New Model: the Portofino Pure Classic

Very pure and classic indeed! Do you know which are the selected boutiques?

Cheers Chris

Neat !

Michael, what size is it?

43.5mm. There is more info in the news section. I like it.

Cheers,

Jarrod

Very nice looking watch! The movement is a variation of the 8 days in-house movement, without date and seconds hand, but with power reserve indicator at the back. I like that, this movement family is great. Emotionally it is an improvement over the movement used in the previous Portuguese Pure Classic: by the way, is this a signal for a new Portuguese Pure Classic? That would make sense, maybe with some classy guilloched dial to fill up the empty space with a nice pattern.

Kind regards,
Paul

I think IWC have hit the nail on the head with the dimensions of this one. Perhaps the existing Portofino hand wound collection is too large for many people's taste. 43.5mm seems just right.

I am intrigued as to whether or not we are seeing the beginning of a re-vamp on all the Portofino models?

What I would love to see is the Portofino Chronograph with these dimensions (43.5mm and 12mm) and a clear case back. I believe these two improvements would make a massive impact. What are everyone else's thoughts?

Nice and clean design, so kudos for that.

On the other hand, IWC already has the "classy, while big and bold" approach covered with the Portugiese lineup. I'd like IWC to offer a 37-40mm dress watch with less than 10mm thickness, and an in-house movement. Of course, with the current in-house calibers, it is not possible, but still...

Boring - back as front.

Very nice, though I'm still more partial to the Portuguese.

I think 38 mm would be the perfect size for this watch, especially since there's no complication in the dial. Of course, I'm biased as I have a small wrist and recently bought a 38 mm dress watch from another manufacturer to replace a 34 mm JLC that was too small.

I'll need to see this in the metal to really appreciate it. The arch edge front crystal effect is not well captured in the photos.

My only comment is to remove all the minutes lines and 5 minutes Arabic numerical intervals, leaving only the batons indices, while expanding the length of the batons closer to the edge of the dial. This will balance out the visual effect overall.

Overall, though I can appreciate the reduction of the diameter, I don't mind the Portofino range being large at 45mm. Traditionally, it is meant to be a large and flat watch with a modified pocket watch movement anyway.

With such a simple dial, I forsee many iterations of this model with different dial textures, ardoise, blue sunburst, black, or even brown.

Actually, the execution of this watch is very good. I examined the dial with my loupe and it is superb. Portofino or Portuguese is down to personal preference. I have no problem with a boring 325 dial that is bereft of date and other stuff.

I don't find this watch boring. The dial is very balanced and looks superb IMO. And that is exactly what you actually need for a proper dress watch. However, I agree with some comments above. It would be nice if IWC would also offer the version in a smaller diameter, so it could slide under the cuff effortlessly. 38 - 39 mm just about right.

The main reason why I think the watch IS boring: It stands for nothing. It does not represent anything. It can be seen as nicely designed, but it has no connection to anything IWC stands for. The design could be the same on a Seiko. The Portuguese however represents a distinct design, representing IWC's history. I hope IWC is NOT going to destroy it with the upcomming novelties at SIHH.

The Portofino line started, as stated by IWC in several catalogues, in 1984, with the now iconic 5251 big sized moonwatch. This watch was the inspiration for the much liked Vintage Collection Portofino from 2008, where the rose gold version from 2009 was one of the nicest watches ever made.

When I looked in the 1997 catalogue, I saw a whole range of Portofino watches, all elegant with the characteristic lug shape. Whether the cases were as round at the side as now I cannot discern from the pictures. To name a few:
- 3514, three hands, central seconds hand, automatic;
- 3513, three hands, central seconds hand, date, automatic;
- 2010, two hands, handwound, very thin watch;
- 2701, two hands, skeletonized;
- 3731, chronograph, date at the rim, very thin watch;
- 2050, perpetual calendar.
All these watches had mechanical movements, there were also several watches with quartz movements.

The new Pure Classic is in line with some of the watches presented in 1997. Some of the aspects from the past were preserved, like the lugs and the general looks, also seen at the Portofino models between 1997 and 2014. Some aspects are new, like the movement, that from the technical point of view is very interesting, and you can see certain developments in the family over the years, mostly in a positive way, I would say. I think the Portofino Pure Classic deserves its place in the collection, also based on what was achieved in the past. And even without a history it would be a pretty watch.

Kind regards,
Paul

I think it is a beautiful watch, simple elegance and with a beautiful modern movement. I personnaly prefer to have a small seconds but that's a matter of taste.

Above all, it is a logical evolution to the Portofino line and completely complementary to the Portuguese line.

Every body is talking about novelties in the Portuguese line but I was hoping for some news in the Da Vinci line, let's see...
Jl

The size of the watch doesn't really bother me, but the inverted Roman numeral 'VI' does. I realize this is not peculiar to this Portofino but it looks peculiar nonetheless.

This positioning of a Roman VI is considered normal. The other way round, a radial flip, always meets with comments by purists, though it improves the readability. To me, both options are acceptable.

Kind regards,
Paul

I agree that a radial flip looks odd, but I don't think it's undesirable when the numerals are diametrically opposed and the only ones on the dial. I certainly don't like it on something like the watch pictured below, but think it would have been fine on the Portofino.

Im late coming to the party on this one but I too think this piece is a little boring. Its a dress watch I know, but in my eyes the dial looks incomplete.
Theres a little too much spare room here. And whats with the upside down Romans at six ?
The dimensions both diameter and width are spot on.
What this watch needs, in my opinion, is a central second sweep hand and Romans at three and nine in addition to the twelve and six.
My two cents worth.
Cheers chaps.
Neil.

I could see why some people would think that it was boring or had no character.

I don't know... perhaps if IWC could put in some special dials, such as ardoise or make dials that resemble what H. Mose & Cie does with their watches... that would set the Portofino series apart from the Portuguese?

Just a thought only...