Hamilton has a very specific price range. This comes from being part of the crowded Swatch Group. Hamilton watches must fit in a price category just bellow Longines, but above Tissot. This has had the positive effect of the brand being positioned very strongly at the entry price level for luxury timepieces. Last year the company released the Slim, which demonstrates the reason why Hamilton is such a strong player in the “democratic luxury” sector today. It is well designed, contemporary, runs on the highly reputable 2892 calibre manufactured by ETA in Switzerland, and is tagged with a starting retail price under $1,000.

Hamilton added two variations to the Slim collection this year and I got to play and film one at Hamilton headquarters in Biel/Bienne. The models in the Slim collection are perfect examples of how pictures never do watches justice. Images make the Slim watches seem plain and flat when in reality the 43mm width coupled with the low profile and classic design make for a striking piece that is very enjoyable to wear.
Read more…

The look of the Bell & Ross BR-01 92 is based on the simple, clean design used on airplane instrumentation panels. The hands and numeral markers on these watches are recognizable as those on analog altimeters or airspeed indicators. The infamous square case of the BRs, with its four visible fastening screws, reflects the way the airplane instruments are affixed to the panel via four screws in order to make their removal and installation quick and easy. With the BR-01 92 Heritage, Bell & Ross captures the allure of vintage watches and applies it to the square BR “Instrument” concept.
Read more…

Italo Fontana created the original U-Boat watches as a designer. The watches were mostly regarded as fashion accessories rather then high-end watches thanks to the use of Japanese quartz movements and K1 mineral crystals. Today, the company and their timepieces have evolved. While one of their most appealing aspects is still their look, this aspect is backed by all the features of high-end watch production, including modified mechanical ETA movements, sapphire crystals, hand-made straps, and sturdy well designed cases. I can attest to the quality of today’s U-Boat models, and will demonstrate it by examining U-Boat’s Classico series.
Read more…