What even is this Richard Mille watch???

A beautiful stary night. Forest quietly whispering around you. If you focus, you can hear a distant howl of a wolf pack. You sit by the fire and reach for your water bottle.

 

The water is taken from a little torrent close to you, so just to be safe, you whip out your $1,000,000 RM 25-01, press the button of the hidden container with water purification tablets, throw one in the bottle, wait a couple of minutes, then finally take a sip.

 

Photo source: Hodinkee

 

Life is good.

 

This scenario will likely never happen to you. Or anyone else.

 

But in the 0.0001% chance that it might, Richard Mille has you covered.

 

Today, let’s have a look at the RM 25-01, Richard Mille’s craziest watch to this date.

 

Photo source: A Blog To Watch

 

The RM 25-01, first released in 2018, is the result of a friendship between the famous Swiss watchmaker Richard Mille (the person) and the even more famous Hollywood actor Sylvester Stallone. And honestly, from the guy who played Rambo and Rocky, we would expect nothing less.

 

Photo source: Getty Images

 

When you see this timepiece, you honestly don’t know what to think of it. Is it a watch? A compass? What even is this thing?

 

Those are all good questions. Let’s answer them - Is it a watch? You bet, and it’s one of the best pieces of Haute Horlogerie you can get! A compass? Also true! What even is this thing? Well, if not the best, then certainly the most insane Richard Mille of them all.

 

Photo source: A Blog To Watch

 

The structure of this watch can really be divided into two camps - the horological and the survival.

 

From the horological aspect, this watch is a piece of art.

 

Photo source: A Blog To Watch

 

Inside the grade 5 titanium and Carbon TPT® case (which is incredibly light and comfortable), we can find a manual winding movement with a tourbillon, which powers a 24-hour display, minutes, seconds, chronograph, 30-minute totalizer, power-reserve indicator, and even a torque and function display.

 

That is a lot for one watch.

 

Now moving to the survival part - this is where the RM 25-01 really shines.

 

First - the size of this watch.

 

We understand it, Sylvester is a big guy, but with a diameter of 51mm, you can almost use this watch as a portable plate.

 

Apart from the huge size, Richard Mille also focused on some more tactical additions.

 

We have a very convenient and practical 24-hour display, with clearly distinguished AM and PM, which is one of the conservative features.

 

Next, slightly less conservative, is a detachable and fully functional compass, which sits above the dial. It has all the necessary features you could ever ask for from a compass, ensuring that if you ever get lost in the wild with your 7-figure watch, at least you will always know your way out.

 

Moving to the case, we can notice two final interesting additions. One of them is a spirit level, which allows you to see whether the watch is perfectly horizontal for better readings.

 

Last, but certainly not least, is the sealed water purification capsule holder, which can store up to 5 capsules.

 

Yes, you’ve heard well. You can purify water with your RM now. Honestly, if some next watch transforms into a car, I wouldn’t even be surprised.

 

Photo source: Hodinkee

 

So, what should you take from this?

 

The RM 25-01 is one of the goofiest, most ridiculous, and expensive RM’s ever made - but also one, which only further proves that Richard Mille is on the top of the watchmaking game. They set the trends, and others may or may not follow. But they were the first.

 

Photo source: The Peak Magazine

 

We think that this timepiece is only the first in a line of many that will come in the following years. Brands like to experiment, and atypical designs are becoming more and more famous; just look at Blancpain, the oldest watchmaker in the world, and their Fifty Fathoms x Fathoms.

 

Is this your daily beater? Probably not, since it costs more than most people make in their entire career + it’s a 20-piece limited edition.

 

But if you are the lucky owner of one of those watches, you have made the right choice, because this is genuinely one of the best watches of our millennium.