Monday, August 3, 2015

KLOK-01

"Alain Silberstein meets Breitling"  - in the best possible way.  These were the thoughts that a colleague and I had.  Wonderful colors combining with a classic slide rule design.  I love it already!

With all of the new watches being hurled out at us, this one has really caught my eye and imagination.  Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls; allow me to introduce the Klokers KLOK-01.

Courtesy of Klokers
This is a watch that you will be able to purchase via a Kickstarter fundraiser that is set to launch in September.

It will be available in three different color themes -

Courtesy of Klokers

                                     YELLOW

Courtesy of Klokers
                            
                                    GREY
Courtesy of Klokers


INDIGO
I am partial to the yellow myself ; )

As this is a brand new thing and I have no earlier reference to go by, here is the release just as I received it this AM -

Machines to travel through time

Come back with us through time, anytime from the 1970s all the way back to the 17th century, when slide rules really did rule. Before the advent of cheap pocket calculators, slide rules were the fastest method for working out complex calculations.
klokers pays homage to this iconic, form-follows-function instrument with the brand's first watch, the KLOK-01, featuring three rotating disks displaying time along a vertical line and a patented interchangeable bracelet system.

klokers watches are highly evocative, triggering memories and personal stories from iconic objects of our past. They are like time shuttles for the wrist, reviving timeless style elements and channeling them into fresh, contemporary, playful timepieces respecting the origins of their inspiration.

The KLOK-01 display is a graphical representation of a slide rule using three rotating concentric rings to display the time along a vertical red line. The rings — one each for hours, minutes, and seconds — rotate at different speeds, making the whole dial a symphony of motion.

An integrated magnifying lens in the crystal ensures high legibility when reading the time. The 44 mm case is fabricated from a modern composite of stainless steel and polymers for maximum strength and comfort.

klokers watches easily, and securely, clip on and off a patented docking "jewel" on the bracelet, allowing for interchangeability of watches and bracelets to suit the owner's mood and fashion.

The bracelet (KLOK-00) is also designed to be worn by itself.

KLOK-01 is more than a watch: both the timepiece and bracelet are stylish, stand-alone fashion accessories.

KLOK-01 is priced at $389 and will be officially launched by a Kickstarter campaign in September 2015 in a numbered edition launch model of 200 pieces each in yellow, grey, and indigo.

You can stay up to date with our Kickstarter campaign and qualify for the $199, 40% discounted, numbered edition launch model by registering at 


www.klokers.com


KLOK-01: the watch
Inspiration
KLOK-01 is inspired by the slide rule, a once ubiquitous calculating instrument. A slide rule is a mechanical analog computer usually comprising three scales, one of which slides between the other two. The slide rule was primarily used for multiplication and division, but it's also suitable for calculating more complex functions such as roots, logarithms, and trigonometry.
In a similar way, the dial of KLOK-01 is composed of three circular disks — one each for the hours, minutes and seconds — which rotate at different speeds to slide past each other.
Slide rules are available in both linear and circular models (the latter being the inspiration for KLOK-01). They were used extensively until the 1970s, but became largely obsolete in the mid-҆70s with the arrival of cheap electronic calculators.
Technology
KLOK-01 is Swiss Made and features a high-tech movement with a high-precision quartz movement. The rotating disk displays are driven by high-efficiency, bi-directionally functioning Lavet micro-motors that boast low power consumption.
These disks display the time on a vertical red line at the top of the dial. An integrated magnifying lens in the crystal ensures maximum legibility when reading the time.

The 44 mm case of KLOK-01 is made from a composite metal polymer offering high strength and low weight and ensuring that the timepiece fits comfortably on wrists of all sizes. A pusher at 8 o'clock on the case band releases the watch from the docking "jewel" for ease of changing watches and bracelets.

Docking jewel for interchangeability

All of klokers bracelets feature a patented docking "jewel" that enables quick and easy interchangeability of watches and bracelets. The watch is detached from the bracelet by a pusher on the case band at 8 o'clock.


Stand alone bracelet

klokers bracelets (KLOK-00) are designed to also be worn alone as attractive accessories in their own right. With a wide range of colors, textures, and materials available, the easily interchangeable bracelets ensure that your klokers' bracelet and/or watch will always suit your mood and clothing.

Colors available in 2015 include matte black leather, silky black leather, indigo leather, orange alcantara, mouse-gray alcantara, and Newport yellow leather. Two new collections of bracelets will be launched each year.

KLOK-01: technical details
KLOK-01 is available in a numbered edition Kickstarter launch model of 200 pieces each in yellow, grey, and indigo.
Functionality
Hours, minutes, and seconds displayed by counterclockwise-rotating concentric disks. Docking jewel enabling easily interchangeable straps.
Dial
Time display: three concentric disks rotate to indicate the time along vertical red line at top of dial. Seconds displayed in gray in the center, minutes in red, and hours in black around the perimeter of the dial.
Case
Material: composite metal polymer
Dimensions: 44 mm diameter x 17 mm high
Water resistance: 30 m / 90’ / 3 atm
Docking jewel: pusher on case band at 8 o'clock for quick release of case from docking jewel
Crystal: anti-reflect treated transparent polymer with integrated magnifying lens for time display

Movement
Swiss Made Ronda movement with Lavet micro-motors powering the indications
Bracelet
Docking jewel: quick release dock in brushed, hypoallergenic-treated, 316L stainless steel
Bracelet: 22 mm, genuine leather, designed to be worn with or without watch
Buckle: stainless steel pin buckle
Colors available 2015: matte black leather, silky black leather, indigo leather, orange alcantara, mouse-gray alcantara, and Newport yellow leather


About klokers
                       
In this era of being constantly switched on and permanently connected, when everything appears to be not just rushing past us, but accelerating away, klokers reclaims the time that escapes us. klokers designs and manufactures machines that time travel through time.

Each klokers timepiece is inspired by an iconic object or instrument with a design so powerful that it has left memories still embedded in the collective unconsciousness of today. KLOK-01 recalls the slide rule, an analog pocket computing instrument. klokers timepieces are not faux vintage, but rather a bridge allowing us to travel through the past, the present, and the future.

klokers’ founders

Nicolas Boutherin, co-founder, president, and artistic director
From creating cartoons to luxury goods, Nicolas built his career in various domains such as communication, innovation, and media. He has worked as art director and general manager in both start-ups like InVisio and major corporations including Publicis, Canal +, and Arpin 1817.

A very distinctive concept of telling the time took shape after long study and research from work done by physicist Etienne Klein, sociologists Hartmut Rosa, and Zygmunt Bauman, and author Daniele Del Giudice. An understanding of the needs and desires of our contemporary lifestyles grew after he absorbed the writings of author Richard Florida and the marketing analysis of Seth Godin.

One day, the stars aligned and the klokers concept crystallized.

Richard Piras, co-founder and CEO
After fifteen years in technological innovation, electric vehicles, aeronautics, and medical devices, Richard started reconsidering the appreciation of time and contributed to pushing traditional watchmaking out of its comfort zone.

Richard has had a lifelong fascination with celestial mechanics and starry skies. Time is an important element of the universe, but until now no human being has been able to define time without using the concept of time itself.

After more than ten years as an entrepreneur in the Swiss horological industry, Richard met Nicolas Boutherin during a professional dinner. They discovered that they shared the same human values and thoughts regarding a new concept in watchmaking.

One day, the stars aligned and the klokers concept became clear.


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