Strap Tailor.

The Guacam0le

Here Studio Underd0g have taken a bit more of a monochrome look, at least by their standards. The main dial is lime green, as is the circular grained 9 o’clock subdial. The chapter ring is in dark green and the big eye is shaded in sections from mid green to near-black.

Like the Av0cado, it measures in at a wrist-pleasing 38.5mm across and 12.9mm thick, not ultra-slim but slim enough for the everyday wearer. It has the same Seagull movement and its Strap Tailor strap is a dark green. If you’ve been tempted by a Studio Underd0g before, this is all par for the course – as is the ultra-accessible price of £550 for either model.

The Verdict

Honestly, Studio Underd0g is the only brand in existence I could imagine not just taking this approach but nailing it. They turned what most brands would see as an affront into a money-making joke that just keeps giving.

Of the two, I much prefer the Guacam0le, which makes sense as the more originally Studio Underd0g of the two. I just feel like the colours gel a bit better and it’s the one I could more clearly see on my own wrist. That said, the mix of colours on the Av0cado definitely leans into its namesake and the story is too fun not to get invested in, emotionally if not financially. 

All this goes to show that you should be wary of trying to improve on Studio Underd0g’s quirky British formula. You might just end up in their rogue’s gallery of ‘things we made better’.

More details at Studio Underd0g.

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G-Shock is introducing the MTG-B2000YBD-2A in May 2025 starting in Japan. This deluxe MTG-B2000 model features a carbon bezel frame, a blue-gray ion-plated finish on the top bezel and buttons, and a black ion-plated layer composite band made of stainless steel and a thin blue resin inner layer. The style is similar to the red-accented […]

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Seiko produce a huge number of watches, so I don’t blame you if you haven’t heard of every single one of them. If that’s the case though, don’t worry as we have a handy guide for you to revise from and there will be a test at the end. For now though, we’re focussing on what I think is one of the most underrated models in the Presage family of watches, the Style 60s, which has been expanded with new Golden Yellow, Silvery Violet and Ice Green editions.

The big story here is the redesigned dials. Not only do they feature new colours, but the finishing has been changed as well. Instead of being smooth and sunray brushed like the Retro Blue model, they feature horizontal brushing with a more pronounced texture. On top of that, the ring beneath the hour scale is more of a groove, adding extra dimensionality to the display. The overall layout is the same as ever, inspired by 1960s Seiko chronograph models.

As for the colours, they are of course Golden Yellow, Silvery Violet and Ice Green. They’re pastel shades, adding yet more credence to the idea that pastel colours are a burgeoning trend in 2025’s watchmaking with both Rolex and Oris, as well as others, adding washed out tones to their repertoires.

The green is particularly nice in its pale mint tone that sits adjacent to the ever popular sage. The violet is also pretty nice, reminding me of Parma Violets from my youth. The yellow is a bit more saturated than the typical pastel yellow, which gives it a buttery colour that, being honest, I can’t make my mind up on if I like or not.

Beyond the updated dials, these watches are the Style 60s as we know it, with a case based on the Elegant Yet Rugged edition. Meaning a 39.5mm diameter with long lugs leading into either a steel bracelet or leather strap depending on the model. Unlike the Elegant Yet Rugged models though it retains the smooth insert bezel from the rest of the collection rather than the exposed steel.

Beneath the surface is the automatic calibre 4R45 with 40-hour power reserve. It’s one of Seiko’s entry level automatic calibres so it’s not particularly impressive though it does enable the watches to be nice and accessible. The Presage Style 60s Golden Yellow, Silvery Violet and Ice Green are each priced at £500, which is a great price point for a smart daily wearer. Plus it’s always nice to see accessible Seikos when some of references are pushing well into the £2000+ bracket.

More details at Seiko Boutique.

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Casio officially unveiled the G-Shock Frogman MRG-BF1000RG-3A to be released in Japan and Asia in May 2025, with other regions expected to follow. The watch has a silver-gray and green military-like color combination and is inspired by the goliath frog from western Africa, which is the world’s largest living frog. The MRG-BF1000RG-3A is the fourth […]

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WatchDavid takes a hands-on look at the upcoming G-Shock Frogman MRG-BF1000RG-3A in his latest video embedded below. According to a Casio document in the video, the MRG-BF1000RG-3A will be released in June 2025 in Europe for 4,900 euros. A price of 4,900 euros suggests that the price will be $4,900 in the U.S., and G-Shock […]

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One of the fun aspects of microbrand and independent designs are the interesting niches they are able to explore. From firefighting with William Wood to the historical artwork, buildings and culture of Venice with Venezianico. Of course, one of the most significant features of Venetian life is their relationship with the Mediterranean Sea that surrounds them, a theme Venezianico have returned to multiple times. Their latest aquatic creation is the Venezianico Nereide Corallo, their first watch featuring a natural coral dial.

Coral, aside from being intrinsically linked to seas and oceans, has a special place in the history of Venice. In the late Renaissance period Giambattista Tiepolo painted a famous fresco called Neptune Offering Gifts to Venice, showing the Roman god of the sea gifting coral to the city. The material was used in jewellery and decoration due to its rich colour and hard properties when exposed to air. Those properties that made it popular centuries ago are just as relevant today, as evidenced by the dial of the Nereide Corallo.

It’s specifically made from a mosaic of red Madrepora coral, produced by assembling fragments of the natural material into a block that’s then cut with a waterjet into the thin disks for each dial. Due to the organic shapes of the coral, no two dials are identical, adding a sense of individuality and rarity to each piece. At a glance it makes from a swirling reddish-orange dial but up close you can really appreciate the intricate textures and mosaic-like structure of the display. It’s really captivating.

The layout of the display is otherwise the same as the rest of the Nereide collection with a peripheral minute scale and oversize hour markers coated with lume. There’s also a date window at 3 o’clock so you can suddenly remember you’ve missed your dentist appointment while you’re 200m underwater. Or if you remember you have a dentist appointment before you get into the water, you can use the tungsten dive timer bezel to calculate your immersion time so you know when to get out (or more conventionally know when your oxygen tank will be depleted, which is slightly more important than missing an appointment).

At 42mm in steel its comfortably within the traditional bounds of dive watch proportions. Protected by the case is the Sellita SW200-1 automatic movement with Côtes de Genève finishing. It’s the signature entry-level Swiss mechanical movement, making the watch nice and accessible. It has a regular price of €1,295 on rubber strap and a pre-order price of €1,035 (approx. £887/£1,110).

Pre-orders for the Venezianico Nereide Corallo open on 28^th April at 2pm BST. You can also come and meet the Venezianico team and get hands-on with some of their creations at Hands On Horology in London on 14^th June, tickets available now.

More details at Venezianico.

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Furlan Marri have become a household name in modern microbrand watch design – if your household is full of watch nerds. Which is what makes the fact that in 2025 they are celebrating only their 4^th anniversary all the more amazing. They are the definition of ‘exploding onto the scene’ and if you want to know more about the men behind the brand, we have an interview with co-founder Andrea Furlan in Oracle Time Issue 111. For now though, they’re celebrating their latest birthday with a new model, the Red Hunter.

The watch word here is neo-vintage, which you could argue is actually the watch word for the entire Furlan Marri brand. It means taking classic or traditional elements from vintage watches and presenting them in fresh, new ways for a modern watch market. Take the case for example, which measures just 36mm in diameter. That’s very small by modern standards but in the mid-20^th century it wouldn’t have been unusual. In fact, across the past two years or so, there has been a major trend in the industry returning to smaller dimensions after the behemoths of the 2000s.

However, the Red Hunter’s case actually pays tribute to an even older style of case, the hunter pocket watch. A style of pocket watch that dates back to the very earliest days of horology centuries ago and that uses a folding metal lid to protect the face of the watch. The name refers to it being a protective cover used while hunting – similar in concept to the original JLC Reverso being a way to protect your watch while playing polo.

For Furlan Marri’s watch, that translates itself into having a pocket watch-style hunter hinged caseback, which you can lift up to reveal an exhibition window beneath. On the inside of the hunter cap there’s an engraving celebrating the 4^th anniversary of the brand. The movement that’s revealed when you lift the back is the La Joux-Perret G100 movement, a far cry from the mecaquartz movements the brand was using in their debut year. It has a 68-hour power reserve and a new Furlan Marri branded rotor in gold.

The movement powers the hour, minute and seconds hands you can see on the dial. It’s a really nice Alpha handset with a bright red seconds hand that informs the ‘red’ part of Furlan Marri Red Hunter. The dial itself is black lacquer with pronounced contours across the minute track, hour scale and central disk. There are a lot of details to delve into as it uses a combination of a railway minute scale, Arabic numerals, curved Roman numerals and spherical dot indices. While there’s technically a lot going on, the overall result doesn’t feel over designed and it’s actually a very clean display. It hits that neo-vintage buzzword with its retro influences but modern feel.

The Fulan Marri Red Hunter is available for a limited pre-order starting on 23^rd April 2pm BST and closing on 4^th May 9pm BST. It’s priced at CHF 1,650 (approx. £1,525), so it sits as a mid-range option between the Sector and Disco Volante. I can easily picture the Red Hunter becoming one of the most popular Furlan Marri models to date. It’s a superb blend of elegance and wearability with a hint of proactive sportiness from that flash of red in the seconds hand and strap stitching.

More details at Furlan Marri.

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