THINK Switzerland and one of the first things that comes to one’s mind are watches. The European nation has long been hailed for its premier position in the watchmaking industry. Hence it doesn’t come as a surprise when one gets to see a lot of excitement, glitz and glamour surrounding an event like Baselworld—considered to be the biggest event on any watchmaker’s calendar.

With a host of Android-wear devices on the market and with the imminent arrival of the Apple Watch, smartwatches were expected to have a more significant presence at the show—held in Basel, a small town nestled minutes from the French and German borders—than ever before.

However, while Vector, a new smartwatch brand from London, took the opportunity to show off its long-lasting smartwatch, Mondaine—best known as the brand to feature the Official Swiss Railways clock design on their watch face—provided visitors with a look at its Helvetica No1 Smart fitness tracker, and Tag Heuer announced its long-rumoured partnership with Intel and Google, it was technology of the mechanical persuasion that once again took centrestage.

Traditionally, the show has been where the likes of Rolex, Tag Heuer, Raymond Weil and Patek Philippe reveal their latest masterpieces. From HYT’s newest hydro-mechanical movement to the latest Christophe Claret creation and beyond, a total of 1,500 brands had their latest ranges on display. In excess of 1,50,000 visitors attended the event, including more than 4,300 journalists. Held in March this year in the heart of Europe at Basel’s premier exhibition hall designed by local architects Herzog & de Meuron, Baselworld 2015 played host to over 2,100 exhibitors from over 45 countries.

Local luxury heavyweights like Rolex, Tudor, Tag Heuer, Hublot, Omega, Patek Phillippe and Tissot occupied a majority of the main hall with impressive stands, three storeys each. Rolex took the opportunity to introduce some of their latest innovations, including the 2015 Oyster Perpetual, which counts the coveted 2015 Yacht Master ‘Eve-rose’ among its offerings. Affordable alternative Tudor, meanwhile, took inspiration from earthen extremes, as they updated their North Flag and Pelagos lines with movements developed and produced by the brand itself—a first for the Rolex spinoff.

Adding their name to the smartwatch map, Tag Heuer put forth their upcoming partnership with Intel and Google under the banner ‘Silicon Valley Meets Switzerland’. No concrete details were revealed, besides the fact that the watch will premier at ‘the end of the year’. JAY Z-favourite Hublot celebrated the 10th anniversary of their Big Bang with seven new models, including their recent collaboration with Italia Independent.

Omega focused their efforts on the Speedmaster ‘Dark Side of the Moon’ collection, as well as a decadent version of the Globemaster, which houses the brand’s most advanced mechanical movement and features a design inspired by early constellation models. Ultra-luxury brand Patek Phillippe showcased just about every single one of their movements, alongside introducing new models like the 5524G Calatrava Pilot Travel Time.

The highlight of Tissot’s display was undoubtedly the T-Touch Expert Solar, the first tactile watch to be powered by solar energy. Updates to the newest version include a new bezel with compass rose rather than numbers.

Bulgari revealed the Diagono Magnesium concept at Baselworld 2015, which it claims is a luxury timepiece ‘completely opposite’ from other ‘so-called’ connected watches. It is said to be 100% Swiss and NFC-enabled and it is described as a self-winding, mechanical watch that apparently works with a protected electronic passport called Luxury Wrist Vault.

Another collaboration at Baselworld 2015 saw Gucci team up with American rapper will.i.am to create a fashionable smartband that will make and receive calls, texts and emails, as well as store music, deliver maps and events from your calendar, plus track your activity. The device is 3G-enabled, so it won’t need to be connected to a smartphone to work and it comes with a front-facing camera, a heart rate monitor, temperature sensor and built-in GPS.

Relatively new to the luxury world is De Grisigono, founded in 1993, which showcased the Instrumento N°Uno Tourbillon, which, as the name suggests, features a tourbillon flying inside a sapphire carriage. A somewhat unorthodox design, the timepiece is outfitted with an innovative case occupying a generous volume of 59.2 mm x 33 mm x 14.99 mm.

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