Switzerland has welcomed watch aficionados all week as it plays host to the annual Geneva Watch Days event.
A total of 40 brands will unveil their timepieces until September 2, up from the eight that helped to launch the event three years ago. Conceived to be more accessible than other watch fairs, GWD is open to the public and unfolds in boutiques and hotels across the city.
This year revealed some remarkable innovations, many of which have an avant-garde aesthetic and a sense of playfulness.
Bulgari
The Italian maison unveiled its latest iteration of the world's thinnest watch with the Octo Finissimo CarbonGold Perpetual Calendar 103778, crafted from carbon and rose gold.
The 40mm carbon case is 7.60mm thick (or should that be thin?) and has a polished rose gold crown with a black ceramic insert. The Calibre BVL 305 movement – that is 2.75mm thick – has a 60-hour power reserve, a retrograde date, month and year, and a retrograde leap year.
H Moser & Cie
Swiss watchmaker H Moser & Cie presents two additions to its Endeavour line, using the darkest substance in the world, Vantablack. Endeavour Tourbillon Concept Vantablack and Endeavour Centre Seconds Vantablack each have a case and bezel in red rose gold, framing a dial coated in the material developed for the military.
Able to absorb 99.965 per cent of light, Vantablack is perceived as a void by the human eye, so that the indexes and tourbillon of these models seem to float in space. The absence of a brand logo makes the design seem even more otherworldly.
Roger Dubuis
A salute to Squadra Corse, Lamborghini's motorsport arm, the Excalibur Spider Huracan Sterrato MB has striking blue detailing and nods to the Huracan supercar. The watch's movement echoes the car's hexagonal air intakes and signature twin barrels between five and seven o'clock, which evoke several fuel tanks.
Powered by the RD630 Calibre with a 60-hour power reserve, the balance wheel at 12 o’clock is tilted to a 12° angle to maintain the optimum position even when it is not being worn. The 45mm case is made from sheet moulding compound carbon, which is nine times lighter than gold.
The bezel is crafted from black DLC titanium, with blue strips to echo the car's spoiler. The lugged crown is bolt-shaped, in another nod to the Huracan.
Jacob & Co
The latest arrival from Jacob & Co is inspired by family history. The World Is Yours Dual Time Zone watch pays tribute to the timepiece given to company founder Jacob Arabov on his 13th birthday by his father.
Arabov – who found fame in the New York hip-hop scene as Jacob the Jeweller – has created the company's first complication, a self-winding dual time zone watch, with a 43mm rose gold case. Inside, the lacquered blue dial is laser-engraved with a world map, and sits under a domed sapphire crystal glass.
Urwerk
Based on the constellations of stars, Swiss watchmaker Urwerk's new UR-100V Stardust has 400 diamonds embedded into its steel case with a snow-setting, to better reflect the ordered chaos of space.
The minutes scale is studded with a further 36 diamonds, while another 24 top the crown. Like others in the 100 collection, this timepiece tracks the journey of the Earth around the Sun using two arcs on the dial. One marks the distance travelled by the Earth on its own axis in 20 minutes – 555km- as the other clocks the distance travelled by the Earth around the Sun in the same period – 35,740km.
Scroll through the gallery to see other watches unveiled at the exhibition
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
More from Neighbourhood Watch:
COMPANY%20PROFILE
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EName%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ESmartCrowd%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E2018%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounder%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ESiddiq%20Farid%20and%20Musfique%20Ahmed%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EDubai%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ESector%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EFinTech%20%2F%20PropTech%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInitial%20investment%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E%24650%2C000%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ECurrent%20number%20of%20staff%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%2035%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestment%20stage%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ESeries%20A%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestors%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EVarious%20institutional%20investors%20and%20notable%20angel%20investors%20(500%20MENA%2C%20Shurooq%2C%20Mada%2C%20Seedstar%2C%20Tricap)%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
U19 World Cup in South Africa
Group A: India, Japan, New Zealand, Sri Lanka
Group B: Australia, England, Nigeria, West Indies
Group C: Bangladesh, Pakistan, Scotland, Zimbabwe
Group D: Afghanistan, Canada, South Africa, UAE
UAE fixtures
Saturday, January 18, v Canada
Wednesday, January 22, v Afghanistan
Saturday, January 25, v South Africa
UAE squad
Aryan Lakra (captain), Vriitya Aravind, Deshan Chethyia, Mohammed Farazuddin, Jonathan Figy, Osama Hassan, Karthik Meiyappan, Rishabh Mukherjee, Ali Naseer, Wasi Shah, Alishan Sharafu, Sanchit Sharma, Kai Smith, Akasha Tahir, Ansh Tandon
At a glance
Fixtures All matches start at 9.30am, at ICC Academy, Dubai. Admission is free
Thursday UAE v Ireland; Saturday UAE v Ireland; Jan 21 UAE v Scotland; Jan 23 UAE v Scotland
UAE squad Rohan Mustafa (c), Ashfaq Ahmed, Ghulam Shabber, Rameez Shahzad, Mohammed Boota, Mohammed Usman, Adnan Mufti, Shaiman Anwar, Ahmed Raza, Imran Haider, Qadeer Ahmed, Mohammed Naveed, Amir Hayat, Zahoor Khan
WOMAN AND CHILD
Director: Saeed Roustaee
Starring: Parinaz Izadyar, Payman Maadi
Rating: 4/5
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
FIGHT CARD
Sara El Bakkali v Anisha Kadka (Lightweight, female)
Mohammed Adil Al Debi v Moaz Abdelgawad (Bantamweight)
Amir Boureslan v Mahmoud Zanouny (Welterweight)
Abrorbek Madaminbekov v Mohammed Al Katheeri (Featherweight)
Ibrahem Bilal v Emad Arafa (Super featherweight)
Ahmed Abdolaziz v Imad Essassi (Middleweight)
Milena Martinou v Ilham Bourakkadi (Bantamweight, female)
Noureddine El Agouti v Mohamed Mardi (Welterweight)
Nabil Ouach v Ymad Atrous (Middleweight)
Nouredin Samir v Zainalabid Dadachev (Lightweight)
Marlon Ribeiro v Mehdi Oubahammou (Welterweight)
Brad Stanton v Mohamed El Boukhari (Super welterweight
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Qyubic
Started: October 2023
Founder: Namrata Raina
Based: Dubai
Sector: E-commerce
Current number of staff: 10
Investment stage: Pre-seed
Initial investment: Undisclosed
Getting there
The flights
Emirates and Etihad fly to Johannesburg or Cape Town daily. Flights cost from about Dh3,325, with a flying time of 8hours and 15 minutes. From there, fly South African Airlines or Air Namibia to Namibia’s Windhoek Hosea Kutako International Airport, for about Dh850. Flying time is 2 hours.
The stay
Wilderness Little Kulala offers stays from £460 (Dh2,135) per person, per night. It is one of seven Wilderness Safari lodges in Namibia; www.wilderness-safaris.com.
Skeleton Coast Safaris’ four-day adventure involves joining a very small group in a private plane, flying to some of the remotest areas in the world, with each night spent at a different camp. It costs from US$8,335.30 (Dh30,611); www.skeletoncoastsafaris.com
Three ways to boost your credit score
Marwan Lutfi says the core fundamentals that drive better payment behaviour and can improve your credit score are:
1. Make sure you make your payments on time;
2. Limit the number of products you borrow on: the more loans and credit cards you have, the more it will affect your credit score;
3. Don't max out all your debts: how much you maximise those credit facilities will have an impact. If you have five credit cards and utilise 90 per cent of that credit, it will negatively affect your score.
Specs
Engine: Duel electric motors
Power: 659hp
Torque: 1075Nm
On sale: Available for pre-order now
Price: On request
