LuxuryWatchesA Year on the Wrist: the best watch releases from 2023T3’s favourite watches of the year, from Longines and Rolex, to Tag Heuer, Brew and TissotWhen you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
LuxuryWatchesA Year on the Wrist: the best watch releases from 2023T3’s favourite watches of the year, from Longines and Rolex, to Tag Heuer, Brew and TissotWhen you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
T3’s favourite watches of the year, from Longines and Rolex, to Tag Heuer, Brew and Tissot
When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
(Image credit: Rolex)
(Image credit: Rolex)
It’s been a huge year for newwatchreleases. From the retro flair of the Tissot PRX Powermatic and Swatch’s follow-up to the insanely popular MoonSwatch, to the wonderfully playful Rolex OP Celebration Dial, affectionately known as Bubbles, 2023 was a year packed with desirable wrist wear.
We also saw stand-out releases from the ever-innovative (and consistently affordable) Christopher Ward, a beautiful range of petite watches with the Longines Mini Dolce Vita, and a knock-out relaunch of the TAG Heuer Carrera Skipper. Frankly, there were just too many fantastic new watches to fit into a single article, but here are some of our favourite watch releases from 2023.
Christopher Ward The Twelve
(Image credit: Future)
(Image credit: Future)
British watchmaker Christopher Ward announcedThe Twelveback in April. A stainless steel piece with a matching strap and automatic movement visible through the exhibition case back, The Twelve immediately caught our eye thanks to its 12-sided dodecagon bezel and textured dial. As ever with CW, the price impressed at £1,050 on a bracelet or just £850 on a rubber strap, while a titanium model came in at just over £1,500.
The range soon expanded from a 40mm case to amore compact 36mm model, and then amodel with a minimalist dialand rose gold bezel arrive in October, demonstrating the breadth of abilities The Twelve’s case design has to offer.
Read more aboutChristopher Ward The Twelve
Tissot PRX 35mm Powermatic 80
(Image credit: Tissot)
(Image credit: Tissot)
Tissot expanded its retro-inspire PRX range in 2023, adding a newPowermatic 80in March. Priced at just £610, I think it offers fantastic value for money, considering the timeless, high-end design, the beautifully textured dial and the automatic Swiss movement’s impressive 80 hours of power reserve.
I love the compact dimensions of the 35mm model, new for 2023 and sitting alongside the 40mm original, and I’m a big fan of the three-link steel bracelet too. This is the kind of watch that can elevate an already smart outfit, or be worn with a simple t-shirt and look special without seeming out of place.
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Read more about theTissot PRX 35mm Powermatic 80
TAG Heuer Carrera Skipper
(Image credit: Tag Heuer)
(Image credit: Tag Heuer)
Swatch x Blancpain Scuba Fifty Fathoms
(Image credit: Swatch)
(Image credit: Swatch)
Being the successor to the MoonSwatch was never going to be easy. And while we haven’t see the same level of hype surrounding Swatch’s new Blancpain collaboration, I still rate it as one of the top watches of 2023.
Called the Scuba Fifty Fathoms, it arrived in September with a range of bright and bold colour options, a 42.3mm case made from a type of plastic Swatch calls Bioceramic, and a rather un-Swatchlike 300 feet (91 metres) of water resistance.
Priced at £340, the Blancpain collaboration is about 50 percent more expensive than the MoonSwatch, but then it does come with an automatic movement boasting a huge 90 hours of power reserve.
Read more about theSwatch x Blancpain Scuba Fifty Fathoms
Longines Flagship Heritage
(Image credit: Longines)
(Image credit: Longines)
I really like the classy simplicity of this new watch from Longines. Called the Flagship Heritage, it was announced in July and is available in three different colour ways, all with alligator straps and a stainless steel case measuring a nicely compact 38.5mm in diameter.
Read more about theLongines Flagship Heritage
Longines Mini Dolce Vita
(Image credit: Longines)
(Image credit: Longines)
Another 2023 novelty from Longines, and this time it’s a compact ladies' watch collection called the Mini Dolce Vita. A little slice of the good life, the watch has a square case measuring just 21.5 x 29 x 6.75mm, yet comes with heaps of character thanks to the smart detailing and beautiful pastel colour options.
All six variants have cases made from stainless steel and 0.456 carats of diamonds framing the dial. They also share the same sapphire crystal and basic layout, with dial functions consisting of hours, minutes and small seconds on a sub dial at the six o’clock position. Priced from £3,450 on a leather strap, the watch has 30 metres of water resistance (3.0 bar) and uses a battery-powered quartz L178 movement.
Read more about theLongines Mini Dolce Vita
Brew Watches Metric
(Image credit: Brew Watches)
(Image credit: Brew Watches)
New York-based startup Brew Watches stopped us in our tracks in July, with the reveal of its new Metric collection featuring a hearty dose of 70s nostalgia. Although perhaps not for the shy and retiring type, the gold models are what impressed most, with their unashamedly brash aesthetic drawing us in.
Read more about theBrew Watches Metric
Rolex Oyster Perpetual 41 Celebration Dial ‘Bubbles’
(Image credit: Rolex)
(Image credit: Rolex)
Where to start? Rolex well-and-truly blew the doors off with its Watches and Wonders announcement back in March. I have to mention the new Daytona (with an exhibition case back for the first time) and the fantastically bizarre Day-Date 36 with emojis in the date window.
But what I liked most of all was the Oyster Perpetual 41 Celebration Dial, better known as the Bubbles. A fun riff on the various colour options for a regular Rolex OP dial, the Celebration has a bit of fun while still being useable (unlike the emoji watch). Stand-out Rolexes still aren’t the easiest watches to buy without a longstanding relationship with your local authorised dealer, but we can still admire the company’s unexpectedly playful design from afar.
Read more aboutRolex’s Watches and Wonders 2023 news
Seiko Presage 100th Anniversary
(Image credit: Seiko)
(Image credit: Seiko)
Seiko celebrates its 100th birthday in 2024, and to celebrate it has announced the Presage 100th Anniversary. Available early in the new year, the watch is limited to 1,000 examples worldwide and features a beautifully vintage design aesthetic, complete with compact 35mm case diameter, historic Seiko logo, period Arabic numerals and leather strap.
Christopher Ward C1 Bel Canto Cielo
(Image credit: Christopher Ward)
(Image credit: Christopher Ward)
Yes, I know the chiming (and charming) C1 Bel Canto arrived in 2022. But I couldn’t round up the best watches of the year without giving the beautiful new Cielo colour some attention. Doesn’t it look fabulous? I think it’s best colour yet for Christopher Ward’s flagship timepiece – even better than the original dark blue – and is my new grail watch. One day I’ll simply have to buy one.
As for Christopher Ward itself, I can’t wait to see what comes next from a British watchmaker that can seemingly do no wrong and is going from strength to strength.
Read more about theChristopher Ward C1 Bel Canto
Orient Mako 40
(Image credit: Orient)
(Image credit: Orient)
I’ve enjoyed seeing watchmakers shrink their case sizes in 2023. Seemingly gone are the days when 42mm or even a whopping 45mm had become the norm for men’s watches. Instead, pieces like this 39.9mm dive watch from Japanese watchmaker Orient are taking a unisex approach.
Called the Mako 40, it’s a dive watch with a crown and case that are smaller than on its predecessor. That said, the Mako 40 isn’t a dive watch in the truest sense, as it doesn’t meetthe ISO standardsfor a legitimatediving watch, but it has key dive design details like an unidirectional rotating bezel, screw-down crown and illuminating hands and hour markers.
Water resistance for the stainless steel case is a plentiful 20 bar, which is the equivalent of 200 metres, and inside you’ll find Orient’s in-house calibre F6722 automatic movement with 40 hours of power reserve. It’s well-priced too, at £329.99.
Read more about theOrient Mako 40
Mondaine Cushion Collection
(Image credit: Mondaine)
(Image credit: Mondaine)
Finally, a new take on the iconic Mondaine Swiss railway watch. This latest collection retain the basic same dial design as all other Mondaine timepieces, but incorporate a new cushion-shaped case with softly curved edges. A pair of prominent push buttons control the chronograph function of the larger model.
Two case sizes are available – 31mm and 41mm – and there are multiple colour ways for each size. I particularly like the blue 41mm model with matching fabric strap. Quartz-powered, the watches are available now and are priced from £270 for the 31mm model and £450 for the 41mm version.
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