WWG 24: Stanley’s Choice of the new watches 

This is my first year attending Watches and Wonders, it’s undeniably an eye opening experience. Having touched and handled many watches, caught up with old friends and made new ones, here are my top picks for WWG 2024.

WWG 24: Stanley’s Choice of the new watches 

My first year of watches and wonders have come and gone, it was an interesting and intriguing experience for me. I definitely will sign up for round deux and more should I have the opportunity. During my time there, I had the pleasure of rubbing shoulders with fellow journalists, brand principles and watch collectors. It is certainly an experience that I will never forget. So without further ado, let us proceed to the watches. These are the watches which speak to me personally.

Piaget Altiplano Ultimate Concept Tourbillon

First up and my favourite watch for WWG 24 is the Piaget Altiplano Ultimate Concept Tourbillon (AUCT). When I first laid my eyes on it, I fell head over heels in love. I was like the little boy who had just watched Bay Watch for the first time and fell in love with Pam Anderson. All within the first 30 seconds of the show. Sparks flew and my heart fluttered when the AUCT was first presented to me. I was gobsmacked.

Upon picking the watch up and strapping it on the wrist, the feeling was so surreal. The horological marvel felt sturdy despite it’s ultra thin 2mm thickness and diameter of 41.5mm. The decently sized diameter and the short lugs helped, and the watch sits perfectly on my 6.25 inch wrist. It’s as if it’s a Ferrari Purosangue on the wrist. Very usable on a daily basis but also recognised for it’s amazing performance. Though only time will tell by those lucky enough to own one, if it will withstand the rigours of daily life.

Now for the technicalities, the idea is not new. Piaget launched their version of the world’s thinnest watch 6 years ago, though the AUC was commercially available only in 2020. What is new for 2024 is the inclusion of a flying tourbillon. The most amazing part that blew me away is how they have dispensed the cage and innovated it in the way that the tourbillion is held in place by its perimeter by a ceramic ball bearing. All these is done without increasing the thickness but just the diameter by 0.5mm over the 2020 non-tourbillon AUC.

Finally for the Piaget, our friend Thomas Baillod, CEO and Founder of Ba111od watches shares the same sentiment on his LinkedIn.

Photo Courtesy of Thomas Baillod’s instagram.

Pro Tip: For the gentleman, in the event that your partner is upset with you getting a EUR 600,000 watch, do get her the Piaget Polo Date 150th Anniversary as a gift. You can also consider the Polo Date 150th Anniversary as a couple watch. And yes, you’re welcome.

Patek Philippe Annual Calendar with Baguette Indices. Ref 5396G-017

The second watch that made the list from the legendary Patek Philippe. It is the Patek Philippe Annual Calendar Ref. 5396G-017. Certainly the Patek Philippe 5396 is not new and we have mentioned it 8 years ago during Basel World but this one to me is different. It pulled my heart strings personally, it reminded me of my late father. And it is a watch that I cannot get my hands off for all 3 meetings I had with Patek during the fair. The attraction to me was so strong that the ladies from Patek had to pry it off me just so other journalist (I’m sorry to other journos) have a chance to get their hands on it.

Aside from the personal connection to it, I love how the baguette diamond hour-markers are so discreet. It is not immediately obvious as the markers look like the regular white gold appliqués that Patek uses, but with it becomes obvious once you see it. You cannot unsee that. Certainly diamonds are not common on men but should one set it as indices on the dial, as on this Patek Philippe 5396G, it is exudes an air of class and quiet luxury. A discerning move that oozes the sprezzatura charm. I just love the way Patek discreetly enhanced the watch by the brilliance of twelve baguette diamond hour-markers. This baguette diamond indices have also been seen on the Nautilus 5711/1P 40th Anniversary Edition, with the same flair for discreetness.

The Patek Philippe will certainly be a watch that is highly wanted by many and we will not be surprised should the waiting list be as long as its charm and allure.

Czapek Antartique “Green Metor”

My last pick for Watches and Wonders will be from independent Czapek. It is the ideal “Go Anywhere, Do Anything” watch for me in this year’s release. What is new is the gorgeous natural meteorite dial. Otherwise this is the same base Antarctique as we reviewed and loved in 2020. The dial is made from the Gibeon Iron Meteorite which gives it the distinctive and unique Widmanstatten Pattern. And certainly an eye catching feature. Czapek have further enhanced the beauty of the dial by applying green polished laquer on it to give it a distinctive colour. The green dial is complimented with a bright red second hand to give the watch a sporty vibe.

Photo Courtesy of Czpek.

Finally, what draws the watch to me beyond it being gorgeous skin deep, is the SXH5 Micro rotor movement. And in this variant comes without the date indication. This movement features a micro rotor with 60 hours of power reserve with 28,800 VpH. The movement is certainly not new as it has been there for many models prior to this but I am always amazed by Micro-Rotors as some say it is more complicated to make as compared to a hand-wound tourbillon, reason for this is because the movement manufacture needs to ensure that the Micro-Rotor makes enough torque to power the watch while condensing everything into the limited sized movement and that’s certainly an impressive feat. But in any case, impresses the heck out of me.

Concluding Thoughts

That’s it! That is Watches and Wonders 2024 wrapped up! The watches that caught my eye and that made me feel like a boy jumping around with butterflies in my stomach. Watches which make me feel like when my dream date said yes to the high school prom. Like those boy dreams, these watches also might just end up being a fairytale. Should I be realistic, the Patek Philippe and the Czapek may perhaps be within my means. And love it as I may, the Piaget will remain a beautiful dream. For now.

With the above being said, do pursue your dreams and make them real. I certainly hope that all of you enjoyed reading my round up and our instagram contents. We look forward to bringing you more of such contents moving forward and for more WWG ahead. I will be back next week to pick out my favourite watches from the satellite fairs outside of Watches and Wonders.