Panerai Watches
The Panerai family began making watches in Florence in 1860. The company began making high-precision instruments for the Italian Navy. It was in this field that the company established its reputation for technical expertise and development. The company has always had close ties with Switzerland and today Panerai watches combine Swiss technology with Italian design. The design of Panerai watches is deceptively simply. They are contemporary watches that will become tomorrow's classics.
If you like more modern looking watches, don't be put off by the name of the Panerai Historic watch range. The watches are simple, modern designs. The movement is hand-wound mechanical with a patented device to protect the crown. The case and bezel come in polished steel or titanium. The glass is sapphire, formed of corundum, 3.5 mm thick, with an anti-reflective coating. What I like about this watch is that the back is also see-through sapphire crystal. The Panerai Historic range comes in three types of watches; Luminor Base, Luminor Marina and Radiomir. The picture on the left is of a Panerai Marina watch.
The Panerai Contemporary range offers the Luminor Marina Automatic, Luminor Submersible, Luminor GMT, Luminor Chrono and Radiomir Chrono. Although Panerai make men's watches, my wife is the proud owner of the Panerai Luminor Submersible (as pictured on the right). I love my Tissot sports watch but I'm very envious of her Panerai watch. The movement is automatic mechanical. The bezel comes in either stainless steel or titanium (my wife's is steel) and the glass is sapphire, formed of corundum, 3.5 mm thick, magnifying lens over the date at 3 o'clock with an anti-reflective coating. The strap is rubber, and you get a second interchangeable strap fit for diving. It has a diving depth of 300 meters.
What I really like about a Panerai watch is that it is either hand-wound or automatic - no batteries, just beautiful pieces of precision engineering. They all come with a chronometer certificate and power reserve of 42 hours. Panerai are high spec, beautifully made timepieces with a subtle, modern design that can be worn either as a dress or sports watch.