A handsome face then, but what Breitling really excel at is the usefulness of their watches under extreme conditions and the new Chronomat Airborne models all feature four distinctive raised tabs on their rotating bezels for flight timing, functional even when wearing pilot¡¯s gloves.

Two dial variations of the 30th Anniversary Breitling Chronomat Airborne will be available, black with silver-toned counters or an edition which the Breitling press release terms as silver-toned with black counters, but until I see this one in the metal at I have to conclude that it would appear to be closer to sand-coloured. In honour of the Italian Frecce Tricolori, each piece will feature a caseback engraving of an Aermacchi plane used by the squadron and the inscription ¡°Edition Sp¨¦ciale 30th Anniversaire¡±. With case sizes of both 41mm and 44mm secured to the wrist by a black military-type fabric strap, these new pieces promise to slip effortlessly beneath pilot¡¯s gloves – or more likely, beneath a tailored cuff.

One of the boutique yet clever watch makers,http://www.easternmarket-dc.org/img/uc/English/googlebot/page_6.html, RSW (Rama Swiss Watches), brings forth an interesting offering; The RSW Outland Automatic. RSW, whose name and logo font remind me of the shoe store line DSW, has solidified itself among those watch makers inventing modern futurism. Most RSW watches honestly don’t make a huge amount of sense to me. It is easy to craft language applauding their unique styling and bold appearance, but I am not entirely convinced the style will be lasting. On the other hand, I certainly have to compliment RSW’s ability to intrigue me.

The Outland utilizes an idea I actually considered some time ago using revolving disks to indicate the time rather than hands. With out major modification to a standard movement, you can have rotating discs that act as digital rather than analog indicators. If the concept of digital and analog is not clear to you, the idea is that digital shows something through abstract representation, while analog “looks like what it is.” Here the abstract representation of time are the numbers that we use (1,2,3,4,….), the analog representation are the hands orientating themselves to show the time. Digital and analog have nothing to do with electronic versus mechanical movements, as I have learned is considered the difference by some people.

Due to the fact that the RSW uses discs with digital characters (the numbers) combined with their analog rotation results in what is a hybrid approach, that I have called “Digilog.” No doubt this term is trademarked elsewhere, but the idea is clear. What I like is that RSW was able to combine the attraction of an analog watch, with the legibility of a digital watch. At least in theory that is the case. To tell the time displayed on the discs where they intersect with the broad white indicator line at the lower section of the watch. The outer disc reads the hours, then middle disc reads the minutes, and the smallest inner disc with minimal markers displays the seconds.

It is hard to say what life with this watch would be like. It could well prove to be a more comfortable means of telling the time over traditional analog watch faces, or it could be just a gimmick. Regardless, it is a novel idea worth paying attention to. Surrounding the discs is a common futuristic design that RSW uses. To me it looks like what happens when Art Deco meets 1980s industrial design. So many parts of the RSW Outland Automatic watch I want to press or push, but they are not buttons; and I don’t know whether I am looking at a mini car engine or modern looking turntable. Always something interesting coming out of RSW.

This watch is the 800 pound Gorilla in any room – and it isn’t even the largest model that newer California-based watch brand makes. Welcome the SISU Guardian timepiece. At almost 1 pound in weight, this steel beast is a hell of a watch and wrist statement. Half of you are gonna love it and the other half are undoubtedly going to complain in some manner about the size. The first half loves hearing that from the second half.

The original SISU concept was to produce watches for athletes and other larger active guys. They have this interesting picture where a burly guy is wearing a Rolex on one hand and a SISU on the other – just for size comparison. Clearly the larger SISU matches his large wrists better as the Rolex seems petite by contrast. There is a certain fun to wearing big watches – but the enjoyment is all about the design. A big watch only makes sense when it is comfortable.

The first time I put on the SISU Guardian (version A2 as reviewed) I was actually amazed at how well the large case wrapped around my not-very-large wrists. The 54mm wide case has stubby lugs and a bracelet that does not really jut out. Don’t get me wrong – the watch is big, but not to the point where it is actually oversized. The largest watch SISU makes is the Bravado. That model is 55mm wide and does weigh a full pound. It has a different style case and bracelet that I will say are only best for people who have larger wrists. I wouldn’t even consider the Bravado model unless your wrists are 8 inches or more. The Guardian on the other hand is much better suited to small and medium wrists – along with larger ones of course.

The Guardian case is made from an inner body with attached lugs and a cap style bezel that goes over the entire body. The construction is very solid and the case is water resistant to 100 meters. For ergonomic purposes the crown is located at 10 o’clock. An interesting aspect of these watches is the crystal. Most people don’t think about it, but sapphire crystals are rather expensive compared to mineral crystals. Due to the diameter of the case, SISU watches utilize some of the largest sapphire crystals around. I believe that SISU needed to special order these and it is a compliment to the brand that they stuck with sapphire despite the high expense of these large crystals. The crystal is of course AR coated.

The Guardian dial design is modern and clearly inspired by the aviator look popularized by Bell & Ross. The outer dial is visually enlarged by having the flange ring literally overlap it. The ring does have a full set of hour and minute markers, and the inner dial presents a new space that does not make the dial feel empty or too vast. You’ll notice the cut slits revealing parts of the automatic movement – just a nice hint of skeletonization for those who like it and not obtrusive for those who don’t. The placement of the date disc needs to be located closer to the center of the dial due to the actual size of the movement. SISU appropriately does not leave the date window floating in the dial and puts it alongside the inner ring.

The lume-filled hands are large and easy to see. They are clearly aviator inspired, but not direct analogs of what you see all the time. It is true that they could be a bit longer, but there are weight issues that SISU needed to contend with given the size of the dial. There is a sporty hint of red as part of the second hand’s counterweight. The overall proportions of the dial feel good and the design is unique, but at the same time very approachable. SISU offers a few dial variants for the Guardian. In addition to the silvered dial, there is a black dial, and one with a floating double indicator layer called the Eclipse (A3 model).

Inside the Guardian automatic models are Swiss ETA 2824-2 automatic movements. SISU opens up the back of the case with an exhibition window. There is no hiding that the case is much larger than the movement. It is a solid Swiss work-horse automatic, and nothing particularly more fancy is needed here. SISU also offers Swiss quartz movement-based versions of their Bravado and Guardian watches. Some large watches try to pretend they aren’t so big, but SISU pieces are large and proud of it. It is their theme and the brand plays it well. They make large watches for guys who like large things.

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