Patek Philippe’s new collection has just rocked the watch world. Here’s why

How even the cheapest Cubitus compares to other watches that you could theoretically buy for $41,240 requires some deeper consideration.

I can also understand why many would find it immediately repulsive. Any change is difficult to process. And it doesn’t help that, in the eyes of some, the Cubitus line is burdened with the burden of “replacing” a beloved steel watch like the 5711.

However, as a technology enthusiast, I cannot separate the launch of the Cubitus collection from the rise of smartwatches and especially the Apple Watch.

I know, for some it is blasphemous to even associate such disposal devices with the mix of luxury and engineering that defines a Swiss watch, let alone one from Patek Philippe.

But it feels like there’s an obvious connection that I don’t think many watch experts discuss in depth. Part of me wonders to what extent it just reflects a difference in habit.

Although I own some great mechanical watches that I love, like millions of others these days, I most often wear a square Apple Watch on my wrist and so I’ve gotten used to the form factor of a rectangular watch with rounded corners. As a result, I’ve become desensitized to what I would certainly have considered a strange form factor in watches before. In a strange way, my sense of what constitutes a “normal” looking watch has changed.

Patek Phillipe