Guide: 8 watches for him and her available over the counter

Text/photo: Mia Litström & Aleksandar Mladenovic

In recent years it has been quite tricky to get to buy certain watches. The waiting lists have been long and in some cases you have to wait several years for your turn. In this guide we at Eqotime list 8 watches for him and her that are available to buy straight over the counter.

The list is very personal and the writers' personal favourites of what they during the day found available at several authorised retailers. Both have chosen with the heart and tried to focus on things that are not the most obvious choices or the most popular models.

Breitling Super Chronomat Automatic 38 Origins

This is the watch I have had my eyes on since I got to see it in Geneva at a preview this summer, so it is extra fun that it actually is in the shop window at Breitling on Biblioteksgatan. Besides the combination of white dial, gold and diamonds topped with a white rubber bracelet being really good-looking, it is also that this is the model that turns a page in the company's history book. It is a starting shot for a new way of thinking at Breitling.

From this model on they will use synthetic diamonds, produced in a laboratory, and gold from specific suppliers where the whole chain of production is controlled. So they will not use natural diamonds for their watches and Super Chronomat Origins is the first model with this.

It is in size 38 mm, a size that has been missing in this model series, a really good size and in Breitling fashion it is not small and elegant that applies, the watch is supposed to assert itself. This one is light and fresh, the white goes incredibly nicely with the case in gold where there are also diamonds on the bezel. But all this without becoming too elegant, it still has a usability in that it is water resistant to 100 m and the white rubber bracelet is a good contrast to the precious gold and the synthetic diamonds. Unfortunately it has no open back where you can see the automatic movement which is called Caliber Breitling 17 with 38 hours power reserve.

Breitling Super Chronomat Automatic 38 Origins, Ref: R17356531G1S1, list price 232,000kr, available at Breitling on Biblioteksgatan

Ressence Type 8

Ressence is a very interesting brand that with a new way of thinking around the wristwatch and time reading. We wrote earlier about their diver's watch Type 5BBB, a very cool watch but unfortunately a bit big. Earlier this year an entry-level model in titanium with a blue dial and a pared-down design was introduced in the form of their Type 8. Here you get the brand's DNA in a wearable case of 42,9 mm and a feather-light weight of only 42 grams. Inside the watch ticks a modified ETA 2892/2 with Ressence's patented ROCS module (Ressence Orbital Convex System) where the dial is always in motion. An interesting watch for a relatively reasonable price tag seen against the rest of the model range at 150,000kr.

This model and a couple more from Ressence's range are available to look at more closely at Bo Berggren Urhandel, which is the sole authorised retailer of Ressence in Sweden.

Ressence Type 8, list price 150,000kr, available at Bo Berggren Urhandel on Biblioteksgatan

Tudor Black Bay Fifty-Eight 925

The majority of watch cases are made of steel and then there are the more exclusive materials such as gold and platinum but also ceramic as well as titanium for the lightness. A more unusual material for a case is silver, which is used diligently for jewellery for example but for watches it is not used at all to the same extent. That is largely because the material is not as traditional within the watch industry and that the surface can change over time. But so does for example bronze, which has become trendy to use within watchmaking precisely because it gets a lovely patina over time.

That is why I think it is extra fun with Tudor, who took the step of making a model in silver of all things. The mixture that Tudor has developed should according to themselves not change in shade but should keep finish and colour. The silver shade of the case that I have fallen for has a much warmer tone than steel has and you do not directly see that it is something different but after having looked for a while you see that the silver has its very own character. The warm tone also goes well with the dark beige tone of the dial and the bezel. Since it is in silver it is not possible to get it with a link but it is really becoming with the strap in textile and there is also a brown leather strap.

On the back you can actually see the movement, which is Caliber MT5400 which has a power reserve of 70 h. The size of 39 mm which also works well for smaller wrists. A really good-looking everyday watch which is also water resistant to 200 m. A wonderfully different Tudor!

Tudor Black Bay Fifty-Eight 925, Ref: M79010SG-0002, list price 44,110 kronor, available at Krons in PK-Huset

Bulgari Octo Finissimo Titanium

A watch with future legendary status like Royal Oak and Nautilus? Maybe! The fact is that I have always been a big fan of the cocky and thin Octo Finissimo. Bulgari are betting rock hard on the model series with new models coming off the line and they have won prize after prize when it comes to combining ultra-thin cases with complicated movements.

Personally I think that the original model in titanium one of the very best they have released. Monochrome, raw and with a really awesome movement with microrotor. It measures 40mm in diameter but is only 5,15mm thin and makes a striking impression on the wrist. Perhaps a little on the big side for the undersigned but here I am willing to stretch the limits a little.

The movement has a microrotor in platinum and measures in at an impressive 2,35mm in thickness. Despite it being a slender movement it has a comparatively long power reserve of 60h. The Achilles heel for anyone who intends to wear this watch in all weathers is the water resistance of 30m, a little weak you might think but I would not have been noticeably worried since I have both bathed and showered with an old Cartier Santos that was only pressure tested down to 30m…

The price tag is high, the list price is at 174,000kr – nothing I will buy in the near term but hopefully an Octo Finissimo will adorn my wrist some time in the future.

Bulgari Octo Finissimo Titanium, Ref: 102713, list price 174,000kr, available at Bulgari at NK

Piaget Polo Date

Piaget is in Sweden still a relatively unknown brand that I would like to highlight. They have solid knowledge within the highest level of watchmaking, Haute Horlogerie as well as within High Jewelry. They are at the same level as Chopard, Bulgari and Cartier. In addition they develop super-thin advanced movements.

Over the years they have developed fantastic ladies' models where their strength really lies in developing evening watches, pure jewel watches but also more robust watches with complications. There are even skeletonised models in a more feminine look with gold and diamonds. Some time ago they relaunched the model family called Polo, which is one of their sportiest model families. It comes in different sizes and at NK I found a Polo in size 36 mm which is a perfect one for this type of watch on a narrower wrist. That it is also in steel with a flat, non-round bezel in brushed steel with a blue dial topped with diamonds on the indexes makes it strikingly lovely. The simplicity in the design makes it sparingly elegant.

Water resistant to 50 metres and it also has an open back where you can see the automatic movement caliber Piaget 500P1 which has a power reserve of 40 h.

Piaget Polo Date, Ref: GOA46018, list price 160,000kr, available at Bulgari at NK

Tissot PRX 35mm Gold

The wallet-friendly alternative for someone who wants a watch with a lot of attitude without having to save for far too long is clearly a watch from Tissot's PRX series. Here very high quality is combined with a very reasonable price tag. We have talked and written quite a lot about PRX earlier on Eqotime and it is hard not to include a PRX when you write various guides.

For 4,995kr you get a Tissot PRX in the size 35mm with a reliable quartz movement in a case that is treated with gold-coloured PVD with matching execution on the link. Clearly something for the one who likes the look of an all-gold watch but with a smaller budget.

Tissot PRX 35mm, Ref: T137.210.33.021.00, list price 4,995kr, available at Krons in PK-Huset

Longines Hydroconquest

This sports watch in steel I have long been looking at. What fascinates me the most is the soft and calm colour combination which is extra fun on this type of watch. Most often sports watches are in strong colours that assert themselves in a completely different way. This one on the other hand is in a large size, 43 mm, but there is nothing any more that says that it is too small or too big. You wear what you are comfortable with and if you want a big sports watch in lovely colours this one is worth looking at.

Softly grey colour on the dial where Longines' golden colour on for the logo on the dial is followed up on the grip-friendly outer edge of the rotating bezel as well as on the crown. The grey part of the bezel is in ceramic.

Inside the watch ticks an automatic movement Caliber L888 with a power reserve of 72 h. It is water resistant to 300 metres. The grey rubber bracelet also goes very well together with this watch so it becomes a sporty feeling right through. But as said, it is big so it is really for the one who is looking for something substantial.

Longines Hydroconquest, Ref: L3.782.3.78.9, list price 19,700kr, the watch is available at Krons in PK-Huset

Breitling Chronomat Automatic GMT 40

A watch that caught my attention immediately at launch was the new Breitling Chronomat Automatic GMT. The updated Chronomat series is a big hit for the company and recently the range was broadened with this model, which is equipped with GMT display.

40mm means that it wears well even on smaller wrists and it measures in at a comfortable 11,7mm in thickness. The updated Rouleaux-link is really solid and supple and has a very pleasant hidden folding clasp. I like that the majority of case and link come in brushed execution as it contributes to a slightly sportier appearance. The watch is also water resistant down to 200m which makes it a perfect everyday watch.

I fell immediately for the version with a matte white dial where the GMT hand stands out in a good way with its red colour. The date window at 6 o'clock on the watch also blends in nicely. Inside the model ticks Breitling's calibre 32 with a power reserve of 42h, here there is room for improvement but the watch's pleasant looks make me a little forgiving.

This model (and the other models from the GMT family) you can look at more closely in Breitling's own store on Biblioteksgatan.

Breitling Chronomat Automatic GMT 40, Ref: A32398101A1A1, list price 66,500kr, available at Breitling on Biblioteksgatan