The Most DELICIOUS Watch I've Seen This Year

I think motorsports and watches, they seem to go hand in hand, you know, from chronographs to racing and so forth, and one of my favourite cars of all time is a Porsche 911, and not just any Porsche, a vintage Porsche, a vintage chocolate Porsche, a specific colour. And being an avid racing fan, I've actually driven quite a few cars on the racetrack over the last 10-15 years, as well as being able to photograph them in my career, and I'd love it if a brand could collaborate, like a, you know, something to bring a chocolate chronograph into the market, because to me that symbolises an era that had beautiful design as well as fantastic colours, and chocolate brown in an automobile, or maybe even in a watch, to me is very attractive. Now, what I've got here on my wrist, I've just added this to my collection. It's a Hanhart, it's a collaboration between Hanhart and Porsche Driver Magazine in Germany, and they've managed to collaborate to bring back that chocolate colour from that vintage Porsche into a watch, and I know that Hanhart specialises in pilots' watches, but this one here is more geared towards motorsports, and that's right up my alley, and that's why I've added it to my collection. It's beautiful, and I'm very biased. Let's flip the camera and let's dive in. Now, I've said it before, and I probably sound like a broken record, the designs, the colour choices they had back in the 70s, the 60s, they were phenomenal. They were just so inviting to the soul, they really spoke to the inner man, and a lot of my favourite architecture, cars, even watches, come from that era. Now, the watch I've got in my hand, it is a collaboration between Hanhart and Porsche Driver Magazine. As soon as I saw this watch, one of the first things that my eyes did was scan around it to have a look at all the design elements, and how they've managed to create something which I think is absolutely gorgeous, because being a Bicompax, number one, the legibility and the layout on this thing is beautiful, very symmetrical, but being in a chocolate brown colour, like a mocha, like a coffee colour, it is delicious. It is absolutely delicious, not only on the eyes, on the visuals, but there's a special light play that happens with this particular dial, that in so many scenarios, it actually looks black, and in other lighting situations, you can see that beautiful tonality of that vintage Porsche colour, and that's something which I think is really nicely done. Now, this watch is very similar to the standard 417ES, but it's also very different, because if you haven't already noticed, this particular watch features some very nice details and niches that not only make it a little bit special, but also very attractive. Now, I know that beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but I've been looking at this watch ever since I acquired it, and I can tell you what, it's oozing class, it's oozing romance, pedigree, and also superb functionality, as an icing on the cake. Now, you can tell that I'm excited about this watch, and the honeymoon period is well over, well past, and I still look at this watch and think, gee, it's lovely. I love what I'm looking at. That's a testament to very good design, colour choice, and design elements which really complement one another. Firstly, the fact that this watch features a fixed, flat, solid bezel. It gives this watch a more fresh, clean, and visually appealing feel to it. You see, many years ago, Handheart did produce quite a few watches with fixed bezels, and I'm really glad that they brought it back in this model, because this particular watch in this layout, the way it's designed, it's pretty much gone under the radar. But there's also a problem here, because this watch is limited to 200 pieces worldwide. And knowing this, I thought to myself, you know what, I was on the blower with Peter from Define Watches. I said, I want this watch. He goes, no problems. I said, I want a specific serial number. I managed to source down number 067, 67, the year of my birth. I thought, if I'm going to get a watch that I like, I know it's limited, let me get something that at least means something to me. So it's a bummer the fact that there's only 200 of these, though, because this is the sort of watch that, gee, just produce it. Just get it out there, because it is drop-dead gorgeous. Now, I did mention that this watch is classically designed. And for me, the obvious choice for vintage motorsports, or any sort of motorsports, is a chronograph. And that's what we've got here. And in the area of motorsports and chronographs, the obvious choice also would be to have a tachymetric scale. This doesn't have one. Having that fixed bezel has given this watch a little bit of flair, at the same time modernizing it and giving us the best of both worlds. And when I say modernizing it, that flat bezel, to me, looks like a modern-day Rolex OP. It's got that visual appeal to it and giving nice, clean lines to this watch that allows your eyes to basically focus on that beautiful dial and its layout. You see, you've got a classic Biocompax chronograph here, which provides perfect symmetry visually on the eyes. There are no distractions on this dial that stop you from reading the perfect time. And if you look down, just over the 6 o'clock, there's a single word, and it says shockproof. That's a subtle reminder and a nod to the past, but it's done so nicely and stylishly, it's basically an understatement. Because this watch, just like the 417ES, it features the same quality, movement, and functionality, but it's not boasting about it. The same anti-magnetic properties, the same shockproof, the same flyback feature, but it's presenting all those features hidden away in this watch with a single word, shockproof. And I love that. That is such a nice touch in the area of design. Now, speaking of that movement, if I turn the watch over, this watch is powered by the AMT 5100M. And for anybody who knows Sellita movements, this is a high-end Sellita calibre. Although it's originally based on the similar architecture on the SW510M, the refinement, the quality, and the fit and finish, as well as the regulation on this watch, is on a much higher level. Because AMT is Sellita's manufacture movement, and they are on the top level. And having that movement in this watch with a column or flyback feature, that's fantastic. The execution, the way you press these pushes, the way it flies back instantly, snaps back, adds a functionality when timing events like target events, motorsports, sending cars off every 15, 20 seconds, things like that. And real watch nerds like us and motorsports guys, we see these things, which is pretty cool. Now, getting back onto that movement, it is regulated to 0 to plus 8 seconds per day. It features around 58 hours of power reserve, and it's nicely decorated, and the view through that sapphire crystal, which has AR coating on the underside, is crystal clear. Pun intended. Literally, there's not many crystals at the back of a watch that have AR coating. This one here has AR coating, and it just adds a clarity. Being a photographer and knowing about coatings, you can really see this movement in all its detail and all its glory. And that's another nice little touch. Now, this is not a review by any means. I'm just showing you my new addition to the watch box, and I can't show you guys a video without showing you a lume shot, so if I dim down the lights, I think the lume on this watch is exactly where it needs to be for the genre of watch. In fact, it's probably better than it needs to be. You've got Swiss Superluminova X2-C1. It's long-lasting. It's super easy to read every morning at around 5 a.m. or 6 a.m. when I get out of bed. And also, the fact that the central sweeping chronograph hand is also lit up is a very nice touch indeed. This is not only one of the best hand-heart dials I've seen in recent times, married up with that beautiful Porsche chocolate brown and hand-heart's long association with timing events, this one, which is geared more towards classic motorsports, really spoke to me. In fact, it spoke loud enough not only to add it to my own personal watch box, but as I mentioned, it still brings a massive smile to my face long after the honeymoon period is over. That's testament to excellent design and quality craftsmanship. Now, in my eyes, when it comes to design language, there are so many heroes on this watch from that flat fixed solid bezel to the classic original hand-heart logo, the fact that it's a bike compacts, but also that iconic red pusher at the 4 o'clock. Its purpose is obviously to prevent accidental reset of flight timings, but there's also a backstory to this particular red pusher. It's actually an iconic story in hand-heart history, and it goes something like this. There was a pilot, and he was with a woman that he loved, and he was about to leave and go on a mission, and while he was getting ready, she took her red nail polish and actually painted that red pusher to remind him when he looks down at his chronograph not to press that button just in case he's doing some critical timing so as to be able to safeguard his return to her because she was in love with him and he was in love with her. So that's a nice romantic story, which I think hand-heart, over the years, has also carried that through to a lot of their watch designs with that red pusher. Whether it's a true story or not, I don't believe it, but that's how the story goes. So whatever the case, as enthusiasts, I think these little details make a world of difference in how we perceive a watch, in how it speaks to us, in how we enjoy it because at the end of the day, we're buying watches for ourselves. I'm not buying a watch to show off to you, and hopefully you're not buying a watch to show off to me or to Flex. Every single one of us is at a different stage in our watch collecting journey, and for me personally, I've always been driven not only in the technical aspect of what a watch can do, but also in its beauty and romance and its visual appeal, and I think this particular watch here seems to be kicking goals in both those departments. I hope you enjoyed that, my take on this hand-heart Porsche Driver Magazine collaboration. For me, the watch ticked all the right boxes that I definitely wanted to add it to my own collection and my own watch box. Ergonomics, romance, and just an absolute delight to have on the wrist because it just has a lot of significance for me from a long-standing brand, and the association with motorsports and the backstory with the Porsche. This particular watch for me has been a win-win. So hit me up in the comments, let me know what you think about this new watch from Handheart. Continue to do your own research when buying watches, and continue to enjoy this hobby and one another, and we'll see you in the next one.