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Founded in 2007, Gear Patrol is the definitive buying guide for enthusiasts. Our independent experts test the best in cars, tech, home, outdoors, style and watches. We combine hands-on testing, decades of experience and original photography to craft reports, reviews and guides.
In-Depth If You're Into Technical Watchmaking, This Escapement Will Melt Your Mind
The CIGA Design Blue Planet dial is one of, if not the most unique dial I’ve seen in a watch that costs less than $1500. And once you get used to its unique layout and how the time is displayed, it’s an incredibly fresh new way to get excited about the future of the company. If this design speaks to you, you’re presumably open to something a bit unconventional and attention-grabbing, anyway. So perhaps it’s not necessarily a drawback for you that it can elicit a response along the lines of “What the heck is that?
Six Affordable GMT Watches Similar to the Rolex GMT-Master II
It’s not the “asynchronous” method of time-telling that makes this watch hard to read but, rather, basic principles of legibility. Due to the nature of this time display, it’s necessary to read the minute track numerals rather than see where they’re pointing on the dial — and their size makes that particularly difficult most of the time. Further, that compass rose doesn’t exactly stand out and orient the user’s gaze when checking the time at a glance. Unlike a regular minute hand, which rotates 160 degrees every hour, this one has to adjust to keep up with the hour hand that rotates 30 degrees. This means the movement (made by Chinese company Seagull) had to be customized in order for the minute track to rotate 190 degrees per hour.
The CIGA Design Blue Planet Is An Award-Winning Chinese Watch That Deserves Your Attention
Seeing the planet beneath the fragile-looking crystal, a pretty decent scale representation of the Earth’s atmosphere as it happens, is a stark reminder of just how vulnerable it—and we—really are. The Blue Planet is a more detailed and intricate timepiece than anything Zhang had previously released, so there's the natural inclination to introduce it as a new "halo" product at a much, much higher price point. To many entrepreneurs and owners of small businesses, the sort of recognition that CIGA Design received from the GPHG would warrant a price increase, but Zhang is dedicated to keeping his watches accessible. Zhang won't confirm much about his upcoming plans, but he does tease that future editions of the Blue Planet are on the way. What he promises, however, is that his watches will always remain approachable in price.
Mr. Zaelke is also co-founder the Program on Governance for Sustainable Development at UC Santa Barbara. Mr. Zaelke teaches Climate Justice at UC Santa Barbara’s Bren School of Environmental Science & Management. He has taught at Yale Law School, Duke Law School, Johns Hopkins University, and American University’s Washington School of Law. He is a graduate of Duke Law School, where he was an Editor of the Duke Law Journal.
Black Magic: The Tudor Black Bay Ceramic
From the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and a Ph.D. from Stanford University. Rodney Schmidt has more than 30 years of experience in the global energy and financial industries. He is Founder and CEO of Northrise Energy, a privately-held energy advisory firm. Previously Mr. Schmidt served as Managing Director, Standard Chartered Bank and Standard Chartered Securities N.A. Inc., in charge of wholesale banking. In 1989 Mr. Schmidt joined PFC Energy, a global energy strategic advisory firm. As a partner for 17 years, he helped build PFC into one of the energy industry’s leading advisory groups.
Dr. Powell has been co-inventor on more than 120 distinct patent applications with more than 50 granted, and has received several industry awards. Rakesh Agrawal, Ph.D., is the Winthrop E. Stone Distinguished Professor of Chemical Engineering in the Davidson School of Chemical Engineering at Purdue University. He received his Ph.D. degree in Chemical Engineering from MIT and has received numerous awards and honors. Rakesh spent over 20 years in industry with Air Products and Chemicals, where he held various engineering and managerial positions, including as Air Products Fellow, the highest technical position at Air Products. Patents which have been applied to over 100 operating plants with total capital investments in the billions of U.S. dollars.
While the footprint is pretty much the same as it’s predecessor, and I won’t go back and rehash it (You can read the full review here), the long and short of it is that 46mm has never worn so well. Due to the case shape, it wears much smaller than the size would suggest, and with the Gilding Edition, the case gets the Ceramic upgrade that it deserves. In keeping with the pebble-esque case shape, the black ceramic is actually fairly difficult to work with in this non-traditional shape. It would typically be difficult to get the finishing to look good, but CIGA nailed it. The polished ceramic gives an old-world aesthetic and I love it.
The sapphire crystal’s curve blends perfectly into that of the rounded (Ikepod-like) and brushed case. That case is — despite its 46mm diameter — surprisingly comfortable, thanks to its lugless design, soft silicon strap and (in the case of the tested model) lightweight titanium construction. If you’ve ever wondered to yourself what all those watch companies that make fake luxury watches could achieve if only they worked on something original, your answer has arrived. Welcome to the award-winning, $2,000, CIGA Design Blue Planet—and it’s pretty special. I was surprised how easily the watch wore while running errands in New York – it's not like I ever forgot it was on my wrist, but it was comfortable.
The ceramic bracelet comes on a neat gilded butterfly clasp that contours nicely and doesn’t scratch or irritate. You’d think with all the polished ceramic, the watch would retain fingerprints pretty badly, but it actually doesn’t. In fact, it’s dark enough that it’s hard to tell any smudges are even there. A few months ago, we had the opportunity to review the CIGA Design Blue Planet.
CFO for 15+ years at several venture funded companies and at an affiliate of Flex (FLEX) with ~$700M revenues. Repeated success in developing and implementing strategic plans, systems for global growth, joint ventures and building finance capabilities and teams. Investment banker for 10 years including at Salomon Brothers; closed over 15+ M&A transactions and raised $700M+ in capital. Kyle Self is focused on process modeling, scale-up, and safety.
Ciga Watch Review: A Closer Look at the Future of Chinese Watchmaking - FashionBeans
Ciga Watch Review: A Closer Look at the Future of Chinese Watchmaking.
Posted: Mon, 15 Apr 2024 07:00:00 GMT [source]
But more and more, Chinese brands are proving those assumptions wrong and demonstrating that the country has horological prowess beyond shadow manufacturing. In fact, brands like CIGA Design are winning awards–and not just participation ribbons. Inspired by our responsibility to preserve the world around us, the Blue Planet doesn’t just impress with its three-dimensional representation of our planet—it presents a new way of displaying the time. There is a compass rose on the globe, nestled between Madagascar and Antarctica.
The three-dimensional globe has received an intricate micro-carved decoration that reflects real-world topographic data, replicating the mountain ranges and terrain of different parts of Africa, Asia, Australia, and the Middle East. The visible part of the globe display is clearly curved – Flat Earthers need not apply – providing a really interesting depth effect to the entire watch. CIGA Design won the award for combining an interesting design (the globe is engraved to provide topographic detail) with genuinely imaginative mechanical watchmaking, all placed in a relatively affordable package that starts under $1,000 USD. Prior to Calera, William spent twenty years in leadership roles at NRG Energy, Inc and Cajun Electric Power Cooperative, Inc. William held Director roles in Transmission, Operations, Construction, Business Development and M&A, in essence leading efforts in all facets of the business. William Day consults in the areas of government affairs, community relations, business development, project development, project management, construction and operations.
However, the 15.6mm overall case thickness does make itself apparent in daily wear, and thanks to a floaty stance on the wrist this is a difficult watch to slip under shirt cuffs. Like the previous Blue Planet, water resistance is something of an Achilles heel for the Blue Planet – Gilding Version, with a subpar official rating of only 30 meters. That’s all very well and good and I’m sure the polar bears will be very grateful, but a watch that doesn’t tell the time isn’t much of a watch. With no hands carving up the globe like a great, astronomical pie, how does the owner of one of these watches deign to know if they are late or on time? Quite simply, as it happens, because floating in the Indian Ocean between Madagascar and Antarctica is a compass rose. Follow its direction to the outer edge and there you’ll see two orbiting rings, the outer reading hours and inner minutes.
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