HOLIDAY BUYING GUIDE: The Hublot Big Bang Unico Magic Gold
Felix Scholz
Understanding the philosophy of fusion is key to understanding Hublot. And nowhere is fusion more evident than in their proprietary Magic Gold – a high tech alloy of gold and ceramic.
Hublot’s first Big Bang model celebrated its 10th birthday in 2015, and the occasion marks a significant coming of age; the watch that was the enfant terrible of the industry in 2005 has grown up.
The distinctive ‘porthole’ case design is unchanged, as is the continuous pairing of incongruous materials as part of the brand’s key philosophy of the ‘Art of fusion’. But over time the designs have gotten more sophisticated, as have the technical developments. The Big Bang Unico Magic Gold is a great example.
The key feature of this big 45mm chronograph is the Magic Gold bezel. Magic Gold is Hublot’s proprietary 18-carat gold alloy – a mix of gold and ceramic that’s slicker than regular gold, and far less lustrous – meaning it’s not overly blingy on the wrist. The material also has some very practical benefits. The ceramic content means that Magic Gold is highly scratch resistant, with a hardness of around 1000 vickers. Tough and scratch resistant are exactly what you want in a watch bezel, a high impact area prone to accidental scrapes and knocks.
The Unico movement powering the timepiece is further proof of Hublot’s technical advancement. The in-house column wheel flyback chronograph movement is the result of four years of research and development. It’s an important achievement for the brand, and they’ve shown it off to full effect with a skeletonised dial and display caseback.
RRP A$28,700 HUBLOT.COM