Credited with producing the world’s first ceramic watch, Rado is synonymous with this ultra-hard material, and ceramic-cased timepieces represent a cornerstone offering within the Swiss brand’s modern catalog. Among its recent releases for 2025, Rado has added three new offerings to its True Square collection, and the latest trio of Rado True Square Automatic Skeleton watches expand upon the series with dark colorways, open-worked movements, and cases made from matte-finished plasma high-tech ceramic.

Before we get into the new watches themselves, it might be worth quickly going over Rado’s plasma high-tech ceramic material. Found throughout the Swiss brand’s contemporary catalog, “plasma high-tech ceramic” is enriched with carbon atoms during the firing process, and this provides the finished components with a natural metallic sheen. When Rado chooses to polish this material, the resulting components almost look like they are made from some type of dark gunmetal-colored exotic metal. However, on this latest trio of True Square Automatic Skeleton models, their ceramic components are given a matte surface finish (a first for the collection) to temper some of their intrinsic luster. With that in mind, even when given a brushed or matte finish, Rado’s plasma high-tech ceramic watches still retain some of their natural metallic appearance.

The first of the three new Rado True Square Automatic Skeleton watches is the ref. R27196152, and it features naturally colored plasma high-tech ceramic for its case, crown, and bracelet. To match the gunmetal hue of its case, the bridges of the movement and the surrounding dial plate both receive an anthracite gray finish, and they are adorned with horizontal brushing to further lean into the non-reflective appearance of the watch. Meanwhile, the hands and caseback on the Rado True Square Skeleton ref. R27196152 are sandblasted to match the matte finish on the case, and the chapter ring containing the minute track is finished black to help provide a greater degree of contrast. 

The second model among the new trio of Rado True Square Automatic Skeleton watches is the ref. R27197152, and it is more-or-less identical to the previously mentioned ref. R27196152, with the one difference being that it uses black plasma high-tech ceramic for its case, crown, and bracelet. Just like its sibling made from naturally colored plasma high-tech ceramic, the ref. R27197152 showcases a matte-finish across the entirety of its components, while its chapter ring is colored black, and its movement and dial plate are both given an anthracite gray finish with horizontal brushing to offer a subtle contrast against the jet black hue of its case and bracelet.

The third and final model from this latest release is the Rado True Square Automatic Skeleton ref. R27197169, and it pairs a matte black plasma high-tech ceramic case with a black rubber strap. Similar to the other two new models, the chapter ring is colored black, and both the movement and dial plate are given an anthracite gray finish. With that in mind, rather than being horizontally brushed like what can be observed on its two siblings, the movement and the surrounding dial plate are both adorned with horizontal Geneva stripes, while the hands on the ref. R27197169 are polished (rather than sandblasted) to provide the watch with a slightly more refined overall appearance.

Regardless of their colorways or finishing, all three of the new Rado True Square Automatic Skeleton watches measure 38mm in diameter by 9.7mm thick, with an overall lug-to-lug profile of 44.2mm. Similarly, all of them feature flat anti-reflective sapphire crystals with display-style casebacks, and all three models feature the same 50 meters of water resistance that is offered by their siblings from the True Square Skeleton collection. Additionally, the handset on this latest generation of models appears in a slightly more blunted shape than what can be observed on their predecessors, and rather than just being finished with lume, the hour markers are crafted from solid blocks of Super-LumiNova to provide the new True Square Automatic Skeleton models with a greater low-light visibility.

Rado’s True Square Automatic Open Heart models also feature an open-worked display, although the brand’s True Square Skeleton models take things one step further to showcase their mechanics. Powering the new Rado True Square Skeleton watches is the brand’s Caliber R808 automatic movement, which is essentially Rado’s version of the ETA C07.901. Based upon the fundamental architecture of the venerable ETA 2824-2, the 25- jewel Rado Cal. R808 is similar to other Swatch Group-exclusive iterations of this movement, and it runs at a reduced frequency of 21,600vph (3 Hz) in order to achieve an extended power reserve of approximately 80 hours. Along with being fitted with an antimagnetic Nivachron hairspring, the Caliber R808 is adjusted to five positions (instead of three) in order to provide greater accuracy. 

I personally tend to favor Rado’s True Square watches with traditional dials over the brand’s various open-worked and skeletonized offerings, as prominently displaying a circular movement inside of a square-shaped case doesn’t always lend itself to the most cohesive aesthetic. However, the matching finishing techniques on the movements and dial plates provide this latest trio of Rado True Square Automatic Skeleton watches with a noticeably more intentional appearance than what can be observed on the brand’s True Square Open Heart models, which showcase contrasting finishing styles on their movements and surrounding dial sections.

When it comes to pricing for the new Rado True Square Automatic Skeleton watches, the strap-equipped ref. R27197169 is naturally the least expensive among the trio with an official retail price of $2,500 USD. Meanwhile, the gunmetal-colored ref. R27196152 and black ref. R27197152 both cost the same at $3,000 USD, and this ultimately feels like a very reasonable premium for a full-ceramic bracelet. That said, a similar sentiment applies to Rado’s catalog as a whole, and while many Swiss brands charge a four-figure price (or more) for their ceramic-cased timepieces, Rado has a long history of producing ample options in a wide variety of different shapes that can all be purchased for a few thousand dollars. For more information on the Rado True Square Automatic Skeleton collection, please visit the brand’s website.