We are pushing well over 700 unique posts on Hodinkee and do you know how many of those featured women’s watches? Yup, around 450 of them.? And by 450, we actually mean none of them.? Today marks our first female oriented wristwatch, and it’s honestly just too cool NOT to mention.

Coming from the very same Antiquorum catalog as the Max Bill X Omega creation is this incredibly rare and unbelievably cool Cartier “Dice” watch. Made in London back in 1970, this small yellow gold square case houses a Jaeger-Lecoultre movement behind that dice-inspired dial.? You’ll notice that the whole watch is slightly rotated 45? to make for easier reading.?

This watch comes on a leather strap and Cartier-signed pink gold deployment clasp. Now comes the fun part…this watch, while exceedingly rare and unbelievably cool, has a pretty sizable estimate on it.? In fact, it is expected to go between $14,000 and $18,000, which for a vintage ladies watch is…a lot.? That said, if we were looking for something to put on a the wrist of a lady friend, this vintage Cartier would absolutely be at the top of our list.? Click here for details.

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The Cartier Dice Watch: The Coolest Timepiece A Woman Can Own

Today Hublot and Formula 1 have announced their partnership with Hublot becoming the official watchmaker for Formula 1. To kick off things, the company has unveiled the limited edition “F1 King” a black on black behemoth that most certainly complements the high-performance, high-speed nature of the sport. Link / Source

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Hublot F1 King

We can imagine we’re not the only ones with a wishlist of Japan-only brands that need to make their way stateside. On the top of our list is Naoto Fukusawa’s Plus Minus Zero, a beautifully designed collection of minimalist accessories and home goods. Their latest release is a watch with a unique case design and a Max Bill-like dial. Fukusawa-san, if you’re reading please open an international online store, pretty please? Link / Source

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Plus Minus Zero Wrist Watch

It’s that time of year again, BaselWorld is just around the corner.? While many companies reveal their Basel creations weeks if not months prior to the actual show, one company who remains as tightlipped as a nun at Christmas mass is the almighty Rolex.

People have been speculating for months what Rolex will do this year, and even what they won’t do.? General consensus is they will likely release the steel Submariner with a ceramic bezel.? This teaser, however, would lead us to believe we might see a refresh of the Explorer or Explorer II, the watch of course associated with Mt. Everest.?

Only time will tell, but we’d love to know what you think we’ll see out of Rolex later this week. (via the Perpetuelle crew)

The rest is here:
Rolex BaselWorld Teaser: Does An Everest Mention Mean An Updated Explorer?

Below we showed you one of Max Bill’s most esoteric creations, and now we’re showing you his bread and butter.? Sure you can buy a Junghans wristwatch and get part of the Bill effect, but the piece that put his name on the map is a clock that is now part of the MoMA’s permanent collection.? And yes, you can even buy a? modern day re-issue of a Max Bill wall clock, but this is Hodinkee, damnit, and we don’t do re-issues here.?

In what is probably the coolest wall clock we’ve come across in quite some time, this is an original Max Bill design clock made for Junghans, but it’s a first generation issue, coming all the way from 1954.? It’s made of aluminum, glazed porcelain, and of course glass, and has a great slightly faded look. It runs on C batteries and is fully functional, despite being 56 years old.

We can’t think of a cooler wall clock to hang in any modern design aficionado’s offices than a vintage Max Bill, can you? Yes it’s $1500, but that’s a small price to pay for a Max Bill genuine article.? Click here for details.

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A Max Bill for Junghans Wall Clock Circa 1954: A Prime Example Of The Genuine Article

PMWF has a post by someone selling an amazing set of watchmaking tools including bezel lifters and a full staking kit. This is some serious hardware and I’ve got my eye on it. Check it out.

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Amazing watch repair kit for sale

Watch concepts without traditional numerics and even analog hands? Minimalism to its extreme – or at least that’s what designer Robert Dabi is pitching. His ZERO watch has two discs (one each for hours and minutes) that spin to tell time. My main problem with many numeric-less concepts is a delay in reading them. The ZERO looks like it may avoid that because I have no problems reading it. No word if it’ll hit the market but the flexible metal/rubber band will come in an array of colors if it does. Hit the jump for a video.

Designer: Robert Dabi

ZERO wrist watch from Robert Dabi on Vimeo.

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No Numbers Or Hands, But It Tells Time

Ever heard the name Max Bill before?? If you are a modern design or architecture fan, or if you read Gear Patrol, you definitely have.? Bill was a Swiss born designer of buildings, clocks, and watches, as well as a sculptor and painter. Bill most famously designed timepieces for Junghans that have become something of a retro trend these days, as they have now been fitted with ETA swiss movements.?

His designs originated in the 1950s and 60s, and a wall clock he created for Junghans sits proudly on the wall of the MoMA here in NYC.? What most do not know is that a few short years prior to Bill’s death, he collaborated with the illustrious house of Omega on a timepiece that few, if any, remember.

The watch you see to the right is a Max Bill designed Omega, number 207 of only 999 produced.? It has a quartz movement, but you don’t buy this watch for the movement.? The simple, seemless dial of concentric circles is classic Bill, and for someone looking for a piece of pure horological design, this is a hell of a piece.

Part of what makes this watch so interesting is that it was built at all, as most believe Max Bill to have worked with Junghans exclusively throughout his career in timepieces.? Second, this watch, which is to be auctioned of via Antiquorum in Geneva in the coming weeks, has a pre-sale estimate of only $450-$900.? We don’t think this is too low, as it is a very small (32mm) quartz watch from the late 1980s (not exactly the hey-day of watchmaking), but we do think it’s a great price for something as meaningful and important as a watch designed by Max Bill himself, especially one NOT for Junghans.

Click here for details on this rare and interesting Max Bill designed Omega wristwatch.?

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Max Bill for Omega: Not In The MoMA and Not For Junghans, This Is A Design Find

It isn’t often that a major men’s magazine dedicates more than half a page to vintage watches, so this is really something special.? In the most recent edition of Men’s Journal, there is perhaps one of the most comprehensive buying guides to vintage watches ever put together in a mainstream magazine.?

The three page feature includes a break down of which movements to look for, an understanding of some rare complications, tips on what to ask when buying, where to buy them (pros & cons of each category), why Switzlerand has become the Mecca of all things horological, which watch to buy if you’re looking to make a profit, an explanation of how small variations can increase or decrease the value of a vintage watch, how to keep your timepiece ticking, and five holy grails of a true expert.

What makes this article so helpful and unique is that it covers the basics for the newbies just getting started into the vintage world, but also a rare glance at some personal favorites from some big-time experts.? Charles Tearle of Antiquorum provides five of his personal grail watches, Aaron Rich of Sotheby’s gives us two pieces to look at that he believes are undervalued, and Nathaniel Borgelt of Patrizzi & Co. tells us how to pick a winner.? We aren’t going to tell you which watches they mention, you’ll have to buy the magazine for that!

By the way, someone we know wrote it

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Hodinkee Recommended Reading: "How To Buy A Vintage Watch" in April Men’s Journal Magazine

Here’s an obvious case of conspicuous consumption. Check out the Celsius X VI II Micro-Mechanical Remontage Papillon Tourbillon mobile phone. Retail on this bad boy is going to set you back about $275,000. For a phone.

Created by French design house Celsius X VI II, this particular phone has 547 hand finished mechanical components, which makes it more of an art piece then a utilitarian gadget. When you open the phone, it activates the mechanical movement inside, which apparently winds the mechanism. It’s still a little unclear exactly what else this thing does (other then make phone calls) but there should be more details available next week when it’s unveiled at Basalworld. Regardless of what the final functionality is, it looks extremely cool. Is it worth $275,000? I leave that up to you.

[Via Watchismo]

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Celsius Tourbillon mobile phone combines mechanical with electronic