Ulysse Nardin, which shook up the watch world with the release of the first Freak watch way back in 2001, flew its Freak flag high again in 2018 with the introduction of the Freak Vision, the first in the unconventional series equipped with a self-winding movement. For those wondering what the brand would do for an encore, the answer came today, the first day of the 2019 SIHH watch salon in Geneva: the new Freak X is not only positioned as a more streamlined, entry-level “little brother” to the existing (and for many, prohibitively priced) Freak models; it also introduces an all-new case material to watchmaking.
The Ulysse Nardin Freak X Carbonium has a smaller case size and a traditional crown.
Like its predecessors, the Freak X is outfitted with a carousel-type, baguette-shaped movement that turns on itself once every hour to indicate the time in the now-famous “freakish” manner ? i.e., with no dial and no hands, the hour indicated by a moving wheel and the minute by the movement’s dial-side-mounted central bridge. From there, however, the differences between the Freak X and its predecessors become apparent: unlike the latter models, which are notable for lacking a traditional winding crown and utilizing the watch’s bezel for setting and correcting the time, this watch includes a crown for these operations. The case size is also slightly more modest ? 43 mm rather than 45 mm ? and the movement, the new Caliber UN-230, slightly more stri...