SIHH 2017: MB&F HM7 Aquapod

1/21/2017

Ref. No. 70.RLB.B

Probably the most remarkable watch company on the market, MB&F has consistently released futuristic and exceedingly original designs. The beautiful new Aquapod has a design inspired by jellyfish and ripples of water. As always, the watch is wonderfully executed. The design is, well where do I start. The design has so many special design features that I don't even know where to start. Perhaps the most noticeable feature (at least looking at the front of the watch) is the flying tourbillon in the center. Beautifully displayed to the wearer from both the top and side (to a certain extent), it is perhaps the most normal feature of this watch, despite the exclusivity associated with tourbillons. Three panels of lume (they call theirs AGT Ultra, which stands for Ambient Glow Technology) surround the tourbillon to make it visible at night. The strangest part of the watch is the bezel, which is separate from the piece that holds the movement. I don't even feel comfortable calling it a case because it just, well it just isn't. It's almost entirely sapphire with only a thin strip of metal in the middle (which is hidden by the bezel anyway). The movement, despite its apparent complexity, is "only" made up of 303 pieces and despite the unorthodox nature of the movement, they still managed to squeeze a power reserve of 72 hours in. Flipping the watch over reveals the unconventional rotor which, unlike nearly all other automatic watches, rotates around the center. The "teeth" of the rotor (they are supposed to represent tentacles, I think they look like the mouth of a squid), have stripes of lume in the middle of each, making for an interesting nighttime display. They are constructed from a single block of titanium with a platinum section underneath. The case and bezel measure 53.8mm across and an intimidating 21.3mm thick. The titanium/blue version is limited to 33 pieces and is priced at 98,000 CHF (~$98,000 USD) while the red gold/black version is limited to 66 pieces and priced at 118,000 CHF (~$118,000 USD). Apparently the conversion rate is 1:1 right now, which makes my life easy at least.