Today, some of the names of the past are still prominently in the Longines collections (consisting of Elegance , Watchmaking Tradition , Sport and Heritage ).
The aforementioned Conquest is part of the Sport collection and the
watch we have been testing is the Saint-Imier which belongs to the
Watchmaking Tradition collection.
In March, during the BaselWorld exhibition, Longines showed us their collection of new watches.
One of the watches that struck us the most was this beautiful moon
phase complication timepiece with four different retrograde hands on the
dial. The Longines Saint-Imier Retrograde Moon Phases.
This watch is packed with complications: moon phase indicator at 6
o'clock, day/night indicator at 12 o'clock, retrograde day indicator at
12 o'clock, retrograde 24-hour indicator at the left side of the dial
and retrograde date indicator at the right side of the dial. All these complications are powered by an automatic caliber L707.2 movement. This nicely finished movement of Longines prestigious moon phases watch is based on ETA's caliber A07 L31 movement. From what we've understood, ETA is making this movement exclusively for Longines. This is something we will probably see more often, as ETA will supply mostly Swatch Group brands now. This means they can probably do more of these special collaborations with their 'own' brands.
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Longines sent us one of their first finished Saint-Imier Retrograde
Moon Phases watches they had and we've worn it for almost a month. As soon as we unboxed this watch, we were delighted that they sent us the silver dial version with blued steel hands. Just a matter of personal preference, as they also have a black dial version with silver colored steel hands.
Setting the time and functions on this watch is – although it might appear different – very easy.
Besides the setting and winding crown, the watch has two small pushers
on each side of the watch for correcting the complications.
The case diameter of this Longines Saint-Imier timepiece is 44mm, which
– although we should be used to it by now – still looks big when you
read the specifications of a watch.
When wearing the watch – the model we received came on a stainless
steel bracelet as you can see – we didn't find the 44mm case to be too
big.
It suits the watch and it is probably also the reason that the dial has
so much space left despite the four retrograde hands, day/night and
moon phase indicator. If we were to buy a Saint-Imier Retrograde Moon Phases ourselves, we probably would order one with a leather strap. The high polished and heavy bracelet makes the entire watch quite heavy and too shiny for us. The bracelet – with safety clasp – has been well finished though and seems to be very tough.
Seeing so much movement on the dial when wearing it is a lot of fun. Everything visually changes and increases on the dial as seconds, minutes, hours and days are passing by.
Some people love the simplicity of just an hour and a minute hand on a
dial, but a mechanical watch like the St Imier Retrograde Moon Phases is
making a mechanical movement with so many complications truly coming
alive!
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As you can see in the picture above, the Saint-Imier Retrograde Moon
Phases timepiece is a thick watch, which is something you should really
experience yourself before you buy.
Also, decide whether the bracelet is something for you (to keep it in
balance with regards to weight) or that you prefer a leather strap. Longines also delivers this watch on a wonderful alligator strap with deployant clasp.
Besides the great classic look of this timepiece from the Watchmaking
Tradition collection of Longines, there is another aspect that will
please a lot of people.
As you probably know Longines is positioned within the Swatch Group as a
serious watchmaking brand with a lot of heritage to show but also one
that is still affordable. This particular Saint-Imier Retrograde Moonphase has a price tag of 2950 EUR , which is approximately $3700 USD (we don't have the official list price in USD at this moment).
Any other big name brand – in the same league – with a watch with the
same complications and similar finish of the watch case and – in this
case – bracelet, would have an entirely different price tag.
We applaud Longines for being able to pull something off like this and
think this watch could become one of their top selling watches for men
in the near future.
If you will visit the official Longines website (after reading this
review), you will see that they have selected a number of ambassadors
for their brands. We've found that Simon Baker , Australian actor and probably best known for his role in TV hit series 'The Mentalist' (CBS production), is the ambassador for this Saint-Imier Retrograde Moon Phases watch according to the Longines website.
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Although we normally do not pay much attention to ambassadors of brands, we think the link with Simon Baker is spot on. Just like the Saint-Imier timepiece, classic look with a modern twist. We are looking forward to see the Longines watch popping up in the upcoming (fifth) season of The Mentalist. Other ambassadors of Longines are Andre Agassi, Steffi Graf, Kate Winslet and a number of other sports people and movie stars.
The Longines Saint-Imier Retrograde Moon Phases (ref. L2.764.4.73.0 for
the white dial, ref. L2.764.4.53.3 and L2.764.4.53.6 for the black dial
versions) is a timepiece that we really enjoyed wearing. Great timekeeper, easy to operate, nice complications and a watch that is definitely a conversation maker.
We experienced that both watch enthusiasts and people who don't have
much going on for watches showed interest in this timepiece. In the end, the price tag of 2950 EUR for this type of watch is just awesome and will be a very convincing argument.
More information about this watch can be found at the official Longines websites:
www.longines.com
www.facebook.com/longines
vedere di piu rolex replicas e Breitling Aeromarine
I gioielli Breil
hanno segnato l’inizio di una nuova era. Il successo ebbe inizio nel
marzo 2001 con una collezione che vede l’acciaio come protagonista
assoluto. Secondo Marcello Binda, amministratore delegato del fruppo
Binda, il cuore delle creazioni Breil — (che oltre a Breil comprende grandi marchi come Wyler
Vetta, Seiko, Lorus e lavora in partnership con alcuni grandi brand tra
cui D&G Dolce e Gabbana Time e D&G Dolce & Gabbana Jewels),
— è il design ! Dalle caratteristiche rigorose e allo stesso tempo
essenziali. A detta degli esterti queste creazioni coniugano carattere,
stile e glamour. Il gruppo Binda nel 2003 ha venduto un milione di pezzi
e nel 2004 un altro milione e mezzo. Uno sviluppo molto consistente che
si è fatto sentire sui conti della capogruppo: l’esercizio 2005 si è
chiuso con un fatturato di 226 milioni di euro, grazie anche allo
sviluppo nei mercati internazionali, +18 per cento il fatturato totale
estero (rispetto al bilancio 2004) che oggi rappresenta il 27 per cento
del giro totale di affari. Gi� nel 2005 questa tendenzao verso
l’internazionalizzazione ha avuto un’accelerazione: nei primi sei mesi
dell’anno è stata creata una joint venture distributiva a Barcellona per
presidiare il mercato spagnolo in forte crescita; il brand italiano è
sbarcato Oltreoceano con l’apertura di una filiale a Miami e, nel
secondo semestre, è stata la volta della filiale tedesca di Monaco. in
seguito, con la nascita di Binda Asia, a Shanghai, si sono aperte le
porte del mercato cinese. Obiettivo futuro, anticipa Marcello Binda «è
quello di acquisire anche all’estero la leadership fra i marchi che si
distinguono per stile e design, creando accessori originali e distintivi
che esprimono vitalit� e energia. In particolare attraverso il marchio
Breil, sinonimo di italian style».vedere di piu 