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Newsletter - Happy holidays, see you next year!
Last week, Omega announced that it is developing a new standard, in conjunction with the Swiss Federal Institute for Metrology (METAS). Any watch with a precision between 0 and +5 seconds per day that can resist magnetic fields of "at least 15,000 gauss" will qualify for this Swiss norm, with which Omega ostensibly aims to raise awareness of the potential impact on our watches of the magnetic fields that surround us nowadays.
Also last week, the Qualite Fleurier foundation celebrated the 10th anniversary of its certification with the announcement that it is making the unique equipment used for its tests available to the entire Swiss watchmaking industry. The certification already uses the same strict precision tolerances as the new METAS standard, but with one very important difference: it is the only certification where the finished watch is subjected to a genuine simulation of real-world wrist action over 24 hours on the formidable Fleuritest machine. Read our full report this week on WorldTempus.
In this last full week of shopping before Christmas, we conclude our gift guide with a review of some affordable complicated watches, a selection of watch-related books and the new ultimate gift for the watch fan. Over the holiday season we will also be publishing loads of great content, with a mini-series of "What's next?" articles inspired by the theme of this year's Forum de la Haute Horlogerie, the first in a series of articles on the different movement decorations used in watchmaking, features from the latest issue of GMT Lady and a selection of the forthcoming SIHH launches.
Our offices will be closed over the festive period, so the next WorldTempus newsletter will be sent out on 12 January. In the meantime, the entire team at WorldTempus wishes you happy holidays and all the very best for the New Year. See you soon!
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Omega - The new De Ville Chronograph
Omega's De Ville line has long been known not only for its elegant styling but for its introduction of some of the brand's most important watchmaking innovations. For example, it was in a De Ville in 1999 that OMEGA launched its calibre 2500 equipped with a Co-Axial escapement - the component that since it was released has revolutionized mechanical watchmaking. In 2007, the De Ville Hour Vision introduced Omega's Co-Axial calibre 8500/8501, the movement that demonstrated that Omega's Co-Axial philosophy had truly come of age. And it was in the De Ville Hour Vision Annual Calendar that the Si14 silicon balance spring made its debut, offering an unparalleled level of stability and performance in a seriesproduced mechanical watch movement.
The De Ville Chronograph Omega Co-Axial calibre 9300/9301 carries on the line's tradition of classic design and its most innovative technology. It is powered by the chronograph in the brand's family of proprietary Co-Axial movements. Equipped with Omega's Si14 silicon balance spring, the timepiece is delivered with a four-year warranty. Frequent travellers will appreciate the fact that they can change the hour hand without affecting the minute and second hands - ideal for moving between time zones or for adjusting to the twice yearly time change in most parts of the world.
This new De Ville Chronograph is available with either a 42 mm 18 Ct red gold case on a brown or blue leather strap, or with a stainless steel case on a stainless steel bracelet or on a black or blue leather strap.
The 18 Ct gold model's Co-Axial calibre 9301 has an 18 Ct gold rotor and balance bridge; the stainless steel model is powered by the Co-Axial calibre 9300, which has a rhodium-plated rotor and balance bridge.
The two-zone dial has been created in a choice of opaline-silver or blue for the 18 Ct red gold models and opaline-silver or black or blue for the De Ville Chronograph in stainless steel. It has two domed sub-dials. The chronograph sub-dial at 3 o'clock has both the 60-minute and 12-hour counters so reading the elapsed time is intuitive. At the 9 o'clock position is the small seconds hand. The watch has a central chronograph seconds hand as well as 18 Ct gold diamondpolished, facetted central hour and minute hands. Its applied Roman numeral indexes are also crafted from 18 Ct gold, facetted on the sides and ends and fully diamond-polished.
The De Ville Chronograph is water resistant to 10 bar / 100 metres / 330 feet. With its combination of simple elegance and cutting-edge technology, the De Ville Chronograph Omega Co-Axial Calibre 9300/9301 is a stunning reminder of what a classic, yet highly technical mechanical watch can be.
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Concord - On and off the golf course with Álvaro Quirós
Álvaro Quirós was introduced to the game of golf at the age of nine by his father, who later persuaded him to focus on his golf game rather than his other passion, football. At the age of 19 Alvaro had a handicap of +1 and won a scholarship to the Joaquin Blume Center for High Performance in Madrid where the top Spanish athletes go to study. During this time he was selected for the Spanish under-21 golf team that won the European Masters title. After turning professional in 2004, he achieved his first significant win at the Morson International Pro-Am Challenge in 2006. This win was followed by the Alfred Dunhill Championship in 2007, the Portugal Masters in 2008 and the Commercialbank Qatar Masters in 2009. His most recent and important victories came in the 2010 Spanish Open, and in the 2011 Omega Dubai Desert Classic - his fifth European Tour title which featured a memorable hole-in-one during the final round.
At 6'3", Quirós is the longest hitter on the European tour and has topped the driving distance category in the Genworth Financial Statistics for three consecutive years - 2007, 2008 and 2009. As a youngster, Alvaro was taken under the wing of the great player and teacher Pedro Tineo who sensed the boy's talent and devoted many hours to helping him hone is technique. Quirós is now coached by former Ryder Cup player and four-time European Tour Champion Jose Riverso, whom Alvaro credits with having the best influence on his career performance to date. When asked recently to describe his sports philosophy, forged through experiences that include many successes but also unexpected setbacks and injuries, Alvaro said, "Uno de mis objetivos en la vida es disfrutarla en todo momento aunque no sea facil. Tener exito en mi trabajo y tener buenas personas a mi alrededor. ("One of my goals in life is to enjoy every moment even when things are not easy. I naturally wish to be successful in my job and to have good people around me.")
Such a statement clearly reveals that behind this rising golf star lies an eminently approachable young man with a pleasant demeanor who is deeply grounded in family values. As he explains, "I know my father, mother and brother are always there for me and they are my platform, the center of my universe". Quirós currently resides in Cadiz near his birth town of Guadiaro. He enjoys music, spending time with friends, and is an avid sports fan with a longstanding devotion to the Atletico Madrid football team. Determined to maintain a balanced approach to his life and his sport, he says: "I would like to be remembered as a long-hitting champion with many titles, but most of all as a good and fair human being."
Concord is genuinely proud of this promising new affiliation with Álvaro Quirós, who "likes the design of Concord watches because they are very elegant while still young and fresh." He will be ably representing the brand on golf links around the world - and at various press events where he will be able to share his enthusiasm for his discipline with golf aficionados around the globe. Both partners in this association are engaged in fields where patience and perseverance are matched by boldness and inventiveness - and this winning match between the worlds of watch-making and golfing appears set to bring some exciting results. Watch this space…
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Omega - Ladymatic
Can you imagine a line of women's watches that recalls the most compelling design elements of the golden age of couture and combines them with the best mechanical watch movements in the world? Is this idea simply too good to be true?
Omega can answer these questions in a word: Ladymatic.
Reviving a legendary name
The Omega Ladymatic reintroduces a name from the storied brand's illustrious past. Originally launched in 1955 and continuing for the better part of a generation, the Ladymatic wristwatch line defined feminine grace and elegance in another era. It was one of the brand's first self-winding watches to be designed especially for women and it featured the smallest automatic movement Omega had ever made.Omega has chosen to revive the legendary name with a family of watches whose design originality and Co-Axial innovation combine to give an entirely new meaning to Ladymatic. These are timepieces that have been created to address women's desire to own wristwatches that make profound fashion statements but which are also equipped with the best series-produced mechanical watch movements in the world.
Nicole Kidman and Ladymatic
Academy Award-winning actress Nicole Kidman, an Omega brand ambassador since 2004, will be the face (and wrist) associated with the Ladymatic line. Asked what she thought about Omega's decision to usea name associated with a product launched in the fifties, Kidman said, "There's something appealing about that type of communication. There's a fascination with the era which means that the advertisements can be playful without actually turning back the clock. As the Ladymatic watch collection represents state-of-the-industry technology, this campaign is really a sort of wink."
What's in a name? Ladymatic in 1955 and 2010
When the first Ladymatic watches were released by Omega in 1955, the name concisely communicated the collection's strength: the Ladymatic was a self-winding watch created especially for women.Omega president Stephen Urquhart said about reviving the Ladymatic name, "We're certainly aware that it sounds different now than it did 55 years ago. But the new watches are superb and they've been designed for women who have told us that they are as interested in the quality of our mechanical movements as they are in the style of the watches."Mr. Urquhart added, "By reviving this name, we've been able to focus attention on how important our women customers have been to us over the years and also to show the world what a mechanical watch for women should be in the 21st century."Nicole Kidman echoed his sentiment saying, "These days, interest in the quality of a watch movement isn't gender specific - women have the same interest in its performance as men do. The Ladymatic addresses that perfectly."
The Ladymatic Line
The watches in the new Ladymatic line feature polished 34 mm cases with a distinctive ceramic ring between an outer decorative wave and the inner case body. The cases are crafted in 18 Ct red or yellow gold or in stainless steel.The Ladymatic watches are offered with a choice of polished or snow-set diamond-paved bezels. The polished screw-in crown is either set with a Brilliant Omega CutT™ diamond or is embossed with a polished OMEGA logo. The polished caseback has a sapphire crystal that reveals the movement that powers the watch.The movement driving the Ladymatic watches is the Omega Co-Axial calibre 8520/8521. At its heart is the Co-Axial escapement, the component that in 1999 signaled a revolution in how mechanical wristwatches are made. Each movement is equipped with OMEGA's exclusive Si 14 silicon balance spring, an innovation that makes it more resistant to external shocks and environmental disturbancEach watch in the Omega Ladymatic collection is an officially certified chronometer, a testimony to their outstanding timekeeping performance. The remarkable stability and performance of the Co-Axial calibers equipped with silicon balance springs makes it possible for Omega to deliver each Ladymatic wristwatch with a four-year warranty.The stunning face of the Ladymatic is highlighted by the supernova pattern, which emanates from the centre of the dial. The extra-white mother-ofpearl or lacquered black dials match the colour of the striking ceramic ring. The dials are available either with 11 diamond indexes in facetted 18 Ct gold mounts or in understated elegant simplicity with no hour markers. There is a diamond-polished date window at the 3 o'clock position. The polished alpha-shaped hands have been made from 18 Ct gold and are treated with white Super-LumiNova, making them readable in any lighting conditions.The Omega Ladymatic watches are presented with either bracelets in metals matching their cases or on alligator leather straps in mother-of-pearl white or brilliant black. The metal bracelets feature Omega's patented 3-row screw-and-pin design with a butterfly clasp. The alligator straps have a polished link in the metal that corresponds to the case and an 18 Ct gold foldover clasp.The new Omega Ladymatic Collection draws certain influences from its namesake: like the original Ladymatic watches, the line perfectly blends graceful, timeless design and Omega's groundbreaking technology. The new collection, with its Co-Axial technology and bold fashion features, takes the best elements of an earlier era and introduces them, completely updated and upgraded, to women of accomplishment in a new century.
[Rating: 5 / 5 stars]
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