Tap the image to enlarge
Frederique Constant Highlife Worldtimer Manufacture 41mm
Ref. FC-718N4NH6B
Sits in Frederique Constant’s upper tier here — more premium than three quarters of the Frederique Constant watches we list, which start at £850.
Price range £850 to £3,995 across 22 Frederique Constant watches in stock.The Highlife collection marked a deliberate shift for Frederique Constant: away from the round-cased dress watches the brand had built its reputation on, and toward something with a broader wrist presence and a more contemporary character. The worldtimer variant takes that further by housing the in-house FC-718 manufacture calibre — a movement finished with perlage and circular Côtes de Genève, and notable for allowing the worldtimer, date and home time to be set from a single crown position without pushers. That is a more considered piece of engineering than the complication usually receives. The cushion case gives the 24-city outer ring and the embossed globe motif enough room to read clearly without crowding, and the day/night disc ensures the worldtimer is genuinely usable at a glance. At 159 grams on the bracelet it is a substantial watch, and the integrated lugs mean it sits flush rather than perching. The quick-release spring bars are a practical addition: swapping to a strap requires no tools, which matters on a watch that is, in purpose, about moving between time zones.
- Reference
- FC-718N4NH6B
- Brand
- Frederique Constant
- Collection
- Highlife
- Case size
- 41mm
- Case thickness
- 12.9mm
- Lug width
- 25.5mm
- Case material
- Stainless steel
- Case shape
- Round
- Dial
- Blue
- Crystal
- Sapphire
- Movement
- Automatic
- Calibre
- FC-718
- Functions
- Date, World time
- Water resistance
- 50m
- Bracelet / strap
- Stainless steel bracelet
- Strap colour
- Silver
- Clasp
- Butterfly clasp
- Lume
- Luminous
- Retailer
- Mappin & Webb
Additional specifications
- Power reserve
- 38 hours
- Origin
- Swiss made
- Strap
- Interchangeable
Learn more about Frederique Constant
Peter Stas and Aletta Bax, a Dutch couple, founded Frederique Constant in 1988 with a straightforward objective: make Swiss watches with genuine watchmaking content at prices well below where that content normally starts. The name combines those of two ancestors, Frédérique Schreiner and Constant Stas, the latter a manufacturer of watch dials from the 1900s.
The company designed its own movement, the FC-910 Heart Beat, in 1994 — an aperture cut into the dial to expose the balance wheel, which became the brand's signature and is now widely copied. It began manufacturing calibres in-house in 2004, an unusual step at its price point, and has since produced over thirty in-house movements including perpetual calendars, tourbillons, and a monolithic silicon oscillator replacing the traditional escapement entirely.
That last development, the Slimline Monolithic of 2021, was a serious technical achievement: a single silicon component oscillating at 40 Hz, delivering high-frequency regulation without lubrication.
Frederique Constant also produced one of the first Swiss-made connected watches, the Horological Smartwatch, with analogue hands and hidden activity tracking.
The company built a manufacture in Plan-les-Ouates near Geneva, shares it with Alpina, and was acquired by Citizen in 2016. It also owns the vintage-focused Ateliers deMonaco.
- 1988
- Peter Stas and Aletta Bax found the company.
- 1994
- The Heart Beat dial aperture becomes the house signature.
- 2004
- In-house movement manufacturing begins.
- 2016
- Acquired by Citizen.
- 2021
- The Slimline Monolithic introduces a silicon oscillator.
Also in 5 collections
This watch appears in the Frederique Constant Highlife range (5), Back in Stock (4,652), Stainless Steel Watches (3,115), Automatic Watches (1,724) and Blue Dial Watches (863).
Best of 2 retailers
What the specifications mean
A mechanical watch for everyday wear.
Strengths
- Sapphire crystal, which resists scratching
- Luminous hands and markers for low light
- Second time zone for travelling
- One of Frederique Constant's more premium watches
Worth knowing
- 50m suits rain and handwashing, not swimming
- 38-hour reserve means winding it after a day off
Frederique Constant Highlife Worldtimer Manufacture alternatives
Watches from other brands at a similar price, style and size, so you can see what else your budget can buy.
| Specification | FC-718N4NH6B | 2020.002M | 182 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | £3,995 | £3,990 | £3,900 |
| Case size | 41mm | 41mm | 40.5mm |
| Water resistance | 50m | 50m | 50m |
| Movement | Automatic | Automatic | Automatic |
| Strap | Stainless steel bracelet | Fabric strap | Leather strap |
| Power reserve | 38 hours | — | 42 hours |
| This watch | Closely matched | Closely matched |
Your new watch
Frequently asked questions, and things you should know about this watch
Can I swim with it?
Showering yes, swimming no. 50m covers splashes and brief immersion, but a swimming stroke generates well above the pressure that figure describes.
Water resistance explainedWill the glass scratch?
Unlikely. Sapphire is second only to diamond in hardness and shrugs off everyday marking.
Sapphire, mineral and acrylic comparedDoes it need a battery?
No. It is automatic — the motion of your wrist winds it, and there is no cell to replace.
Quartz, automatic and solar comparedHow long does it run for when it's not worn?
About 38 hours fully wound — so it will usually stop if you leave it off overnight.
What size strap does it take?
25.5mm. Any strap of that width will fit, and on most modern watches quick-release bars make the swap a two-minute job with no tools.
Cheapest place to buy
Both Mappin & Webb and Goldsmiths list it at £3,995, so choose on delivery and warranty rather than price.
More Frederique Constant watches like the Highlife Worldtimer Manufacture
In stock, and close on style and price
