The 6 Coolest New Watches That Dropped in March

Watchmakers were keeping it conservative in terms of releases ahead of this month’s Watches and Wonders, the world’s largest trade show for timepieces. But that doesn’t mean there weren’t a handful of pieces worth considering. Our personal favorite is the Parmigiani Tonda PF 36MM—a unisex timepiece that, thanks to its size, would look elegant on a variety of wrists. Plus, it makes a compelling case for a two-for-one special if you’re trying to convince a significant other you need a new watch.

Other models were also pleasantly surprising, like the Urwerk’s UR-101 T-Rex, which presented a new take on the house’s avant-garde style by executing a case with a guilloché pattern on steroids. Likewise, MB&F released a new M.A.D. timepiece with Eric Giroud that looked so unlike the first series, we imagine it will garner an entirely new fanbase in addition to its existing acolytes. Here’s a look at what dropped this month.

Tonda PF 36MM in Stone Blue

The Tonda PF 36MM is among one of the better unisex watches on the market. It seems to wear just right on all wrists thanks to its considered bracelet and case design. We’ve seen it in other iterations from from two-tone and solid gold bracelets to taupe dials and—in its first initial drop—eggplant, slate gray, and charcoal gray dials. The latest continues the super-clean and minimalist design but in a stone blue dial decorated in guilloché and a Grain d’Orge (barley grain) motif.

It’s cool and wildly versatile, but most of all it makes a great case for a shared asset.

Photo courtesy of Parmigiani

Urwerk UR-101 T-Rex

Collectors gravitate to Urwerk’s avant-garde watches because they don’t look like the sea of more obvious choices from bigger-name brands. Even Ralph Lauren, the arbiter of classic preppy style, is known to own an Urwerk—you can only have so many Roman numeral dress watches, after all.

The new UR-101 T-Rex takes this brand’s quirky designs and ups the ante with a pumped-up play on guilloché (a traditional form of dial decoration) executed on the case. The result is an almost animalistic texture surrounding a retrograde time display. What’s interesting is that it looks surprisingly sleek rather than wacky on the wrist, and its design is a sure-fire conversation starter.

Photo courtesy Urwerk

MB&F M.A.D.2

MB&F’s M.A.D. series of watches make the indie company’s expensive, exclusive, and limited timepieces more accessible to fans through more affordable but no less creative drops. The last M.A.D. watch hit in August was the M.A.D.1.S., which sported a slimmer profile and dial-side rotorRotorThe weighted, semicircular metal piece in an automatic watch that spins freely with the wrist's movement to wind the watch's mainspring. Rotors are often beautifully decorated with engravings or madeGo to Rotor Glossary modified to show off a better view of the movement. That spinning rotor has been a signature of the M.A.D. watches through the 1.S., which marked the fifth installment in the series.

Now MB&F is putting a new spin on the project with the 42 mm M.A.D.2. Like its older brothers, this sibling also rotates but takes its cue from club culture in Lausanne in the ’90s. The company collaborated with well-known watch designer Eric Giroud to create the timepiece, which takes elements from turntables, vinyl grooves, and pulsing baselines. The surrounding spinning “platter” is modeled after the stroboscopic band of the Technics SL-1200 Mark 2 turntable with SuperLuminova stop pins.

The M.A.D.1 watches were signed on the back by MB&F founder, Max Büsser, but the M.A.D.2 pieces are signed by Giroud. It celebrates the designer’s 20-year-long history of helping to conceive MB&F timepieces with Büsser. The green version will be available through a raffle, while an orange model is an exclusive for the brand’s collector club, The Tribe and friends.

Photo courtesy of MB&F

Omega Seamaster Planet Ocean Worldtimer

Omega’s Seamaster Planet Ocean collection just got a world timer model. It was previously available in the Aqua Terra 150M line, but has received a svelte update in black ceramic. At 45.5 mm, these are certainly large, but their stealth elements keep it discreet, like a laser-ablated diving scale polished in relief. The continents are shown at the center of the dial on a grade 5 titanium surface with an aerial view over the North Pole. 

There are two executions: one with teal elements on the continents and city ring and another with the continents and city ring in gray. Underneath the hood is the automatic Co-Axial Master Chronometer Calibre 8938, which is visible through the caseback. Both straps come in black structured rubber. World Timers are more often created as dress watches, but in Omega’s hands, they feel distinctively sporty. They’d make great weekend wears, even when you’re not traveling.

Photo courtesy of Omega

Girard-Perregaux Laureato Absolute Aston Martin F1 Edition

Aston Martin and Girard-Perregaux are revving their engines together again. Hot on the tail of last month’s striking Laureato Chronograph Aston Martin Edition with a sage green dial made from car paint, the British high-end automotive maker and Swiss watchmaker have dropped another watch celebrating racing green. This 44 mm timepiece sports a more solid teal green compared to the softer green its predecessor sports. Both are titanium-cased, and while both are ostensibly sports watches, this one certainly has a more track-ready vibe.

The watch marks a continuation of the celebration of F1’s 75th anniversary and the perennial ties between car collectors and watch collectors. The partially openworked and luminescent hour and minute hands are inspired by the front grille of the car company’s road cars like the DB12. The center seconds hand and date display are designed in lime green, which is a subtle but striking contrast to the dial. The strap comes in FKM rubber with a fabric-effect pattern, matching the green hue of the dial and crown. FKM was chosen by Girard-Perregaux and Aston Martin for its extra flexibility and fade-resistant qualities. And just in case you’re planning to take it for a dip, it’s water resistant to 300 meters. It sports 46 hours of power reserve and a manufactureManufactureA watchmaking term for a company that designs and produces most of its movements and components in-house, rather than relying on outside suppliers. Being a true manufacture signals deep expertise,Go to Manufacture Glossary-made self-winding mechanical movement.

It’s an altogether different vibe than last month’s watch, but both will stand out in a crowd. Why not have both?

Photo courtesy of Girard-Perregaux

Chopard Happy Sport 36MM

Chopard released a new Happy Sport 36MM model in a powerful pink iteration. Housed in the company’s signature ethical gold it comes adorned with a diamond set case and a bezel in snow-set pink sapphire and diamonds. It surrounds a mother-of-pearl dial accented wtih diamonds and sapphires on the Roman numerals and the floating gems within the case. The Happy Sport in a staple in Chopard’s catalog and this pink iteration is an extra peppy version of its floating diamond bestseller.

Photo courtesy of Chopard

This article originally appeared in Robb Report US.