Technical Precision

For the individual who enjoys standing out in a crowd, these watches are from independent watchmakers and offer high-tech movements and cases—toys of ultimate distinction.

FAR LEFT: Richard Mille Automatic RM029 ($70,000): Made of titanium with a titanium rotor, base plate, bridges, and balance cock, and an oversize date. The skeletonization process of the caliber took more than 10 months to finalize.

TOP LEFT: Hautlence HLTi 1 ($44,300): A 43.5mm titaniumcase watch with a honeycomb skeleton dial. It houses a hand-wound Manufacture caliber with jumping hours and retrograde minutes via an extraordinary patented system. Limited edition of just 28 pieces.

CENTER: Devon Tread 1 ($17,500): Crafted in stainless steel and featuring a patent-pending system of interwoven Time Belts that displays the hours, minutes, and seconds. Four compact microstep motors drive the four belts via a lubricant-free pulley system.

BOTTOM: MB&F Horological Machine No. 2 ($80,000): Crafted in 18k white gold, it is the first instantaneous jumping-hour watch with concentric retrograde minutes (right dial), retrograde date, bi-hemisphere moon phase (left dial), and automatic winding. The movement consists of 349 components, including 44 jewels.