
212. Swatch Group Strikes Back, The Smartlet Double Watch Experiment, And Jumping Hour Madness
A Blog To Watch WeeklyShow Notes
This week on aBlogtoWatch Weekly, Ariel Adams is joined by Rick, David, and Ripley for a lively conversation that begins with a painful toe injury and quickly turns into a discussion about the hazards of working with watches, from dropped cases to the finger stabs that come with changing straps and spring bars. The team then dives into one of the biggest industry stories of the week as Swatch Group publicly pushes back against the latest Morgan Stanley and Luxconsult watch industry report, raising questions about transparency, data quality, and how much anyone outside the brands actually knows about watch sales.
Later in the episode, the crew looks at one of the stranger new accessories to hit the watch world: the Smartlet bracelet, a modular system designed to let you wear a traditional watch alongside a smartwatch on the same wrist. From there, the conversation moves into the recent surge of jumping hour watches, including a very high-end Louis Vuitton minute repeater and a new take from MeisterSinger. Naturally, the episode also drifts into the usual mix of watch industry commentary and total nonsense, including the increasingly chaotic Brand Wheel of Death, where brands face the ultimate fate of being kept, killed, or erased from existence entirely.
To check out the ABTW Shop where you can see our products inspired by our love of Horology:
- Shop ABTW - https://store.ablogtowatch.com/
To keep updated with everything Superlative, aBlogtoWatch Weekly, and aBlogtoWatch, check us out on:
- Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/ablogtowatch/
- Website - https://www.ablogtowatch.com/
- Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/aBlogtoWatch
If you enjoy the show please Subscribe, Rate, and Review!
More from A Blog To Watch Weekly
This week on aBlogtoWatch Weekly, Rick, David, and Ripley explore a new chapter for Hublot, Audemars Piguet's latest venture into luxury jewelry, the 50th anniversary of the IWC Ingenieur, and much more. With Ariel away, the trio kicks things off with a discussion of Hublot's evolving direction under former Audemars Piguet CEO François-Henry Bennahmias, including the new Classic Fusion Original and Big Bang Original.
This week on aBlogtoWatch Weekly, Ariel Adams is joined by David and Ripley for a conversation covering everything from affordable G-Shocks to luxury smartwatches and some of the most unusual designs coming out of Japan. Ripley kicks things off with highlights from the first Istanbul Watch Festival and a look at Turkey's thriving watch culture. The crew then explores Casio's new $180 G-Shock GW-BX5600, discussing its upgraded MIP display, solar charging, and Bluetooth connectivity before diving into the confusing world of Casio's product lineup. Next up is Garmin's latest MARQ Gen 3 collection, where premium materials, specialized features, and prices reaching $3,100 spark a debate about what makes a luxury smartwatch worth the money.
This week on aBlogtoWatch Weekly, Ariel Adams returns alongside David and Ripley for a packed episode covering military watch history, controversial design decisions, and one of the most expensive G-Shocks ever made. Ariel shares stories from his recent visit to the Navy SEAL Museum in San Diego, including the history of Tudor Submariners issued to Navy SEALs during the Vietnam War and the mysterious disappearance of watches that were reportedly destroyed after being returned to military storage.
This week on aBlogtoWatch Weekly, Ariel is away, which leaves Rick, David, and Ripley to make sense of a watch market where price and positioning seem increasingly difficult to untangle. The crew starts with Zenith and a lengthy debate over pricing, brand identity, and whether a good watch can still be a tough sell at the wrong price. Then things get sweeter with the Donut Watch Company, a new Ming adjacent project that brings familiar design DNA, a Miyota movement, plenty of lume, and an actual donut theme to the roughly $700 price point. The question quickly becomes whether offering a more accessible taste of an expensive brand is clever expansion or simply leaning a little too heavily on the name and design language people already recognize.
This week on aBlogtoWatch Weekly, Rick, David, and Ripley are back with an episode full of watches that are cheaper, pricier, and considerably weirder than expected. The guys start with H. Moser & Cie. going digital before turning to the state of watch marketing and why so many brands seem to have forgotten how to keep the conversation going. They also consider whether Cartier could ever truly challenge Rolex and what it would take for the brand to get there.