Baselworld/SIHH

Geneva Week 2014: Hublot Introducing new 2014 collection - Indepth reviews with hands on photos

 

As usual, Hublot presented a part of its 2014 collection during the Geneva Week at the Hotel Kempinski which could be renamed "Hotel LVMH" due to the presence at the same time of Zenith a few floors higher. Even if the main core of the new collection will be unveiled at Basel, it is always interesting to discover these first watches of the year since they give an idea of some trends. And there was a wonderful surprise which can be called a major event for Hublot: a Zenith caliber, the famous El Primero was used for a Hublot watch! A proof of synergy between the two LVMH brands.

I propose to discover these new watches by starting with a colourful watch, the Big Bang Pop Art.

Actually, these watches were inspired by posters displayed by Hublot at a previous Fair and the visitors and guests found them so nice that they asked to Hublot to create the actual watches!

So here are the Big Bang Pop Art which exist in 4 different versions and I shot 3 of them.

The watches feature the 41mm case (yellow gold or steel) with a bezel set with 48 gems baguette. The colour of the gems is chosen in order to be in coherence with the background of the dial.

Inspired by the 70s, these watches are perfect on the wrists of ladies who look for a fun piece with a contemporary style. 41mm remain a large diameter for ladies' watches but we don't have to forget that they love more and more watches with a powerful design.

Here is the Steel Blue version with Topaz baguette:

I appreciated a lot the rhodium plated appliques which are printed in blue or purple:

The Yellow Gold Apple uses Tsavorites Baguette to decorate its bezel:

The Amethysts are set on the bezel of the Steel Purple version:

This version is maybe my fav one. Do you notice how the Hublot logo is printed on the dial? It is quite rare to see a brand playing with its own logo.

The 3 watches together, only the Yellow Gold Rose is missing:

Powered by the usual HUB4300 caliber, I consider these Pop Art watches as a nice entertaining evolution of the Tutti Frutti.

We go straight to the opposite universe with a watch which doesn't have the same range of colours! The Big Bang Unico All Black is typically the kind of watch I was a bit afraid to discover before the appointment. I have to confess that I'm not a fan of all black watches because I saw so many that they sometimes seem to be old-fashioned.

Frankly speaking, during the appointment, I didn't fall in love with it and it is far from being my fav Hublot. But it is very nicely made so it may be considered as a good option for people who look for this type of design combined with a big (45,5mm) diameter.

The watch uses a microblasted black ceramic case while some parts are made of Anodized Black Aluminium.

Despite its main colour, it is still possible to observe the details of the mat black dial. But I much prefer the "classic" versions of the Big Bang Unico which take more advantage of the caliber lay-out.

The technical atmosphere remains thanks to the open dial which allow to observe the mechanical parts of the chronograph. The date is however quite difficult to read.

The main asset of this watch is the way the movement is decorated and I consider that Hublot did a great job here. The black finishings allow to appreciate more the moving parts and I have almost a different feeling than with the dial. You will also notice the round pushers, typical of the Big Bang Unico.

Another positive point is that the black environment reduces the feeling of size which is a bit welcome with such diameter.

Even if this watch is not my cup of tea, I have to confess that I found it well made and quite coherent with the Big Bang style.

The Big Bang Unico All Black is available in a LE of 500 pieces.


We stay with a similar watch with the Big Bang Unico Carbon. Well, not so similar!

With a lot of pleasure, I can enjoy more the details on the dials and the feeling of depth. The column wheel is more visible and I like the way the numerals are applied on the dial. The second hand of the chronograph brings its little touch of colour with the red end.

The name of the watch comes from the Carbon Fiber case which enhances the "mechanical sports" style of the watch. I consider it as a good alternative to the Ferrari watch if you don't want to wear the famous horse on the dial:

As usual with non-limited editions, the Unico movement features a grey finishing.




I much prefer this watch than the Big Bang Unico All Black! I was positively impressed by the finishings of the case because a carbon case is not easy to produce. Hublot has improved on this field.

And now... let's discover the key watch of this Geneva Week collection.

Why the Spirit of Big Bang is important?

It is important for several reasons.

First of all, it is the first time Hublot uses a tonneau-shaped case out of the context of the Masterpiece line. It is a risky attitude since it is maybe more difficult to sell watches which are not round.

Secondly, as I previously said, the watches are powered by the El Primero movement... but finished with a true Hublot style!

And last reason, the Spirit of Big Bang is available in various combinations of materials what underlines the ambition of the brand with this collection.

As you can see it on the pictures, the watches are full of Big Bang details and so they clearly deserve their names! Look at the bezel, the parts of the case which fasten the strap, the shape of the screws, of the hands... without forgetting the open dial!

Of course, the use of a round movement in a tonneau-shaped case leads to some aesthetic concessions and I was not convinced by the empty corners...

But on the other hand, the watches, when observed as a whole are pretty seducing.

The most impressive detail about them is the way the Zenith movement is finished. It clearly gives the feeling to have been created at the same time than the Unico! And obviously, El Primero oblige, the watch is able to measure 1/10th of second interval... well, in theory. Because as you see it on the pictures, only the seconds are indicated on the peripheral scale.

The first version is the King Gold Ceramic.

It proposes an interesting contrast between the case and the bezel which gives to the watch more character:

The date wheel contributes a lot to the decoration of the dial:

The El Primero movement as seen through the caseback. A wonderful surprise... I was very seduced by this presentation. Of course, the movement features the usual performances with a power reserve of around 50 hours with a 5hz frequency.

This is the King Gold version:

The Titanium one:

And the Titanium Ceramic one with its specific bezel:

The 4 watches on the wrist:

With a 51x45mm case size, the Spirit of Big Bang can be considered as a big watch. Don't forget that a non-round watch always looks bigger than its round equivalent. In this context, I was more seduced by the versions with the ceramic bezel because the latter breaks the feeling of size. Taking into account the style of the watch, the dial, the El Primero movement, the Titanium Ceramic version gets my vote.

I know that this new collection will bring a lot of reactions. But I was happy to see Hublot enter a new territory with a non-round case and with a price which is not in the same segment than the MP06 Senna. We often criticize Hublot about the fact that they use the same recipe again and again. At least here, we have a new shape... and a new movement!

The question is: what Hublot didn't take the decision to use the Unico for this watch? I don't have a clear answer but I can try to bring my input. I see two reasons. The first one is because the Unico is not produced with a high rhythm and Hublot preferes to keep it for its "core" collection. The second one is that with an unusual shape, after all, isn't it a good idea to propose an unusual movement? At the end, I didn't find this El Primero out of context.

The report is over now but be sure that we will have the opportunity to come back to the Hublot novelties during the year on PuristSPro forum.

I would like to thank a lot the Hublot team for the warm welcome.

Fr.Xavier