“Watches, Stories, and Gear” is a roundup of our favorite content, watch or otherwise, from around the internet. Here, we support other creators, explore interesting content that inspires us, and put a spotlight on causes we believe in. Oh, and any gear we happen to be digging on this week. We love gear.
Share your story ideas or interesting finds with us by emailing [email protected].
A Soup Innovation
Are you feeling pessimistic about the general state of the world? Are you plagued with thoughts that maybe America’s best days are behind it? Well we’re here to tell you not to let anyone tell you that this country is in decline, because Progresso – yes, the soup brand – just unveiled what has to be one of the most innovative products to hit store shelves in a generation. Are Soup Drops, a soup flavored hard candy, the product of an Oppenheimer level genius and a Manhattan Project-like initiative marshaling all of our most critical resources. Probably. Like a blue dialed Vacheron Constantin 222, we can hardly believe it took so long for someone to think of this.
The Brutalist and AI in Hollywood
A debate is brewing in Hollywood over the use of AI, specifically in the newly minted 10 time Oscar nominee The Brutalist. Last week, news broke that the film makes use of an AI tool to make some of the Hungarian dialogue in the movie (spoken in voiceover) sound more authentic. It effectively takes Adrien Brody’s actual voice and augments it to make him sound more like a native Hungarian speaker. Some contend that this adds a layer of artifice to the performance and crosses an ethical line, others understand it to be similar to any other special effect that might change how a character looks or sounds. It remains to be seen if this has an impact on the Oscar race, but it seems like it’s definitely the beginning of a real conversation about the role of AI in a film production, which is long overdue. You can read more via The Wrap right here.
The New Instax Camera
Instax, the Fuji brand for affordable digital/analog hybrid cameras, has just released a new model, the WIDE Evo. As the name suggests, this is the widest Instax lens yet, and features a variety of creative options to digitally alter the image through a selection of “film” styles and lens effects. Images print directly from the camera at 318 DPI, and the camera has a gorgeous design taking cues from vintage cameras while still remaining a fully modern object. More information can be found here.
Rolex Discontinues an Already Rare Oyster Perpetual
In a move that is not entirely surprising, Rolex has discontinued the highly sought after “Celebration Dial” Oyster Perpetual. The unusual design was an immediate sensation when it debuted at Watches & Wonders almost two years ago, and the watch has been a very tough ticket ever since. Like the Le Mans Daytona, also recently discontinued, this Oyster Perpetual had an uncommonly short production run compared to virtually any other Rolex. These watches have been trading at a premium for as long as they’ve existed, and with this news it would seem certain values will only rise. More via Esquire here.
Canon’s Impressive New CMOS Sensor
The megapixel wars continue! The Verge reports that Canon has just announced a new 35mm full frame CMOS sensor with a mind boggling resolution of 410 megapixels, equivalent to 24K. According to Canon it’s the ”largest number of pixels ever achieved in a 35mm full-frame sensor.” Canon does not have immediate plans to introduce the sensor into consumer level cameras, however. Instead, it’s expected to be used in medical and surveillance applications, and other areas where ultra high resolution would be worthwhile and cost is not a limiting factor. Still, this kind of tech has a way of trickling down, so while we might not see 400+ megapixel cameras slung around the shoulder of enthusiast photographers, it’s reasonable to think that we could see a new generation of smaller, higher megapixel cameras continue to take shape.