Watches And Wonders 2024: Grand Seiko Introduces A Dial-Color Changing Spring Drive Chronograph GMT 20th Anniversary Limited Edition

Nature inspired dial texture and aesthetics are a Grand Seiko speciality and in the latest addition to the Sport Collection, the brand introduces a color-changing dial variant at Watches and Wonders 2024. The Reference SBGC275 reflects the dawn’s golden hour hues set against the Hotaka mountain landscape. Celebrating the 20th Anniversary of the Spring Drive Caliber 9R’s introduction to a Grand Seiko watch, this timepiece transitions the hues on its face from pink to orange, synonymous with the shifting scenes of a sunrise.

A Novel Dial-Processing Technology

Despite the impressive mechanical heft of the new Grand Seiko SBGC275, the artisanal details on its vividly dynamic dial are all to be praised. To achieve a nuanced transient tonal effect, Grand Seiko opted for a patented dial-coating process known as “Optical Multilayer Coating.” The new technology utilizes a physical vapor deposition process in which multiple layers of nanoscale film are applied, resulting in a dial that changes its hue depending on the viewing angle.

Impressive Aesthetics Get a Superior Functional Match

Grand Seiko’s proprietary Spring Drive technology is an advanced-level realization of timekeeping accuracy that surpasses the standard gauge of chronometric precision. Housed within its angular and sporty 44.5 mm case, inspired by the brand’s heritage symbol - the lion, is the Spring Drive Chronograph GMT Caliber 9R96. This movement is a specially adjusted version of the 9R86 Caliber and commands a superlative authority in timekeeping precision with a rated accuracy of ±10 seconds per month or ±0.5 seconds per day, bettering its previous iteration by ±5 seconds.

The highly-angled geometric case boasts an impressive 200 meters of water resistance and its high-intensity titanium case construction yields enduring durability. The beefy hour and minute hands along with the GMT hand feature luminescent coatings on the redundant surfaces and the overall case package along with the bracelet offer 30% weight reduction as compared to a stainless-steel construction, hence enhancing the timepiece’s wearability. The dial gets 12-hour and 30-minute sub-registers to time the chronograph function.

A limited edition of 700 pieces, the new Grand Seiko Reference SBGC275 released at Watches and Wonders 2024 will hit the market in July 2024.