The Salon International de la Haute Horlogerie, or SIHH for short, is one of the first major horological events to be held at the start of every calendar year. In this article I get to pick my top 3 of the watches shown. They are the Singer Reimagined Track1 Geneva Edition, the MB&F Moonmachine2, and the Audemars Piguet Royal Oak RD#02 Ultra Thin Perpetual Calendar.
This year marks the 28th edition of the event. In this year’s exhibition, there are a total of 35 exhibitors. This includes six new brands who made their debut in the annual watch fair.
As usual, each member of the Deployant team will be sharing some of their armchair picks from this year’s novelties. For me, personally, there are certainly some interesting pieces that stood out. Without any further ado, the following are the three watches that had attraction my attention.
Singer Reimagined Track1 Geneva Edition
Singar Reimagined Track 1 Geneva Edition in gold.
Being a big fan of the air-cooled Porsche 911s, the Singer brand had certainly commanded a great deal of respect and enthusiasm. Their redesigned and restored Porsches are excellent, and we are not expecting any less from their timepieces. The new Track1 Geneva Edition, launched specially for SIHH, certainly did not disappoint. The classic looking piece, accentuated by a yellow gold case, is rather good looking. But what makes the watch even more special is the movement. The watch is powered by the AgenGraphe, a self-winding movement that is a culmination of over a decade worth of development. The movement features several interesting touches, such as the central chronograph system and hidden winding rotor.
While the price point is fairly steep at CHF 72,000 (approximately S$99,064), we reckon it is an exceptional timepiece that performs as well as it looks. For someone who wants a vintage looking watch with modern mechanical movement, then perhaps the Singer might just be the perfect watch.
MB&F Moonmachine 2
MB&F x Sarpaneva Moonmachine 2.
When two horological icons come together to work on a timepiece, we are certainly in for something rather special. In this case, MB&F and Sarpaneva have collaborated and produced the second iteration of the Moonmachine.
The new Moonmachine 2 is based on the highly successful HM8. One of the most obvious giveaways that this is not your regular MB&F would be the winding rotor, which now features the iconic Sarpaneva “Moonface” motif. However, the magic truly lies on the “dial” side of the watch. The Moonmachine 2 is fitted with a moonphase indicator is located between the hour and minute display. Similar to the hour and minute indicators, the moonphase display is projected via a prism mechanism with the help of refraction. However, the watch is now 0.5mm thicker than the HM8, thanks to the inclusion of the moonphase disc and the adjustment mechanism.
The watch is available in three different variants – one in full titanium with white gold moons and a light-blue sky, one in blackened titanium with white gold moons and a dark-blue sky, and the last in red gold and titanium with red gold moons and an anthracite sky. There are all limited to a production of 12 pieces, with prices ranging from CHF 88,000 + VAT (approximately S$122,460) to CHF 95,000 + VAT (approximately S$132,200).
Audemars Piguet Royal Oak RD#2 Ultra Thin Perpetual Calendar
The Audemars Piguet Royal Oak RD#2 Ultra Thin Perpetual Calendar .
Finally, we have a new addition to the Royal Oak family – with the RD#2 Ultra Thin Perpetual Calendar.
The latest novelty from Audemars Piguet is a result of hard work and innovation that had last over five years, and eventually culminated with the incredible Calibre 5133. The main challenge has been to re-engineer a three-storey movement into a single level, making it ultra-thin while combining and re-arranging functions to boost ergonomy, efficiency and robustness. The end result is a 6.3mm thick timepiece, which makes it the thinnest self-winding perpetual calendar on the market today.
Besides the technical feat, this particular Royal Oak is rather good looking as well. The 41mm timepiece is cased in 950 platinum, and paired with its signature tapisserie pattern dial. It is currently not available for sale yet, but we will definitely keep a lookout for this timepiece when Audemars Piguet decides to finally launch the concept model to its clients.
Concluding Thoughts
This time round, I had placed quite an emphasis on two different aspects – one on the way the watch looks, and the next on innovation. The three watches that I have selected had certainly fit those criteria well.
There is no denying that these three pieces are quite beautiful. The Singer was executed especially well, with its design inspired by watches and designs from the 1970s. The MB&F, on the other hand, is very contemporary and perhaps slightly controversial. Finally, the Royal Oak still remains true to its design cues, with the classic octagon bezel and blue tapisserie dial. But what really got me was the technical bits – the Singer with an interesting centre chronograph display, the refracted moonphase indicator on the Moonmachine 2, as well as the ultra-thin perpetual calendar movement on the Royal Oak RD#2. The combination of good looks and excellent engineering certainly makes the three watches very attractive.
So, what are your thoughts on my selection? Are there any novelties that deserve a spot on the list as well? Let us know in the comments section below.
