Longines has added a softer, more contemporary note to one of its most distinctive heritage pieces.
The Conquest Heritage Central Power Reserve now comes with a light blue opaline dial, bringing a cooler tone to a watch built around an unusually elegant central power reserve display.
It’s a thoughtful update rather than a reinvention, and that’s exactly where the appeal lies.
At a glance
- Longines has introduced new light blue opaline dial versions of the Conquest Heritage Central Power Reserve.
- The watch retains its central rotating-disc power reserve display, inspired by a rare Longines model from 1959.
- It is offered on a stainless steel bracelet for €4,450 or a grey leather strap for €4,300.
A rare Longines complication returns in a fresher tone
The Conquest line has always carried more historical weight than its clean design might suggest.
Introduced in 1954, Conquest was the first Longines collection name to be formally protected by the Swiss Federal Intellectual Property Office, giving it a place of particular importance in the brand’s modern catalogue.
Five years later, Longines produced a watch with a central power reserve indication, an in-house complication that remains one of the more unusual ideas in the company’s archive.
The modern Conquest Heritage Central Power Reserve draws directly from that 1959 concept, but the execution feels less like a nostalgic exercise and more like a practical way to make the dial do something interesting.
Instead of placing a conventional power reserve scale along the edge of the dial or tucked into a sub-display, the indication is handled by two rotating discs at the centre.
A slim baton pointer works with an outer graduated disc marked from 64 down to 0 hours, giving the wearer a direct reading of the remaining autonomy as the movement winds down or is replenished.
It’s the sort of complication that rewards a second look without making the watch feel busy.
The light blue dial softens the vintage character
The new light blue opaline dial changes the personality of the watch without disturbing its proportions.
It gives the model a cooler, more current look, while the domed dial surface and applied details keep the mid-century character intact.
Twelve faceted rhodium-plated indexes sit around the dial, catching the light with a restrained polish rather than obvious flash.
The hour and minute hands use Longines’ polished “sky-scraper” style, filled with Super-LumiNova for low-light legibility.
A slender baton seconds hand keeps the display balanced, while the date remains at 12 o’clock beneath a trapezoidal applied frame.
That date placement is a defining part of the watch’s face, and it helps preserve the symmetry that makes the central power reserve display work so well.
Calibre L896.5 brings the concept into modern daily use
Inside the watch is the Longines calibre L896.5, an automatic movement developed for this family of watches.
It runs at 25,200 vibrations per hour, or 3.5 Hz, and uses a silicon balance spring.
The movement is resistant to magnetic fields in line with ISO 764, which gives the watch a useful modern technical layer beneath the vintage presentation.
It also offers a power reserve of up to 72 hours, a comfortable margin for anyone rotating watches over a weekend.
The calibre can be seen through the transparent sapphire caseback, which suits the watch’s character without turning it into a movement showcase at the expense of the dial.
At 38 mm across, the stainless steel case lands in a sweet spot for a heritage-inspired Longines.
The 12.30 mm thickness and 45.60 mm lug-to-lug measurement should keep it wearable for a broad range of wrists, while the box-shaped sapphire crystal adds period flavour without the fragility of vintage acrylic.
Water resistance is rated to 5 bar, equivalent to 50 metres, which is enough for everyday wear but not the point of the watch.
Details & Specifications
| Brand | Longines |
|---|---|
| Model | Conquest Heritage Central Power Reserve |
| References | L1.648.4.92.6 on bracelet, L1.648.4.92.2 on strap |
| Case size | 38 mm diameter, 12.30 mm thickness, 45.60 mm lug-to-lug |
| Case material | Stainless steel |
| Crystal | Box-shaped sapphire crystal with multi-layer anti-reflective coating on both sides |
| Caseback | Screw-down transparent sapphire caseback |
| Dial | Light blue opaline with rhodium-plated applied indexes |
| Hands | Polished “sky-scraper” hour and minute hands with Super-LumiNova |
| Movement | Longines calibre L896.5, self-winding |
| Frequency | 25,200 vibrations per hour, 3.5 Hz |
| Jewels | 21 |
| Power reserve | Up to 72 hours |
| Complication | Central power reserve display with rotating discs, date at 12 o’clock |
| Magnetic resistance | In accordance with ISO 764 |
| Water resistance | 5 bar, 50 metres, 165 feet |
| Bracelet or strap | Stainless steel bracelet with double-folding safety clasp and micro-adjustment, or grey alligator leather strap with heritage-style pin buckle |
| Price | €4,450 on bracelet, €4,300 on leather strap |
Bracelet or grey leather strap
Longines is offering the light blue Conquest Heritage Central Power Reserve in two configurations.
The bracelet version uses a stainless steel bracelet with a double-folding safety clasp, push-button release and a micro-adjustment system.
The strap version pairs the light blue dial with grey alligator leather and a heritage-style pin buckle.
The bracelet gives the watch a more versatile, everyday presence, while the grey strap leans into the softer side of the new dial colour.
Neither version feels like the obvious secondary choice, which is a good sign for a design that depends heavily on balance.
For collectors who appreciate Longines at its most historically literate, this light blue edition adds charm without diluting the central idea.
It remains a compact, technically interesting dress-leaning watch with just enough eccentricity to stand apart from the usual heritage formula.
