Review of the Glashutte Original Senator Excellence Panorama Date and Senator Excellence Panorama Date Moon Phase. Specs and prices of these 2018 models.
Introduced at Baselworld 2018, the new Senator Excellence Panorama Date and Senator Excellence Panorama Date Moon Phase well reflect the historic roots of Glashütte Original: elegant timepieces with clean design and outstanding functionality.
We recently had the opportunity to spend some days with these two models, both featuring the distinctive Panorama Date but differing for the Moon Phase complication, and we are now pleased to share our impressions with our readers.
Classic in their overall style, the new Senator Excellence Panorama Date and Panorama Date Moon Phase have a nice contemporary touch thanks to the increased diameter of their cases: 42 mm instead of the 40 mm diameter used for the Senator Excellence Panorama Date and Panorama Date Moon Phase with Roman numerals and poire hands (we wrote about them here).
This size makes the new watches very versatile, at ease with a suit in a business environment just like with a week-end casual fit, and particularly appealing for those who are looking for a classic watch with character and a stronger presence on the wrist.
The classic round cases sit comfortably on the wrist thanks to ergonomically designed lugs. The lines of the case are highlighted by its meticulous finish alternating polished and satin-brushed surfaces.
Thin bezels leave space to beautifully executed dials which are available in three variations: blue with sunray decoration, silver grey with a delicate vertically brushed finish and lacquered white.
It is remarkable that even dials are in-house produced at Glashütte Original. This is pretty rare among watch industries as most of them rely on external suppliers for dials. The German brand makes them in a dedicated manufactory in Pforzheim, a city rich in the traditions of jewelry making around 600 km east of the headquarter.
For our hands-on we had the blue-dial Senator Excellence Panorama Date and the white-dial Senator Excellence Panorama Date Moon Phase.
The galvanic blue dial is particularly fascinating as it changes hues depending on the light of the environment while the white dial is very elegant with its smooth matte look.
Readability is excellent thanks to white gold applied indices and large sword-shaped hour and minute hands. The harmony of the dials is completed by a lovely central seconds hand adorned with the distinctive double G-logo, a recurring element that is also used to decorate the crown and the rotor of the movement. Twelve Super-LumiNova spots are applied along the outer minute track.
The Panorama Date gives a clear example of the attention that the brand pays to even the smallest details. In fact, the two numerals defining the date are not separated by a central vertical bar. This is possible thanks to the fact that the two concentric display discs are mounted on the same level, a more complex solution to achieve but one which offers the benefit of enhanced legibility and elegance.
The Moon Phase softly curved window is positioned between 10 and 11 o’clock to visually balance the Panorama Date aperture. The silhouette of the silvery moon is nicely set off by a starry, galvanic blue sky.
We recently had the opportunity to spend some days with these two models, both featuring the distinctive Panorama Date but differing for the Moon Phase complication, and we are now pleased to share our impressions with our readers.
Classic in their overall style, the new Senator Excellence Panorama Date and Panorama Date Moon Phase have a nice contemporary touch thanks to the increased diameter of their cases: 42 mm instead of the 40 mm diameter used for the Senator Excellence Panorama Date and Panorama Date Moon Phase with Roman numerals and poire hands (we wrote about them here).
This size makes the new watches very versatile, at ease with a suit in a business environment just like with a week-end casual fit, and particularly appealing for those who are looking for a classic watch with character and a stronger presence on the wrist.
The classic round cases sit comfortably on the wrist thanks to ergonomically designed lugs. The lines of the case are highlighted by its meticulous finish alternating polished and satin-brushed surfaces.
It is remarkable that even dials are in-house produced at Glashütte Original. This is pretty rare among watch industries as most of them rely on external suppliers for dials. The German brand makes them in a dedicated manufactory in Pforzheim, a city rich in the traditions of jewelry making around 600 km east of the headquarter.
For our hands-on we had the blue-dial Senator Excellence Panorama Date and the white-dial Senator Excellence Panorama Date Moon Phase.
The galvanic blue dial is particularly fascinating as it changes hues depending on the light of the environment while the white dial is very elegant with its smooth matte look.
The Moon Phase softly curved window is positioned between 10 and 11 o’clock to visually balance the Panorama Date aperture. The silhouette of the silvery moon is nicely set off by a starry, galvanic blue sky.
A fine-toothed gear guarantees the high precision of the moon phase indication: once correctly set, and assuming that the watch runs continuously, it will not require any manual adjustment for the next 122 years!
Turning the watch is a pleasing experience. Through the transparent sapphire crystal it is possible to appreciate the typical Glashütte three-quarter plate architecture and the meticulous finishes of all components, enhanced with decorations and aesthetic refinements like perlage, sunburst finishing, stripe finish, bevelling, and polishing. To learn more on these decoration techniques, we suggest you to read the report of our visit to the Glashütte Original manufactory (link at the end of this article).
The self-winding 4 Hz (28,800 vph) Calibre 36 – here in versions 36-03 with the Panorama Date and 36-04 with the Panorama Date Moon Phase – delivers exceptional accuracy and stability thanks to the innovative silicon spiral and the single spring barrel ensuring a power reserve of more than 100 hours or more than 4 days.
Other details demonstrating the quality of Calibre 36 are the screw balance with four adjustment screws, the swan-neck fine adjustment and the skeletonized rotor with its 21-carat gold oscillating mass.
All functions can be comfortably controlled via the crown without any need for additional correctors: in position 1 the crown serves to wind the watch, in position 2 both the date and moon phase can be set, and position 3 permits the owner to set the time of day.
Engraved on the case back, the letter Q encircling a miniature double G-logo testifies the first-rate standard of quality of the watch with respect to stability, running time, precision and aesthetics.
All Senator Excellence watches come with an exclusive certificate confirming that each timepiece has been thoroughly tested for 24 days in Saxon manufactory. An exclusive online portal provides owners with access to comprehensive information regarding the various testing procedures, together with comprehensive test results for the watch.
Not only aesthetically refined and precise, the new Senator Excellence Panorama Date and Panorama Date Moon Phase are also robust and reliable. In fact, they are water proof to a pressure of 5 bars, as well as resistant to shocks and to magnetic fields that are usually around us hidden in everyday objects like speakers, computers and mobile telephones thanks to the silicon balance spring used in Calibre 36. This high-tech material not only makes the wafer-thin spring immune to magnetic fields and temperature fluctuations, but also offers great improvement in terms of isochronous oscillation, hence precision.
The prices are in line with the flawless quality of the timepieces, their state-of-the-art manufacture movements and the prestige of the brand: Euro 9,200 for the Glashütte Original Senator Excellence Panorama Date with black alligator leather strap and Euro 10,200 for the Senator Excellence Panorama Date Moon Phase with brown alligator nubuck strap. All models can also be matched to stainless steel bracelets. glashuette-original.com
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Not only aesthetically refined and precise, the new Senator Excellence Panorama Date and Panorama Date Moon Phase are also robust and reliable. In fact, they are water proof to a pressure of 5 bars, as well as resistant to shocks and to magnetic fields that are usually around us hidden in everyday objects like speakers, computers and mobile telephones thanks to the silicon balance spring used in Calibre 36. This high-tech material not only makes the wafer-thin spring immune to magnetic fields and temperature fluctuations, but also offers great improvement in terms of isochronous oscillation, hence precision.
The prices are in line with the flawless quality of the timepieces, their state-of-the-art manufacture movements and the prestige of the brand: Euro 9,200 for the Glashütte Original Senator Excellence Panorama Date with black alligator leather strap and Euro 10,200 for the Senator Excellence Panorama Date Moon Phase with brown alligator nubuck strap. All models can also be matched to stainless steel bracelets. glashuette-original.com
Excellent contents and pictures. Beautiful watches. Love the blue dial.
ReplyDeleteVery nice watches. They are elegant without being old-style.
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