When people talk about technological leaps forward in the watch industry most would expect the conversation to be about smartwatches. But that is only a small part of the leaps forward that we are starting to see in the competitive wristwatch marketplace we have today. One area which has seen large developments in recent years has been the popular market for ultra thin watches.
Manufacturers have been battling it out to create the most incredible thin watches. Every time one manufacturer a watch which appears to be as small as it can possibly be, another manufacturer makes a smaller one! This is due to incredible advancements in micromechanics which is helping bring about watches so small that its almost impossible to believe they exist!
The Challenge of Ultra Thin Watches
Aesthetically speaking, the smaller and thinner the device, the better it looks. With that in mind, manufactures have always attempted to make devices as small as is practical but in recent years the challenge has been to take that even further. Watch manufacturers are now using all of their expertise to craft the thinnest watches possible, which comes with new challenges for watchmakers to overcome.
One of the biggest challenges for watch manufacturers to overcome in these ultra thin watches are crafting strong watches which won’t fall apart! Smaller watch parts are by their nature weaker than larger, stronger watch parts. This has created a situation where some watchmakers have chosen to specialise in ultra thin watches as though the thinness is a complication in itself.
Different manufacturers have taken their own routes to create these ultra thin watches. One of the most popular ways has been to take one of their current movements and find ways to make it smaller. Other manufacturers have decided to go a completely new way by designing entirely new movements which are made to be as small as possible. While both routes come with their own inbuilt challenges, it seems as though they are both finding success in making their watches thinner and thinner.
The Market Leaders in Ultra Thin Watches
Bulgari are one of the manufacturers who have taken the bold step to specialise in ultra thin watches. Bulgari CEO Jean-Christophe Babin explained that they made the decision to specialise in ultra thin watches over five years ago. He explained, “We wanted to provide gentlemen with the ultimate elegance, like we do with ladies’ jewels.” The Finissimo series came about as a result of this aim and this series is one of the most impressive examples of the latest ultra thin wristwatches. In this series, Bulgari have created a series of watches which are not just thin but functional, with an unbelievable range of impressive complications.
The Finissimo series from Bulgari is so thin that it has managed to break a wide range of different records. The series includes an automatic watch, an automatic tourbillon and a hand-would tourbillon. Each of which have broken records for being the thinnest watch to include that complication. The self-winding tourbillon watch is unbelievably thin with a thickness of just 1.95mm.
Bulgari have taken the step of designing their ultra thin watches from scratch with the aim of being as thin as possible. This has a downside – as none of the watches come with the exact same movement – but has led to them creating impressive solutions to the inherent problems in thin watches. As Babin said, “We had to design it to be thin, accessible, easily maintained and fast to assemble. This leads to new technical solutions. None of our Finissimo models share the same movement platform.”
The amount of work put in by Bulgari to create these ultra thin watches is undoubtedly impressive. These watches are not just made to be placed on display, they are made to be purchased and used on a day to day basis. So Bulgari didn’t just have to create those pieces and make sure they worked, they had to make sure they wouldn’t fall apart on the wrist! Bulgari and Jaeger-LeCoultre have broken world records with ultra thin watches which look amazing and are durable as well!
We’re still at a stage where manufacturers are outdoing each other regularly and still breaking records. But at some stage watches are going to reach a plateau where they can no longer get any thinner but we’re not quite there yet. Until then, we can all enjoy watching these watchmaking experts push the boundaries of tiny watch manufacturing as far as they can possibly go.
