Time + tide
In the video below, Jamie and Zack share what they believe is the Top 5 Cartier Watch Release 2025 of Watches and Wonders. This left two picks each in the Time+Tide Editors, and Jamie preferred two tank watches after two Santos-Dumont Watches. In no particular order, ask the youngsters themselves why they chose what they did.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pkeqgajmk6w
Jamie’s first pick: Cartier Tank Louis Cartier Automatic
I think there is something intimately romantic and elegant about the hand-wound watches, especially Cartier tanks, but I do not deny that automatic watches are more practical in daily use. Until now, the Tank Louis Cartier range was only available in hand-winding movements, but in Geneva, Cartier has unveiled a stylish new automatic tank LC featuring an in-house 1899 MC calibre that first appeared in the Tank Amerish Inn LM, appearing in yellow or rose gold, and combined with an attractive flink dial.
This is an exciting tank LC for many reasons. I consider it to be a kind of ideal everyday wearer… well, just as a solid gold Cartier can become a daily wearer! I have a big wrist, so that massive 38.1mm lug to lug measurements don’t scare me – but unlike many automatic tanks in the years gone by, it unstablely lacks a “bubbleback” and makes it much better on my wrist. The Flinqué dial texture is also very attractive and helps to visually distinguish it from other tanks.
Zack’s first pick: Cartier Santos Dumont Skeleton Micro Rotor Steel and Black Lacquered Case
It’s no secret that I love lacquered Cartier. I quickly became engrossed in the Santos Dumont Limited Edition by Beige-Lacked. The beige beauty is always a numero Uno when it comes to lacquered Cartier watches, at least for me, but this year, the highly appealing and lacquered development has now folded with a new stainless steel Santos-Dumont Skeleton Micro-Rotor with a case accented with black lacquer. Of the original trio, including the beige lacquer model I personally own, the stainless steel option with a black lacquered dial and case is the only model in retailers that was the most price-reduced and not limited edition, so the format is a bit familiar. However, that didn’t necessarily mean it was very accessible in terms of getting assignments.
Rumors say that the original standard two-handed Santos Damon has recently been cancelled with black lacquered dials and cases, with this more elaborate Santos-Dumont Skeleton Micro-Rotor taking over. Instead of a solid dial and 430 MC movement, the skeleton microrotor raises the ante with a very open work caliber that can be seen from both sides, as the name suggests. Within the thin bridge of movement, the channels within these metal lines are filled with black lacquer. The micro-rotor itself is a handsome homage to the name of the collection, which runs in the form of Dumont’s famous Demosel aircraft. It’s a very smooth Santos, and gets sick with plain white tees and full-on suits.
Jamie’s second pick: Cartier Tank Louis Cartier Platinum Laser Engraved
With so much attention to other tanks in Geneva, these more modest manual winding tank LCs slid a bit under the radar. Featuring a minimal dial with a radial laser engraved pattern with beautiful light play, I feel like they are really emphasizing the sparkle of the tank as a design object. In my opinion, the grey model in the platinum case is particularly hot. All you need to do is scream out stealth wealth and enjoy the ingredients in that gorgeous case.
Zach’s second pick: Cartier Santos-Dumont 18K yellow gold with Wood Motif dial
The monochromatic aesthetic has become a less important trend in the watch industry. Rather, the watch market is clearly becoming more and more popular. Whether its repetitions of both the new full pink gold jaeger-lecoultre ruverso on the mesh bracelet, the original Vacheron Constantin Historiques 222 in yellow gold, or the Piaget Polo 79 are cohesive and consistent color schemes look like a powerful strategy to invite late watch buyers. This Santos-Dumont was a fair sleeper hit among all the media attending, in the atmosphere of the entire dial near the yellow gold case and color matching.
However, if you look closely, the romantic story is transformed into a dial with a very charming, dynamic and rich texture. Although not made of wood, Cartier has added a twist to the all-familiar sunburst dial using a wood motif dial that appears to split and burst from the center of the hand of the hour and minute. The timber motif took inspiration from the wood found on a Santos-demont aircraft, and created a lovely homage to the man who commissioned the world’s first pilot watch from Cartier in 1904, leaving us all the Saint-demont collections we know today. We always say that in order to get them, we need to look at the “clock in the metal.” This is definitely one of them. Directly, the dial is gorgeous, especially when you operate it under the light.
Shared Pick: Cartier Privé Tank A Guichets
The moment we saw them we knew that the new Cartier Prive Tank-a-Gicchets collection would stir up a frenzy. Originally born in 1928 and much before mechanical watches with trends in digital displays, the Cartier Tank Agichet favors a traditional dial and two small openings that spell time digitally. The design comes from the changing landscape of the late 1920s, when the rise of trains and cars became a daily reality. That digital timetel meant providing a faster way to read time in a world that is beginning to move faster.
It is impossible to find Cartier Tank watches from the 1920s and 1930s, and modern revivals are equally very rare. Whether or not a seemingly simple time and minutes watch at this luxurious price range is your fancy, if anyone outside the Cartier range can drop the range of your watch, then it’s very rare, whether or not Cartier is absolutely red hot. Market driven premium.
