Morten Linde, co-founder of innovative watch brand Linde Werdelin, brings us a much anticipated update from THE LAB:

It is my absolute pleasure to share with you that the SpidoSpeed Chronograph has now been ‘unleashed’ into the markets around the world.

Need he say more?  Not really!  But even so Morten did point out the slight design change that was made to the SpidoSpeed Chronograph since it was first unveiled at BaselWorld this past March (see my “before and after” analysis below).    Some may like it, some may not — but as for me, what to say except that the watch still looks AWESOME!  My congrats to the Linde Werdelin team on their continued success.  It’s been great watching the brand sprout and grow over these past few years.

100 pieces in each of steel, black DLC-finished steel and rose gold will be made, with prices starting at $15,200.

Be sure to also check out my prior extensive coverage of many of Linde Werdelin’s awesome watches HERE.

Linde Werdelin SpidoSpeed Chronograph

Limited edition 100 pieces each (individually numbered)

44mm multi-part skeleton-style case (15mm thick), two-part black dial with chronograph counters, automatic mechanical movement

Here is a first look at Hublot’s “unique piece” for the Only Watch 2011 charity auction in Monaco (see my full ONLY Watch 2011 preview list here) – a big and bold Oceanographic 4000 dive watch.  Like the original Hublot Oceanographic 4000 watches (titanium version and carbon fiber version) which I unveiled earlier this month, this watch is full of symbolism.  The robustly-spec’d watch declares Hublot’s bold spirit and technical prowess, while its use of red and white indexes and hands is meant to symbolize the colours of the Monaco flag (Monaco being the location of the ONLY Watch 2011 auction).   In addition, the Oceanographic 4000 takes its name directly from the “Musée Océanographique de Monaco” (Monaco Oceanographic Museum) with which Hublot enjoys a partnership. A fitting creation for the the Only Watch 2011 event!

Hublot Oceanographic 4000 for ONLY WATCH 2011
Unique Piece

48mm carbon fiber case (“King Power” style), black PVD titanium crown, automatic mechanical movement, strap – red stitched alligator on black rubber with black PVD titanium clasp

Superb…

Continuing my ONLY Watch 2011 previews (see them all here) — here’s a first look at the Blancpain Villeret Grande Décoration for Only Watch 2011.  The watch is a study in contrast — on the front, its white enamel dial with painted hour-markers and red gold hands suggests simplicity and elegance; on the back, a depiction of the Rock of Monaco and the surrounding landscape is rich in detail.   The hand-decoration on this one-of-a-kind watch was performed by Blancpain’s Master Engraver Marie-Laure Tarbouriech, to whom I say that much credit is due.  The watch is equipped with a Blancpain Calibre 15B, an ultra-thin hand-wound movement.  By the way, this is Blancpain’s seventh ONLY Watch event — it has donated a piece to each event since it was first formed in 2001.

Blancpain Villeret Grand Decoration for ONLY WATCH 2011

Unique Piece

45mm red gold case (8.3mm thick), white grand feu enamelled dial, hand-decorated manual-wind Caliber 15B movement (40 hrs power reserve)

depiction of the Rock of Monaco and the surrounding landscape:

The Rolex HT Explorer “Trio” is complete!  I first blogged about the *unofficial* Rolex Hillary Tenzing Explorer series when it was announced in September 2010 (see:  Rolex Hillary Tenzing Explorer Series), followed by a look in November when the first watch in the 3-watch set — a Rolex “Red” Explorer — was unveiled (see:  Rolex Hillary Tenzing Explorer Watch #1).  Now with the addition of an appropriately customized 2011 Rolex Explorer II (Ref 216570, black dial), the Rolex Hillary Tenzing Explorer set is complete.

As a reminder, just 88 sets are being produced — each set comes packed in a special handcrafted wooden crate as used during the 1953 British expedition in which Sir Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay became the first men to summit the might Mount Everest.  The crate has four drawers, each filled with custom-made items commemorating the successful Everest expedition — and of course the 3 Rolex Explorer watches!  I don’t know what availability looks like at this point, but I do see that http://www.hillarytenzingexplorer.com is still taking pre-orders.  The Rolex HT Explorer set costs about $40,000 (28.800 EUR) — probably well worth the investment if you Rolex blood runs through your veins.

Rolex HT Explorer Watches

Special “crate” the watches and custom accessories come packaged in:

Upper Left – HTE 36mm commemorating the first ascent by Sir Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay

Upper Right – HTE 39mm commemorating “first and second generation” explorers to the top (Sir Edmund Hillary and Peter Hillary)

Bottom – HTE 42mm commemorating the two sons (Peter Hillary and Jamling Tenzing Norgay) of the original summiteers

Oh, by the way — set # 88/88 recently sold at auction for $104,568 (proceeds to the Hillary Tenzing Family Foundations) – so $40,000 is perhaps not as much as it seems for this very cool set!

a look at the special caseback:

custom cordovan leather straps included with the HTE set:

Here’s a look at the new Oris Maldives dive watch.  This watch follows in the footsteps of the popular Oris Great Barrier Reef Limited Edition watch from 2010, and while it does not have the 1,000 meter water resistance rating of the Great Barrier Reef, the Oris Maldives edition is unique in its own right with a titanium case, crown guard, and a ceramic-inlayed bezel that has a neat “brushed” finish on it (not something you see every day).  Limited to 2000 pieces, the Oris Maldives Limited Edition dive watch price is $2,450 on rubber strap and $2,650 on a metal bracelet.

Oris Maldives Dive Watch (Limited Edition)

43mm titanium case, unidirectional bezel with ceramic inlay, automatic mechanical movement, helium escape valve, screw-in crown, water resistance 300 meters, fitted on black rubber strap or titanium bracelet with folding clasp

the blue dial has applied indices filled with Superluminova in dark orange color:

the back of this unique divers watch features the Manta Ray Logo, paying homage to the endangered species:

I just watched a review of the F.P. Journe Centigraphe Souverain watch over at KronosBlog.  This was my first look at this watch, and I thought that the review was so fantastic that I wanted to share it here.  As captured in the video, the hand-wound mechanical movement of the Centigraphe indicates elapsed time from 1/100th of a second to 10 minutes, visible on 3 dials, each with a time scale in red and a tachometer scale in black.  A very impressive timepiece, both visually and mechancially.  The F.P Journe Centigraphe Souverain price is about $75,000 (55,000 EUR).

Via:  KronosBlog (click through for full review and some great pics).

F.P. Journe Centigraphe Souverain Watch Review (Video)

40mm platinum or rose gold case (10.7mm thick), manual wind Journe Caliber 1506 (80 hours power reserve-max)

F.P. Journe Centigraphe Souverain Watch

F.P. Journe

Continuing my previews of the ONLY WATCH 2011 Charity auction (see them all here), here’s Louis Vuitton’s contribution:  the “Tambour Diver Chronograph.”  For the third consecutive ONLY WATCH event (2007, 2009 and now 2011), Louis Vuitton has enlisted the support and inspiration of young Paul Pettavino, a young boy afflicted with Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy.  The watch comes in a custom Louis Vuitton Trunk with “Damier Graphite” style canvas, personalized by Paul Pettavino with a message and a nautical sound record realized by Paul Pettavino.  Pretty cool looking dive watch!

FLASHBACK:  Louis Vuitton Tambour Spin Time for Only Watch 09

Louis Vuitton Tambour Dive Watch for ONLY WATCH 2011

Unique Piece

44mm black PVD-coated white gold case, automatic column wheel chronograph movement, 100 meter water resistance, on orange rubber strap

dial close up:

note the “L O U I S V U I T T O N” lettering around the outer edge of the case

Nice looking Corum Admiral’s Cup Seafender 48 Chrono, created for the Bol d’Or regatta.   The pyramid-patterned dial is what caught my eye.  Literally translated, Bol d’Or means “Golden Bowl” i.e. trophy cup — the Regatta has been held in Switzerland annually since 1939, and for the past two years Corum has been a sponsor of the event.  This is one of many sailing events that Corum sponsors — the brand’s ties to the maritime world, sailing in particular, are well established.

Corum Admiral’s Cup Seafender 48 Chrono Bol d’Or Mirabaud

Limited Edition 30 Pieces

48mm titanium case with PVD finish, automatic mechanical movment (COSC certified), on black strap with blue stitching

Did You Know?

The Bol d’Or Marabaud

The route is designed to be as simple as possible: Geneva to Le Bouveret bac to Geneva. There is only one buoy marker, at the mid-way point (Le Bouveret).

The winner in real time of the Geneva -Le Bouveret -Geneva route wins the Bol d’Or, which is put up for grabs each year – unless it is won three times in five years by the same owner. Only three boats have achieved the latter feat in over 70 editions: Marie-José II belonging to Horace Julliard (1961, 1962 and 1963), Altaïr IX owned by Philippe Stern (1980, 1982 and 1984) and Ernesto
Bertarelli’s Alinghi (1997, 2000 and 2001).

The Bol de Vermeil rewards the first monohull to cross the finishing line. As with the Bol d’Or, it must be won three times in five years in order to be entitled to keep it.

This is the new Hublot Nastie Bang — inspired by a great forehand. Romanian Ilie Nastase (aka “Nastie”) is one of the world’s all-time tennis greats.  Nastase reached the acme of his career during the 1970s, was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 1991, and is just one of the five players in history to win more than 100 ATP professional titles, including seven Grand Slam titles (two in singles, three in men’s doubles, and two in mixed doubles).  132 titles, to be precise!

The watch was unveiled at the recent grand opening ceremony for the 36th Hublot boutique — located on London’s prestigious New Bond Street.  Ilie Nastase joined Hublot CEO Jean-Claude Biver and friends for the ribbon cutting ceremony and to receive the watch created in his honor.

Hublot Nastie Bang

Limited Edition 132 numbered pieces (equal to the # of titles Ilie Nastase won in his career)

44mm black ceramic case, automatic mechanical movement, gummy gator strap with yellow stitching

Tennis Legend Ilie Nastase with his new Hublot Big Bang “Nastie Bang”

Dial close-up

On the dial, two counters feature tennis-inspired imagery:  the 60-second counter positioned at 9 o’clock reveals the points awarded in the game of tennis (15 – 30 – 40 – GAME), and the 30-minute counter is stamped with a tennis ball image.

Hublot Nastie Bang (360 View Video)

notice the blue, yellow and Romanian Flag is decorated on the left hand side of the case

Quick look at two new Alpina Yacht Timers, part of the 2011 Alpina Sailing Collection.  Though I personally have no use for regatta timing capability (the colored circles in the upper section of the dial), the watch has a really nice look to it.  I particularly like the white dial model fitted on the mesh bracelet (pictured below).  I’d guess the price to be in the $2,000 – $3,000 range — definitely making these watches worth a closer look.  In general, I’d say that Alpina is on a roll this year (building upon several good years, really) — you should also check out the Alpina Startimer Pilot series that they announced back in March — truly a stunning watch.

Alpina is the sibling-brand of Frederique Constant, and also new haute horlogerie brand Ateliers deMonaco (I was the first blogger to write about the new brand) — all overseen by Peter and Aletta Stas.  These brands, operating in the “accessible luxury” segment under the guidance of the Stas husband/wife duo, have made tremendous progress and experienced rapid growth in recent years.  Note to self: keep a closer eye on Alpina!

Alpina Sailing Collection Watches 2011

Ref: AL-880LB4V6/ AL-880LS4V6

44mm stainless steel case, see-through case back, unidirectional bezel, automatic mechanical movement with yacht timer function, 200 meter water resistance, available on  Black rubber strap / metal bracelet / mesh bracelet

black dial version on rubber strap: