HANDS-ON: Red alert – the Hublot Big Bang Unico Red Magic

There’s been a lot of big colour surfacing at Baselworld 2018, but little that stop traffic in the same fashion as the Hublot Big Bang Red Magic. Though we can’t be surprised that Hublot would deliver something as loud and in-your-face as this new release, certain colours of ceramic have long been known as very challenging to produce, and red in particular has long been avoided for exactly that reason. Being heavily invested in materials innovation, Hublot have forged ahead to deliver the first red ceramic watch on the market and, boy, is it ever red …

Vital statistics

At its core, the Big Bang Unico Red Magic is identical to the other Big Bang chronographs in the line. The HUB1242 self-winding column wheel flyback chronograph caliber is good for a power reserve of 72 hours, and still features a 30-minute chronograph register alongside its running seconds. A partially skeletonised dial with floating indices is also part of the usual equation. The bold red case has a fairly significant sheen to it, contrasted by matte black composite resin accents, a rubberised crown, black ceramic pushers, and a matching black ceramic clasp for its colour-matched rubber strap. As with all things Hublot, this is a limited edition piece, which will be produced in a series of 500.

On the wrist

Though foreign from a visual standpoint, once strapped on, the Big Bang Unico Red Magic is all kinds of familiar. Its rubber strap hugs the wrist nicely, and given the lightness of ceramic, the piece is a bit of a featherweight on the wrist. We aren’t talking Richard Mille McLaren territory, but still. Even as the chunky piece tries to tuck under a sports coat cuff, I found myself constantly catching a flash of red from the corner of my eye, leading me to think that the case was the same for any and all within my blast radius.

Who’s it for?

Easy. Those not afraid to push boundaries, who don’t care what anyone around them thinks, and most importantly, you really have to love red. Kidding aside, this is a technically impressive new release that will find fans easily, and is not for the faint of heart.

Any surprises?

Simply put, the fact that it’s red ceramic in the first place! Good on Hublot for tackling something that has yet to be done, and we can’t help but wonder which, if any, brands might follow suit in the next year or two.