How do you follow up on a hit release as a young watch brand? While established marques have a variety of lines and a rich heritage with which to build upon existing success, the “sophomore album” problem can be a major challenge for a newer watchmaker. This is especially true in the case of CIGA Design. Beyond the need to build upon the foundation of its award-winning core design, the brand has arguably taken up the mantle of delivering innovative Chinese horology to the masses, which only adds to the pressure on its current slate of releases. With this in mind, any follow-up to the 2021 release of the CIGA Design Blue Planet is bound to garner intense enthusiast scrutiny. Rather than resting on its laurels, the brand takes the GPHG-winning base model and adds a new layer of visual drama and material quality. The new CIGA Design Blue Planet – Gilding Version combines an impressively luxe feel with the same unique display as its predecessor, delivering what may well be the Chinese marque’s most compelling offering to date. The case is made of more expensive and more environmentally friendly recycled titanium material. Reduce carbon pollution, contribute your effort to protect our blue home. The case is polished and brushed to present a beautiful glossy texture. The CIGA Design Blue Planet is the first Chinese Made watch to ever win at the Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève and to make it to the shortlist of the nominees. In November 2021, the CIGA Design Blue Planet was awarded the GPHG 2021 Challenge Prize —watches priced under CHF 3,500 Swiss Francs— while competing against other ‘budget-friendly’ or affordable timepieces that included the Doxa SUB 200 C-GRAPH Caribbean, Oris Divers Sixty-Five Cotton Candy, Massena Lab Uni-Racer, Anordain Model 1-Payne’s Grey Fumé and the Furlan Marri Mr. Grey. Unfortunately, the Blue Planet only has a water resistance of 3 ATM. I would love to see what the sapphire crystal over the globe looks like underwater, but not at the expense of the watch’s functionality. But the water resistance is fitting for the design. This is a statement watch, not a tool watch. In the arenas it’s best worn in, this level of water resistance is plenty. The outer ring is stationary and displays the 12 hour layout, with each hour subdivided by 5 minute markers. The globe acts as a typical hour hand, rotating 30 degrees every hour.

CIGA Design U Series Blue Planet Hands-on Review of the CIGA Design U Series Blue Planet

of the universe. It's been a while since CIGA Design debuted a hybrid of the timepiece and Blue Planet, we

Each gilded planet dial undergoes multiple intricate crafting processes. Stringent production standards The graduated scales and mariner’s compass give the whole piece the feel of an old-world navigational instrument. This is emphasized when operating the movement. Turning the crown and seeing everything in motion feels like dialing in coordinates. Powder preparation: The raw material for ceramic cases is zirconium oxide, which is processed into a fine powder. Movement: designed and customized by CIGA, manufactured by the Seagull Watch, automatic, power reserve 40 hours, 28,800 vph, 35 jewels, accuracy -15 to +30 spd.

U-Series Blue Planet GPHG Mechanical Watch - CIGA Design

Take the best of Chinese and craftsmanship to form a refine ceramic case for a minimalist and otherworldly It’s time to rethink Chinese watches. There is still a cloud that hangs over watches from China, a cloud of dismissive judgment that automatically assumes that if it’s (openly) made in China, it can’t be of any merit. The irony, of course, is that many of the high-end brands we hold dear outsource some or most of their manufacturing to the country. But more and more, Chinese brands are proving those assumptions wrong and demonstrating that the country has horological prowess beyond shadow manufacturing. In fact, brands like CIGA Design are winning awards–and not just participation ribbons. For the incredibly novel CIGA Design Blue Planet watch, the brand was the first Chinese winner of any award at the Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève—the Oscars of the watch world—beating out the likes of Oris and Doxa to take home the Challenge Award in 2021. Inspired by our responsibility to preserve the world around us, the Blue Planet doesn’t just impress with its three-dimensional representation of our planet—it presents a new way of displaying the time. Under most lighting conditions, it’s not detectable to the naked eye. Still, since I did notice it, I thought it worth mentioning. MovementThe most interesting part of this watch and the reasons why it was awarded the ‘Challenge Prize’ at the GPHG 2021 is because of its unique way of telling time, its story, and the movement that was designed by CIGA Design. The Blue Planet watch is equipped with a blue anodized aluminum domed dial with silvered micro-craving of the earth. A good reminder for us watch lovers to love and protect the Earth, our only home. Time originates from the earth revolution and rotation. A circle of the earth rotation represents a day in our lives, just like the earth engravement inside the dial, rotating hour by hour until the day past. Imagine everyone’s surprise in 2021, when Chinese brand CIGA Design was announced the winner of the Challenge Watch category of GPHG - The first-ever Chinese watch company to win. In the world of Swiss Watchmaking, it’s almost expected that a Swiss or Japanese brand would win any or all of the GPHG Awards, but CIGA beat them at their own game with the lovely Blue Planet - And man do we love it.

CIGA Design Mechanical Watch Series U Blue Planet - Gilding CIGA Design Mechanical Watch Series U Blue Planet - Gilding

Personally, I think the price is a little too steep. I can imagine many people viewing the watch as a novelty and finding it unjustifiable. The watch only carries 30m of water resistance, and I’ve seen a number of criticisms about that. So no swimming with it - Though, I would question why anyone would to begin with. It’s not a dive watch, and certainly doesn’t pretend to be. That being said, I don’t find that criticism fair. The Dial: After having the Blue Planet on my wrist for a few days, I found it really comfortable to wear. This is mostly due to the light weight titanium case and the soft and flexible rubber strap. The piece doesn’t look huge on the wrist despite the 46mm case size, as there are no lugs. My only complaint about the watch so far is that the crown is a bit too tight to wind. Although this is not a big issue for an automatic watch, I hope that CIGA may improve the crown winding operation for the future shipments. Extra information about the Earth Day Edition CIGA Design, in collaboration with The Earth Day Organization, has launched this special edition gift box to put environmental protection into action. lt combines the watch and pendant using environmentally friendly decoration. The sporty yet stylish fluoro rubber naturally complements the dial and can be dressed up or dressed down.Taking first place in the Challenge Watch category, the Blue Planet went up against well established brands like Doxa and Oris under the price point of 3,500 Swiss francs. a dynamic interplay between light and shadow on its lustrous finish, drawing the eye and creating a sense I get what you mean but it would also be weird if it was European and didn’t have Africa and Asia 😅 The Blue Planet’s perfectly circular case is radially brushed. The case measures in at 46mm but wears smaller because of its lugless design. Due to the curved underside, it sits atop the wrist like a pebble. The Blue Planet on my 6.5” wrist. On the wrist, the Blue Planet wears wonderfully. The soft curve of the case and supple rubber strap definitely place it on the more comfortable end of the spectrum as watches go. The titanium case keeps the ensemble light enough, yet still substantial. And although the diameter is officially 46mm, with no lugs to speak of, the Blue Planet wears as well as any mid-size watch with a similar lug-to-lug measurement. I have a smaller wrist and didn’t experience any discomfort or overhang.

CIGA Design Blue Planet - BEYOND THE DIAL Hands-On Review CIGA Design Blue Planet - BEYOND THE DIAL

This ultra-comfortable strap, made from food-grade silicone is washable, nontoxic, and wear-resistant

Acting as the minute hand, the inner ring displays a 60 minute scale. To tell the time, you look at the respective numbers the compass is pointing to on each ring. Origine e Riconoscimenti:** Anche se l'azienda è cinese, questo orologio è un prodotto di livello internazionale. La vittoria del Challenge Watch Prize del GPHG 2021 ne è una chiara testimonianza. CIGA Design evolves an all-new understanding of the Blue Planet. As a symbol of the enduring nature of eternity, gold has stood the test of time for millennia and mustn't be overlooked. With the debut of pure gold and masterful craftsmanship, the Blue Planet Gilded Age is a fusion of all the experience we have gained since creating the brand. It was born to be striking, both technically and aesthetically.