Fancy treating yourself to a gold watch?  Now even the most clumsy and blundering watch wearer can have one.  Hublot have created scratch-proof 18 carat gold, which they have very aptly named Hublot Magic Gold.

Metallurgy and Watchmaking are no strangers.  Hublot already have their own bespoke material, Hublonium, Rolex have “Rolesium”, a construction rather than a material term, Zenith have “Zenithium” and Richard Mille are experts in the use of Alusic – all techy stuff.  Silicon escapement wheels are all the rage and the use of carbon particles, ceramics, carbonitrides have become the norm.  Watches are getting stronger, harder and lighter.

What is different about Hublot’s Magic Gold is that although it may have been discovered in the lab, it is a retrospective to a very classical watchmaking material.  A gold watch is a traditional symbol of achievement, wealth and elegance.  A gold watch is something to be treasured and passed on, an heirloom piece.  What the creation of Magic Gold has done is to remove all the disadvantages of gold, a soft magnet for imperfections and made it wearable for today’s wear-and-tear generation.

Hublot have worked in partnership with the École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) to develop the material, the process of which can be used in the future on materials other than gold.  The term “magic” was conceived when the material which although first appeared as a black mass, became golden when it was polished.

Hublot will present the first generation of watches created using Magic Gold during Baselworld 2012.

More information and images of the processes involved in the creation of Magic Gold at Hublot Nation.

Popularity: 4% [?]

After an announcement at Mugello today, it is official – Hublot are to be partners with Ferrari.  Both are strong global brands, both bring a wealth of potential to this new business relationship. At the helm of both companies are two exceptional CEO’s, who each have so much to offer that you would have to wonder – who wooed who?

Jean-Claude Biver, boss of Hublot has turned the fortunes of his watch company around and is a master of marketing who has developed strategic business partnerships where previously there were none.  Recently Hublot have become Official FIFA Timekeeper and the Official Watchmaker of Formula 1 – a cause of much frustration amongst other watch brands who had let both of these get away.   Luca di Montezemolo, CEO of Ferrari was one of Enzo’s assistants in the seventies, since then he has successfully hot-footed his way from project to project under the corporate umbrella of FIAT.  He managed the committee of  the Italia 90 World Cup Finals, he headed up the team behind Italy’s Team Azzurra challenge for the Americas Cup and just like M. Biver revived his business.

Ferrari are one of the world’s most iconic products,  a product which  was waiting to be “perfectly-placed” in the horological world.  Previous  flirtations with Girard-Perregaux, Panerai and Cabestan fizzled out and hearts were broken.    If Ferrari were a girl, you would have to say she’d “been around a time or two…”  Hublot are experts in product placement,  when they come calling with red roses and chocolates few businesses, even the big ones could resist.  Ferrari will bring an adoring global “tifosi” and major showcase events worldwide, Hublot bring astute marketing knowledge and industry-savvy prowess.  Both brands can tap into eachother’s high tech  materials and know-how. Whether you are a starry-eyed romantic, a cynic or somewhere betwixt and between, take note this one will have a happy ending.

Popularity: 4% [?]

Hublot have just released details of their latest limited edition F1 piece, the Hublot F1 King Power Suzuka.  Last March Hublot announced that they were to become the “Official Watchmaker of F1″ – the ultimate product placement for any watch brand – yet Hublot have been remarkably restrained with their F1 watch releases.  We have not been inundated with F1 race-inspired editions, quite the opposite in fact – astute marketing which has left fans of both F1 and Hublot just wanting more – until now.

……….. The Suzuka circuit has been the backdrop for many end of season, edge of the sofa moments for F1 fans.  The circuit is a twisting figure of eight – just the sort of layout you would love to replicate with your scalextric track.  It’s the one with the big ferris wheel and an even bigger history to match – perhaps best known for the Prost/Senna duels of 1989 and 1990.  In 1989 both were racing for the championship, both driving for McLaren and when Prost “turned-in” on Senna during an all-or-nothing overtaking move, Prost was off – Senna got back on track, drove the race of his life but was later excluded for cutting a chicane.  Prost went on to win the championship.  Fast forward to 1990, same circuit, same rivalry with the added bitterness of the events of the previous year’s outcome.  Senna on pole but was denied his request to start the race on the “clean side” of the track and stated that if he was challenged going into the first corner by Prost he was not going to back-off.  He was challenged.  Both cars ended up in the sand-trap and Senna was champion. This was passionate racing, not the clinical corporate stuff we have become conditioned to today, it was damn-the-sponsors we want to win.  Missed it?  re-live it on YouTube……….

So a worthy circuit to honour with a new Hublot F1 piece then, and one which provides a new colourway for the latest King Power which looks more than tasty in Japan’s red and white.  As always it is techy both in looks and the construction materials used to create it  – that brake disc inspired ceramic bezel with the chunky Hublot screws, the superb dial layout and that outstanding King Power case – it’s all good.

The Hublot F1 King Power Suzuka comes presented on a Nomex/rubber combination strap and will be a limited edition of 250 pieces.

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Popularity: 8% [?]

This one was released last month, but I can no longer ignore it…. the Hublot Chukker Bang – a Big Bang with the horological equivalent of “bull bars” on its dial, developed in conjunction with Polo star Racundo Pieres.

The Jaeger-LeCoultre Reverso is, of course the most famous Polo watch.  Eighty years old, its design is both elegant and enduring.  Originally created to protect the watch dial during sporting pursuits such as polo, its flip-over watchcase has become a cult classic.  The Chukker Bang although made to perform the same task, is the antithesis of the JLC – the reverse of the Reverso. Partly obscuring a watch dial with a grille, even if that watch is a Big Bang shouldn’t work, but strangely enough it does.  Hublot’s Big Bang was never a watch designed to be hidden beneath a cuff and this one makes quite an impact.

The piece is designed within the 44mm Big Bang case, this one is constructed from titanium as is the grille so although it may look hefty it will be easy on the wrist.  The matt black dial features lume coated indices and hands, with contrasting red chronograph and minute counter hands.  The bezel is black ceramic with six instantly recognisable Hublot screws made from titanium.  On the side the pushers are steel/rubber and the solid caseback is decorated with “Chukker Bang” engraving.  For a complete transformation the grille can be removed revealing a rather tasty if more reserved watch, the Big Bang always looks its very best when clad in black.

The Polo-inspired design isn’t just superficial inside is the the HUB 1141 Polo Fly-Back Automatic Chronograph movement with a “chukka” counter which will time a 7 minutes 30 seconds period of polo-play.  The central chronograph hand completes its revolution of the dial in 30 seconds, twice the speed of more traditional timers.

The Hublot Chukker Bang comes presented on a black rubber and beige leather strap and will be a limited editon of 500 pieces.  Think something is missing?  Also available is a version with a diamond-set grille.

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Popularity: 9% [?]

Hublot’s Jean-Claude Biver once again brought traffic to a halt to open another brand boutique this time in London’s New Bond Street, and to help with the launch was tennis icon Ilie Nastase for whom a new limited edition Big Bang, the Nastie Bang was unveiled.

If you were a lawn tennis fan in the 1970′s then you had a decision to make, should you cheer for the cool-headed, silky smooth Björn Borg or the charismatic and feisty Ilie Nastase?  Borg was impeccable and flawless, Nastase took to the courts like a slightly scruffy rock star and his show-man antics had the more traditional Wimbledon spectators choking on their Pimms.  Borg is remembered for his supreme perfection and has his name on a nice collection of men’s underwear, Nastase on the other hand was passionate and slightly dangerous and now has a very tasty Hublot Big Bang designed in his honour………

The piece features a 44.5mm microblasted black ceramic case.  The dial is anthracite grey with black nickel appliques and faceted black nickel hands and a red chronograph hand.  The Nastase personalisation comes in the form of a “tennis ball” 30 minute counter at 3 o’clock and a 60 seconds counter at 9 o’clock with tennis points markings, 15-30-40.  Ilie’s signature appears beneath the sapphire at 6 o’clock and the sapphire case back is inscribed with an image of the man himself.

Inside is Hublot’s HUB 4100 Calibre automatic chronograph movement.  Water resistance is to 100 metres.  Nastase won 132 titles in his career and in tribute to this the watch will be an edition of 132 pieces.  The Hublot Nastie Bang  comes presented on a black rubber and leather strap with contrasting yellow stitching.

Popularity: 10% [?]

How boring the watch industry would be without Hublot’s charismatic Jean-Claude Biver.  He is simply unstoppable.  His knack for forming business partnerships where previously there were none ensures that his list of “friends in high places” continues to grow and grow – which must leave the CEOs of other brands more than a little perplexed.  For Hublot’s latest release, the Oceanographic 4000, the brand form an alliance with the prestigious Oceanographic Museum in Monaco ( – ingenius!) and the watch is, of course no ordinary diver’s watch.  It is capable of withstanding the pressures of a recorded depth of 4000 metres.  And it’s quiet a looker.

At such depths, as you can imagine it is all about survival,  so for a wristwatch to cope with such conditions without imploding required substantial research and development and the addition of a few safety features.  The seal has been tested to 5000 metres and it passed.  The sapphire has a thicknesss of 6.5mm.  The screw-down case back is made from super strong grade 2 titanium.  On the case side are two screw-down crowns.  At 2 o’clock is a unidirectional crown to set the dive time protected by an oversized guard which is not only a life saving feature, but is also quite swanky too.  The other crown at 4 o’clock is used for winding and setting the date and the time.  Both are perfectly positioned for ease of use.  To alleviate the watch equivalent of “the bends”, a stainless steel helium valve is positioned at 10 o’clock just out of shot on these images.

High readability is ensured.  Everything that you need to see has a liberal coating of SuperLuminova including the internal rotating flange which counts down the dive time.  Otherwise the dial is uncluttered, clean and clear.

At 48mm it’s big and chunky, but it’s not unwieldy thanks to super-light case construction.  Two versions are available, titanium case edition limited to 1000 pieces and All Black carbon fibre edition, limited to 500 pieces.   Inside is the automatic winding HUB 1401 movement with power reserve of 42 hours.

The King Power 48mm Oceanographic 4000 comes with two lengthened tongue and buckle straps, a style rare for Hublot, but more manageable while wearing diving gloves.

Popularity: 11% [?]

During the build up to the Brazilian Grand Prix, Hublot unveil two new pieces, the King Power Ayrton Senna and the King Power Tourbillon Ayrton Senna.  Previous Senna tribute pieces by Hublot have formed part of the Big Bang collection, but since the release of the King Power F1 to celebrate the brand becoming F1′s Official Watchmaker, it is a natural progression that these special timepieces should now form part of the King Power portfolio.

Recently I had a conversation with a young F1 fan about the current F1 season, and how exciting it is that the Driver’s Championship is still open as the last few races approach – obvious comparisons to the Prost/Senna end-of-season championship battles were made, and it was with great sadness that I realised that the young lad had never witnessed Senna race, had never seen him animate a qualifying session to claim pole position in the last few seconds.  In 1994 when the world mourned the premature death of Ayrton Senna even those who did not follow F1 racing quickly realised that someone very special had been lost.  This year Senna would have celebrated his fiftieth birthday.

The King Power Ayrton Senna measures 48mm and as you would expect the materials used are cutting-edge – carbon fibre and ceramic bezel with titanium screws, a 48mm carbon fibre case and a matt black carbon dial with a very trick power reserve indicator comprising green, blue and red dots an ingenious design which takes F1 inspired themes to a whole new level.

The Hublot King Power Senna - note the super cool power reserve indicator

The movement is the Hublot Calibre HUB4247 with Split Seconds Chronograph function.  The sapphire crystal is stamped with the signature of Ayrton Senna in yellow matching the hands and indices in this otherwise boldly dark timepiece.  The King Power Ayrton Senna comes presented on a black Nomex and rubber strap.

THe Hublot King Power Ayrton Senna

The King Power Tourbillon Ayrton Senna is powered by the Hublot Calibre  HUB6300, a column-wheel chronograph with clutch tourbillon escapement coupled directly onto the cage.  Again high-tech materials are used – carbon fibre case, ceramic bezel with circular satin finishing and titanium screws.  The power reserve is positioned over at the 9 o’clock position.

The Hublot King Power Ayrton Senna Tourbillon

This very special piece will be an exclusive edition of just 10, each will feature a caseback engraving of one of Ayrton’s career achievements chosen for inclusion by his family.  The King Power Ayrton Senna Tourbillon comes presented on a striking yellow strap with green and blue stitching in honour of his nationality.

In his lifetime Senna was an extremely generous individual donating large parts of his fortune to help the poor in Brazil, especially children and young people.  He was an astute businessman with a flair for marketing his own brand “Senna”.  On his death, this charitable work continued with the founding by his family of the “Instituto Ayrton Senna” which continues to transform the lives of thousands.  It is in keeping with this spirit of generousity that Hublot collaborate with the institution to create the Senna timepieces and share with them the profits.

Popularity: 16% [?]

Hublot build on their superb F1 portfolio of watches with the latest -  the Hublot F1 King Power Monza.  The piece was unveiled as a celebration of the iconic Italian Grand Prix circuit, The Autodromo di Monza where each year thousands of tifosi quite literally turn the  tree-lined track red with Ferrari flags and merchandise.  Uniquely the King Power Monza features a red tinted sapphire crystal which Hublot describe as resulting in  “unprecedented brightness”, and if the image is anything to go by it would appear that  M. Biver and his creative team have once again produced a stunner.  It seems to me that of late, whether it is in matters of trick design details or global marketing, Hublot have the uncanny ability to cause other in the industry to wonder “now why didn’t we think of that…..?”

Hublot f1 King Power Monza

The 48mm piece features an openworked dial with an added layer of sapphire crystal. The hour markers and F1 logo at the 9 o’clock position have been applied to this crystal  giving an ethereal 3D impression.  The hands and markers are an eye-pleasing combination of red and white superluminova and the black ceramic bezel is inscribed with “Formula 1 Monza”.

The Hublot Calibre HUB4400 with power reserve of 42 hours is at the heart of this striking piece which comes presented on a black rubber and Nomex (the flame resistant material found in racing overalls and gloves) strap with complimentary red stitching.

The Hublot F1 King Power Monza will be a limited edition of 200 pieces worldwide and has the added kudos of being unveiled on a weekend which produced the first  Ferrari win at the circuit since 2006.

Popularity: 16% [?]

Hublot present the Official Watch for the upcoming World Cup tournament – the Hublot Classic Fusion FIFA World Cup Watch.

With a watchcase, dial and bezel crafted from pink gold, the 45mm piece is a celebratory tribute to the FIFA World Cup Trophy which is sculpted from 5kg of 18 carat solid gold. A mini version of the prestigious trophy appears on the satin finished dial of this Classic Fusion and is also engraved onto the back of the watchcase.

Hublot Classic Fusion FIFA World Cup

The Classic Fusion FIFA World Cup watch is an exclusive piece, limited to just 100 pieces but with the Hublot brand set to be Official Timekeeper for the  2010 and 2014 FIFA World Cup tournaments, it is surely only a taster of further releases to come.  Having stolen a march on his rivals by clinching the deal to become the first Official Timekeeper in the history of the World Cup it would be naive to presume that global marketing expert  Jean-Claude Biver, CEO of Hublot would waste this golden opportunity.

Popularity: 13% [?]

The Big Bang, signature collection of the Hublot brand is quite simply a fine example of the perfect horological business model – one product (-ish) with infinite possibilities for limited edition versions, all credit to Hublot’s enigmatic CEO Jean-Claude Biver, a master in global product placement.

A new edition, the Hublot Aero Bang FMM, a collaboration with the Mexican Football Federation (FMM) has just been unveiled and will be a limited edition of 250 pieces.   This is the second tribute piece released in this sporting partnership, the first in 2007 was a fairly tame affair compared to the latest boldly styled piece which features strong use of the green and red Mexican team colours on the openworked dial and hands.

Hublot Aero Bang FMM

Other football-themed releases by Hublot include pieces forManchester United, the Swiss National team and a recent tribute to Diego Maradona.  A few weeks ago Hublot became the first official timekeeper in the history of the FIFA World Cup, perhaps marketing strategists at Omega etc also deserve a Big Bang….on the ear, for letting that one slip by.

Popularity: 12% [?]

Confrérie Horlogère Hublot unveil Liberty, a remarkable bullet-shaped timepiece designed to be worn as a bracelet, pendant or simply used as a tactile horological stress-buster.

Measuring 53.75mm long and 27mm wide, the gun cartridge type case is a combination of black aluminium and titanium.  The piece is powered by a transverse tourbillon manually wound movement with 120 hours of power reserve, and a sapphire crystal base provides a mesmerising view of the carriage.  Hours and minutes are indicated on the side of the case by rollers and water resistance is to 30m.

Confrérie Horlogère Hublot Liberty

The Confrérie Horlogère has evolved from BNB Concept whose original founders Mathias Buttet, Michel Navas and Enrico Barbasinci all previously of Frank Muller sought to create innovative high-end watch movements for the industry, often anonymously. A small group of chosen BNB Concept employees – the Confrérie Horlogère can make use of all the resources at BNB in terms of technology and support while having creative “carte blanche”.

Popularity: 13% [?]

Hublot have teamed up with one of the greatest rock bands of all time. Depeche Mode.

Greatest ‘rock’ bands off all time I hear you wonder? Yes. Have you caught them live? If you have, you’ll know what I mean.

In all, Depeche Mode have released 12 albums, the latest of which, Sounds of the Universe is touring Europe at the minute. If you can get to see them, go. It’s a fantastic experience which once again places the Basildon boys live as one of the most amazing and infectious concert bands in the world – everyone there knows every word of every song, and it’s incredible when they launch into a tune you think no-one else has ever heard except yourself and you look around and everyone in sight is either singing it aloud, or lip-syncing .

What on earth do Depeche Mode, of all bands, have to do with a feature on The Watch Press? I’ll tell you.

Some time ago a strange box appeared on the Depeche Mode and Hublot websites which, in countdown style, announced the imminent unveiling of a series of twelve one-of-a-kind Hublot Big Bang/Depeche Mode watches – each one representing one of the twelve albums with an image of the cover art portrayed in a strip across the otherwise black face of the watch – and, as is typical of effervescent Hublot boss, Jean-Claude Biver and the members of the band, the two globally recognized names will collaborate – in the case of the band, to carry out the opening proceedings in London’s Royal Albert Hall in aid of the Teenage Cancer Trust with a one-off gig on February 17th, and Hublot in putting the twelve pieces up for exclusive auction to raise funds for the charity.

All twelve Hublot Big Bang Chronographs come in a black ceramic case on a croco leather strap with hand-stitching matching exactly the colour theme of the album being represented.

I’m pleased to post some of the first images of each of the twelve Depeche Mode Big Bang watches below. Click on them to expand, then click again to supersize!

Images of the 12 watches are all we have for now, but do remember to click on them to expand, then click again to supersize to fully appreciate this fabulous Depeche Mode Hublot Big Bang unique 1/1 collection.

It’s one thing having a favourite band endorsing a nice piece of merchandise, but this surely is on a different level. I think that the watches are within taste boundaries and I would have any one of them happily, but I must admit to an element of bias as I’ve seen them live a couple of times, I’m a longstanding fan and for me they’re up there with the best……!

To submit a bid please follow this link to the aid of the Teenage Cancer Trust .

Popularity: 27% [?]

The folk at Hublot appear to have come over all lovey recently when the launch of the latest edition of the Big Bang series was announced!

Specially manufactured for St Valentine’s Day 2010, (and don’t forget it’s February 14th!)  the new piece is somewhat of a departure from the ‘typical’ Big Bang in that it is aimed (like Cupid’s arrow) directly at the fairer sex or the male collector whose sweetheart may be feeling a little overlooked in the watch department and whose conscience is pulling at his heartstrings.

The Hublot Big Bang in Red

The Hublot Big Bang in Red edition should surely tick that box. In keeping with the company’s Art of Fusion ethos, it is produced in a white ceramic and red composite resin 38mm case on a red alligator and natural rubber strap it is a dazzling affair indeed with it’s 126 diamonds on the steel bezel in particular catching the eye.

The watch features a quartz movement whose functions are; hours, minutes and seconds.

Featured on the Hublot site under ‘Novelties’, the Big Bang in Red further underlines the company’s fun, funky  – and no doubt opportunistic – approach to it’s place among watchmakers with it’s eye on the more youthful, sporty and funloving client.

Popularity: 11% [?]

At a cocktail reception hosted by the charismatic Jean-Claude Biver on the shores of Lake Geneva over the weekend, the all-new relationship between his Hublot brand and the Alinghi Americas Cup team became official by the unveiling of the Hublot King Power Alinghi Limited Edition, itself based on the hugely successful Hublot Big Bang series.

The Hublot King Power Alinghi Limited Edition

Present at the launch, and recipient of piece number 1, was Ernesto Bertarelli, President of the successful Alinghi team  who later this year will defend the Americas Cup for Switzerland against US challengers Team BMW Oracle Racing in the 33rd running of the famous yacht race.

While it is always interesting to see the launch of new a piece, whether it is to one’s taste or otherwise, this occasion was significant in that it represented the beginning of a new era for both Team Alinghi and the Hublot brand, for previously the Alinghi name was closely associated with Audemars Piguet’s Royal Oak Offshore editions, a relationship which expired along with it’s contracts mid 2009. With the signature pieces from both watchmakers being so competitively poised in adversity, one imagines that when the opportunity came around for JC Biver’s Hublot brand to pick up the torch left behind by Audemars Piguet, that he moved in fairly quickly (as is his way). Indeed the deal was agreed in outline within 24 hours of Biver and Bertarelli discussing the potential at the unveiling of the Alinghi 5 catamaran last year.

The Hublot King Power Alinghi

The new Hublot Big Bang King Power Alinghi is striking in that it’s part-skeletonised dial – beneath which beats the new in-house Hublot UNICO Calibre movement – leaves the impression that the chronograph counters appear to ‘hover’ independently between crystal and dial, a feature which is exacerbated by the Alinghi motif at the 9 o’clock position.

Crafted in ceramic and rubber, the watch symbolizes the mutual interest in design and materials shared by both Hublot and the Alinghi team. It will be produced in a limited release of 333 numbered pieces.

Popularity: 19% [?]