Hublot big bang Classic Fusion FIFA World Cup Watch

Hublot Classic Fusion FIFA World Cup。

The Classic Fusion FIFA World Cup watch is an exclusive piece, limited to just 100 pieces but with the Hublot brand set to be Official Timekeeper for the  2010 and 2014 FIFA World Cup tournaments, it is surely only a taster of further releases to come.  Having stolen a march on his rivals by clinching the deal to become the first Official Timekeeper in the history of the World Cup it would be naive to presume that global marketing expert  Jean-Claude Biver, CEO of Hublot would waste this golden opportunity.
With a watchcase, dial and bezel crafted from pink gold, the 45mm piece is a celebratory tribute to the FIFA World Cup Trophy which is sculpted from 5kg of 18 carat solid gold. A mini version of the prestigious trophy appears on the satin finished dial of this Classic Fusion and is also engraved onto the back of the watchcase.

Hublot build on their superb F1 portfolio of watches

The piece was unveiled as a celebration of the iconic Italian Grand Prix circuit, The Autodromo di Monza where each year thousands of tifosi quite literally turn the  tree-lined track red with Ferrari flags and merchandise.  The 48mm piece features an openworked dial with an added layer of sapphire crystal.

The hour markers and F1 logo at the 9 o’clock position have been applied to this crystal  giving an ethereal 3D impression.  The hands and markers are an eye-pleasing combination of red and white superluminova and the black ceramic bezel is inscribed with “Formula 1 Monza”.
The Hublot Calibre HUB4400 with power reserve of 42 hours is at the heart of this striking piece which comes presented on a black rubber and Nomex (the flame resistant material found in racing overalls and gloves) strap with complimentary red stitching.

The Hublot F1 King Power Monza will be a limited edition of 200 pieces worldwide and has the added kudos of being unveiled on a weekend which produced the first  Ferrari win at the circuit since 2006.

Uniquely the King Power Monza features a red tinted sapphire crystal which Hublot describe as resulting in  “unprecedented brightness”, and if the image is anything to go by it would appear that  M.

Biver and his creative team have once again produced a stunner.

Seiko Astron featuring both GPS watch

That is a complete feature set for Seiko’s first step into the GPS ring and pricing and practicality seem to be greatly improved over the Citizen Satellite Wave (990 unit limited edition, $3800 USD).

The Astron looks good too, like an upgraded Casio Oceanus and we really like that the styling is relatively reserved and still offers a second timezone display (essential feature on a travelers watch). With four models offering high intensity titanium or stainless steel, “hard black” coatings (dlc?) and ceramic bezels, Seiko has designed a watch that will be bought and worn.

The Swiss aren’t the only ones launching new watches right now, Japanese super brand Seiko has announced a new GPS enabled watch called The Astron. Seiko devotees will note that the Astron is the same name given by Seiko to the first quartz watch ever made, circa 1969.

 The new Astron is definitely a technological flagship for Seiko as it features both GPS and solar charging. The Astron’s 7×52 quartz caliber will connect to no less than four GPS satellites and will both sync the time AND correct the timezone for your current location.

Seiko says the Astron knows all 39 of the world’s timezones and can, at the press of a button, sync the time (takes ~6 seconds) and the current timezone based on location data from the Astron’s GPS connection (this takes ~30 seconds).

The New Rolex Sky-Dweller watch

Only time will tell if buyers will accept the Sky-Dweller as a top tier offering from one of the world best known watch brands or if it will fail to find the same rabid fan-base that surrounds many of the marques more conservative models.

The way I see it, the Sky-Dweller is a bitter-sweet design from Rolex. On one hand, you have a complex but practical movement that integrates multiple complications into a simplified and pusher-free user interface and Rolex should be celebrated for the technical design and its implementation.

 I will do my best to explain these, but please see the included video as the visual is quite helpful. The annual calendar complication means the Sky-Dweller can account for how many days are in each month so, with the exception of leap years, the Sky-Dweller won’t need to have its date advanced for months with less than 31 days.
On the other hand, the Sky-Dweller is neither pretty or classic in terms of its visual design. It is essentially a large Datejust with a somewhat messy dial that may appeal to some well-heeled travelers.

Further more, the month itself is cleverly shown on the dial via an aperture at each hour marker (see photos, eight o’clock is a different color so the Sky-Dweller is indicating it’s August), very cool.
The fact that Rolex is not making a steel version of the Sky-Dweller could make this new model something of a novelty but I also I think that it is indicative of Rolex’s slow-but-steady march away from their tool watch roots.

Pricing has yet to be announced but given that a white gold 36mm Datejust (ref 116139) had a 2011 price of $20,500 USD, it’s safe to say that the Sky-Dweller, with its host of technical additions and improvements, will retail for far more.

Late last week, we showed you two new divers from Tudor and while they arguably stole the show from big-brother Rolex, that doesn’t mean Rolex didn’t come out and play at all.

The big announcement from Rolex this year is the new Sky-Dweller which offers some fantastic technology but unfortunately wraps it up in a dial design that seems to have left Basel attendees rather cold. This new 42mm model comes in the three variations seen below and offers a technological first for Rolex, a watch with both an annual calendar and dual timezones.