One of the Most Innovative Watches in Years Is Back, with Notable Improvements

Back in 2024, a new indie watch brand burst onto the scene and wasted no time making waves.

Granted, the brand — Toledano & Chan — had a bit of a leg up over your average microbrand. That’s because its founders, watch collectors and designers Philip Toledano (AKA @misterenthusiast) and Alfred Chan, were already known commodities in the watch industry, especially Toledano.

But just having a bit of name recognition with some industry insiders does not make a great watch. Luckily, Toledano & Chan knocked it out of the park with their first release, the b/1, a unique modern mashup of two 1970s design styles: integrated sports watches and brutalist architecture.

With its asymmetric design and sharp angles, the b/1 became an instant classic (and sell-out) with its original steel composition and lapis dial, and we’ve seen a few iterations on the form since with the mother-of-pearl-dialed b/1.2 that introduced an asymmetric sapphire crystal, and the b/1m prototype, which featured a meteorite dial, case and even buckle.

Now, T&C are at it again with the new b/1.3r, a new take on the brand’s flagship that’s its most premium production model yet.

Toledano & Chan

Smaller, lighter, golder

The updated b/1 keeps the same general brutalist design as before, but makes some notable changes that I would generally categorize as improvements.

First and foremost, the case and bracelet material has been upgraded from stainless steel to Grade 5 titanium. By opting for this more rugged titanium alloy, T&C has not only made their watch much lighter but also granted it a high level of scratch resistance. The natural dark gray apperance of titanium is also a better aesthetic match for the watch’s brutalist design, if I say so myself.

Next, the size has been reduced just a bit to make the watch more wearable. With its asymmetrical cuff design, the original b/1 can be a bit awkward to wear for those with smaller wrists. The new b/1.3r fixes this by shrinking the case size from to 33.5mm to 32mm across.

Toledano & Chan

The new watch also carries a Swiss-made designation for the first time, adding a bit more prestige (the original was produced in China), but the real headliner here is the new dial.

While sporting the same broad dauphine hands and sterile layout underneath the asymmetric sapphire crystal, the dial material and texture are all new, and not just for Toledano & Chan — no one’s ever made a dial quite like this before.

Dubbed the “ripple” dial, it’s made of solid 18K yellow gold and features a textured pattern inspired by a ripple of water. It’s quite a stunning thing to behold, and really shows how quickly Toledano & Chan has risen from an insider collector favorite to a brand knocking on the door of luxury legitimacy.

Other specs are largely the same as before. The movement is still a Sellita SW100 automatic, the water resistance remains a decent 50m and the crown keeps its “destro” position on the left side of the case.

Toledano & Chan

Pricing and availability

The original Toledano & Chan b/1 was priced at $4,000, which, depending on whom you asked, was either a huge bargain for such an innovative design or massively overpriced for a Chinese-made steel microbrand watch with an off-the-shelf movement.

The new b/1.3r marks a significant jump in pricing for the brand. Due to the extensive use of Grade 5 titanium, the Swiss production and especially the runaway price of gold, Toledano & Chan’s latest model clocks in at $10,200. That’s quite pricey, but given the popularity of this brand among a certain set of high-end collectors, I have no doubt the brand will sell as many as they want to make.

Toledano & Chan

Toledano & Chan B/1.3r

Specs

Case Size	32mm
Movement	Sellita Cal. SW100 automatic
Water Resistance	50m

• $10,200 at Toledano & Chan

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