The world has descended on Geneva for the single most important week on the watchmaking catalogue. But with over 80 brands all launching new watches, there’s a lot to take in. So we’ve cut through the noise to select out favourite stand-out releases from the show, from refreshed, accessible cool to haute horology heavy hitters.
Vacheron Constantin
Historiques American 1921
A watchmaking icon of the roaring 20s, the Vacheron Constantin Historiques American is a grail watch for many, and even the modern interpretations have a serious following – one that’s only going to get stronger with this latest version. Despite its name, the new Historiques modernises the template a touch with a new grained silver dial and blue numerals slightly darker than the thermally coloured hands, set on a matching blue patinated strap. The case is now in 40mm or 36.5mm of rose gold, though inside it is the same calibre 4400, Poinçon de Genève-worthy movement. Overall it’s a relatively straightforward aesthetic overhaul, but one that brings the American 1921 firmly into this century.
The detail:
40mm or 36.5mm rose gold case with 30m water resistance
4400 AS calibre manual-wind movement with 65-hour power reserve
PRICE TBH, vacheron-constantin.com
Audemars Piguet
Neo Frame Jumping Hour
Audemars Piguet got the jump (pun intended) on most brands this year by launching before the show, but the novelty of their Neo Frame Jumping Hour still hasn’t worn off. If last year’s Cartier Tank Cintree revisited the instantaneous hour complication, this perfects it. With a square window at 12 o’clock for hours and minutes in a curved aperture at 6, it shows the bare minimum of timekeeping information. Everything else is either sapphire crystal bonded to a black dial plate or rose gold. Inside is AP’s newly developed Cal. 7122, which brings some much-needed shock resistance to the jump hour mechanism meaning that, even if this doesn’t look like a daily wearer, it could be. And it’s still than most Royal Oak Jumbos. We know which we’d rather have.
The detail:
32.6mm x 34mm rose gold case with 20m water resistance
Calibre 7122 automatic movement with 52-hour power reserve
CHF 56,300, audemarspiguet.com
IWC
Pilot’s Venturer Vertical Drive
Plenty of watches have been into space – the Seiko Pogue, Breitling Cosmonaute and of course the Omega Speedmaster – but none of them have really been designed explicitly to leave the atmosphere. With the new Pilot’s Venturer Vertical Drive, IWC’s says ‘hold my recycled urine.’ Designed in collaboration with Vast, the company building the successor to the International Space Station, this is arguably the first true mechanical space watch. That means a 24-hour display as astronauts adhere to GMT in spite of their accelerated sunrise schedule; a bezel that sets all functionality for easier use in space suit gloves and a mix of ceramic and Ceratanium (a ceramic / titanium hybrid) for an ultra-hard, heat-proof case. All of this means it’s mission-approved for the first Haven-1 space station when that launches later this year.
Nomos
Tangente Update
A Bauhaus classic, Nomos Glashutte’s minimalist Update has one of the most novel yet intuitive date displays around. Opting for a peripheral date similar to the likes of Oris, the Saxon watchmaker swaps a classic pointer hand for a pair of red dots that flank the correct date. It’s quick and easy to read, makes for a fun twist on the brand’s often sparse German style and, in the new 38.5mm version, is more wearable than ever. It’s not just the size though as this is also the first time we’ve seen a gold Update. The final watch is clean, dressy and, funky colourways be damned, why Nomos Glashutte is one of the coolest brands in Germany.
The detail:
38.5mm yellow gold case with 50m water resistance
DUW 6101 calibre automatic movement with 42-hour power reserve
From £3,380, nomos-glashuette.com
Laurent Ferrier
Sport Traveller
In a long-overdue combination we didn’t realise we needed this much, independent atelier Laurent Ferrier have combined two of their key collections – the streamlined Sport Auto and the enamelled Classic Traveller into one: the aptly named Sport Traveller. And it’s a stunner. Instead of anything as pedestrian as a GMT hand to spoil the clean monochrome of the dial, the second timezone is instead displayed in a window at 9 o’clock, balancing the date at 3 o’clock, both with the sloping signature look of Laurent Ferrier. The GMT is operable using the twin pushers on the left flank, but otherwise this is the faux vintage racing-inspired watch we love the brand for. That and the painfully immaculate finishing across the board; that helps too.
The detail:
42mm grade 5 titanium case with 100m water resistance
LF275.01 automatic movement with 72-hour power reserve
PRICE TBC, laurentferrier.ch
Hublot
Spirit of Big Bang Impact
The name may sound like a bad translation, but there’s no mistaking what Hublot are going for in their revamped Impact sub-collection. All three models here have the same intense, fragmented appearance though done in markedly different ways. The most ‘straightforward’ of the three is the all-black ceramic with elements of the Unico movement peeking through. Other than the cracks, this is classic Hublot. Then, however there’s a fully sapphire version with a dial made using ultra-rare, ultra-heavy Osmium, a metal I’ve only ever seen Czapek & Cie use before. It’s glittering, pale-blue colour makes solid use of the extra light available through the transparent case. Finally, we have the sapphire and diamond version, which marks the first time anyone’s been mad enough to set diamonds into solid sapphire. If you ever wanted to know what it looks like to shatter a watch with a sledgehammer (which incidentally these could all survive), this is it. And it’s awesome.
The detail:
42mm ceramic / sapphire case with 100m / 50m water resistance
HUB1770 calibre automatic movement with 50-hour power reserve
£26,500 (ceramic), £89,800 (osmium), £426,000 (diamond), hublot.com
Roger Dubuis
Excalibur Bi-Retrograde Perpetual Calendar
Last year, Roger Dubuis went back to its archives for a favourite complication of the eponymous watchmaker himself – namely the Bi-Retograde Calendar. Now they’re upping the horological ante by adding the word ‘perpetual’ to the front, turning a novel calendar layout into a true high complication. It’s an intense visual, with a funky day scale at 9 o’clock, date at 3 o’clock and month at 12 o’clock. A golden moon phase sits at 6 o’clock while the rest of the dial shows off the bi-retrograde mechanics, enough that you might miss the leap year indicator nestled at 1 o’clock. This is Roger Dubuis’ bi-retrograde concept taken to the nth degree.
The detail:
40mm rose gold case with 100m water resistance
RD850 automatic movement with 60-hour power reserve
Limited to 188 pieces, rogerdubuis.com
Grand Seiko
'Ushio' Diver Spring Drive UFA
Grand Seiko have been building dive watches for a while now, but they’ve never gotten the attention their naturalistic dress watches have. That’s something the Japanese brand is hoping to address with a new release that finally brings in 300m water resistance. The lightweight, high-intensity titanium case keeps the 40.48mm case light with a ceramic bezel for knock-proof durability. Complete with a wavy archipelagos-inspired dial in blue or grey, if anything’s going to convert Omega Seamaster fans to Japanese watchmaking, it’s these.
The detail:
40.84mm high-intensity titanium case with 300m water resistance
9RB1 UFA Spring Drive movement with 72-hour power reserve
£10,500, grand-seiko.com
Frederique Constant
Classics Manufacture Worldtimer
The Classics Manfacture Worldtimer has been Emblematic of Frederique Constant’s approach to watchmaking since 2012, an accessible complication done in a typically Swiss watch. But if like me, you’ve always found it a bit too busy, 2026 might be your year. The latest version of the globe-trotting timepiece not only improves things mechanically with the new FC-719 calibre – almost doubling its power reserve to a weekend-proof 72 hours – but it’s dropped the 6 o’clock date subdial. Now the atlas dial has more room to breathe, especially in the simplest blue and dark grey version. Paired with a redesigned case, this is evolution over revolution for sure, but it’s more of a jump than Darwin would have expected.
The detail:
40mm stainless steel case with 50m water resistance
FC-719 automatic movement with 72-hour power reserve
£4,395, frederiqueconstant.co.uk
Alpina
Startimer Pilot
It’s a year of revamps for sister makers Frederique Constant and Alpina. Just as the former’s revisiting their signature worldtimer, so too is Alpina refreshing their 15-year-old, specs-heavy, price-light pilots’ watch. A big part of that is a new case, which retains the 40mm diameter but is 10% thinner. That might not sound like much, but it makes the difference between slipping under a cuff or bunching up. But despite the size, Alpina have opted to bevel every edge, giving the entire watch more wrist presence than before. The same goes for the dial, with a new stepped flange minute track for more precise reading and the new La Joux-Perret movement upping its power reserve to 68 hours. This is a collection that deserved some love; now it has it.
The detail:
40mm stainless steel case with 100m water resistance
AL-525 automatic movement with 68-hour power reserve
£1,295, alpinawatches.com
