This page does not contain any fancy pictures but I hope to provide some substantial information for collectors. If you want to see some pictures of interesting swatches then go to my virtual swatch museum. Although I am probably a bit biased, it is highly recommended , especially the section about special packagings.

Older Swatch info

news from 1997 are below:

• smart special. The smart is the brand new super-mini car by Daimler-Benz and Swatch. A smart swatch may be released in late 97 or JAN-98, 7000(?) pieces, ref.no. GZ154. The first smart swatches were given away to journalists in Hambach, France, on 27-OCT when the smart factory was opened. They carry the date "27.10.1997" on the face. Here is a picture and a closeup. My guess is that the watches that will be released in JAN do not carry that date. Update: Some smart swatches were sold through the local swatch clubs on a first-come-first-serve basis. The German club got 250 of them. I was lucky :-)  The watch comes in a special numbered packaging, a very nice paper box which can be opened. The ref.no. of packaging and watch is GZ154C! Here is a picture of the packaging, here a picture of the side of the packaging (with the number), and here is a pic of the inside of the box. A great addition to every swatch collection. Brian Pier tells me that "The Swatch Smart Car factory tour for club members originally scheduled for May has been indefinitely postponed. Swatch is also postponing their wider release of the Smart Car Swatch until the factory again begins production. (The Smart Car is delayed for re-engineering after failing the "moose" collision test.). Update: 150 of the smart special packagings were sold through the UK collectors club in the UK. Apparently, some (not all!) of the straps of these 150 swatches have a misprint!  Both loops around the strap have no imprint (no smart car silhouette/"swatch smart"). Another collectible. Thanks to Michael Koellich and Thomas Buerki for the information.
• Swiss Tell Me special. To clean the shelves :-) Swatch has released a MusiCall called Tell Me in Switzerland (original price is 70 Swiss Francs, ref.no. is SLZ100C). As you can see from the ref.no., it is a Tokyo musicall with a new, clear strap. The strap has the imprint Tell Me the time in red and in black. The loops of the strap carry the imprint 1291, the birth year of Switzerland. Here is a picture of the watch. The plastic box has a papersleeve packaging. Here is a picture of the front side of the papersleeve, the back side of the papersleeve has the story of Wilhelm Tell, the Swiss national hero. The watch will probably be available in Switzerland only. Thanks to Christine Tanner and Thomas Buerki for the information and pictures.
• Vienna Soulcity special. For a New Years Eve Party in Vienna, Austria, Swatch has released the Soul City special. It is the Magic Show access with an additional loop (with Ferris wheel picture). Ref.No. is SKZ115. It comes in a plastic box with a paper sleeve. The papersleeve has also the picture of the Vienna Ferris wheel. Here is a picture of the watch and packaging. No idea about limitation. Thanks to Michael Koellich for the information and to Yasuhiro Minato for the picture.
• Austrian irony automatic special. Apparently, an irony automatic special will be sold in February 98 in Austria. It contains the three new automatic ironys in a metal packaging. 100 pieces will be made by Swatch Austria (the OK has been given by swatch switzerland). The special will cost 5000 Austrian Schilling (~ $400US!). Quite expensive. Thanks to Michael Koellich for the information.
• Italian "30 ore per la vita" special. A new special swatch has been released in Italy related to the TV program "30 ore per la vita". You can buy this watch only in Italy using a credit card (somehow related to the TV program). In fact, you get the watch as a gift if you give a donation of at least 70000 Lira to the "30 ore per la vita" charity organization. It is limited to 30000. Here is a picture of the watch. If you want to make a donation (and get a free watch :-), you can send a fax to ++39 639 72 04 52. The "30 ore per la vita" committee accepts all major credit cards; shipping costs will be added to your donation and depend on destination, weight, and volume of the package. Thanks to Thomas Buerki for the information.
• Austrian Club special. In Austria, an access swatch (probably theClearance model) with a new strap (with gnome imprint) was given away(!) to good swatch buyers (I think that you had to buy 10 swatches or so to get this gift). Here is a (not so good) picture. Thanks to Otto Schreiber for the information.
• Japanese Tokyo Manga special. On Dec 13, Swatch will open a flagship store in Tokyo. Swatch will release a special packaging for Tokyo Manga (300 pcs) only available in the store to commemorate this event. Here is a picture. Thanks to Yasuhiro Minato for the information.
• Japanese LOFT Scuba special. On Dec 5, the japanese department store LOFT will start selling a refitted Silver Trace (1993, SDN107S) scuba. The watch will come with a velcro strap and will be sold in a tin can with the swatch logo and the logo of the LOFT department store. It is rumoured to be limited to 600 pcs. Here is a picture of the special. Thanks to Takashi Odagiri for the information.
• Special packaging for Shaun Palmer Scuba Access. It comes in a mini snowboard. Here is a picture. This is probably available worldwide. Thanks to Brian Pier for the picture.
• VIP SKIN special. The first SKIN special seems to be around:  The black skin swatch with an ultrathin leather strap, packaged in a black box with white SKIN logo imprint. Code is SFZ 100. Some of them were sold in Germany but only very few. Total quantity is unknown. Here is a picture and here are more excellent pictures. Thanks to Michael Koellich for the information and to Rob Versteeg for the picture.
• 3 Swatches with a brilliant. A store (Gygax & Schneeberger) in Aarau, Switzerland, sells three swatches with a small brilliant/diamond in the case above the 11 o'clock mark:
• Mustard (GB  179, spring 97, 0.04 carat)
• Back Up (GM 140, spring 97, 0.03 carat)
• Film No.4 (Yoko One, GB 168, spring 97, 0.04 carat)
• They claim that the conversion has been approved by Swatch. You can call the store at ++41 62 824 66 31. Price for the watch is between 90-130 Swiss Francs. Thanks to Thomas Buerki for the information.
• Skin Dimension exhibition in Milan. As promised on the homepage, Swatch has put together an exhibition called 'Skin Dimension. On 28-OCT, Nick Hayek will be in Milan, Italy, for the grand opening at the 'Parlazzo della Permanente'. On this day, a special Skin package will be sold and signed by Nick Hayek Sr. Original selling price is 160,000 Italian Lire. It is a black skin in a black box, 1500 pcs. Here is a picture of the box and here is a picture of the catalogue. Thanks to Andrea Faggioli for the information and to Yasuhiro Minato and to Rob Versteeg for the pictures.
• Dutch Kalvertoren special. Recently, Swatch has opened the second swatch store in Amsterdam, Netherlands. To celebrate this event, Swatch has released a very nice limited, numbered (1000 pcs) access special called Kalvertoren. It is not a new watch but the "Magic Show" access from the new collection with a special new strap (we've had this before...) Here is a picture of the watch. The packaging is quite elaborate. It comes in a large tube with cow hide design on it. Inside the tube, a large "Amsterdammertje" is holding the watch. A what?!? An "Amsterdammertje" is a metal stick used in Amsterdam (and elsewhere) to prevent cars from parking. Sounds confusing, eh? Maybe a picture of the packaging tells more than my bad English. I already called the Amsterdam swatch store. They will NOT sell via phone, only if you show up in person in Amsterdam, grrr... You don't need to call the store. Original selling price is 170 Dutch Guilders (do the conversion yourself!) My next guess was Rob V. at www.squiggly.com since he is also located in the Netherlands and has reasonable prices on watches and straps. He said that the Kalvertoren special will be available from the mid of November. I'll try again then. Here are more good photos of the special.
• Candy Dulfer MusiCall special. Swatch has released a Candy Dulfer MusiCall special called Funky Stuff (that's actually the name of her band and a good description of her music) (SLZ107, not limited). Packaging is a silver paper box with a red heart on it. The watch has a nice hologram strap. Here is a picture. Due to the recent 'flood' of specials, the special may not be available everywhere. Daniel told me that France may not get this! Here is a picture of a signed "Funky Stuff". Thanks to Yasuhiro Minato for the picture.
• "Roboboy" New York special. Roboboy artists swatch will be released in a special packaging similar to the "Missing Naiis" package  in december. It will be a numbered edition of 300 pcs. A set of earrings will be included with the package. It will be available as "one special per person" at two signing events in New York (Timeship store) and California in December. The Timeship store will NOT accept phone orders! Original selling price will be around $85 US. Here is a picture of a signed watch + packaging and here is a picture of a signed corresponding art print.
• Gift with purchase at NY swatch store. The South Street Seaport store in New York has produced a special gift-with-purchase. If you purchase all 5 solar specials form them, they are including a special Swatch-approved gift that relates to the Statue of Liberty. Only 111 of these gifts are being produced to commemorate the 111th anniversary of the statue. The gift-with-purchase of the set of 5 solar specials at the South Street Seaport store in New York is a set of embroidered patches. The three patches will be in the shape of a Swatch (and slightly larger than a standard Swatch). The bottom part (bottom band) has the Statue of Liberty. The middle part is the face of the Swatch with the face of the Statue of Liberty. The top part (band with buckle) shows the New York skyline. The patches will match the picture on the packaging for the Statue of Liberty Swatch. The store is accepting pre-orders and the patches are only available when purchasing a complete set of 5 solar specials. The five watches come in an acrylic box similar to the artist sets. Here is a picture of the set and here is a picture of the numbered pic by Michael Feigenbaum that comes with the set. Thanks to Brian Pier for the information and to Yasuhiro Minato for the pictures.
• 106th IOC session access special. From 3-6 SEP 97, the 106th session of the International Olympic Committee took place in Lausanne, Switzerland. An access special (SKZ112) was given to VIPs for that event. 500 pcs total. 100 of these were sold in the Olympic Museum. I called the Museum to buy the rest of the 100 :-) but (of course) the watch is sold out. You don't need to pick up your phone. Here is a picture of this nice completely new designed swatch. Here are more excellent pics. Thanks to Christine Tanner for the information.
• Philippine special. A new swatch is released on the Philippines to commemorate the 100th anniversary of independence. Here is a preview picture. Here is a picture of the actual watch. On the philippines, some (all?) swatches are sold in a special packaging with bamboo, a metal pin, and a certificate. Outsides of the philippines, the watch does NOT come in some kind of special packaging. In Europe, the watch seems to be available in Vienna only so far. You can call the Vienna Swatch store at ++43 1533 17 21. Thanks to Gerald So, Thomas Buerki, Otto Schreiber, and Bruno Allmendinger for the information & pic.
• Salzburg "Sound of Swatch" Access special. From July 25th to August 31 1997, a large swatch exhibition called "Sound of Swatch" takes place in Salzburg, Austria. Click here for some german(!) info. For the opening of the exhibition, Swatch released a variant (ref.no. SKK104C) of the Salzburg Access swatch to invited guests:  The difference to the regular Salzburg Access is a "Sound of Swatch" imprint on the (larger) loop of the strap. Same packaging etc. Here is a picture of the access special. If you are interested in getting one of these specials, please send me an email, maybe I can help. More pics are here.
• German 5th Element special. In conjunction with the start of the movie "5th Element" in Germany on August, 28th, Swatch released a numbered limited edition (of 8000) special package of the 5th Element swatch. The elaborate, very colorful, book-like package contains the 5th Element swatch (non-access version in blue plastic box) and the soundtrack CD. Ref.no. is GK260S. If you are interested in getting one of these specials, please send me an email, maybe I can help. Pictures of this special are here. More excellent pictures are here. Apparently, part of the edition is also being sold in Austria. The austrian version however, contains the 5th element access (silver ring)! All Austrian versions that I've seen have a number 7xxx. This leads to the conclusion that no. 0001-6999 were sold with regular gent watch in Germany and no. 7000-7999 were sold with access watch in Austria but I can't prove that of course.
• Fall/Winter Pop special. Swatch will release pop special (20000 pcs). An orange pop swatch with many large orange feathers designed by German fashion designer Rudolph Mooshammer. Original release date was August, 1st but it was pushed back to a later date, probably fall. Here is the excellent ad. Packaging is a green purse. Start of sale will be Oct, 7th (at least in Switzerland). Here is a picture sent to me from Jerry, taken by Daniel. The color of the purse is a light neon green, the feathers are orange. A great watch! Yet another excellent picture! And another picture!
• Swatch Skin. A swatch as thin as a plastic strap?!?  Yup, this ultrathin swatch (3.9mm height; strap will be thin as paper!) becomes reality in the autumn when a new product line will be launched. Sounds quite exciting. It will be released in four primary colors (black, red, blue, yellow) plus a clear jelly. Price will be as chronos (125 DM in Germany). In France, the skin are already out and cost 450 FF (chronos & specials cost 500 FF). In Paris, a big department store is selling ~50 pcs per day!  That's quite a lot. The arc-like packaging is also nice.  The first ads for this watch have surfaced in the US (OUT magazine). I've heard about a launch date of 7-NOV-97. On 1-OCT-97, the Skin Swatch was shown/presented in Geneva to the press and gold members. Nick Hayek and Daley Thompson were there, both in a happy mood. They signed the packagings of the new skin watches. No special packaging was released, fortunately :-) Winfred de Ruijter has some GREAT pictures. More pictures. Thanks to Thomas Buerki and Christine Tanner for the information.
• Portugal Expo 98 access special. The Expo 98 exhibition will take place in Lisbon next year. Swatch will release (end of September) an access special called Adamastor which allows you to enter the exhibition for one day. Here is a picture. The watch costs 13300 Escudos with one-day-ticket or 8300 Esc. without. If you want to buy the watch, you can try emailing ticketing@expo98.pt. More info and picture is here. Thanks to Tiago Freitas and Paulo Jorge Almeida for the information.
• Swiss 5th Element special. This was released in Zurich on August 7th and sold out immediately. 819 pieces, different  packaging to German 5th Element special: it contains the access version of the 5th element watch + soundtrack CD (no cover, CD only!) and some cinema entrance tickets. It comes in a box as 11PM special where the watch is placed diagonally in the box. Here and here are some great pictures. Note that the box does not contain the special blue 5th element plastic box. Also note that this 5th element access is slightly different to the 5th element access in blue plastic box given away earlier:  The new Zurich 5th Element access has a number on the back which means that it also can be used for skiing etc. This special was launched for the opening of the 5th element movie in Zurich on August 14. N. Hayek, Michael Johnson (US athlete) were present and signed the stuff for the Gold members only (grrr! :-) Later, director Luc Besson and composer Eric Serra talked to everyone about the movie. They signed stuff as well. Thanks to Thomas Buerki for the information.
• Solar specials. Swatch releases a special solar swatch called "Worldtour". It comes with four (or five?) different straps, 20000 of each version. Each strap carries the picture of a famous building in either Germany, France, US, or Italy (plus Switzerland [Matterhorn mountain]). Have a look at this picture. Update: German version (only) will have a very nice special packaging (limited to 5000, not numbered) and it will be sold at a higher price. The special packaging will only be available in Germany. More pics of the German solar special are here. The Switzerland version will also have a special packaging which will only be available in Switzerland...
• Super Baby pop special packaging. In France, the Super Baby pop swatch is available with two different nice special packagings. Pictures are on Lionel's site. This packaging is probably only available in France since it is a collaboration between Swatch/Printemps department store/a baby stuff brand whose name I don't know. Thanks to Tiago Freitas for the information.
• Velcro straps. About 25 older models (94-96, gent, scuba, chronos, aquachronos) have been refitted with velcro straps. They are being sold now in Switzerland (and other countries as well, probably)
• Malaysia Boyzone access special. Swatch is releasing a special limited edition (2200 pieces) Access Swatch for Boyzone's concert in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. On 6 September 1997, Boyzone (urx!) are playing a private concert for 2,200 people. For the first time, access to a concert will be by Swatch Access. The admission to the Boyzone concert comes free when you buy this Swatch Access: A Clearance Access with the Boyzone logo on an additional loop on the band.  Here is my picture and here is the picture on Jules' site and here are nice pictures on Penelope's site. Thanks to Kenny Ang for the information.
• Netherlands SMH opening access special. At the official opening of SMH Netherlands (formerly the independent import agency Maassen in Maastricht) a special access (SKK103M) was given to people invited. It has one extra 'thing to hold the strap when watch is worn' (loop probably) with 'SMH Netherlands logo' on it. Approximately 800 were given away, not numbered. Here is a picture. If you need one of these for a cheap price, contact Rob (info@squiggly.com). Thanks to Winfred de Ruijter for the information.
• Salzburg "Sound of Swatch" event. Took place on the weekend of Aug. 10th. The club members got the "Sound of Swatch" Access special (see below) and the right to purchase 1 Bailey vs Johnson Toronto "One to One" access special. The 2nd Club watch (updated info below) was also sold. Highlight of the event was the Candy Dulfer concert. The Club members met her before the concert and had the chance to talk to her. Excellent! Thanks to Thomas Buerki for the information.
• New Japanese packagings. Two new japanese packagings have surfaced. One is a gift box which is given away free with purchase (pictures on japanese site). The other one is not available for sale but is used only for shop display (with 'Deep' chrono, see picture).
• Censored version of "Tokyo Manga" swatch. The "Tokyo Manga" swatch is supposed to be released in two versions since it contains the explicit word "unf***ingbelievable" (or something similar) on the back of the strap, see picture and closeup. In the USA (and elsewhere?), the watch may be released without this nasty word. Thanks to Yasuhiro Mintao for thepictures. Here is another picture of the nasty swatch!
• 2nd Club watch GNOMANIA. The 2nd Club watch is a loomi, is called "gnomania" (see picture of the watch) and comes in a special package which can be seen on this picture. It is limited to 19999 and can only be bought if you are a Club member. Should not be too hard to get. On the end of the strap, a small gnome pin is affixed. Another excellent picture is here or here.
• Juventus VIP package. You all know about the Juventus Turin access watch by now (see below). Additionally, in the near future, a new special package, the Juventus VIP package, will be released. It is a plexiglass cylinder (similar to the Perfect Timing package, but bigger). The cylinder contains the watch (numbered on case XXX/100), a juventus shirt (perhaps number 10), and BUN BUN, the mascotte of juventus team. The top and bottom of cylinder is heavy and printed with juvecentus logo and "Swatch" inscription. The top is numbered as the watch XXX/100. Looks like a very nice package. It will be released by Juventus club, but is recognized by Swatch as has been verified by Swatch in Milan. There is not an official selling price because this package will be auctioned during a VIP classical music concert in Turin. Rob has some wonderful photos of this package. Thanks to Vic for the information.
• Otranto special. On the weekend of 28+29 June, a swatch event took place in the Club Med in Otranto, Italy (in the south). Swatch released a numbered (xxx/800) limited edition special called Swatch City for that event. The special is nice! I have made a page about the special with pictures!
• US only(?) specials. Some special Swatches will be produced in the near future. One will be a Hawaiian Wedding Swatch. The other three will be "custom watches for Las Vegas, San Francisco, and New York." They say they will "be exclusive to Swatch stores" and should be available "At the end of summer". Rumor is that these may only be available in the USA and maybe only at Swatch stores in the Borseit/Borsack group. Thanks to Brian Pier for the information.
• Candy Dulfer MusiCall special. Candy Dulfer is a female saxophonist from the Netherlands. She plays great funky music and has worked together with Prince (remember the 'Partyman' video?) , Van Morrison, Pink Floyd etc.  If you have the chance to see her in concert, please do so. Her concerts are much funkier than her (slightly overproduced) records... Swatch will release a MusiCall speciall related to her in the fall. Design has been changed several times. The strap may carry a hologram. Here is her official website with a small info bit about her swatch. Thanks to Thomas Buerki for the information.
• Club Med access. Yet another Clearance Access special is sold through the Club Med. It carries the Club Med imprint on the strap. You can pay in the Club Med using your access swatch. This special swatch is not limited. Here is a picture.
• Paris Jungle Tangle special. YAJTS (Yet Another Jungle Tangle Special) has been released in Paris, France. It contains the Jungle Tangle swatch in a cardboard sleeve packaging (picture of wrapped swatch with twine) together with a Jungle Tangle fountain pen. It is a numbered limited edition of 65. I have one of these for trade. If you are interested, please email. Some pictures are on this japanese page.
• Dutch Twitch Twins special. The Dutch Swatch The Club has released a special containing the Twitch Twins watch. It is limited to 250 individually numbered pieces. Besides the watch, the nice box designed by Marcel Bierenbroodspot contains 3 pencils, gum and a blank booklet to design your own comic swatch. Here is a picture which says almost everything. Original selling price is quite expensive: 170 HFl (~ $85US). Thanks to Mark Tan for the picture.
• Vittel event. 13 to 15 of June. First of all for all of you who weren't there:  NO special swatch or special packaging released so you can relax :-)  We saw the 2nd club watch which will be a Loomi. The strap (not ready yet :-) carries pictures of gnomes from all around the world. The watch itself is quite different from the Garden Turf but very nice:  Circles in neon color. A limited numbered edition of 20000. Should be easy to get. The event took place in the Club Med in Vittel, a very nice and comfortable place with lots of sports activities possible. Some people even visited the beauty farm. On Saturday, we had the Swatch Olympics (including the Swatch quiz with some hard questions: Do you know the name of the thinnest swatch?) where one of the five teams won a gnome per person. On Sunday, a treasure hunt took place. We had to find gnomes which were hidden in the area. Very hard to find. 10 people won a Maxi swatch, 5 people will get the second club special "as soon as it comes off the production line". The best thing about the event was that we met many collectors from different countries (the (in)famous (only joking :-) Alby from Italy, Brian from the US, Thomas from Basel and so on. A lot of trading took place during the 2 days. Many US collectors came to Vittel as part of their Gold Member club trip. The days before, the gold members were in Biel to visit the swatch factory. They were overwhelmed with gifts from Swatch (ever heard of such a thing happen before?): They got a personalized "Gold Medalist", special T-shirts, the chance to buy the 5th element access (see below), the Bailey vs Johnson Toronto access special and so on. The big boss from swatch, Nick Hayek, signed their stuff for 3 hours [he never signs swatches]! Besides the fact that I am not a Gold member and that I did not get the good stuff, this memorable weekend was a lot of fun (as with all the swatch events before).
• Swatch quiz. Can you spot the Swatch reference on this picture or on this picture?  Can you name all the swatches on this picture [no, that's not me]? Sorry, no prizes.
• Bailey vs Johnson Toronto "One to One" access special. On June 1st, the race of the decade (century?) takes place in Toronte, Canada:  The 150m race of Donovan Bailey vs. Michael Johnson. Dan Aykroyd & the Blues Brothers Band will also be playing. Swatch is co-sponsoring this event. A limited number of travel packages are (were?) available through the German swatch club (and others as well probably). Apparently, swatch has released yet another access special: The watch is SKK 103 -"Clearance" Access watch. The watch will have the logos of the race printed on the bands. They are limited to 350 and will only be sold in Toronto. Excellent pictures are on this japanese website!Thanks to Mark Salsberg for the information.
• Juventus Turin special. In 1997, the italian soccer club Juventus Turin celebrates its 100th anniversary. As the Italians are crazy for swatch, the soccer club will release a special access with the name Ora et Signora and unique design (black and white [colour of Juventus Team] with yellow stars) in June. It will come in a special green paper slip case showing a soccer stadium. Click here for a picture of the swatch and the packaging. It will have free entrance 'tickets' for three events (July, August and October) related to the 100th anniversary on the Access chip. The watch will sell at the normal price of an access swatch (eg. 70000 Italian Lire) and will not be limited. Also, it is supposed to be available everywhere in the world. Thanks to Vittorio and Alby for the information.
• Thessaloniki access special. The city of Thessaloniki in Greece is cultural capital of Europe in 1997. In the beginning of June, swatch will release a special access swatch called Avaton in Greece which can be used in this city and in the museum of byzantine civilisation which will host a major exhibition of trasures from the Holy Mountain of Athos. This swatch will also be available everywhere in July. It comes in a nice packaging. The official swatch WWW carries much more information about this swatch.
• Work in Progress special. Yet another local special was sold through the 5th avenue swatch store in New York. Apparently, the store is remodeling. The Work in Progress special consists of a toolbox with SWATCH sticker. The toolbox comes in either black (the rarest), red or turquoise colour. In the toolbox, there is a nice white T-shirt, the CAUTION swatch from last years collection, and a strip of CAUTION plastic band similar to the swatch. Original selling price was $40 US. The special is not numbered but I've been told that there are only 100 of these specials. Overall, good value for money. It seems to be very hot at the moment. Excellent pictures are on this japanese website!
• Fifth Element Cannes Access special. Swatch has released a limited Access special for the Cannes film festival called 5th Element (relates to the new movie by Luc Besson). 850 of these access specials are numbered and were given to VIPs. These 850 access swatches were packaged in a pyramid (I am not 100% sure about this) and they were valid for the opening ceremony of the film festival. Additionally, there are 3200 unnumbered access specials which were valid for the midnight party. So, there are 4050 fifth element access swatches around. To make things even more confusing, a regular unlimited version (gent) will be available soon at your local swatch store. This means that there are three versions of the 5th element swatch. How can you distinguish the rare access from the easily available gent? The access version has a silver ring (pictures are here!), the regular gent version has a blue ring. Click here for more general information. If you can read french, here is a nice site with good photos about the Cannes event. A maxi swatch has also been released. Thanks to Thomas Buerki for the info.
• USA mothers day special packaging. For mother's day in the US, each swatch purchase gets a free special card for SuperMom that comes with potpurri (smells!) and a place to attach the swatch.This is no special swatch but only a special packaging that came free with purchase of any swatch of the current catalogue! Don't pay too much for this, you have been warned! Thanks to Brian Pier for the info and to Yasuhiro Mintao for the picture.
• Hong Kong 97 special. A new Hong Kong only special has been released. It is available at the Duty Free shop in HK. Rumour has it that 3000 were made. The watch is the good old XXL swatch from 1994 (I guess it didn't sell too well) with a new strap. The reference no. is GK 171C. Original selling price is $360 HK (~$47 US). Here's a picture of the watch. The swatch comes in a paper slipcase as eg. the messages set or the "Rund um die Uhr" special. This special is sold out now!
• New Japanese specials. A new japanese only (2000 pcs) comic hour special is set to be released in late May. See picture(thanks to Yasuhiro Minato) or this japanese page. The special comes with one of the three different comic hour swatches (Centipede, Jungle Tangle, or Twitch Twins). Also available and already sold out: The Artists "The Lady & The Mirror" M.Fukuda (1000 pcs in special packaging). Here's one picture and here is another one.
• Very limited Irony special ROTOR. On May 1st, Swatch will release an extremely limited Irony special called Rotor designed by Italian artist Arnaldo Pomodoro. Click HERE to view a picture of the watch. The watch will be hand manufactured and it will be very expensive:  ~900 DM in Germany (which is about $535 US). On the watch, the signature of the artist and the number will be engraved. The packaging is supposed to be very elaborate. All swatch stores in Germany will receive about 40 of these specials in total. This means that each store probably will get only one ROTOR. 15 more RORORs were distributed through the German Swatch Club for Club members. Total production run of this special will be 700. Happy hunting :-)
• Inhorgenta Access. From 21-24 Feb 97, the Inhorgenta fair (jewelry, watches, clocks and giftware) took place in Munich, Germany. This fair was open only for professionals, not for the general public. Swatch released yet another Access special:  A Clearance Access (SKK103) with a special strap (clear strap with "inhorgenta" imprint). This special was not sold but given to jewellers to give access to a special swatch exhibition. I've seen this watch (our local jeweller showed it to me). Swatch sent this to 320 jewellers, so probably 320 exist. No, I don't know how to get one. Please don't ask. :-)