It’s Friday; it’s six o’clock in London. That means it’s time to down tools, pour yourself a drink and look back at what A Prodigal Week it has been.
Glass in hand? Let me offer you some canapés of news and views.
BUT FIRST
👑 Rolex will now sell you a pre-owned watch and our latest episode of Persiflage finds us dissecting the news in the name of downtrodden watch fans everywhere.
Listen in >
GADGETS
Red Nose Day
What do you do after you’ve designed some of the most iconic gadgets of the century? How do you top world-changing products like the original iMac, the iPhone and iPad? Well, if you’re Jony Ive, Apple’s erstwhile chief design officer, you turn your hand to helping charity. This week it was announced that Sir Jonathan has created this year’s Red Nose. The Verge reports:
Former head Apple designer Jony Ive has taken on an unusual brief: designing the iconic Red Nose that symbolizes the British charity Comic Relief. The new Red Nose is made mostly from plant-based materials and transforms from a small flat crescent into a honeycomb-paper sphere. Comic Relief says Ive’s redesigned Red Nose is the “most dramatic makeover since its debut in 1988.”
Also worth your time
Apple iPhone (original) auctioned: “The auction house where Green has listed her original iPhone predicts that this one could go for ‘at least $50,000’.”
Sony WH-1000XM5 and Apple AirPods Max compared: “If you’re deep in Apple’s ecosystem and want to easily use the headphones with all of your devices, buy the AirPods Max. Otherwise, stick to the cheaper, more customizable Sony WH-1000XM5 headphones.”
Apple HomePod reviewed: “Apple’s second take on the HomePod doesn’t stray far from the original, but it’s better all around.”
WATCHES
Not resting on their laurels
For most watch nerds, this is very much AP’s week (see below) but, for my money, this celebration of 110 years of Japanese watchmaking from Seiko takes the prize. In brilliant hard yitanium with a gorgeous urushi dial, this new “Laurel” is a truly wonderful way to reinvigorate an iconic design. Hodinkee reports:
As with a lot of Grand Seiko releases, it's the dial that makes the difference here. Urushi lacquer can be traced back to Japan's Jomon Period (13,100 BCE– 400 BCE), a gorgeous lacquer made with sap from the urushi tree found in Japan and China and used historically in a restrained form and befitting for a subtle watch like the GS "First". In this case, the lacquer is sourced solely from Japan and comes in a jet-black color thanks to the addition of iron. The dials, all hand-enameled by a master Japanese craftsman, have 24-karat gold indices and dial text, produced by slowly building up layers of enamel. Next, a gold powder called maki-e, which means "sprinkled picture," is applied over the raised enamel and then polished to the micron. Finally, the entire dial undergoes a special treatment to preserve it and prevent the color from changing over time.
Also worth your time
Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Offshore ref. 26238C announced: “As a fitting salute to the original, the first ever Royal Oak Offshore in black ceramic with matching ceramic bracelet, the new Selfwinding Chronograph ref. 26238C – now badder and bolder than ever.”
Audemars Piguet Royal Oak 16202 Jumbo in white gold introduced: “This blue-grained dial is inspired by a Royal Oak model made in 1992 for the 20th Anniversary of the Royal Oak collection (at that time used on the platinum reference 14802) and reminiscent of Tuscan dial models with a similar but far less brilliant graining.”
Audemars Piguet Code 11.59 in steel unveiled: “New materials, new colors, new textures, even new date windows, the next generation of the Code 11.59 has a steely resolve.”
CARS
Home, Jürgen
We all owe a great debt to Tesla. Without the American trailblazer, it’s unlikely that traditional carmakers would have woken from their slumber and poured the billions they’ve had to into figuring out electric vehicles and self-driving. But that’s exactly what they’ve done and the results now eclipse the American pioneer. This week, Mercedes announced it's doing autonomous driving better than Tesla:
Mercedes-Benz said that its Drive Pilot system has reached SAE Level 3 automation, which is based on the industry standard SAE Levels of Driving Automation, a taxonomy published by SAE International and used to classify the ability of vehicle automation. SAE Level 3 allows the car to completely take over driving responsibilities, but may require human intervention. With this announcement, Mercedes-Benz has outpaced Tesla, which boasts SAE Level 2 autonomous driving, where a human is the one driving while constantly supervising the car’s self-driving technology.
Call me a traditionalist but I’ve always preferred my cars to be designed and built by Germans, by a company that’s been doing it for more than a hundred years. And now one doesn’t have to sacrifice innovation for experience.
Also worth your time
Porsche Vision 357 concept revealed: “The Style Porsche team has given the Vision 357 a narrow cabin sat atop widened bodywork: an obvious nod to the shape of the Porsche 356. Its wraparound windscreen and black A-pillars are meant to evoke the shape of a visor on a racing helmet.”
Audi A6 E-tron glimpsed: “Due in early 2024 with saloon, estate and hot RS6 - the
electric equivalent to the Audi A6 will get single- and dual-motor drivetrains and up to 435 miles of range.”
Porsche 911 Dakar reviewed: “You’re left open-mouthed both at the bandwidth of Porsche’s rear-engined icon and just how brilliantly its idiosyncratic dynamics work in environments as diverse as Silverstone and Sahara.”
More for subscribers
🏎️ Persiflage № 12 is about Eric’s Lotus. He’s finally seen sense and plans to sell it.
Should he let it go? >
🍎 Our despatch from Apple’s WWDC 2022 keynote in June is here for you in case you missed it live: all you need to know about Cupertino’s latest announcements.
Catch up >
🎧 Persiflage № 11 finds us bickering over different ways to replace an irreplaceable watch.
Which would you choose? >