Australian Watch Authority
HANDS-ON: The Hublot Big Bang Tourbillon Power Reserve 5 Days Sapphire Rainbow
There are a lot of things I love about Hublot, and I’ve got to say, this watch manages to cram pretty much all of them (barring ceramic) into one awesome, 45mm package. It’s the Big Bang Tourbillon Power Reserve 5 Days Sapphire Rainbow, and it does pretty much what it says on the tin. Let’s start with the case. Hublot has been playing with (and seriously democratising) ultra-hard, ultra-slick and ultra-cool synthetic sapphire cases since 2016, and it’s become something of… Read More
HANDS-ON: Ready for anything – the Seiko Astron SSE170J1
Seiko’s Astron (the new GPS one, not the groundbreaking quartz one) is a pretty incredible piece of kit. Ostensibly, it tells the time, day, date and a second time zone. But the trick is in the method. The Astron, thanks to GPS technology, keeps track of time by talking to satellites — a quite cool party trick. Given its go-anywhere accuracy and automatic time zone adjustment, it makes sense that the Astron is billed as an adventure watch for the… Read More
HANDS-ON: Even sportier, the Ulysse Nardin Marine Chronometer Torpilleur in blue
It’s fair to say that there’s a fresh new breeze blowing in Ulysse Nardin’s sails these days. There’s a new energy, which has resulted in some great new designs, and refreshed takes on old classics. Case in point is the Torpilleur, a marine chronometer styled watch, which takes its name — appropriately enough — from agile torpedo boats. It’s a watch we’ve looked at before, but the latest configuration is, if you’ll pardon my colloquialism, freaking hot. The blue dial… Read More
IN-DEPTH: The Glashütte Original Senator Cosmopolite in Steel – a study in complex elegance
The story in a second: It’s big, it’s complicated, it’s bloody clever. I’ve said it once and I’ll say it again: I’ve got a real soft spot for German watchmaking, but especially for Glashütte Original. Underappreciated, and painfully under-marketed anywhere outside of Europe, they are one of VERY few brands that manufacture their own dials and cases (in a separate facility in Pforzheim, not in Glashütte proper). Over the years, things like the ’60s and ’70s collections have consistently grabbed… Read More
HANDS-ON: Grand Seiko’s dressy GMT – the SBGM235
Most of Grand Seiko’s mechanical watches are built around one base — the 9S calibre, which turns 20 years old this year. The brand has celebrated with a series of limited editions, and this, the SBGM235, is the latest. Coming from the brand’s elegance collection, the SBGM235 follows the same fundamental form as the cream-dialled SBGM221, with a 39.5mm round steel case, and the 24 scale nested neatly inside the typically faceted and polished Grand Seiko hour markers. And while… Read More