Some of the Best Watches of 2023 (Part 2) By Extropian

We’ve already covered some of the most exciting releases of 2023 (which you can check out here). But, wouldn’t you know it, our favorite brands just keep on putting out more and more incredible watches, so we had to bring you Part Two! Some of these have already been released, while others are up for pre-order - we’re sure you’ll find something you love on the list below.

Bencler Watch - Purple Rock Special Edition (€599)

Although they only launched last year, Italian brand Bencler have already made a mark with their modern, brightly-colored dive watches. The Purple Rocks is a special edition, limited to just 50 pieces, which was created with input from their community and is intended to evoke the mystery, charms, and magic of the ocean depths. It's quite an elegant look for a diver, despite its rugged specs including 300m water resistance. It boasts a gracefully-curved 39mm Stainless-steel case which alternates brushed and polished finishes matched with a classic beads of rice bracelet. It’s the deep purple fumé dial that really pops out though, with its sandblasted finish recalling the rough feel of marine rocks. 

Bencler Purple Rocks Special Edition 

Detroit Watch Co. - M1-24hr Legends 917/20 “Pink Pig” ($2,250)

Based in the Motor City since 2013, the Detroit Watch Co. makes vintage-inspired timepieces which reflect the city’s French heritage and the founder’s love of automotive design. Their latest offering is a classic racing chronograph made in tribute to the legendary Porsche 917/20 (nicknamed the “Pink Pig”), driven in the 1971 Le Mans 24 hour race and famous for its bright pink color and body parts labeled with butcher-style cuts! The result is a bold, instantly eye-catching dial with the original “butcher” labels replaced by the names of the various parts of the watch movement. It has a date window and three sub-dials (minutes, hour, and small seconds), one of which features a large 23 - the number of the original Pink Pig. This is limited to just 60 pieces, so be quick if you fancy one!

Detroit Watch Co. - M1-24hr Legends 917/20 “Pink Pig”

Dumoreau - DM02 ($1.250)

Dumoreau has come up with one of our favorite dress watches of the year, the DM02. With its slim, classically elegant profile and refined features, this is the perfect companion for any special occasions you have planned in 2023. The sinuously curving, highly-polished Stainless-steel case is complemented by the two-piece dial construction with concentric circles at the center and circular brushed ring around the edge with vintage-style numerals which are printed several times using a traditional pad printer to create a three-dimensional effect. Rounded off by a range of exquisite Italian leather straps, this is a truly handsome package. It's available in four distinct variations (and limited to only 300 pieces in total) , but we’re in love with the Salmon edition with its blue-heated hands and black leather strap.

Dumoreau - DM02 (Salmon)

Echo/Neutra - Cortina 1956 3 Hands (€790)

Italian brand Echo/Neutra specializes in sturdy tool and sports watches built for adventure and excitement. The new Cortina 1956 collection was inspired by the Winter Olympics held that year in Cortina d’Ampezzo. It features a gracefully curving Stainless-steel case with a mix of brushed and polished finishes, a box-shaped sapphire crystal, fixed 60-minute bezel, and a vintage-style dial with a glossy finish. You can choose from 4 different colorways, each with their own choice of straps, including Ivory, Khaki, and Black. But if pressed we’d opt for the Blue edition with a matching vintage blue suede strap.

echo/neutra - Cortina 3 Hands (Blue)

Raven - Endeavour II ($580)

With an established reputation for rugged tool watches, Raven’s latest release is sure to be a winner. Blending elements of the brand’s past models such as the Trekker, Deep Tech, and the original Endeavour, it’s a first-rate diver with an impressive 500m water resistance, a 42mm case, screw-down crown and caseback, with the crown at 4 o’clock and an automatic helium valve at 9. Launching in the fall, it's already up for pre-order in both standard versions and some great-looking limited editions, including an all-black DLC edition and a two-tone variant with gold highlights on the bracelet, crown, and bezel. The latter will only be available until the launch date, so don’t mess around if you want one!

Raven - Endeavour II (Boat Deck Blue - Two Tone)

RZE - Aspirare (€729)

If you’ve been paying attention, you’ll know that we’re big fans of RZE here at Extropian. The brand’s latest Release, the Aspirare, is another in their great line of hard-wearing titanium tool watches. It features the brand’s signature angular case design, UltraHex coating, 300m water resistance, and an incredibly comfortable Ultra-Link bracelet with a tool-free “on the fly” adjustment. But that’s not all; the Aspirare is also equipped with a removable bezel so you can easily rinse off any salt and other debris that the watch accumulates during underwater adventures (and it even comes with a spare so you can switch it out whenever you like!).

RZE Aspirare - Midnight Meteorite

Selten Watch Co. - Salvage Bronze ($659)

Selten are really shaking up dive watch design their new Salvage Bronze collection. The bronze case, bezel, and crown make us think of vintage diving equipment from way back when, but their muted tones are delightfully contrasted with bright flashes of color from the unique, hand-patinated dials, each of which is totally unique. There are eight versions available, with evocative names such as Vintage Wall, Scorches, Terrarium, and Wood Rot. But we especially love the vivid crimson reds and earthy mocha browns of the Red Sunset edition.

Selten Salvage Bronze - Red Sunset

Strond - DC4 Automatic (£395)

British brand Strond has a real thing about vintage aviation and pilot’s watches, to the extent that all their models include a metal tag made from part of the wing of a classic aircraft, allowing you to literally wear a piece of history on your wrist! Their latest release, the DC4 Automatic, features a gorgeous ceramic dial (available in Black, Army Green, or Royal Blue) with a vintage layout which positions large seconds around the edge, smaller hours in the center, and a date wheel at 3 o’clock. In another nice touch, the Stainless-case case is combined with a bronze bezel and crown, which gives a great contrast to the overall design. And, in case you were wondering, on this model the dial tag is made from the body of the famous “Spirit of Freedom” DC-4, based in New Jersey, USA!

Strond - DC4 Automatic (Black)

Vero - Open Water Safari Limited Edition ($850)

The team behind Vero know that adventure comes with potential dangers, so they’ve created a range of super-tough tool watches guaranteed to stand up to the toughest challenges. And, to prove the point, they all come with a 10-year warranty against any damage - and that’s longer than any other brand out there! The newest addition to the range is the strictly limited edition Safari Special, of which only 55 pieces were made. It’s part of the brand’s Open Water series, which claim to be the slimmest dive watches on the market (and at a mere 11mm who are we to argue?).  Released to commemorate the 55th anniversary of the Safari Special Mexican 100 race, this is a watch designed to evoke the vast open desert rather than the watery depths. And with its rugged, bead-blasted case, DLC-coated bezel, minimalist sand-colored dial, and brown Horween leather rally strap, it certainly does the job! 

Vero Open Water - Safari Special

Conclusion

That’s another great selection of watches, huh? And 2023 is far from over, so we’re sure there’ll be many more to come! Keep an eye on our News page for all the latest releases, and check out the database for detailed info on any of the models you love.