Bulova Relaunches the Jet Star, with their High Frequency Precisionist Movement, in Three Striking Dial Variants

Good design always comes back in cycles. Whether it’s the revival of midcentury furniture or Neoclassical architecture, there’s an undeniable truth when it comes to design: if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. 

Watch brands are surprisingly good at acknowledging – even celebrating – past designs, only making small updates for better performance or tweaking the finer details to refine the overall product. Bulova’s release of their reimagined Jet Star is one such example of this.

Taking inspiration from the archival 1970’s Jet Star, the new Bulova 1973 Jet Star has made incremental updates to the overall design, preserving what works and making small improvements along the way. The stainless steel case remains as angular and interesting to the eye as the original, but has since been updated with a trio of colorways for a variety of options. Customers can now choose between a sporty steel timepiece with red and blue accents, a gold-toned Jet Star with rich brown and gold tones, or a not-so-subtle red and steel model.

While the aesthetic of the watch could be right out of the 70’s, the internals of this watch are anything but retro. Utilizing a Precisionist movement, this quartz caliber vibrates at a remarkable 262kHz, making for a gorgeously smooth second hand that sweeps across the dial, similar to a mechanical watch. This unparalleled accuracy punches well above the weight class and price point of the Jet Star.

Each of the three references in this collection feature the same 40mm case. Due to its unique shape, it’s not a particularly bulky watch, making it ideal for both men and women to wear. The silver reference with red and blue dial accents is a limited edition of 7,300 pieces, while the gold toned version and the Jet Star with a bold red dial are both part of Bulova’s permanent collection.

Prices for the Jet Star 1973 collection begin at $595 and are available now via Bulova’s website. If you’re interested in learning more about this watch, we’ll have a lot more on the new Jet Star in the next installment of A Week in Watches.