Nomos releases retailer-specific limited editions on a regular basis, and the latest addition to that lineup is the Zürich Worldtimer Limited Edition Singapore 2021, a 50-piece run for Singapore retailer The Hour Glass.

Based on the Zürich Weltzeit, the Singapore edition has a yellow gold-plated dial with a grained finish, matched with blued hands, as well as the city state in red on the world time ring.

Initial thoughts

Retailer editions are a Nomos favourite – just last month it was the turn of Amsterdam-based Ace Jewelers – so there really are a lot of them, reducing the novelty of the idea.

That said, it is often such limited editions that are the most interesting in terms of colour palette, making them far more compelling than the standard Nomos offerings.

That’s the case with the new Singapore edition, which is dressed in a colour and finish not usually found on Nomos watches. While the design remains distinctly Nomos, the livery gives the watch a slightly more striking appearance than the typical Nomos, which tend toward a more muted appearance.

Colour aside, the Singapore edition has all the strengths and weakness of the standard version. The strengths are primarily the easy-to-operate world time as well as attractive movement, while the weaknesses are the long lugs and the small font for the world time display.

Gilt and blue

Besides the gilded finish that’s unusual for Nomos, the dial of the Singapore edition also has a granular texture that’s more pronounced than the typical Nomos dial. It’s matched with blue hands – that appear to be coated blue rather than heat treated – as well as dark blue hour markers.

And it has “Singapore” in red on the cities disc, along with a tiny red sphere at three o’clock, a reference to the “Little Red Dot” nickname for the city state. Both of these elements were also found on the first Zurich Worldtimer Singapore edition of 2017.

From left: the standard Zurich Weltzeit, the 2021 Singapore edition, and the 2017 Singapore edition

The rest of the watch is identical to the standard model, which is one of the largest and most complicated watches that Nomos makes.

The case is 39.9 mm wide, with the angular, pointed lugs that are the trademark feature of the Zurich case, which was designed by Hanens Wettstein, the late Swiss industrial designer who also cofounded the watch brand Ventura.

Within is the DUW 5201, the flagship calibre of Nomos. Decorated in the appealing manner of all Nomos movement, the DUW 5201 automatic and has a 42-hour power reserve.

And like many of Nomos’ other in-house movements, this is equipped with the Nomos Swing System, which is a balance wheel and hairspring produced in-house.

Key facts and price

Nomos Zürich Worldtimer Limited Edition Singapore 2021
Ref. 805.S24

Diameter: 39.9 mm
Height: 10.85 mm
Material: Stainless steel
Crystal: Sapphire
Water resistance: 30 m

Movement: DUW 5201
Functions: Local time and home time
Winding: Automatic
Frequency: 21,600 beats per hour (3 Hz_
Power reserve: 42 hours

Strap: Beige suede with pin buckle

Limited edition: 50 pieces
Availability: Only at The Hour Glass
Price: 8,030 Singapore dollars including 7% GST

For more information, visit Thehourglass.com.

A French brand that specialises in affordable, vintage-inspired watches, Baltic is back with another affordable, vintage-inspired watch. Evidently modelled on gentlemen’s watches of the 1930s, notably the Patek Philippe ref. 96 Calatrava, the MR01 is the brand’s first dress watch.

Compact at just 36 mm in diameter, the MR01 is also thin at under 10 mm thanks to the micro-rotor automatic movement within, which is also the reason behind the unusually positioned seconds at seven o’clock.

Initial thoughts

Baltic has consistently released vintage-inspired watches that are the right combination of design, details, and affordability, which is exactly what the MR01 is all about.

It has an aesthetic that instantly brings to mind the Patek Philippe ref. 96, accented with overtly vintage details like the applied numerals and stepped bezel. But its most novel aspect is arguably the movement, which has a micro-rotor, an uncommon feature in watches at this price point, for now.

The fit and finish of Baltic’s offerings is good considering the price, which is an affordable US$600 or so for the MR01. That’s possible due to the fact that most of the watch is assembled using components made by Chinese suppliers.

Chinese watchmakers themselves produce watches of comparable quality for less money, but most have yet to offer the design and eye for details that Baltic possesses. And that is why Baltic’s watches are value propositions that enjoy with commercial success.

Effectively vintage

Like Baltic’s other watches, the MR01 is effectively straightforward in its design, which smartly combines vintage-inspired elements like Breguet-style numerals, leaf hands, and a railway minute track.

The dial also utilises texture to create a two-toned finish, with the central portion done in a stamped, grained finish that contrasts against the concentrically brushed minute track.

The hour numerals are polished and applied

The Hesalite crystal is domed as it would be on a vintage watch

The steel case replicates the look of a 1930s watch with its form and proportions. Details like the single-stepped bezel and widely-spaced lugs contribute to the vintage aesthetic.

The case is polished on top, but brushed on the side

Though Baltic watches are assembled in France, the constituent parts are imported, primarily from China, explaining the affordability.

The movement is courtesy of Hangzhou Watch Factory. It’s the ELA05MN, a slim movement with a micro-rotor and 40-hour power reserve. Being a relatively new calibre, the movement is rarely found in watches at this price point, though it’s like to grow in popularity given its novelty and size.

The movement is decorated in a rudimentary, industrial manner, but one that’s appropriate given the price

Key facts and price

Baltic MR01

Diameter: 36 mm
Height: 9.9 mm
Material: Steel
Crystal: Hesalite
Water resistance: 30 m

Movement: Hangzhou Watch Factory ELA05MN
Functions: Hours, minutes, and seconds
Frequency: 28,800 beats per hour (4 Hz)
Winding: Automatic
Power reserve: 42 hours

Strap: Leather with pin buckle

Limited edition: No but first 200 in each dial type will be numbered
Availability: Now at Baltic’s online shop and authorised retailers
Price: €541.67 excluding tax

For more, visit baltic-watches.com.

Debuted exactly 90 years ago a sports watch, the Jaeger-LeCoultre Reverso is famous for its swivelling case that was meant to protect the crystal. But in the modern day, the Reverso has paradoxically evolved into brand’s signature dress watch, as well as a canvas for assorted complications and artisanal decoration.

The latest 90th anniversary model falls into the former category – the Reverso Tribute Minute Repeater is highly complicated, with its mechanics visible on two open-worked faces: the chiming mechanism revealed on the front and the base movement on the reverse.

The front (left) with the repeater revealed, and the back showing the hand-wind calibre

Initial thoughts

The Reverso Tribute Repeater is an example of smart engineering and design, executed in a way that is possible only with the Reverso’s two faces. Notably, doing away with a solid dial is actually a technical necessity (more on that later), rather than mere vanity, but it leaves the watch looking as impressively complicated as it is.

Though a modular repeater, its repeating mechanism is no ordinary example, but instead incorporates two proprietary innovations that compound to produce louder chimes, namely the extra-large hammers and the gongs that are located as close to the wearer as possible – they are attached onto the front crystal, hence the absence of the dial.

Upon activation, the slider on the left winds up the mainspring at six o’clock, which unwinds to power the repeater

That said, the innovations aren’t new. In fact, the Reverso Tribute Repeater is nearly identical to the Reverso Répétition Minutes à Rideau that debuted a decade ago – both are powered by the same calibre – with the only differences being the vertical alignment of the movement, and the simplification of the repeater-activation mechanism, which did away with the fancy metal curtain of the Rideau in favour of a conventional slide.

Then there’s the size, which is a huge 51 mm by 31 mm, making it almost as large as the mega-complicated Hybris Mechanica that’s a lot more complicated. In comparison, the simplest, two-hand Reverso is just 40 mm long and 24.4 mm wide. The size means the repeater will wear too big, especially given its rectangular form, but it does admittedly look magnificent, because the imposing sizing goes well with the mechanically-complex appearance.

Despite being a variant of an existing watch, the Reverso Tribute Repeater is a shrewd launch, because it repurposes a model that’s now obscure but combines two of the brand’s biggest strengths: the iconic case and technical prowess.

Open dial

At a glance the watch appears skeletonised, but it merely has no dial. Doing away with the dial reveals the striking mechanism in all its glory, creating an elaborate landscape that evokes a skeletonised movement.

Notably, legibility has not been sacrificed with the removal of the dial, as the front still has an outer minute chapter ring with hour markers cantilevered on it.

But the best part sits within the chapter ring, for rare is a calibre with the chiming mechanism full exposed – on the front no less. The secondary mainspring that powers the repeater sits at around six o’clock, just beside the governor that regulates the tempo of the chime.

And at one o’clock, a pair of catapult-like hammers can be seen – the proprietary “trebuchet” hammers with twin, spring-loaded pivots that ensure more powerful strike – a patented invention that debuted in 2009.

Also visible – but more obvious when the repeater is chiming – is the rack, a part of the mechanism that “measures” the time and converts it into chimes.

The trebuchet hammer

And the back is designed similarly, without a dial but with another pair of hands that show the same time as the front.

The reverse is less intriguing, but it does show almost all of the base movement, indicating that the repeating mechanism is a module on the front. And it also reveals that the barrel is small – by virtue of the compact base calibre – explaining the short, 35-hour power reserve.

Key Facts and Price

Jaeger-LeCoultre Reverso Tribute Minute Repeater
Ref. 71225SQ

Case diameter: 51.1 mm by 31 mm
Height: 11.41 mm
Material: 18k pink gold
Crystal: Sapphire
Water resistance: 30 m

Movement: Cal. 944
Functions: Hours, minutes, and minute repeater
Frequency: 21,600 beats per hour (3 Hz)
Winding: Hand-wind
Power reserve: 35 hours

Strap: Brown alligator

Availability: At Jaeger-LeCoultre retailers and boutiques
Limited Edition: 10 pieces
Price: €250,000 (excluding taxes)

For more, visit jaeger-lecoultre.com.