The 10 Best Watches of 2019

This story is part of the GP100, our annual roundup of the best products of the year. To see the full list of winners, grab the latest issue of Gear Patrol Magazine.

A well-designed wristwatch should transcend time, giving information about the present in a package that references the past. The year’s best timepieces — from a sports watch that combines vintage design cues with an affordable movement to a GMT that’s uniquely dressy and simultaneously robust — do that and then some: they also prove that although the wristwatch is aging tech, it can still feel fresh as ever.

Products are listed alphabetically.

Audemars Piguet Code 11.59 Perpetual Calendar

Audemars Piguet leans heavily on the popularity of the Royal Oak, but that didn’t stop the famed Swiss watchmaker from embarking on a radical departure for its newest watch collection. The Code 11.59 Perpetual Calendar features a mesmerizing aventurine dial, pink gold octogonal case and modern 41mm size. With its impressive movement and killer looks, it’s a watch that’s hard to knock, even if you’re not crazy about the rest of the collection.

Case Diameter: 41mm
Winding: Automatic
Power Reserve: 40 hours
Price: $74,500

Further Reading
• The Release That Broke The Watch World’s Collective Brain
• The Winners of the GPHG 2019

Baltic Aquascaphe

Any watchmaker can reproduce a vintage watch spec for spec, but capturing the essence of a particular period without copying a specific timepiece requires a bit more grace. French microbrand Baltic pulls it off with Aquascaphe, a watch that draws from several midcentury classics, such as the Blancpain Fifty Fathoms. At 39mm, the Aquascaphe comes in a perfectly modern size, and its use of a commonly available Japanese automatic movement keeps the price well under a grand.

Case Diameter: 39mm
Winding: Automatic
Water Resistance: 200m
Price: ~$654+

Further Reading
• The Baltic Aquascaphe Dive Watch Melds 1960s Looks with Modern Tech
• Bid on This Unique Dive Watch to Help Support Clean Oceans

Watch Now: The 10 Best Watches of 2019

Bell & Ross BR 03-92 Bi-Compass

Bell & Ross has made a name for itself by crafting timepieces based on cockpit instruments, but some designs translate to the wrist better than others. The Bi-Compass, which draws on a radio compass once used by U.S. naval aviators, is one such watch. With its matte-black ceramic case and stark Super-LumiNova-coated indices, it manages to turn a vintage aviation instrument into a futuristic, wrist-bound masterpiece. It doesn’t hurt that it’s handsome as hell.

Case Diameter: 42mm
Winding: Automatic
Power Reserve: 38 hours
Price: $3,900

Further Reading
• Bell & Ross Returns To Its Military Roots With the New Bi-Compass
• The 12 Best Watches of Baselworld 2019

Blancpain Air Command

Editor’s Pick

Modeled on a vintage pilot’s watch from the 1950s that was never serially produced, the Blancpain Air Command is a masterpiece of midcentury watch design — or rather, the modern interpretation thereof. Featuring a flyback chronograph movement, rotating countdown bezel and a tachymeter scale used to compute speed and distance, the Air Command is a classic pilot’s watch. But it’s the use of modern materials, such as Super-LumiNova and sapphire crystals, that bring it firmly into the 21st century.

Case Diameter: 42.5mm
Winding: Automatic
Power Reserve: 50 hours
Price: ~$19,003

Further Reading
• This Reissue of an Obscure Military Chronograph Watch Is Absurdly Beautiful

Casio G-Shock Full Metal GMW-B5000V

The original resin-cased G-Shock of the 1980s has a cool factor all its own, but the more substantive GMW-B5000V steel incarnation from Casio’s Full Metal series features a unique lived-in finish. And while black-ion plating and artificially worn edges give it a hard-worn aesthetic, solar charging and smart connectivity make it a premium, full-featured G-Shock for the fashionably oriented.

Case Diameter: 43.2mm
Winding: Quartz
Water Resistance: 200m
Price: $1,000

Further Reading
• This New Steel G-Shock Watch Brings Baked-In Patina
• The Complete Buying Guide to the Casio G-Shock

Christopher Ward C1 Moonglow

Most moonphase complications are tucked into a small window at the bottom of a watch dial. Not so with the C1 Moonglow from British brand Christopher Ward, which displays the current phase of the moon along with glowing stars in Super-LumiNova at the top of the dial. Even more dazzling is the rotating disc that carries the display — it remains constantly visible through the smoked-sapphire crystal.

Case Diameter: 40.5mm
Winding: Automatic
Power Reserve: 38 hours
Price: $1,935+

Further Reading
• This Is the Coolest Moon Phase Watch We’ve Seen in Recent Memory
• How a Moonphase Works

Monta Atlas

Getting your hands on a solid GMT-equipped wristwatch used to require a significant chunk of change — think: Rolex-type change. Today, however, smaller boutique brands are offering luxury products with refined aesthetics and modern technology at a much more stomachable price. Starting at around $1,600, Monta’s Atlas GMT packs dual time zones, multiple dial color options and a first-rate bracelet. And best of all, it’s thin enough to wear under a cuff, making it perhaps the most versatile GMT around.

Case Diameter: 38.5mm
Winding: Automatic
Power Reserve: 48 hours
Price: $1,410+

Further Reading
• This Automatic GMT Watch Straddles the Line Between Sport and Dressy
• 7 Awesome Affordable GMT Watches

Panerai Submersible 42mm PAM00683

For this year’s Submersible, Panerai put its military dive-watch aesthetic into one of the most wearable packages in the brand’s 159-year history. That’s not to say Panerai cut any corners, of course. At 42mm wide, the Submersible retains a bold wrist presence. But it brings the line’s genuinely rugged qualities — like 300 meters of water resistance and a scratch-resistant ceramic bezel insert — and a solid Swiss automatic movement to more wrists than ever.

Case Diameter: 42mm
Winding: Automatic
Water Resistance: 300m
Price: $9,800

Further Reading
• This is the Smaller, Achievably Priced Panerai Submersible You’ve Been Waiting For
• The Complete Panerai Buying Guide

Q Timex Reissue

Modern reissues of vintage watches are common fixtures in today’s horological scene, but it’s tough to find one that’s both handsome and affordable. Enter the ultra-popular Q Timex, a nearly one-for-one reproduction of a 1970s watch with a squared-off case, woven steel bracelet and Rolex-inspired bicolor bezel that uses wallet-friendly quartz to bring vintage vibes to the masses.

Case Diameter: 38mm
Winding: Quartz
Water Resistance: 50m
Price: $179

Further Reading
• Jump on This Affordable Restocked Retro Watch Before It Sells Out
• Timex Follows Up the Q Timex with Another Affordable Vintage Reissue

Vacheron Constantin Traditionnelle Twin Beat Perpetual Calendar

Though supremely complicated in design and manufacturing, perpetual calendars are nothing new, horologically speaking. Vahceron Constantin improved upon the concept, however, with the Traditionelle Twin Beat. Making use of dual oscillators, it’s movement can be slowed down when the watch isn’t being worn, allowing for a power reserve of over two months. This way, if you don’t wear the watch for a while, it’ll remain synched to the current date information when you strap it back on.

Case Diameter: 42mm
Winding: Manual
Power Reserve: Variable (4 – 65 days)
Price: $199,000

Further Reading
• Inside the New Vacheron Constantin Pereptual Calendar
• Some of the Most Complicated Watches of SIHH 2019

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