The Norqain Freedom 60 Chrono 40mm Ice Blue Limited Edition

We’ve looked at Norqain many times since its 2018 founding as the Swiss watches are both well thought and aesthetically pleasing, especially for such a young brand. It’s no surprise as part of the team behind Norqain came from Breitling, including founder Ben Küffer. The Freedom 60 Chrono was an early success with a bold 43mm case, but a more universal 40mm Chrono launched last year and has been a highlight of the brand. Norqain is now releasing a limited edition of the 40mm chronograph with an ice blue dial that should please fans of the prior models. 

The stainless steel case hasn’t changed, but there was no reason to modify this more compact Freedom 60 Chrono, a relatively new and best-selling design. As the name implies, it’s 40mm in diameter with a height of 14.9mm (lug-to-lug is 49.2mm). A box-type AR sapphire crystal protects the dial and provides retro distortions at angles, while a sapphire exhibition case back displays the Sellita-based automatic. The case is polished with some brushed accents and features an engraved plaque on the left side, held on by two screws. Twin pushers at 2 and 4 o’clock operate the chronograph functions, while a signed screw-down crown contributes to the 100-metre water resistance rating. There are three strap options and all are animal cruelty-free as pledged by the brand – a stainless steel bracelet, a black Perlon rubber strap or a linen Nortide strap from tide ocean SA that’s a product of recycled plastic recovered from the ocean. 

The chronograph dial is familiar with a tri-compax layout, but the colour palette has changed to a sunray ice blue with black and silver features. The three snailed sub-dials are black, as is the tachymeter with a contrasting white scale. There’s a 30-minute counter at 3 o’clock, 12-hour counter at 6 o’clock and small seconds at 9 o’clock, and a colour-matching angled date sits between 4 and 5 o’clock. It’s again the same style as last year, but with a decidedly different vibe. Rhodium plated, syringe-style hour and minute hands have Old Radium Super-LumiNova inserts for a vintage look, while the applied indices have the same lume as inside marks. 

Powering the new Freedom 60 Chrono 40mm Ice Blue is the calibre NN19, based on the Sellita SW510. It’s a cam-operated chronograph with 27 jewels, 28,800vph (4Hz) and a power reserve of 62 hours. Functions include central hours, minutes, small seconds, chronograph and date. This differs from last year’s Freedom 60 Chrono 40mm models that had ETA-based movements (and a shorter power reserve). Norqain has also formed a partnership with Kenissi for movements, but this doesn’t concern the chronograph movements for now, which are still relying on outsourced Swiss suppliers. Decorations include Côtes de Genève, perlage and a custom rotor. 

The Norqain Freedom 60 Chrono 40mm Ice Blue Limited Edition is limited to 300 pieces and retails for CHF 4,250 with the steel bracelet, CHF 4,150 with the rubber strap and CHF 3,990 with the Nortide strap. All come with a two-year warranty, which can be extended to three years by joining the NORQAINER Community. For more information and to place an order, please visit www.norqain.com.