Best Watches of SIHH 2018

At last year’s SIHH, we told you about the Vacheron Constantin Celestia Astronomical: the most complicated wristwatch in existence. With 23 separate complications and a £720k price tag, it was a whopper of a watch, so it feels only right that our favourite Vacheron this year should be a 40mm time-only watch landing just outside the £10k price bracket. The FiftySix is a new collection for Vacheron, and sees the brand offer one of its classic collections in both precious metals and steel for the first time ever. Looks wise, the FiftySix Self Winding is our favourite. Inspired by the brand’s reference 6073 design from (you guessed it…) 1956, it features some lovely touches: the sector dial, alternating Arabic numerals and baton hour-markers, and white gold hands. It’s a real headturner. For more information, see vacheron-constantin.com

Few watches at this year’s SIHH draw the eye quite like IWC’s Tribute To Pallweber. Its unusual complication – a double jumping display that shows both the hours and minutes digitally – comes courtesy of Josef Pallweber, whom invented one of IWC’s most iconic pocket watches in 1883. The fully mechanical digital design never made it into a wristwatch but, as part of IWC’s 150th anniversary, the brand has put that right in the form of this tribute. Pallweber pocket watches were phased out of production after two short years and are now some of the most collectible as a result. Whether it’s hardcore IWC fans or those who enjoy this watch’s unique dial, early indications are this is a highly covetable timepiece. For more information, see iwc.com

Few watches at this year’s SIHH draw the eye quite like IWC’s Tribute To Pallweber. Its unusual complication – a double jumping display that shows both the hours and minutes digitally – comes courtesy of Josef Pallweber, whom invented one of IWC’s most iconic pocket watches in 1883. The fully mechanical digital design never made it into a wristwatch but, as part of IWC’s 150th anniversary, the brand has put that right in the form of this tribute. Pallweber pocket watches were phased out of production after two short years and are now some of the most collectible as a result. Whether it’s hardcore IWC fans or those who enjoy this watch’s unique dial, early indications are this is a highly covetable timepiece. For more information, see iwc.com

In a round-up of showstoppers and high-complication mega watches, Montblanc’s new 1858 Automatic Chronograph sticks out a little. Truth is, though, this daily beater is one of the most wearable watches on display at SIHH. Public demand for chronographs is as high as it has ever been, but not all are created equal: this sporty two-register chrono adds a dash of vintage Minerva charm (the chronograph specialists Montblanc took under its wing in 2007), as well as one of the best NATO straps we’ve seen to create a watch that ticks a lot of boxes. There’s a very handsome bronze version which comes with a champagne-coloured ‘smoked’ dial, but we’d push you towards the stainless steel and black dial. It’s simple, no-nonsense, and never going to let you down. For more information, see montblanc.com

In a round-up of showstoppers and high-complication mega watches, Montblanc’s new 1858 Automatic Chronograph sticks out a little. Truth is, though, this daily beater is one of the most wearable watches on display at SIHH. Public demand for chronographs is as high as it has ever been, but not all are created equal: this sporty two-register chrono adds a dash of vintage Minerva charm (the chronograph specialists Montblanc took under its wing in 2007), as well as one of the best NATO straps we’ve seen to create a watch that ticks a lot of boxes. There’s a very handsome bronze version which comes with a champagne-coloured ‘smoked’ dial, but we’d push you towards the stainless steel and black dial. It’s simple, no-nonsense, and never going to let you down. For more information, see montblanc.com

The 1968 Memovox Polaris was an innovative diver’s watch released 50 years ago, with an alarm function to warn divers when it’s time to resurface – and now it forms the basis for a new JLC collection, including time-only, chronograph and world timer models. The limited-edition tribute to the Memovox is our pick of the bunch thanks to its historical value, three-tone dial and utilitarian appeal. The calibre 956 movement is also being assembled in JLC’s grande complications workshop (where 12 watchmakers usually work on the brand’s highest complication watches) to ensure the most exacting standards are met. Some watch fans won’t associate tool watches with Jaeger-LeCoultre, but the Polaris collection proves the brand can do rugged as well as dressy. For more information, see jaeger-lecoultre.com

The 1968 Memovox Polaris was an innovative diver’s watch released 50 years ago, with an alarm function to warn divers when it’s time to resurface – and now it forms the basis for a new JLC collection, including time-only, chronograph and world timer models. The limited-edition tribute to the Memovox is our pick of the bunch thanks to its historical value, three-tone dial and utilitarian appeal. The calibre 956 movement is also being assembled in JLC’s grande complications workshop (where 12 watchmakers usually work on the brand’s highest complication watches) to ensure the most exacting standards are met. Some watch fans won’t associate tool watches with Jaeger-LeCoultre, but the Polaris collection proves the brand can do rugged as well as dressy. For more information, see jaeger-lecoultre.com

The Rotonde de Cartier Mysterious Day & Night draws its inspiration from Cartier’s iconic Mystery Clocks of the early 1900s – in particular the Comet Clock of 1912, famed for its idiosyncratic day/night indicator. Housed within a pink gold case, the unusual complication is pride of place on this new timepiece, with an intricate radiating guilloché pattern and sunburst outer ring adding the brand’s trademark finesse. During the day, the dial’s top half will feature a sun that makes its way from left to right. Once the sun sets, a moon will appear transforming the complication for night time. It’s not the most complicated watch on display, but certainly one of the most elegant. Rumour has it this won’t be the only Mystery Clock-inspired wristwatch launched this year – bring it on, Cartier, we’re ready. For more information, see cartier.com

The Rotonde de Cartier Mysterious Day & Night draws its inspiration from Cartier’s iconic Mystery Clocks of the early 1900s – in particular the Comet Clock of 1912, famed for its idiosyncratic day/night indicator. Housed within a pink gold case, the unusual complication is pride of place on this new timepiece, with an intricate radiating guilloché pattern and sunburst outer ring adding the brand’s trademark finesse. During the day, the dial’s top half will feature a sun that makes its way from left to right. Once the sun sets, a moon will appear transforming the complication for night time. It’s not the most complicated watch on display, but certainly one of the most elegant. Rumour has it this won’t be the only Mystery Clock-inspired wristwatch launched this year – bring it on, Cartier, we’re ready. For more information, see cartier.com

Breaking world records is nothing new for Piaget – its 2mm-thick calibre 9P movement redefined what an ultra-thin watch could be all the way back in 1957 – but its new Altiplano Ultimate 910P is no less impressive in becoming the world’s thinnest automatic wristwatch. The secret to its success is an innovative case that acts as the baseplate for the movement. By removing any separation between the case and the baseplate, as well as a couple of other solutions in the movement’s design, Piaget has created a watch that is just 4.3mm thick – a huge step forward from Bulgari’s previous record-holding Octo Finissimo Ultra-Thin Automatique (5.15mm). To give the watch added strength, a cobalt alloy has been used to harden the case metal, but we doubt anyone is buying this watch for its durability – it’s just straight-up badass. For more information, see piaget.com

Breaking world records is nothing new for Piaget – its 2mm-thick calibre 9P movement redefined what an ultra-thin watch could be all the way back in 1957 – but its new Altiplano Ultimate 910P is no less impressive in becoming the world’s thinnest automatic wristwatch. The secret to its success is an innovative case that acts as the baseplate for the movement. By removing any separation between the case and the baseplate, as well as a couple of other solutions in the movement’s design, Piaget has created a watch that is just 4.3mm thick – a huge step forward from Bulgari’s previous record-holding Octo Finissimo Ultra-Thin Automatique (5.15mm). To give the watch added strength, a cobalt alloy has been used to harden the case metal, but we doubt anyone is buying this watch for its durability – it’s just straight-up badass. For more information, see piaget.com

Few complications cause watchmakers as much trouble as the perpetual calendar: not only are there a number of key aesthetic challenges to designing a legible calendar, but creating a movement (with a number of different mechanisms) that fits inside a standard-sized case is incredibly difficult. That goes some way to explaining why our jaws hit the floor at the sight of a 6.3mm-thick perpetual calendar from Audemars Piguet’s Research & Development arm. AP reduced its standard three-level perpetual movement (with wheels and gears layered atop one another) into a mechanism with a single, flat row of interacting components to create the thinnest watch of its kind. Heck, it’s more than 25% thinner than the Royal Oak ‘Extra Thin’, an 8.1mm-thick automatic date-only watch. It might be a concept for now (we’re quite sad about that), but this watch is insane. For more information, see audemarspiguet.com

Few complications cause watchmakers as much trouble as the perpetual calendar: not only are there a number of key aesthetic challenges to designing a legible calendar, but creating a movement (with a number of different mechanisms) that fits inside a standard-sized case is incredibly difficult. That goes some way to explaining why our jaws hit the floor at the sight of a 6.3mm-thick perpetual calendar from Audemars Piguet’s Research & Development arm. AP reduced its standard three-level perpetual movement (with wheels and gears layered atop one another) into a mechanism with a single, flat row of interacting components to create the thinnest watch of its kind. Heck, it’s more than 25% thinner than the Royal Oak ‘Extra Thin’, an 8.1mm-thick automatic date-only watch. It might be a concept for now (we’re quite sad about that), but this watch is insane. For more information, see audemarspiguet.com

Calling any watch a freak is unusual to say the least, but when Ulysse Nardin did exactly that in 2001 it wasn’t without cause. The Freak was just that: a concept watch in which the entire movement was a tourbillon, as well as acting as the minute hand (completing a full trip around the dial once an hour). Several iterations since have explored how far we can take the conventional watch to the point where the new Freak Vision is the nerve centre of Ulysse Nardin’s best innovations – the only difference this time is it’s in regular production. You’ll find more technology here than there is space for us to explain but, to give you an idea, there’s silicon and solid nickel components, a unique anchor escapement, and a balance wheel orientated in such a way as to reduce air resistance. Perhaps this watch isn’t a freak; it might just be the future. For more information, see ulysse-nardin.com

Calling any watch a freak is unusual to say the least, but when Ulysse Nardin did exactly that in 2001 it wasn’t without cause. The Freak was just that: a concept watch in which the entire movement was a tourbillon, as well as acting as the minute hand (completing a full trip around the dial once an hour). Several iterations since have explored how far we can take the conventional watch to the point where the new Freak Vision is the nerve centre of Ulysse Nardin’s best innovations – the only difference this time is it’s in regular production. You’ll find more technology here than there is space for us to explain but, to give you an idea, there’s silicon and solid nickel components, a unique anchor escapement, and a balance wheel orientated in such a way as to reduce air resistance. Perhaps this watch isn’t a freak; it might just be the future. For more information, see ulysse-nardin.com

It might seem like a strange thing to say, but the three bridges on this contemporary watch are the result of 150 years worth of history. This iconic architecture was fundamental in creating Girard Perregaux’s highly precise pocket watches of the 19th century: without the three bridges tourbillon, first produced by GP in 1884, who’s to say where the brand would be today? In 2018, GP is revisiting the Three Bridges with a skeletonised Neo-Tourbillon. Housed inside a hefty 45mm titanium case, the GP09400-001 calibre movement is beautifully symmetrical but it’s also technically brilliant, thanks to a winding system that provides 60 hours of reserve. Tourbillons may be expensive, even a little antiquated, but when they’re carrying more than a century’s worth of history and look like this, we can get on board. For more information, see girard-perregaux.com

It might seem like a strange thing to say, but the three bridges on this contemporary watch are the result of 150 years worth of history. This iconic architecture was fundamental in creating Girard-Perregaux’s highly precise pocket watches of the 19th century: without the three bridges tourbillon, first produced by GP in 1884, who’s to say where the brand would be today? In 2018, GP is revisiting the Three Bridges with a skeletonised Neo-Tourbillon. Housed inside a hefty 45mm titanium case, the GP09400-001 calibre movement is beautifully symmetrical but it’s also technically brilliant, thanks to a winding system that provides 60 hours of reserve. Tourbillons may be expensive, even a little antiquated, but when they’re carrying more than a century’s worth of history and look like this, we can get on board. For more information, see girard-perregaux.com

In January 2017, one of the most well-respected contemporary watchmakers passed away. Walter Lange re-established A Lange & Söhne (his grandfather’s Saxony watch brand) in 1990 before transforming it into a tour de force of fine watch manufacturing. Renowned for its high-complication timepieces, it is with some surprise that A Lange & Söhne should pay homage to its modern founder with what appears to be a simple time-only model on first impression. Beneath the watch’s exterior, however, is the caliber L1924 movement (named after Lange’s birth year), which boasts a unique jumping seconds complication. Here, an independent seconds hand can be stopped in the same way you would stop a chronograph. This is the chronograph’s ancestor, first invented in 1776, and first patented for use in an A Lange & Söhne watch in 1877. It’s a touching tribute. For more information, see alange-soehne.com

In January 2017, one of the most well-respected contemporary watchmakers passed away. Walter Lange re-established A Lange & Söhne (his grandfather’s Saxony watch brand) in 1990 before transforming it into a tour de force of fine watch manufacturing. Renowned for its high-complication timepieces, it is with some surprise that A Lange & Söhne should pay homage to its modern founder with what appears to be a simple time-only model on first impression. Beneath the watch’s exterior, however, is the caliber L1924 movement (named after Lange’s birth year), which boasts a unique jumping seconds complication. Here, an independent seconds hand can be stopped in the same way you would stop a chronograph. This is the chronograph’s ancestor, first invented in 1776, and first patented for use in an A Lange & Söhne watch in 1877. It’s a touching tribute. For more information, see alange-soehne.com