Our Top Six Favorite Watches Experienced At SIHH 2019 (So Far)

Our first appointment of SIHH 2019 was at Vacheron Constantin’s manufacture in Plan Les Ouates. All we were told was that the brand was about to unveil “something special.” And special it was! The new Traditionelle Twin Beat Perpetual Calendar packs a mighty horological punch. Perhaps the most exciting feature is its two frequencies made possible by two independent balance wheels. With the press of a pusher at eight o'clock, you can switch between 1.2 and 5hz, which allows you to regulate the power consumption of this impressive watch. To top it all off, at the lower frequency, the watch is boasts a full 65-days of power reserve!
 

Mille has approached his last year participating in SIHH in an outrageously playful and fun way. The “Bonbon” collection is an entirely new candy-inspired lineup of 10 models. The unisex collection takes inspiration from the candies and fruits of childhood. Three case shapes are available: the RM07, RM16, and RM37. After years of dormancy, the square RM16 case, that helped bring the brand to prominence years ago has returned. The “Bonbon” collection is just plain fun.

“Bonbon - just saying the word is enough to make you smile. It manages to convey a combination of pleasure, good cheer and sharing all at once. This collection is disruptive, elegant, daring and playful. In a word: creative!”— Cécile Guenat, Richard Mille Artistic Director
 

“You want to see something really cool?” YES! Obviously. How’s this for a watch: a minute repeater, one of watchmaking’s most complicated and desirable functions, paired with a tourbillon, and to top it all off, NO HANDS. Of course, you don’t need hands to tell the time on a minute repeater, but they certainly help if you need the time at a glance. This year, Edward Meylan and his team at H. Moser & Cie continue to push the boundaries of modern watchmaking. While their nature watch was the talking piece of the show, this minute repeater based on the Swiss Alp template is the encore.
 

This unique piece has a playful case that houses a unique rectangular gong. The dial is a beautiful deep black lacquer dial with the tourbillon set at six o'clock. You're probably wondering how to set the time. The watch is set via the crown and graduations on the crown tube. There's a single mark on the case and the crown that designates one hour. One full revolution of the crown to mark one hour and five-minute ticks on the crown tube set the time. Or you could activate the repeater and have at it. The watch is priced at 350,000 of whatever currency you can come up with (CHF and USD preferred, but EUR will do).
 

Stay tuned for more SIHH 2019 highlights!

(Photography by Liam O’Donnell)