Introduced in the spring at Watches & Wonders Geneva 2024, this Cartier Tortue diamond-set dress watch in platinum is still not yet available. It’s scheduled to hit the market in September, so it is about time we covered it hands-on — just as we did with its (ambitiously priced and positioned) monopusher chronograph counterpart.
The Tortue belongs to the long — probably longest — list of century-old watch collections still in rotation today. Cartier’s extensive and painstakingly sustained selection of historic watch designs puts Richemont’s crown jewel (and major money-maker) brand into a league of its own. Introduced in 1912, well over 100 years ago, the “turtle” remains a charming shape that is dressy, tense, calculated, and yet, almost too simple all at the same time.
“Too simple” is not a label you could put on this particular piece, though, as the Cartier Tortue WJTO0010 is not only crafted from platinum — luxury watchmaking’s O.G. heavy metal — but it is also set with dozens of brilliant-cut diamonds that appear to be almost too large for it. Despite its restrained 41.4 by 32.9 by 7.2 millimeter size, this gem-set Cartier Tortue is a blingy watch that can and will be spotted from the other end of “Le First” on Place Vendôme.
The quality of the setting is really quite good, with the tables (the top facets) of the individual stones neatly lining up, while the beads (the four prongs used to hold the stone against its base) are all extensively polished. From a global jewelry powerhouse like Cartier, one would expect nothing less, not even when working with platinum, which poses a considerably greater challenge than soft 18k gold. The overall effect does not disappoint: Wearing a factory-bedazzled Cartier is quite the experience.
That said, the gem-set Cartier Tortue in platinum is an odd watch to wear. In its proportions, it lacks the eye-watering perfection of, say, a Lange 1, and its dial looks and feels as bland and basic as that of any Cartier watch offered at exactly a tenth of the price. On the other hand, its bling level is just enough to shred the concept of elegance into pieces and yet is not sufficient to offer the intimidating status many consciously or subconsciously seek when shelling out for a factory diamond-set, top-tier reference of a watch collection. Looking down at the Cartier Tortue on one’s wrist, it, therefore, is a mixed bag that can easily feel as though it fell right to the ground in between high-luxury elegance and taunting-daunting flash.
Flip the impressively slender Cartier Tortue around, and you will be greeted by a solid platinum caseback that tries to make up for the absence of refined mechanics with the use of the Italicized French word: “mécanique.” Please. The underlying Cartier caliber 430 MC measures 4.3mm, which is thick by today’s standards for a hand-wound, 3Hz base movement with a brief 38-hour power reserve. Bulgari’s various Octo Finissimo calibers (often offered at a fraction of the price) have this Piaget-based movement licked. There is no reason to get your hopes up and think that an elaborately decorated, maybe even partially hand-finished, nice, and high-performing movement was graciously hidden by Cartier — from what one can find the looks of the 430 MC are as lackluster as its performance.
You could say I am a downer regarding this watch, and you would be right. It feels a lot like a relic of the watch industry from 20 or 30 years ago, when the deservedly posh brand name, a small handful of diamonds, and the unsubstantial word “mécanique” was a recipe considered to be good enough to have watches like this fly off the shelf. And maybe that was the case then, but I sure hope it is not the case today. Cartier, and its parent company, the almighty industrial powerhouse Richemont, could certainly do a whole lot better if it really tried.
Until then, a rather basic case shape, simple dial, a leather strap, a baby’s fistful of diamonds, and an unimpressive movement is what is on offer for a whopping $59,000 USD. That’s gem-set, albeit 18k gold, Day-Date money, with just as many diamonds, a solid-gold bracelet, an incomparably better-performing movement, arguably higher status, and historical relevance. Far beyond Rolex, the extent of horological substance on offer today for $59,000 USD, even from big brands, is incredible. It is, therefore, difficult to see how this niche yet loud piece from Cartier could have a chance in such a cut-throat segment. Thankfully, there are many other, more competitively priced and indeed fantastic, historically important collections and references that Cartier offers, so not all is lost here. You can learn more at the Cartier website.
