6 October

The day in brief

Omega has unveiled the Seamaster Diver 300M James Bond and Spectre collection: six 42 mm watches powered by the Calibre 8806, made up of two regular-production steel models and two sets limited to 77 pieces, each including a watch cased in a platinum-gold alloy.

Frederique Constant brings together three in-house complications with stone dials in a collector's box limited to 88 sets, and Gerald Charles has opened its second boutique in Japan, in Osaka, the largest in its network. Among younger brands, Paris-based Inercy moves from the tourbillon to an outdoor watch with a solar compass, and America's Shinola gives the Duck an automatic movement for the first time.

Omega brings James Bond and Spectre together in the Seamaster Diver 300M

Omega chose 5 October, celebrated as Global James Bond Day, to launch six watches split into two themes: the secret agent and the organisation that hunts him. According to Raynald Aeschlimann, the brand's president, it is the first time James Bond and Spectre have appeared together in one collection.

The two steel models are not limited. The James Bond (ref. 210.30.42.20.03.004) has a grade 5 titanium bezel ring and a blue aluminium dial with laser-engraved waves. The Spectre (ref. 210.30.42.20.01.023) swaps titanium for black ceramic and blue for a blackened dial with a grained finish. Both come on a brushed steel mesh bracelet, with a helium escape valve at 10 o'clock and a sapphire caseback, and neither has a date.

The case measures 42 mm in diameter and 14.23 mm in thickness, and is water-resistant to 300 metres. Inside is the automatic Calibre 8806, with a Co-Axial escapement, a frequency of 3.5 Hz and a 55-hour power reserve.

In the Co-Axial escapement, the impulse reaches the balance almost tangentially, which reduces the sliding friction that makes pallet lubrication essential in the Swiss lever escapement. The practical result is a more stable rate over time. Master Chronometer certification, granted by METAS, the Swiss metrology institute, adds a series of tests on the fully cased watch to the testing of the movement, including exposure to magnetic fields of 15,000 gauss.

The limited sets, 77 for each theme, pair a steel watch with a second piece cased in a platinum-gold alloy, which is not sold separately. On this one, the dial is 18k white gold with a colour gradient obtained by PVD, blue with the gun-barrel motif on the James Bond and dark grey with the octopus on the Spectre. The bezel is polished ceramic with a platinum diving scale, and the rotor emblem is in 18k Moonshine Gold. According to SJX, the platinum-gold watch weighs more than 200 grams, nearly twice as much as the steel version.

In the United States, Omega lists the steel models at 8,600 dollars and each set at 89,800 dollars.

Find out more on the brand's website.

Frederique Constant sets a tourbillon, a perpetual calendar and a moon phase in stone

Frederique Constant has presented the 2026 edition of The Elements Collection, a collector's box holding three steel Classic Manufacture watches, each with a natural stone dial. There are 88 numbered sets, a figure that refers to 1988, the year the brand was founded.

The Classic Moonphase Date Manufacture (ref. FC-716ONB3H6) receives a black onyx dial in a 40 mm case, with the Calibre FC-716 and a 72-hour power reserve. The Classic Perpetual Calendar Manufacture (ref. FC-776TU3H6), also 40 mm and with 72 hours of autonomy, uses turquoise and the Calibre FC-776.

The most complex piece is the 39 mm Classic Tourbillon Manufacture (ref. FC-980HE3H6), with a dial in heliotrope, a dark green stone with red iron-oxide inclusions that make every example different. According to Monochrome, the automatic Calibre FC-980-4 has a silicon escapement, a one-minute tourbillon and a 38-hour power reserve.

Silicon matters in a tourbillon for two reasons: it is light, which reduces the inertia of the parts the cage carries round on every rotation, and it needs no lubrication on the contact surfaces of the escapement. The power reserve, shorter than the 72 hours of the other two calibres, is a reminder of the energy cost of rotating the entire regulating organ.

The perpetual calendar, for its part, accounts for the length of each month and for leap years. Monochrome quotes 4,895 Swiss francs for the moon-phase watch, 10,995 for the perpetual calendar and 15,995 for the tourbillon.

Find out more on the brand's website.

Gerald Charles opens its largest boutique in Osaka

Gerald Charles, the independent Swiss house founded by Gérald Charles Genta, announced on 5 October the opening of its second boutique in Japan. The space is on the fifth floor of Takashimaya Watch Maison Osaka and is operated by local partner Mugino & Co.

According to the brand, Osaka is the first city to receive the new boutique concept, developed in Geneva, and this is the largest space in its global network. Gerald Charles has been present in the city since 2024.

The boutique presents the Maestro, Masterlink and Gem Set collections, including the 2026 novelties, along with two pieces of restricted distribution: the Masterlink Boutique Edition, exclusive to the brand's own boutiques, and the Maestro 2.0 Ultra Thin Asia Edition, in steel with a jade dial, limited to 80 pieces for Asia.

“This city has always represented a unique dialogue between tradition and innovation,” said Federico Ziviani, quoted in the press release.

For an independent brand, a space of its own in a department store dedicated to watchmaking secures what multi-brand retail rarely offers: the full collection on display and direct contact with collectors.

Find out more on the brand's website.

Inercy swaps the tourbillon for a solar compass

Paris-based Inercy, which made its debut in 2023 with an unusually affordable flying tourbillon, has presented its second collection. The Compass is a three-hand watch for outdoor use, with a Swiss automatic movement and orders opening on 6 October, according to Monochrome.

The 316L steel case measures 39 mm in diameter and 10 mm in thickness, is water-resistant to 100 metres and has a sapphire caseback. The movement is the La Joux-Perret G101, running at 4 Hz with a 68-hour power reserve.

The distinctive feature lies in the two crowns. The one at 3 o'clock sets the time; the one at 9 o'clock turns, in both directions, an inner bezel with a minute scale and the four cardinal points, marked in French (N, E, S and O).

The principle of the solar compass is an old one: in the northern hemisphere, with the hour hand pointed at the Sun, south lies halfway between that hand and 12 o'clock. The rotating bezel is used to fix that direction and read off the others. The method gives an approximate bearing, which depends on solar time and latitude, and is no substitute for a magnetic compass.

There are two versions, Compass Dark, with a textured black dial, and Compass Light, with a white dial, each limited to 150 pieces. The quoted price is 1,790 euros, with two straps: one in black nubuck leather and one in FKM rubber.

Find out more on the brand's website.

Shinola gives the Duck an automatic movement

Detroit's Shinola presented the Duck Automatic on 5 October, the first mechanical version of its dive watch, until now sold with a quartz movement. Sales begin on 6 October, and the brand describes the calibre as its first Japanese movement.

According to Gear Patrol and Worn & Wound, it is the automatic Miyota 9015, with a 42-hour power reserve. The steel case shrinks to 38 mm, keeps its 100-metre water resistance and gains a display caseback. The bracelet is new, with H-shaped links and a micro-adjustable clasp.

The dials now have stamped textures, absent from the quartz version. The steel models, with an alabaster or black dial, cost 895 dollars. The version with gold PVD coating costs 1,095 dollars, the same price as an edition limited to 1,000 pieces, fitted with the Miyota 9085 and supplied with a grey rubber strap.

Find out more on the brand's website.

Worth watching

Omega's launch shows how the brand manages a partnership more than thirty years old: the steel models join the regular catalogue, while the platinum-gold alloy is reserved for 154 sets. It remains to be seen whether this alloy will reach other lines.

Natural stones continue to widen their territory. Frederique Constant applies them to a steel tourbillon and a steel perpetual calendar, complications long associated with precious metals.

One to follow: according to The Hour Markers, organiser of India Watch Weekend, Dubai Watch Week's Horology Forum will hold an edition in Mumbai on 6 and 7 February 2027, as part of that event. After the GPHG tour stopped in the same city, it is another sign of India's growing weight in the watchmaking calendar.