When most enthusiasts think of Hublot, their first thoughts generally turn to excess — sapphire cases, tourbillon movements, extravagant materials, and flamboyant styling. For better or worse, Hublot has built a reputation over the decades as the Lamborghini of watchmaking, and this penchant for the vibrant and dramatic leaves little room for reserved, nuanced design in the brand’s public perception. As part of its Watches and Wonders 2024 novelties, however, Hublot aims to highlight the simpler, more distilled side of its collection. The new Hublot Big Bang Integrated Time Only 38mm line brings a smaller, cleaner execution to the brand’s signature silhouette, creating perhaps the most versatile, daily-wearable Hublot in recent memory.

As the name suggests, the Hublot Big Bang Integrated Time Only 38mm collection offers a relatively modest 38mm case diameter. Available in an array of materials including titanium, navy blue ceramic, Black Magic ceramic, or the brand’s proprietary 18K King Gold alloy, this is a clean, remarkably straightforward presentation of the core Big Bang silhouette. A shallow, matte-blasted case side cutout runs from lug tip to lug tip, giving the design a lightweight feel in images and adding a touch of complexity to an otherwise surprisingly simple and conservative take on the integrated sports watch archetype. The broad polished case side chamfers and short, sharply downturned integrated lugs add some contour to this highly planar design, while a svelte 9.4mm overall thickness should make this a more elegant wearing experience than most modern Hublots. However, it’s the pronounced flanges beneath the screw-adorned bezel that really define this case in photos. Extending down into the case sides at 3 o’clock and 9 o’clock, these pronounced elements echo the ship’s portholes that gave the Hublot brand its name. For the titanium and King Gold models, Hublot further emphasizes these flanges with matte coating. Each model in the series is capped off with a sapphire display caseback (unfortunately the brand was unable to provide images of this caseback as of press time) and is rated for a respectable 100 meters of water resistance.

Like the cases, the dials of the Hublot Big Bang Integrated Time Only 38mm collection distill the Big Bang design down to its simplest forms. The broad, semi-skeletonized pointed baton handset and the mix of applied indices and stencil-style Arabic hours numerals are both Big Bang hallmarks, and even in this more straightforward context these elements feel bold and offbeat in images. Dial options are likewise simple, split between clean gloss black and a richer navy blue sunburst finish. While this simplicity may be welcomed by much of the enthusiast community, the unframed cutout date window at 3 o’clock is likely to be a controversial choice, especially for non-color-matched blue dial variants.

Hublot keeps the details of the MHUB1115 automatic movement inside the Big Bang Integrated Time Only 38mm line close to the vest, but it’s likely this is a Sellita SW300-based powerplant similar to much of the current Big Bang lineup. In terms of performance, it’s solid if unspectacular, with a 50-hour power reserve at a 28,800 bph beat rate. Each model in the range is finished off with a case-matching integrated bracelet, in classic three-link Big Bang style. Heavily chamfered and displaying a multitude of broad polished highlights, this bracelet should be an impressive light-catcher on the wrist.

Given Hublot’s reputation and position in the industry, there’s something about a compact, elemental three-hand sports watch that might feel almost out of character for the brand among enthusiasts. However “un-Hublot” the Hublot Big Bang Integrated Time Only 38mm line might be at first glance, however, this is a stylish and impressively wearable showcase for a different, more elegant facet of the brand. The Hublot Big Bang Integrated Time Only 38mm collection is available now through authorized dealers. MSRP for the line stands at $13,100 USD for titanium models, $15,300 USD for ceramic variants, and $47,100 USD for versions cased in King Gold, as of press time. For more information, please visit the brand’s website.