Watches & Wonders 2025: The Ingenieur Takes The Spotlight As IWC Expands Its Icon

When Watches & Wonders rolls around, anticipation for new releases is always at an all-time high. This is when brands bring out their biggest drops — the ones they’ve been holding back all year. The headlines come fast and loud, and if a brand can cut through the noise and grab even a sliver of attention in today’s hyper-saturated watch media landscape, that’s a serious win.

And IWC grabbed some major headlines with their releases this year. The storied maison (and yes, I’m using maison, sorry Jack) showed up a veritable murderers’ row of watches designed to appeal to just about every type of collector and watch lover.

In the Ingenieur collection alone, they’re rolling out seven new variants. It’s a full-on watch onslaught. The kind of release wave that one article can barely keep up with. But I’m going to give it the ol’ college try and attempt to sum up and make sense of this impressive showing of horological firepower hitting the main stage this week.

Short King Season: The Ingenieur Automatic 35mm

One of my favorite moves from IWC this year is their decision to follow the growing trend toward smaller watches — and they’ve done it with what is arguably their most popular model, the Ingenieur. They’ve introduced three new variants, each sized at 35mm and 9.4mm thick. One is crafted in 18K red gold with a matching gold-toned dial (it’s absolutely stunning by the way), while the other two come in stainless steel: one with a black dial and one with a silver-plated finish. With 100 meters water resistance, the same five screw bezel we have all come to know and love, Super-LumiNova indices, and the renowned grid-patterned dial, these are essentially scaled-down versions of the 40mm Ingenieur — same look, same feel, just smaller. And frankly, it’s exactly what IWC needed.

Historically, IWC isn’t a brand known for small watches. Whether it’s the Pilot’s watches, the Portugieser, or the Portofino, most of their lineup tends to live north of 40mm. Sure, there are exceptions, but generally speaking, their catalog has leaned large. So, shrinking the Ingenieur down to 35mm feels like a smart, overdue move.

This isn’t their first step toward smaller sizing, but now they have Ingenieurs in 35mm, 40mm, 41mm and 42mm. Whatever flavor of ice cream you want as I would say.

And I’ll go ahead and address the elephant in the room. In the lead-up to this year’s Watches & Wonders, there was a lot of talk around inclusivity in watch design — particularly when it comes to so-called “women’s watches.” More and more brands are moving away from gendering their collections, and I think that’s a positive shift. And I’ve seen women absolutely crush it wearing a 41mm Submariner, so size shouldn’t dictate gendered watches either. That said, making this watch in 35mm doesn’t hurt the cause. I don’t know if inclusivity was IWC’s intention here, but it’s definitely a step toward giving more people, regardless of wrist size, access to one of their most iconic designs.

The watch is powered by the caliber 47110, an automatic movement with a 42-hour power reserve that is visible through the display caseback. It’s finished with circular graining and Geneva stripes, and topped off with a gold-plated oscillating weight. The 47110 is a fresh addition to IWC’s lineup and is built on a base movement supplied by ValFleurier — Richemont’s in-house movement maker. It’s an automatic movement running at 4 Hz, equipped with 23 jewels, and offers a 42-hour power reserve.

The choice of movement here is an interesting one, largely because, while this 35mm model is essentially a scaled-down version of the beloved 40mm Ingenieur, the movement doesn’t quite measure up. In the 40mm version, IWC equipped it with the caliber 32111 which is a powerhouse movement boasting a 120-hour power reserve.

Ingenieur Automatic 40mm

In addition to the new 35mm models (or variants, or versions — call them what you want, I know I’m overusing “variant,” but we’ll roll with it), IWC also brought two fresh 40mm models to Geneva. The first is an 18K gold version paired with a black dial. It’s powered by the IWC-manufactured caliber 32111, featuring a double pawl winding system and a 120-hour power reserve. The movement is finished with circular Geneva stripes, blued screws, and a gold-plated oscillating weight.

This seems like just a fresh take on the standard 40mm Inegeniuer released in 2022. It checks all the boxes, has the same movement but hits with the beautiful new red gold case. We all know gold is back, and IWC is jumping on that train with some gusto.

Then there’s the other 40mm Ingenieur — the one that, surprisingly, hasn’t gotten as much airtime as I think it deserves since the embargo lifted. My guess is that’s mostly because it’s a limited edition, which always seems to make headlines fade a little quicker. But this one’s worth a closer look. The green dial Ingenieur 40mm is directly inspired by the watch worn by Sonny Hayes, Brad Pitt’s character in the upcoming F1 movie.

This limited edition features the same specs as the standard 40mm models: it’s powered by the IWC-manufactured 32111 caliber with a 120-hour power reserve, measures 10.8mm thick, and comes on the familiar H-link bracelet with a butterfly deployant clasp. The difference here is all in the dial, and what a dial it is.

The metallic green finish is hard to pin down. Depending on the light, it shifts from deep olive to soft sage, even flashing hints of dark evergreen and brighter green highlights. The date window at three o’clock is color-matched to the dial, keeping the design clean, while the gold-plated hands and applied hour markers, filled with Super-LumiNova, stand out beautifully against the shifting green backdrop. One of my favorite details, though, is how both the IWC logo and Ingenieur branding backgrounds are rendered in the same green as the dial — almost disappearing into the texture, giving the whole thing a stealthy, understated vibe.

Black Ceramic Ingenieur Automatic 42mm

This watch might look familiar because IWC followed a strategy often used by Rolex and Tudor, getting it on the wrist of a celebrity before its official release. Known watch enthusiast Ed Sheeran was spotted wearing this model courtside and during an appearance on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon. Until now, though, its existence was purely rumor.

Everyone has that go to black suit, black dress, the one to go to, stealthy, classy, elite. IWC decided they needed to have an all black go to, and this one comes with some serious chops. Coming in slightly larger at 42mm and 11.6mm thick. Despite being thicker and wider than the 40mm versions, the all black, makes it visually appear much smaller than the specs lead on.

This is their first all ceramic watch with integrated ceramic bracelet and incorporates their in house caliber 82110. The 82110 automatic caliber offers a 60-hour power reserve and beats at 4Hz. Key elements of the winding mechanism that are generally exposed to significant wear are crafted from ultra-durable zirconium oxide ceramic. Zirconium oxide ceramic boasts a hardness of approximately 1,300 Vickers, making it so tough that it can only be shaped or finished using tools made from equally hard materials—like diamond-tipped instruments.

The automatic wheel and clicks feature a sleek black ceramic finish, while the rotor bearing is constructed from white ceramic. Completing the look, the caseback is subtly tinted, which is the chef’s kiss in my opinion.

The Ingenieur Perpetual Calendar 41mm

Without a doubt — this is my favorite variant released this year at Watches & Wonders and will do a more in depth story soon. Coming in slightly smaller than the ceramic version at 41mm and 13.4mm thick, this watch is a frankenstein mashup of Gerald Genta’s famous design and Kurt Klaus’s perpetual calendar.

The dial is done in a bright, almost electric blue that plays really well against the steel case. You’ve got three matching sub-dials, day and leap year at 9 o’clock, date at 3, and month plus a perpetual moonphase at 6, all finished with a snailed outer ring, white markings, and a brushed sunray texture in the middle. The hour markers are applied by hand on the outer flange, which also has a snailed finish, and they’re filled with Super-LumiNova. The hour and minute hands are rhodium-plated and lume-filled too.

An interesting detail that I feel is missing in some of the coverage on this watch is that there’s no second hand, which is kind of unusual for something this complex.

The caliber 82600 is powered by the Pellaton automatic winding system and uses the same zirconium oxide ceramic for its high-stress components as the 42mm black ceramic model with a 60-hour power reserve. What I love even more, and call me a romantic, is the accuracy of the moonphase complication, which deviates by only one day every 577.5 years. I mean, sure, it’s not an eternal calendar, but let’s be honest, no one’s holding onto a watch for 45 million years anyway.

Specs

Ingenieur Automatic 35 mm

The IWC Ingenieur 35 (Refs. IW324901, IW324906, IW324903) is a compact 35mm watch measuring 9.4mm thick, available in stainless steel with silver or black dials, or 18k red gold with a matching gold dial. It features an integrated bracelet, 100m water resistance, and a clean three-hand layout with a date display. Inside is the automatic IWC calibre 47110, offering a 42-hour power reserve, 4Hz frequency, and 23 jewels.

Ingenieur Automatic 40mm

The IWC Ingenieur Automatic 40 is offered in two versions: Ref. IW328702 with a 40mm × 10.4mm case in 18K 5N gold and a black dial, and Ref. IW328908 in stainless steel measuring 40mm × 10.8mm with a green dial. Both models feature integrated bracelets with butterfly folding clasps, 100m water resistance, and are powered by the self-winding IWC calibre 32111, delivering hours, minutes, central seconds, date, and a 120-hour power reserve.

Black Ceramic Ingenieur Automatic 42mm

The IWC Ingenieur Automatic (Ref. IW338903) features a 42mm black zirconium oxide ceramic case, 11.6mm thick, with satin-finished, sandblasted surfaces and polished bevels, paired with a convex sapphire crystal with AR coating on both sides, a sapphire caseback, and 100m water resistance. The black dial has a negative relief grid pattern, black hand-applied indices and hands with Super-LumiNova, a date window at 3 o’clock. Inside is the IWC calibre 82110 automatic movement with Pellaton winding, 22 jewels, a 60-hour power reserve, and a 4Hz frequency. It comes on an integrated black ceramic bracelet with satin, sandblasted, and polished finishes, secured by a butterfly clasp.

Ingenieur Perpetual Calendar 41mm

The IWC Ingenieur Perpetual Calendar (Ref. IW344903) features a 41.6mm stainless steel case, 13.4mm thick, and comes with 100m water resistance. It has a convex sapphire crystal with AR coating on both sides, a sapphire caseback, and an integrated brushed and polished steel bracelet with a butterfly clasp. The blue dial showcases a grid pattern, three snailed sub-dials displaying the day, date, month, leap year, and perpetual moon phase, along with rhodium-plated, Super-LumiNova-filled hands and suspended indices. Powering the watch is IWC’s in-house automatic calibre 82600 with Pellaton winding, ceramic components, Kurt Klaus perpetual calendar module, 60-hour power reserve, and a frequency of 4Hz.