With this duo of timepieces designed for borderless adventure in collaboration with the Japanese brand, the watchmaker from Le Locle takes wrists on a journey to the end of style.

The end of the year is fast approaching, and is the perfect excuse to open wide the doors of the world, to fly away to the gentle warmth of the southern hemisphere or, on the contrary, to seek the coolness of the northern lands, with a Pilot x Porter from Zenith on your wrist. The Le Locle watchmaker recently unveiled two watches designed in collaboration with the Japanese travel accessories specialist: the Pilot Central Automatic Porter and the Pilot Big Date Flyback Porter, each limited to 500 pieces.

Heir to Zenith‘s long relationship with aviation, the Pilot, which was modernized in 2023, borrows the emblematic colors of the Japanese brand’s color chart by dressing its cases – 40mm for the automatic version, 42.5mm for the chronograph – in olive-green ceramic. The same hue covers the dials, which feature horizontal lines and a flock of large luminescent Arabic numerals. A few touches of orange adorn the central hour, minute and seconds hands and, for the Big Date Flyback, the small seconds counter (at 9 o’clock) and totalizer (at 3 o’clock). At 6 o’clock, the date appears in white in a single or double window, depending on the reference. These two new models beat to the rhythm of high-frequency (5hz) automatic El Primero movements, caliber 3620 for the three-hand and 3652 for the chronograph, and both deliver 60 hours of autonomy when fully wound. They can be worn either on two strands of Cordura-effect rubber and a PVD-blackened steel folding clasp, or on a nylon fabric strap closed by a Velcro® band.

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The Le Locle-based manufacture has adopted white technical ceramics to dress the geometric silhouette of one of its iconic watches, a light, resistant material that highlights the intense blue of its openwork face.

As a modern reinterpretation of a charismatic model from the late 1969s, the Defy watch was revived in 2017 before being reworked into an urban yet sporty version in 2022. Since then, Zenith‘s emblematic collection has continued to expand, and now includes the Defy Skyline White Ceramic Skeleton, a new model that is water-resistant to a depth of 100m, introduced at the beginning of the summer, but versatile enough to be worn all year round.

To design this reference, the Le Locle-based manufacture turned to a material appreciated for its lightness and resistance to scratches, corrosion, oxidation and discoloration, and which it had already used, in a jet-black hue, for another piece: technical ceramics. This immaculate adornment dresses the silhouette with its 41mm octagonal case, dodecagonal bezel and link bracelet, which can easily be replaced by a white rubber variant.

To play with contrasts, in addition to the different finishes, Zenith has opted for an intense blue that electrifies the face of its Defy. Openworked to form the skeleton of a large, stylized star and curved with faceted hour-markers, it houses two large, rhodium-plated, luminescent central hands to display the hours and minutes, while the 1/10^th of a second scrolls in an azure counter at 6 o’clock. This time data is delivered by the El Primero 3620 SK caliber, a self-winding mechanical movement with a silicon escape wheel and anchor, providing an energy reserve of around 55 hours.

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After the three-hand model revealed in 2021 and followed by its many variations, the company from Le Locle is propelling high frequency into a chronograph with seductive features.

With its collection inspired by an eponymous line born in 1902, which now embodies a new horizon, Zenith has succeeded in offering timepieces that combine contemporary design with a versatile personality. The Defy Skyline Chronograph pulls out the current trend card with its sporty chic look. The blue, black or silver dial, which retains the starry sky pattern, features the indispensable counters dedicated to measuring short time periods. The 1/10^th of a second is indicated on the scale on the chapter ring. In addition to the small seconds display at 9 o’clock, the date is displayed at 4:30.

This composition is dominated by the hour and minute hand duo coated in Super-LumiNova^® SLN C1. The same luminescent paint decorates the slender markers to ensure excellent readability. The whole is protected by a sculptural 42mm-diameter steel case which is waterproof to a depth of 100 meters. For uncompromising style, these first two versions have a perfectly integrated metal strap that can be easily changed, as the watch is supplied with a rubber alternative in blue, green or black depending on the model. All time data is driven with precision by the El Primero 3630 caliber. This automatic movement with a frequency of 36,000 vibrations per hour has a silicon escapement wheel and pallet that make it insensitive to magnetic fields. This mechanism also offers the Defy Skyline Chronograph a power reserve of 60 hours. Perfect for admiring its star-themed display all day long.

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The star-logoed manufacture pays a colorful tribute to the French capital with, for the first time ever, an up-to-the-minute reference featuring a gradient-toned colored dial.

Zenith draws inspiration from the multifaceted architecture of Paris. The brand new 50-piece Zenith Defy Skyline Paris Edition limited series draws its style source from the details that shape the capital city’s soul. The hues of well-known copper roofs, like the one on the Opera House taken by storm by the vagaries of the weather, adorn its dial dressed with starry-patterned, gradient-toned verdigris. Although façades vary greatly from one street to another, the manufacture wished to highlight the geometrical rigor that characterizes places like Place Vendôme. As such, the 41 mm-diameter steel case is enhanced by a dodecagonal bezel.

The El Primero 3620 caliber, equipped with a silicon escapement wheel and pallet which make it insensitive to the negative effects of magnetic fields, reigns inside this holder. This selfwinding movement ensures the white C1 Super-LumiNova^®-coated hour and minute hands have enough energy to complete their respective rotations accurately for at least 60 hours. The high frequency, 36,000 vibrations an hour, comes to life via the small seconds placed at 9 o’clock. This device’s hand runs round the counter in just 10 seconds. To center stage its sporty-chic look, the Zenith Defy Skyline Paris Edition is accompanied by an integrated metal bracelet. It can be easily changed for an optional black rubber strap. Worth mentioning, however, this model is only available on Zenith‘s website and in its stores in France.

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A gem of a reveal at Watches & Wonders Geneva 2024 and a faithful reproduction of an icon, this diver’s watch features appealing aesthetics and technical assets.

1969. While Man was walking on the moon for the first time, exploration of the seabed was becoming more accessible. In order to provide an effective tool to make diving safe, Zenith revealed reference A3648, featuring a remarkable design and able to tackle the deep. The manufacture has had the excellent idea of updating this model while preserving its original personality. A sapphire crystal now replaces the historical plexiglas, however.

The 37mm-diameter steel case of the Defy Revival A3648 retains its unusual octagonal shape. It is topped by a 14-sided orange unidirectional rotating bezel with a sapphire insert. This bright shade brightens up the hour chapter of the mat black dial and the three hands. To provide excellent readability in all conditions, the hands and the markers are coated in white Super-LumiNova^® C1. Positioned on the same axis at 4:50, the off-centered crown and the date display play a role in creating visual harmony. To reinforce its sporty-chic style, this timepiece with vintage accents has a metal strap fastened with a folding buckle. 1969. This is also the depth, in feet, to which the Defy Revival A3648 can descend while remaining water resistant. Therefore, its Elite 670 caliber is perfectly protected to a depth of 600 meters. This self-winding movement has a power reserve of at least 50 hours. Ideal for enjoying this watch with a strong personality in every situation.

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For the 2024 edition of Watches & Wonders, the manufacture surprised visitors with the presentation of new diving watches with appealing features.

With the Defy Extreme Diver watches, Zenith proposes two aesthetic variations crafted to tackle the seabed at depths of up to 600 meters with ease. Both references, one blue, the other black, have all the essential characteristics for safe diving. On the star-patterned dials, large hands coated in Super-LumiNova^® X1 point to an hour chapter made purely of markers coated with the same powerful luminescent paint. This composition is encircled by a unidirectional rotating ceramic bezel in a coordinated color and adorned with a practical scale to check immersion time. To read the information clearly, three different colors of Super-LumiNova^® are used: blue, green and orange. Time data reading is therefore excellent, no matter the conditions of light.

These references have a 42.5 mm-diameter, 15.5 mm-thick case with a helium valve integrated into the body. The use of brushed titanium provides lightness and resistance. It offers effective protection for the El Primero 3620 SC high-frequency caliber. The automatic movement has a 60-hour power reserve. The Defy Extreme Diver watches are supplied with three easily interchangeable straps, one in black rubber, one in fabric of the same color, made from recycled fishing net, and one in metal with a folding buckle. Looking forward to the next dive!

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Timeless style and up-to-the-minute performance join together in perfect harmony in the star-logoed manufacture’s new timepiece which boasts a full calendar and a chronograph.

How can you ensure that a host of time data can be optimally read in a confined space? Well, the equation holds many unknowns. Yet, experience and innovation mean it can be solved brilliantly. Zenith attempted and pulled off the challenge successfully with its Chronomaster Original Triple Calendar. Chronograph counters and day, date, month and Moon phase displays reign on a silvery-white, slate-gray or olive-green opaline dial, along with the hour and minute hands. All these elements feature in a steel case that’s just 38 mm in diameter. Basically, the case size is exactly the same as the iconic A386 model released in 1969. And, as the watch is bezel-free, the scenography is given maximum space. To enhance visibility even more, the compositions take on a “panda” look that heightens the contrast and, at the same time, emphasizes the model’s sporty style. The different variations are worn on a calfskin strap or an optional metal bracelet.

All of the data is driven by the high-frequency (5 Hz) El Primero 3610 caliber. This selfwinding chronograph movement ensures time can be measured to 1/10^th of a second. This highlight comes to life on the dial via the direct-drive which completes its rotations in 10 seconds. What’s more, the sapphire-crystal caseback invites to discover the column wheel and oscillating weight decorated with a five-point star. This ever-so accurate movement is also a high-performer that delivers a power reserve of around 60 hours.

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Dressed in grade 5 titanium, with its face exploring a range of grays, the sporty watch from the Le Locle-based manufacture is lighter than its steel counterparts.

It was at the UTS (Ultimate Tennis Showdown) tournament in Oslo last February, for which Zenith has been official timekeeper and sponsor since 2020, that the new Chronomaster Sport Titanium took its first steps on the court, linked to the wrist of Patrick Moratoglou, the famous coach, creator of this new competition format and friend of the Le Locle brand. Faithful to the overall aesthetic vocabulary of the collection, and equipped with the same movement as its counterparts, this new watch is distinguished by its alluring gray hues and its lightness (30% less than the steel references).

The 41mm-diameter, 13.6mm-thick case, with its piston-type pushers surrounding the crown on the right-hand side, is machined in grade 5 titanium, while the same metal is used for the brushed bezel with its black graduated scale, giving the whole a tone-on-tone appearance. This monochrome consistency is accentuated by the matching dial punctuated by three azure counters, Zenith‘s visual signature: silver-white for the small seconds (at 9 o’clock), silver for the chronograph minutes (at 6 o’clock) and slate-gray for the seconds (at 3 o’clock). The date discreetly appears in an aperture at 4:30. This Chronomaster Sport Titanium, which can be worn with a choice of textured rubber strap or a titanium link bracelet, is powered by the El Primero 3600 caliber, a high-frequency (5hz) automatic movement that delivers a power reserve of 60 hours.

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Well established in the watchmaking landscape for the past three years, the sports chronograph from Manufacture Locloise continues to expand its family, and now welcomes a timepiece with a beautiful grass-green dial and bezel.

Although the covid pandemic disrupted Zenith‘s 2020 schedule and forced it to postpone its launch by around a year, the Chronomaster Sport immediately found its audience and met with the success on which it has been riding for three years now. Now a full-fledged line in its own right, it welcomes a new recruit, unveiled as part of LVMH Watch Week last January: the Chronomaster Sport Green model, a version clad in the beautiful grass green borrowed from the Chronomaster Sport Aaron Rodgers edition presented by the Le Locle-based manufacture a few months earlier.

This invigorating hue is applied to the ceramic bezel, engraved with a precise 1/10^th-second scale, and to the dial encircled by rectangular, faceted, luminescent hour-markers. The same goes for the white date window at 4:30. True to Zenith‘s aesthetic codes, the trio of azure counters features the brand’s traditional colors: silver, metallic and bluish. All indications relating to the measurement of short times – central second hand and small totalizer hands – are marked with a vermilion line.

Machined in steel, the 41mm-diameter, 13.60mm-thick case is water-resistant to 100m and incorporates two piston-type chronograph pushers on the right-hand side. It houses the high-frequency El Primero 3600 caliber (5hz, 36,000 vibrations per hour), a self-winding mechanical movement that provides an energy reserve of around two and a half days. This Chronomaster Sport Green is worn with a steel link bracelet or a strap with two green grooved rubber bands, which merge perfectly with the watch head to provide ideal comfort on the wrist.

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This reference’s understated yet highly-efficient style stands out with its versatile character. The manufacture has equipped one of its current showpiece models with an elegantly-attractive two-tone scenography.

Zenith center staged the revamped design of its Pilot watch, inspired by the timepieces of aviation pioneers, during Watches & Wonders Geneva 2023. The newcomers are much more up-to-the-minute yet always stay true to their origins. For the Pilot Automatic Boutique Edition series, the ribbed dial takes on a mysterious blue hue, on a par with the indefinable tinge where the sky and the Earth merge as twilight comes around. On top, the hour chapter comprising large Arabic numerals adorned with white Super-LumiNova® SLN C1 provides a striking contrast. As such, time data reading is still optimal no matter the conditions of light. Everything is hosted in a 40 mm-diameter steel case topped with a bezel. Both of these items boast an elegant vertical satin-brushed finish. A discreet date sits at 6 o’clock under a white dash conjuring up the artificial horizon marker seen in aircraft cockpit instruments.

The large hands and direct-drive, featuring the same luminescent paint, are driven by the El Primero 3620 SC caliber. This selfwinding movement beats at a high frequency of 36,000 vibrations an hour. It’s incredibly-accurate and also a great performer. It delivers a comfortable power reserve of 60 hours. The manufacture has rolled out a duo if easily-interchangeable straps to accompany its Pilot Automatic Boutique Edition, a blue Cordura-effect rubber one and a calfskin one attached by a folding clasp. And, no matter which you choose, you can be sure it’ll be a perfect match.

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The new work by the watchmaker from Le Locle is undeniably shimmering! These light-reflecting effects are complemented by the hypnotic power of the second hand, which is set in a frantic race by a vigorous caliber.

“Shooting star: a piece of rock from space that produces a bright light as it travels through the earth’s atmosphere“. If the Cambridge Dictionnary’s definition focuses on astronomy, it also applies to the Defy Extreme Mirror watch. Indeed, this new Zenith creation has the same brilliance as a star awake in the dead of night, with a case that reflects the day with the same fidelity as a mirror. This retranscription of reality, of the person who wears it on his or her wrist as he or she enquires about the passage of time, and of the immediate environment, makes it a unique object of its kind.

Although its appearance is somewhat reminiscent of the Defy Extreme Glacier model presented earlier this year, the designers at the Le Locle manufacture have taken the art of taming clarity one step further. With its famous round bezel supported by a dodecagonal ring, the 45mm-diameter case, to which the matching link bracelet is perfectly attached for enhanced ergonomics, is clothed in mirror-polished steel. It houses the El Primero 9004 caliber, part of whose gear train is visible from the front, while its sapphire-glassed back offers a full view of the silvered star-shaped oscillating weight. This self-winding movement has two independent escapements (5hz for the running time and 50hz for the 1/100^th of a second chronograph function) powering two different power reserves (50 hours and 50 minutes).

Made of mirror-tinted synthetic glass, the dial features a graduated flange and luminescent hour-markers, with hours and minutes in the center and seconds in a counter at 9 o’clock. Chronograph totalizers, also encircled by azure rings, appear at 3 and 6 o’clock, while the large second hand with its star-shaped counterweight makes one revolution per second. At 12 o’clock, a pointer indicator measures the amount of energy remaining. Two additional black straps are supplied with this Zenith, one in rubber with a folding clasp, the other in Velcro®, which can be attached to the case in a jiffy thanks to the quick-change system, radically transforming the style of the whole.

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With this chronograph issued in a limited series of just 250 pieces, the star-logoed brand pays tribute to the sportsman and to this professional football player’s generous personality.

Aaron Rodgers, the star of American football, four-time winner of the Associated Press Most Valuable NFL Player Award (National Football League) and boasting a brilliant track record, recently became a Zenith ambassador. To celebrate this exclusive partnership, the manufacture imagined a watch hand-in-hand with the highly-talented, successful quarterback, who held this position with the Green Bay Packers for 18 seasons. As such, the Chronomaster Sport Aaron Rodgers showcases the lucky green color that adorns the champion’s jersey. This hue dresses the lacquered dial as well as the ceramic bezel set off with a tenth-of-a-second scale. In this lush scenescape, the chronograph counters and the small seconds stand out with their silvery glints. The hands and the hour chapter numerals, topped with Super-LumiNova® SLN C1, are ever-so easy to read under any conditions of light. All these elements are hosted in a 41 mm-diameter steel case complemented by a metal bracelet attached by a folding clasp.

The data, including the date at 4:30, is driven by the El Primero 3600 caliber with column wheel. This selfwinding movement delivers 60 hours’ autonomy to the watch. This movement, beating at a frequency of 36,000 vibrations an hour, can also measure time to 1/10th of a second. What’s more, a stop-seconds device ensures accuracy is as precise as Aaron Rodgers’ passes on the field.

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Hit the decks! The manufacture showcases the second exclusive opus stemming from its partnership with the world-renowned British electro music DJ and producer.

Following on from the Defy 21 Carl Cox Edition (2020), Zenith pursues its collaboration with the famous DJ, aficionado of hardcore sounds and rave parties. This time round, the manufacture rolls out a new 100-piece limited series, the Defy Extreme Carl Cox. What’s so special about it? Whilst the initial model mixed color and texture in an up-to-the-minute scenography, this watch is infused with the stylistic codes of the 80s. As such, its 45 mm-diameter case combines matte-finished steel and yellow gold, which features on the dodecagonal bezel and chronograph pusher protectors. Inside this two-tone adornment, the hour and minute hands along with the short-cycle time measurement ones hover over a skeletonized dial boasting a tinged sapphire crystal and vinyl-record-shaped counters. The data contrasts perfectly with this dusky backdrop, encircled by a tachymetric scale. As everything is topped with Super-LumiNova^® paint, data readability is optimal under any conditions of light.

This edition is worn on an integrated metal bracelet. Two black options, a Velcro^®-attached one and a rubber one are included in the watch box. Time data is driven by an El Primero caliber assembled using some 293 components.  Some of these are unveiled through the sapphire-crystal caseback, in particular the star-shaped oscillating weight. This selfwinding movement delivers 50 hours of power reserve. Its 36,000 vibrations/hour high-frequency means it can measure time to 1/100^th of a second. Just to keep the beat!

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This colored limited edition, i/e/ a 500-piece produced series, gifts the Le Locle brand’s up-to-the-minute, high-frequency chronograph with a new face.

Although the devil may be in the details, Leonardo da Vinci reminded us however that “details make perfection, and perfection is not a detail”. Zenith‘s Defy 21 Chroma II watch epitomizes this concept. After having rolled out a 200-piece version where white reigned supreme, the star-logoed manufacture now invites us to discover a variation shrouded in black. And, just like the previous model, this chronograph stands out visually through its discreet adornments set off with dashes of color. Rainbow hues jazz up the markers as well as the movement components just waiting to be admired through the skeletonized dial. These features boost this sporty composition which boasts tri-compax-positioned counters embraced in a 44 mm-diameter mat ceramic case, waterproof down to depths of 100 meters. To create perfect harmony, this spectrum flaunting red, orange, yellow, green, blue, violet and indigo also tricks out the stitching of the rubber strap attached by a titanium folding clasp.

The Defy 21 Chroma II meticulously drives the data and short-cycle times measured to 1/100^th of a second with its El Primero 9400 caliber. This selfwinding movement delivers a power reserve of at least 50 hours. It’s also endowed with two escapements, one equipped with a frequency of 36,000 vib./h that displays the time, the other a 50 Hz one devoted to the chronograph function. In a nutshell, performance and design interact ingeniously in this exclusive timepiece.

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