Among the many impressive new watches Grand Seiko debuted during Watches & Wonders 2024, this red-dialed Spring Drive Chronograph GMT (SBGC275) is particularly notable.
Meant to recall the sun’s terrestrial light show as it rises and sets in the Hotaka mountain range in the Shinshu region of central Japan (where Grand Seiko makes its Spring Drive watches), the distinctive dial appears to change colors with each viewing, as the ambient light itself changes. 
Grand Seiko launches the watch, which joins the watchmaker’s Sport Collection, as it celebrates the 20th anniversary of the first Grand Seiko watch powered by the 9R Spring Drive movement series.
The watchmaker explains that this dial is made possible through the use of a new dial-processing technology that involves a patented dial-coating process known as “Optical Multilayer Coating.” 
“Instead of traditional techniques to color the dial, the new technology uses a physical vapor deposition process,” explains Grand Seiko’s Jon Bues. “Several layers of nanoscale film create an effect in which the dial exhibits a different hue depending on the angle of view. Combined with the silent glide motion of the seconds hand, the transitioning dial colors bring a new dimension to the idea of the nature of time.”
Set within Grand Seiko’s angular case, inspired by the shape of a lion (a Grand Seiko symbol) this newest Spring Drive Chronograph GMT offers notable claw-like, hairline-finished lugs that contrast nicely with the watch’s many Zaratsu-polished surfaces.
The high-intensity titanium 44.5mm by 16.8mm case weights about thirty percent less than stainless steel and has a brighter color. That brightness continues amid the eye-catching red-orange with Luminous hands and markers.
Here Grand Seiko careful considers the light once again, with two colors of Lumibrite: green for the markers and the hour and minute hands and blue for the GMT hand and the numbers on the bezel. This enhances the watch’s legibility in dark conditions.
Inside Grand Seiko fits its excellent Spring Drive Chronograph GMT Caliber 9R96, a specially adjusted version of Caliber 9R86. The movement delivers an accuracy of ±10 seconds per month, or ±0.5 seconds per day.
Grand Seiko is offering the Caliber 9R 20th Anniversary Limited Edition (SBGC275) as a limited edition of 700, available at the Grand Seiko Boutiques and select retail partners worldwide in July. Price: $13,400.
Specifications: Grand Seiko Caliber 9R 20th Anniversary Limited Edition: SBGC275
Spring Drive Chronograph GMT Caliber 9R96
Driving system: Automatic
Accuracy: ±10 seconds per month (±0.5 seconds per day) Power reserve: 72 hours
GMT hand
Chronograph up to 12 hours
Number of jewels: 50
High-intensity titanium case and bracelet
Three-fold clasp with push-button release, secure lock, and extender Dual-curved sapphire crystal with anti-reflective coating See-through screw case back
Screw-down crown
Water resistance: 20 bar
Magnetic resistance: 4,800 A/m
Diameter: 44.5mm, Thickness: 16.8mm
Price: $13,400
Limited edition of 700