Valentine's Day: 10 Watches for the Man in Your Life

Graham Chronofighter Oversize Superlight Carbon. The 47 mm superlight black carbon nanotube composite case results in a watch that weighs less than 100 grams. TheG1747 automatic chronograph caliber has the date at 8 o’clock; with an Incabloc shock absorber; 48 hours power reserve; black carbon fiber trigger, dial and bezel; and smoked sapphire crystal case back.

Love is love and men deserve tokens of appreciation as much as women. Well … maybe not as much but close. 

For Valentine's Day I selected 10 watches, most of them for those with an active lifestyle but a few that can be worn at more formal occasions, that would make any man (watch geek or not) happy. The remaining nine are below:

MB&F Legacy Machine 1 Platinum. The three-dimensional manual winding movement was developed for MB&F by Chronode and created by Jean-François Mojon and Kari Voutilainen. The bespoke 14mm balance wheel has four traditional regulating screws floating above the movement and dials. Two dials display the hours and minutes in two time zones. The platinum timepiece is available in a limited edition of 33 pieces.

Girard-Perregaux Neo-Tourbillon with Three Bridges is powered by the GP09400 caliber with the tourbillon case at 6 o'clock position and a micro-rotor mounted under the barrel at the 12 o'clock. The titanium tourbillon completes a full rotation in one minute.

Alpina Alpiner 4 Chronograph combines the 4 essential features for a sports watch to be called a sports watch: 1) antimagnetic, 2) antishock, 3) water-resistant and 4) stainless steel. 

Breitling Chronomat 41 Airborne Sierra Silver Dial. This 30th anniversary edition of Breitling's best selling pilot watch is distinguished by its satin-brushed rotating bezel equipped with four raised rider tabs serving to count off flight times, while facilitating rotation even with gloved hands. It is powered by the Breitling Caliber 01 automatic movement.

Carl F. Bucherer Patravi ScubaTec diver's watch is powered by Automatic, calibre CFB 1950.1. The bezel of the watch can only be rotated counterclockwise to avoid accidental manipulations. A luminous coating glows light blue so the dial can be easily seen underwater. 

Fred Leigton Converted Pocket Watches, a collection of antique pocket watches converted to wrist watches.

Montblanc Meisterstück Heritage Automatic Date is classic timepiece that displays the date at 3 o'clock. It is powered by the MB M13.21 caliber.

Arnold & Son Royal TEC1 combines a tourbillon, a column wheel chronograph and an automatic winding system. It contains the Arnold & Son mechanical movement A&S8305, tourbillon chronograph, self-winding, anthracite dial inside a 45mm 18k red gold case.

Zenith El Primero Lightweight, this carbon watch with a striking 10th of a second function is powered by the El Primo 400B titanium automatic movement. The date window at 6 o'clock features a red dot with a small seconds window at 9 o'clock.

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Hublot Unveils Its Big Bang Ferrari in Japan

Big Bang Ferrari

Luxury Swiss watch brand, Hublot, the official timekeeper of the Ferrari Challenge, unveiled the Big Bang Ferrari in Japan during the Ferrari Racing Days Suzuka 2012, held in Suzuka City, March 16 - 18.

Ferrari Racing Days Suzuka 2012 is one of largest events in the world for the Italian car manufacturer. One of its highlights was the Concorso d’Eleganza supported by Hublot, which brought together 18 classic cars from the 1950s and ‘60s.

Hublot’s Chairman, Jean-Claude Biver, attended the event—which included a charity auction in support of Ishinomaki City, affected by the earthquake and tsunami in 2011. Hublot donated a Big Bang Ferrari Magic Gold, for auction. The winning bid was 4.1 million Japanese yen ($49,100). Biver personally topped topped the bid with an additional $4,800.

Hublot Chairman, Jean-Claude Biver

The Big Bang Ferrari (top picture), a collaboration with the Italian car manufacturer, underwent its first update since it was launched in 2005. The design was done in collaboration with Ferrari. A larger case (45.5 mm in diameter), more power and more mechanical features, a cylindrical bezel that offers added depth, the movement which can be seen through the sapphire dial, an indexed crown (with the H logo which is automatically positioned to remain in line), elongated push buttons fixed along a rotating axis like the pedals in a car, carbon inserts on the case profile, two interchangeable straps, and the same tone-on-tone stitching used on Ferrari upholstery. The Ferrari Prancing Horse logo is featured discreetly in relief at 9 o'clock. A minute counter is positioned at 3 o'clock (completed by a yellow date window), and the hand and the style of the indexes are inspired by the counters in a Ferrari.

Finally, the Ferrari-endorsed pieces are made with Hublot’s Magic Gold, a scratch-resistant 18k gold the watch manufacturer introduced three months ago.

The timepiece was first unveiled approximately a week earlier at Baselworld 2012 in Switzerland.

In November 2011, Hublot became the watchmaking partner of Ferrari. It is a comprehensive agreement covering all the activities of Ferrari and Hublot, both in terms of brand image and the commercial activities of both companies.

Timepiece Tuesday: TW Steel Honors Racer, Omega goes to Court, Hublot iPhone App, London Public Clocks

TW Steel Unveils Emerson Fittipaldi Signature Edition

Amsterdam-based sports watch brand TW Steel has created a timepiece honoring two-time Formula One World Champion, Emerson Fittipaldi. The TW Steel Emerson Fittipaldi timepiece was unveiled prior to the Brazilian Grand Prix, held Nov. 7 in Sao Paulo. The watch, available in 45mm and 48mm editions, was designed in conjunction with the racer, who is celebrating the 40th Anniversary of his first Formula One victory. It is based on the brand’s TECH style collection featuring 316L steel and a Chrono movement that measures time to 1/20th of a second. The timepieces are waterproof to 10 ATM. Incorporating the yellow from Brazil’s national flag, the color is used for the racer’s name on the tachymeter ring, on the watch hands and on the side of the black PVD coated case. The symbolic black and white checkered flag on the watch dial and case back further recognizes Emerson’s racing career, which included 14 Formula One victories and 22 IndyCar wins. 

Omega Faces the Supreme Court

The Swiss luxury watch brand Omega has taken its grievance to the U.S. Supreme Court in a case that could have implications for international trade. At issue is whether a copyright holder can block the re-sale of a foreign-made item, after it is later brought to the United States and sold for up to a third less than it might cost elsewhere, CNN reports. The items are Omega watches, and the seller is Costco, a membership warehouse retailer. Omega alleges Costco unlawfully obtained genuine Seamaster-style watches from third parties who had imported them into the United States. The stores then sold them for $1,299, a third below the Swiss firm's suggested retail price of $1,999. The watches were engraved with the Omega emblem trademarked in the United States.

Hublot Releases iPhone App
Hublot has gotten onboard the iPhone craze with its own application for enthusiasts of the luxury Swiss watch brand. One of the features of this app is an augmented reality section that allows users to take a picture of their wrist and then virtually try on watches from Hublot’s 2010 collection. In addition, there are 360 degree views of the new watches along with specs, a way to virtually build a Hublot watch and a game that requires the user to keep the power reserve full by shaking the iphone.

 The Public Clocks of London
 The Londoner Web site has a pictorial display of the many clocks inside the core of the British city with comments by Don Menard, London's heritage planner.

Timepiece Tuesday: A new section that focuses on new products releases, events and important issues in the world of watches

Highlights for this week are:

* Swatch to reexamine its procurement of exotic leather;
* Global market for watches and clocks expected to reach $36B;
* Audemars Piguet Sponsored Golf Team Wins Ryder Cup;
* Piaget opens boutique in London;
* Seiko marks a milestone;
* New Italian Sports Watch;
* High-tech watch for the world traveler;
* Bollywood star launches watch line


Swatch and exotic leather controversy
Swatch Group acted quickly following a Swiss Television report on the deplorable conditions associated with the procurement of exotic animal leathers, particularly in Asian countries. The world’s largest watch company said it will reexamine its exotic leather sources to ensure they meet company criteria for “acceptable social and environmental conditions.”

“The Swatch Group FEPS (Far Eastern Procurement Service) Division will immediately attempt to determine if leather from the Far East is used and, should this prove to be the case, will undertake on-site inspections of all sources,” the company said in a statement. “Products from such doubtful sources as those described by Swiss Television have no place in the Swatch Group product offering.”

Emerging Markets to Drive Growth for Timepieces
The global market for watches is forecast to reach $31.5 billion, while Clocks market is projected to touch $5.2 billion by the year 2015, according to a report by Global Industry Analysts, Inc. Growing demand for watches & clocks in the developing world, particularly the BRIC countries (Brazil, Russia, India, and China), and increased acceptance of luxury watches and watches with fashion statement are fueling the growth.

Europe remains the world’s largest market for watches and clocks followed by the United States, according to the report. The fastest growth is seen in Asia-Pacific region. The fastest growth product segments are in watches for under $50 and luxury watches over a $1,000. After a decline in 2009, the European and U.S. markets are expected to slowly regain lost ground, according to the report.

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Audemars Piguet Celebrates Ryder Cup Victory
The European golf team, comprised of four Audemars Piguet ambassadors— Graeme McDowell, Miguel Ángel Jiménez, Rory McIlroy, Lee Westwood (pictured from top)—has won the 2010 Ryder Cup, bringing back to Europe the prestigious trophy it lost on the other side of the Atlantic two years ago. Europe beat the American team by 14.5 points to 13.5.

Piaget opens Bond Street boutique
Swiss luxury watchmaker and jeweler, Piaget opened its UK Flagship at 169 New Bond Street, London W1. The two-story store, designed by French architect, Gérard Barrau includes perpendicular horizontal and vertical lines of the showcases and furnishings, a simple coloring scheme and discretely lit wall paintings. The store displays a full range of Piaget watch and jewelry collections. It’s Piaget's 71st boutique launch worldwide and is the first stand alone Piaget boutique.

Grand Seiko 50th Anniversary Collection
Japanese watch brand Seiko will launch of a series of six limited edition timepieces to celebrate the 50th anniversary of its Grand Seiko watch range. The Grand Seiko Anniversary collection includes spring drive, quartz and mechanical watches. Each timepiece features the Grand Seiko lion emblem on the dial (pictured), as well as the inscription “50th Anniversary 1960-2010.’ The spring drive and mechanical models include an 18-ct. gold lion emblem on their oscillating weights.

Parmigiani Fleurier Gets Sporty
Swiss luxury watch brand Parmigiani Fleurier has launched a sports watch in a limited series of 17 watches with a platinum case. There are 17 watches in the series because Bugatti produced 17 models of the Coupé Atalante between 1934 and 1940.

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World Time e-ink watch
This curved, ultra-thin watch from Phosphor contains electronic ink, the same technology used for e-book readers, for its curved display, which shows the time in two time zones (home and away).

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Bollywood star launches watch line
Bollywood star Salman Khan has launched a limited range of luxury watches named after his “Being Human” charitable foundation. Salman reportedly designed the 24 models himself and the money from their sale will support education and healthcare initiatives.

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