Frederique Constant & Alpina Go Smart

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Stefan Sebök, last updated on 09/22/2016

Strategic watch coup

Watch Cosmos 2015: Apple does it. Montblanc too. Hello this year, Swatch want it, Mondaine will follow. Then one of the little ones among the big ones takes the initiative, presents the first Swiss Smartwatch in a classic watch case to the enthusiastic watch world and demonstrates strategic leadership. The clear focus is on the lifestyle segment for smartphone-affine buyers of luxury watches. Frédérique Constant and Alpina pass the competition with a smug smile on the dial. Small can be pretty smart. Frédérique Constant, the independent and ambitious traditional manufacturer from Plan-les-Ouates near Geneva, which applied for 50 patents in the last two years alone, decided a tactical manoeuvre in 2015. The traditional owner-operated company combined Swiss watchmaking with the blessings of Silicon Valley knowledge to create a classic timepiece with intelligence and chutzpah and was thus a digital nose ahead of the market giants of haute horlogerie. Sister Alpina took care of the sporty counterpart. Only Montblanc was one watch tick faster than Frédérique Constant, while the Swatch Group and Tag Heuer were out of time. Peter Stas, CEO of Frédérique Constant and Alpina, obviously enjoyed it.

 

 

Joint Venture for the first Smartwatch in the classic outfit

Company boss Peter Stas, for example, had the privilege of basking in the nimbus of a watch pioneer when presenting his “Helvetica No. 1 Horological Smartwatch”. The watch coup was worth founding a company for him. With “Fullpower Technologies”, Frédérique Constant has gained a reliable and potent computer technology partner from Silicon Valley. The Geneva location continued to ensure that Manufacture Modules Technologies (MMT) received the “Swiss Made” label, which is only granted if at least 60 percent of the watch and movement are produced in Switzerland according to traditional Swiss standards. Mondaine was the first licensee of MMT to launch its own model. The promising test run at Frédérique Constant aroused desires, because the technical possibilities of the first Horological Smartwatch were far from exhausted. Watch and smartphone lovers can therefore look forward to the future. Unlike Montblanc’s creation, an automatic chronograph with integrated micro-display on the wristband, which is in good hands with a hip, trendy target group, the Smartwatch at Frédérique Constant does not see itself as a competitor but as an addition to the mechanical watch. With its classic noblen embossing the manufactory aims at suit-wearers in boardrooms, who cannot take much pleasure in bulky plastic parts, vibrations or beeps on the wrist. Your Smartwatch is and remains a watch – clearly round with a diameter of 42 millimetres and with analogue hands – which does not impair digital functionality. The usual wearables from electronics laboratories do not even strive for a watch attitude.

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Luxury watches for fit and well-rested lovers

On September 9, 2014, the innovative Apple Smartwatch was presented to journalists in a flurry of flashbulbs. Their technological power was unmistakable. The Frédérique Constant Smartwatch, on the other hand, does not at first glance suggest that it maintains a close liaison with a smartphone and tablet. It enters the Smartwatch age discreetly and classically. Externally unspectacular. On the typical features – white dial, golden case, motor-driven hands – no special covers can be discerned. A beautiful watch as known and appreciated by Frédérique Constant. At best, the mysterious button on the crown and a small dial positioned at 6 fall out of the frame. It bears a date display with a moon symbol and an ominous scale of 0-100 on both hands, which raises questions.

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Motion detector and step controller

The secret of the inner life is quickly revealed: Intelligent sensor technology makes daily routines such as movement and sleep measurable. The “Horological Smartwatch” shows off its talents as a sensor carrier that can track, register and report certain activities and movements of its wearers to a smartphone or tablet. It is configured on the smartphone, registered in the watch based on the movements of the wearer, especially his steps. What can the Smartwatch do better than a pedometer? The app, which controls and evaluates or triggers inactivity alarms, adds charm. Fitness tracking should make a contribution to the well-being of the manufactory’s customers – at least that’s what it sounds like from Geneva. The 24/7 MotionX activity and sleep monitoring function is useful and useful, especially if the wearer has set specific fitness goals, such as a daily minimum of X steps. Then the hundred scale mercilessly reveals how many percent the wearer has approached his goal or not.

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Smarter and more relaxed into the day

Even at night, the Smartwatch does not close its eyes when worn on the wrist or stowed under the pillow, which takes a little getting used to. Its Sleeptracker function monitors the slumbering person’s movements and detects in which phase of sleep he is. It reveals its true intelligence in the morning when the “Sleep Cycle Alarm” program does not tear the person dreaming out of a deep sleep phase but when his movements indicate a light sleep phase and the wake-up call is easier to cope with. The amazingly long battery life of more than two years is made possible by the absence of an electronic display, and energy-saving Bluetooth switches the bidirectional relationship between Smartwatch and smartphone. The Smartwatch is compatible with Apple and Android smartphones.

 

 

The arms race for the quartz watch market

The secret of the inner life is quickly revealed: Intelligent sensor technology makes daily routines such as movement and sleep measurable. The “Horological Smartwatch” shows off its talents as a sensor carrier that can track, register and report certain activities and movements of its wearers to a smartphone or tablet. It is configured on the smartphone, registered in the watch based on the movements of the wearer, especially his steps. What can the Smartwatch do better than a pedometer? The app, which controls and evaluates or triggers inactivity alarms, adds charm. Fitness tracking should make a contribution to the well-being of the manufactory’s customers – at least that’s what it sounds like from Geneva. The 24/7 MotionX activity and sleep monitoring function is useful and useful, especially if the wearer has set specific fitness goals, such as a daily minimum of X steps. Then the hundred scale mercilessly reveals how many percent the wearer has approached his goal or not. What else can the Horological Smartwatch do? Oh yes, it also shows time and date. While Frédérique Constant’s Smartwatch is dedicated to classic-elegant men’s watches, its sister brand Alpina also addresses a feminine group of buyers with its sporty models.

This post is also available in: German


About the author

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Stefan Sebök

During my school days I worked in the warehouse of an auction house and that was when I first came into contact with exclusive, mechanical watches. The fascination was born from that moment and has not let go of me to this day. So it was clear to me very early on that I wanted to learn more about the history and price development of watches - and of course I wanted to own an automatic watch at some point. (My absolute dream, unfortunately far away, was a Rolex GMT Master with the blue and red Pepsi bezel). During my studies, I took my first steps in trading used watches via various online marketplaces and was then able to afford a used Breitling Colt.