F**KING SUN Sea-salt white

From Sequent -

Courtesy of Sequent

I hear "connected watch" and I am at once intrigued, and dubious. The ultimate shit-show that was Kronaby 1.0 while several years in the rear-view mirror still stings fresh for many of us who write about these things. Although in fairness, I did get to see Malmo, Sweden so I guess it wasn't a total loss ; )

Clearly, connected watches are still (and apparently will continue to be) a popular item out there. And having tested a few in my time, I can say that I do see the value of them. While I swear by my Hermès Apple watch (thank you, Wendy!), I will say that there is something about the consistency of an analog face, a watch that actually looks like a watch, and not needing to charge my watch every day.

Courtesy of Sequent

The technology is sound, and sufficient. Rather than offer everything including the kitchen sink, this connected watch from Sequent gives you practical, useful items:

• Activity Tracking
• Sleep Tracking
• Heart Rate
• Sport Mode

And all at a fairly reasonable price of (US) $495

But for me the best part is the theme - F**KING SUN! The melting ice cream cone that acts as an indicator just over the 6 o'clock position. Again, if I am being completely honest I have not been a fan of every seconde/seconde collaboration. The less said about the "Vulcain Salute" the better...but boy was that ever a turd... 

But with that said, this one is fun and strikes the perfect balance of playfulness with the watch it is adapted to.

Courtesy of Sequent

And best of all? It's solar powered!

If like me, you are intrigued, here are the pertinents -

Features:

· SC 2.3 in-house movement
· Sapphire Solar technology
· Activity tracking (steps, distance, calories)
· Heart rate monitoring
· Sleep tracking
· Workout mode
· Maps with e-GPS (requires phone)
· Sequent Oxygo app
· Compatible iOS and Android

Specifications:

· #tide case
· Sapphire dial
· SuperLuminova® indexes
· Hands filled with SuperLuminova®
· Unique activity tracking indicator

Dimensions:

· Diameter : 40.90 mm
· Height : 12.90 mm
· Lug to lug : 47.50 mm
· Strap width : 22.00 mm
· Case weight : 30 gr
· Strap weight : 22 gr
· Water resistance : 50 meters

Power Reserve:

· Stand-by : up to 24 months / infinite with solar (1 hour/week of sunlight)

· Activity : up to 12 months / infinite with solar (1 hour/day of sunlight)

· Activity + Heart rate : up to 2 months / infinite with solar (5 hours/day of sunlight)

*sunlight at 20’000 lux

When the watch reaches 40%, we continue tracking your steps and stop Bluetooth® and below 10% the watch goes into time only mode.

Available in five refreshing flavors, and limited to 99 pieces of each version. 

https://sequentworld.com/en-us/collections/all-watches

Arnault, The Even Younger Will Lead TAG Heuer

So... where to begin?

Courtesy of TAG Heuer

When dad owns the company, it is safe to say that he can make whatever staffing decisions he wants to.  But to be very honest, this is quite a bit different than lending junior the car keys. 

But let's get back to Mr. Arnault The Even Younger.  This is how his experience, education, etc. are described in the press release -

A former student of France’s École Polytechnique (X2014), Frédéric Arnault started his professional career at Facebook before moving on to consulting firm McKinsey. At the start of 2017 he joined TAG Heuer to manage its smartwatch activities. Since being appointed Chief Strategy and Digital Officer in October 2018, he has led an ambitious transformation and digitalisation campaign within the Maison in close collaboration with Stéphane Bianchi, CEO of the Watchmaking Division and TAG Heuer.

Now fairness, it's not as if I think I would be qualified to run this thing myself. But to be completely honest?  Based on his (let's be real here) scant experience, I don't get the sense that there was much of a talent search conducted to identify the best person for this particular job.

While Mr. Arnault has been able to focus on the fun stuff - digital communications, connected watches, party planning. The really hard piece of this job is going to be about making sound, informed decisions.  

And speaking of sound, informed decisions -

Courtesy of TAG Heuer

This is the same boy genius who decided that in the second week of March as the warnings about COVID-19 were getting louder and louder and people were advised to social distance and stay home whenever possible?  He decided it was a good idea to have a party instead -

Courtesy of Tag Heuer

And it remains to be seen how many party goers  might have gone home with something more than just the "swag bag".

I don't get the impression that this was perhaps the most well-thought out decision.

He is young, 25 years old by some accounts, so hopefully he will learn, and hopefully make better decisions now that he is in the driver's seat. 

As always, we wish Mr. Arnault good luck and God's Speed.

Smartwatches, and all that Glitters

Story by Francis Jacquerye

Preamble

Since the launch of the Apple watch in 2015, it has become a commonly accepted fact that smartwatches are out to take luxury watches. After all, sales of luxury watches are dropping and sales of apple watches have overtaken them... so it must be true, right?

Besides possibly ignoring economics trends and consumer behaviour, this reasoning seems to oversimplify the value proposition of luxury goods. If customers cared more about utilities (technical specifications) than luxuries, there would not be a $1,171 billion global luxury industry [1].

In this first part of the series, the author would like to look at how Apple influenced the conversation about smartwatches, and wether there are overlaps with luxury watches. The author has worked for both the luxury industry and the consumer electronics industry (within Swatch Group AG from 2007 to 2013 and Goertek Inc. from 2015 to 2019),  and has been an Apple customer for the last 10 years, so his perspective cannot really be accused of being partial or biased.

The Successful Contrarian

There is no doubt that Apple is a polarising company. On one side they enjoy an almost-cult like following, and on the other they are the subject of criticism.

Something that everyone can agree upon however is that the company's history could be divided into a pre Dot-com bubble [2] era (with an outspokenly anti-IBM Steve Jobs being ousted) and a post Dot-com bubble era, with Steve Jobs back at the company's helm and the company becoming a leader of market segments.

Image: Steve Jobs outside IBM's NY headquarters in 1983, photo Andy Hertzfeld/Jean Pigozzi. Reproduced under Fair Use / Fair Dealings 

In the pre Dot-com bubble era, Apple was defining itself as being contrarian to the mainstream computing corporations. Their chosen narrative presented them as a David against Goliath.

Image: Apple's 1984 Super Bowl commercial, directed by Ridley Scott. Reproduced under Fair Use / Fair Dealings 

« This commercial was classically disruptive... This wasn’t a machine where you were going to be kowtowed in the workplace, this was a machine for the young, innovative, entrepreneurial mind. It really inspires the creative individual to break free and start something different. » [3]

In the post-Internet era, Apple has defined itself as the "underdog". Their success stories always follows the same template: Apple enters an existing product category, releases their own improved version, beats the biggest guy on the yard and ultimately dominates the market.

They started with the iPod, which remains the most successful portable media player of the post Dot-com bubble era. They followed suit with the iPhone, which managed to spell trouble for industry leaders such as Blackberry, Motorola, Nokia and Sony-Ericsson; and continued with the iPad, which dominates the market of tablets.

The Biggest Guy on the Yard

In 2014 the market of smartwatches represented a modest volume of less than 5 million devices. Since there was no Goliath of smartwatches to pick on, Apple looked at the market of wrist wear and decided that the closest thing to a big guy were Swiss luxury watches.

This offered two opportunities: by name dropping luxury brands, Apple could avoid comparison on utilities with its direct competitors, they could lean on overlapping aspirational values with luxury brands and they could anchor the image of their smartwatches as quasi luxury goods.

Avoiding Comparison

Although it is true that Apple did use comparison with direct competition in the early 2000s (the LOL funny "Get a Mac" campaign with Justin Long) [4], they did promote the overall experience instead of focusing on utilities. Once that the company got the upper hand on portable media players with the iPod, and on smartphones with the iPhone, they could afford to focus on the brand experience. This tactic has the benefit of leaving adversaries with no other option that competing on utilities or price.

Focusing on Aspirational Values

Interestingly, this strategy is closer to luxury brands than consumer brands. Patek Philippe for example, promises customers to travel across generations.

Image: Patek Philippe's "Generations" campaign: « You never actually own a Patek Philippe. You merely lok after it for the next generation. »

As for Rolex, founder Hans Wilsdorf practically invented athlete endorsement and cemented the brand's promise to customers of traveling across the globe.

Image: Mercedes Gleitze, British professional swimmer and first woman to cross the English channel in 1927. Reproduced under Fair Use / Fair Dealings.

Apple's promise to customers is to travel with their mind. The company's stated mission is « ...bringing the best user experience to its customers through its innovative hardware, software and services. » [5]. Everything in the brand experience, from advertising, retail design, approachable staff, packaging, industrial design, interface and ecosystem upholds those values.

Image: Working at an Apple store. Image credit Apple Inc.

Using Anchoring

In order to cement the apple watch in the public's imagination, Apple used three elements of anchoring:

Firstly, when Tim Cook unveiled the apple watch in 2015 he pitched it against a shortlist of watch brands ranked by sales value. Half of the brands on this list belong to the High End segment, so it had the benefit of instilling the idea that the apple watch could by all means compare to the likes of Rolex, Omega or Patek Philippe.

Image: Tim Cook 2015 keynote, credit Apple Inc. Reproduced under Fair Use / Fair Dealings.

Secondly, the first apple watch edition features an 18k gold version, and it helped to cement the idea that if Apple wanted to play head to head with giants of the luxury industry, they could. But they ultimately would not, because Apple was probably producing the 18k gold watch at a loss. However it still served its purpose as a publicity stunt.

The apple watch 18K gold red

Thirdly, Apple sought a collaboration with Hermès, so even if the comparison with luxury brands or the release of an 18k watch did not work, the apple watch could at least benefit by proxy, from being associated with at least one bona fide luxury brand.

The Hermès apple watch edition

If Apple felt a need to use anchoring to position the apple watch as a quasi luxury item, this begs the question: where does the apple watch overlap with luxury watches?

Differences and Overlaps

Speaking of luxury watch brands or luxury brands in general, there are four characteristics that make their products different from consumer goods: namely purchase decision, scale, sustainability and resale value.

Purchase Decision

According to Prof. Henry Assael of NYU, most consumer purchase decisions can be summarised as complex buying decisions, dissonance buying decisions, variety seeking decisions or habitual buying decisions.

The author explored in detail what the model represents and how it can be applied to luxury watches in Understanding Luxury Brand Equity through Consumer Purchase Decision, but looking at Apple's shortlist of watch brands, Rolex, Omega, Cartier and Patek Philippe would probably fall into complex buying decisions: the customer needs a high involvement in gathering information about the brand, and there are numerous differences between competitors.

Longines and Tissot would probably fall into dissonance buying decisions: the customer needs a high involvement in gathering information, but there are few differences with competitors such as Certina, Concord, Ebel, Eberhard, Eterna, Frédérique Constant, Louis Erard, Maurice Lacroix, Mido, Raymond Weil or TAG Heuer.

Fossil and Casio would probably fall into variety seeking decisions: the customer needs a low involvement in gathering information about the brand, but there are numerous differences amongst competitors. This would typically be where all fashion and lifestyle brands belong.

Seiko and Citizen would probably fall into habitual buying decisions. The customer needs a low involvement in gathering information and there are few differences amongst competitors.

What is noteworthy about Apple is that they manage to tap into complex buying decisions with their brand equity while also tapping into variety seeking decisions because of democratic prices on their entry lines. By leaning on the most compelling buying decision categories, they leave competitors like Samsung to work with dissonance buying decision and low cost competitors to work with habitual buying decisions, which precisely try to compete on utilities and price.

Scale

Voiceovers of Sir Jonathan Ives on Apple ads try to convey the quasi luxury status of Apple products, by using hyperbole words such as "precision", "exquisite" and "craftsmanship". Regardless, the fact remains that Apple products are mass-produced and intended for intensive distribution.

Image: iTunes Match’s launch with iTunes 10.5.1 beta 3, The Next Web. Reproduced under Fair Use / Fair Dealings.

In theory there is no limit to how many consumer goods or how many consumer electronics can be manufactured. This is why the industry has managed to saturate the market of personal computers, laptops and mobile phones: every consumer who can afford it buys one, so the demand is in decline.

In contrast, luxury goods are constrained by a scarcity of raw material and a scarcity of artisans capable of turning these into finished products. not every consumer who can afford it can buy one, so the demand is rising. It is without surprise then that most luxury goods can only be sold through selective, if not exclusive channels.

Philippe Dufour, a living legend and a Swiss national treasure, takes more than a month to produce watches to a degree of finishing that puts Patek Philippe to shame. The fastest that he can work is with electrically driven and hand controlled tools.

Philippe Dufour, image source FHH Journal. Reproduced under Fair Use / Fair Dealings.

Sustainability

The sustainable dimension of luxury products takes various aspects: first, the source of raw material must not be depleted, so it is in the best interest of luxury brands to preserve an existing symbiosis or an ecosystem. I previously discussed the economic benefits of the luxury industry in an answer to « Does it hurt the economy when people spend on luxury goods? ».

Secondly, besides being produced with superior materials and according to a superior design, luxury goods can be repaired, which dramatically extends their lifespan.

In comparison, consumer electronics pose several human rights and environmental problems in how raw materials are harvested and processed. A race to release newer devices faster means that products do no longer have to be build to last long. Before the iPhone, the criterion for shock resistance was much more stringent. It would have been considered a design flaw it a screen broke the first time that a phone was dropped.

However, the iPhone had the effect of lowering the standard for a whole industry. Example like this have prompted the European Parliament to put laws into place to protect the interest of consumers and force manufacturers to build products that are more durable and easier to repair [6].

The iPhone and other smartwatches are almost always designed and built like consumer electronics, so they do not offer the same repairability as luxury watches.

Resale Value

Because their quantity on the market in finite, used luxury goods tend to appreciate in value over time because of the law of supply and demand. Typically, 40 years old luxury watches and more recent ones can easily be kept in perfect working conditions, because spare movement parts can easily be procured for movements, and most components such as crystal and gaskets are standard. There has been a push from dominant luxury brands to undercut independent repair shops and force a monopoly on repairs and servicing [7] so the customer's best interest could be in jeopardy.

To Apple's credit, the company is one of the few whose products are highly sought on the second hand market. Besides refurbished products that Apple officially sells in 21 countries [8] to a market of more than 2,300 million consumers, there is a thriving parallel repair and resale market around their products.

In 2015, Android Police calculated that Apple offered software updates for older devices up to 41 months in average, which was practically double that of Nexus android devices (21 months). From 2018 onwards, Apple has been giving customers the option to have their iPhone battery swapped, which according to CEO Tim Cook allowed customers to hold on to their iPhone a bit longer than before [9]. Asymco analyst Horace Dediu estimated that the average lifespan of an Apple device in 2018 was slightly more than 4 years [10].

Image source: Software Updates: A Visual Comparison Of Support Lifetimes For iOS vs. Nexus Devices - Martin Lobao, Android Police, September 2015

In Conclusion

The author tried to outline Apple's branding strategy to present their products as quasi luxury, which sometimes overlaps with luxury branding, particularly when it avoids direct comparisons with competitors and it focuses on aspirational values. When it comes to the apple watch, there are many differences in its production and distribution scale that makes a head to head comparison with luxury watches impossible. Apple does however manage to overlap with luxury watches by tapping into similar purchase decisions and by offering longer software support and superior resale value than its competitors.

In this series, the author will offer a different perspective of the observed drop in sales of luxury watches and will explain the "Kodak syndrome" and how it dominates the conversation. The reader will be offered an insight into radical changes that the Swiss industry undertook long before any hint of the 1980s crisis, and how they made it possible to manufacture smartwatches today. The author will try to show how comparing sales of smartwatches with watches works, except when it does not.

References

[1] Luxury goods worldwide market study, Fall–winter 2018, Bain & Company
[2] Dot-com bubble, Wikipedia
[3] How The Greatest Super Bowl Ad Ever — Apple's '1984' — Almost Didn't Make It To Air, Aaron Taube, Business Insider
[4] Apple’s Steve Jobs didn’t want those Mac-vs.-PC commercials to be LOL funny, Mike Murphy, Market Watch
[5] Investor Updates, Apple Inc.
[6] Making consumer products more durable and easier to repair, European Parliament
[7] Apple Refurbished Products: Should You Buy Them?, Juli Clover, MacRumors May 2019
[8] Rising Demand for a Declining Watchmaking Trade, Francis Jacquerye, Woodshores
[9] Apple CEO Tim Cook: Customers Are Holding on to Older iPhones 'a Bit Longer' Than in the Past, Juli Clover, MacRumors January 2019
[10] An analyst estimated how long Apple customers hold onto their devices — and the findings might surprise you, Edoardo Maggio, Business Insider March 2018

Holiday Repeat: The Watch-o-Matic!

The Watch-o-Matic!

It slices, it dices, it's the last watch you'll ever buy!

The difference between Ron Popeil and some watch executives might be only a passport ; )

For those of you unfamiliar, Ron Popeil is the man behind Ronco -

Courtesy of the world-wide info-web

Now I want to start this out by saying that I actually have the highest respect for Mr. Popeil as both an inventor of stuff we really didn't want or need, and more importantly, convincing us that we couldn't possibly live without it.  The man could sell.

Steve Jobs had his Reality Distortion Field, per Wikipedia:

this was said to be Steve Jobs's ability to convince himself and others to believe almost anything with a mix of charm, charisma, bravado, hyperbole, marketing, appeasement and persistence. RDF was said to distort an audience's sense of proportion and scales of difficulties and made them believe that the task at hand was possible. Jobs could also use the RDF to appropriate other's ideas as his own, sometimes proposing an idea to its originator after dismissing it the week before.^[3]

Does this sound like some people we know?

What sort of got me caught up in this theme yesterday and today was reflecting on the "miracle" of Tag Heuer's Connected watch and the Reality Distortion Field that was spun around it.  After first poo-pooing the Apple Watch, Mr. Popeil's possible "brother from another mother" announced that, in fact, smart or connected watches were, in fact, GOOD!  Not only that, his brand would be offering one!  

As I've said before, the idea of a connected watch is not in and of itself not so crazy.  But it is a question of how many features can you actually use (really use) in a smart watch?  

For better or worse, there are only so many features you can put into a wrist bound Tamagotchi -

Shamelessly borrowed from the world-wide info-net

How many features, realistically, are worth having in a connected watch?

The Apple watch has proven itself to be a bit of a unique outlier.  Yes, it offers a ton of different features that may, or may not work well in a wrist-bound environment.  But this is not what really drives the sales of the Apple watch.  What drives the sales of the Apple watch is Apple itself.  It is a strong aphrodisiac.  It is why many people, including me, will spend MORE for an iPhone, Mac or iPad than those in the Windows tribe.  I have tried an Apple watch, and it was not quite the revelatory experience for me that it clearly has been for others.  And I LOVE Apple stuff.  But for me it was just too much.

As an experiment I tried a Withings watch and found it to be too far in the other direction - it was supposed to give time, a wake up alarm and a step counter.  The alarm did not work as advertised, the step counter did not count correctly.  It was a disappointment. 

And then we have the watch world's two notable entries - Tag Heuer's connected watch, and the offering from Frederique Constant / Alpina / Mondaine.  While the Tag Heuer offering provides all of the promise of the Apple watch, it is significantly more expensive.  And apart from the big displays at BaselWorld, I have never seen a Tag Heuer connected watch "in the wild", despite the exclamations of large sales numbers.  And the same could be said for the FC/Alpina/Mondaine offerings in terms of actual visibility.  

More than anything, regardless of what technology firm they partner with, the watch brands are now competing in a different arena.  And it is one with a lot more price sensitivity, and a requirement to evolve and innovate at a much faster pace than they are used to.  So it becomes, and will continue to be, a never ending game of catch-up.

The brands that keep the functionality actually functional have the best opportunity to grab market share.  BUT, and it is a big but, they have to put the price of the watch at a level that the market will bear.  What the Fit Bit boom underscored is that there are functional aspects that people want and will pay for.  But when we delve into just how many features they want on their wrist and just how much they will pay for it?  Well that becomes a different matter.

This is another case of less having the potential for being more.  Find four or five functions, stick with them, and make them perform perfectly.  But in addition, produce and sell it at a price point that the market will bear.  This is the other thing that Apple figured out that everyone else is still struggling with.

So we shall wait, and we shall see.

That's What Makes a Horserace

So as I continue to wear and enjoy the benefits of the NOWA connected watch, I just received the latest release from Montblanc, and to be honest, I think we have now reached a point where we have over-thought, over-developed, and dare I say it - over-engineered the idea of a watch.

Courtesy of Montblanc

My memaw Theo had an expression about differences of opinion, and how to voice an opinion without really voicing it (and hopefully avoid offending those in the opposite camp).

I am of a few minds when it comes to Montblanc and their watches.  I am in a weird place about it personally, because I count a guy who in many ways really blazed the trail for their watch making division  as a personal friend.  And hence I know what has gone into the real creation of Montblanc.  And although I have been somewhat guilty of it in the past, I recently find that I no longer feel that a company or brand must "stay in its lane".  In many ways Montblanc has done a great deal to grow beyond just pens.  And I am currently saving up for this item to shepherd Tempus Fugit and New Romantics communications and dossiers -

Courtesy of Montblanc

So to be very clear, I think that Montblanc does have a very cool product selection, and has elegantly grown to a more expansive luxury brand.

Having said that, this particular venture with a smart watch has perhaps outgrown the original idea.  

Courtesy of Montblanc

At the heart of the idea of a smart watch, is the idea that it will give us vital information that might make our lives easier, or help us live better.  Ways that a connected or smart watch can do this?  Different time zones, GPS tracking systems that can be used for children or senior citizens, alarms, notifications of important messages, sleep tracking or steps (i.e. physical activity).  

But somewhere after the Apple Watch made its debut, there seemed to be a belief that your watch should be able to do everything except (perhaps) make toast and coffee.

Now coffee for me is a very important part of every day life.  Coffee, in many ways, is a personal ritual.  It is also a social connector.  So I was a bit curious as to why I would need a smart / connected watch to tell me that I have had too much coffee?  Now, if there was an app in the phone that could ping me when I am in range of an awesome cafe?  Now that I would pay for ; )

I guess my point is this, it is now, perhaps, too much information that we are trying to funnel through such a small portal.  It is not a practical way to gather, store and disseminate.  And to manage all of these functions in a meaningful way?  It's going to take away (not add) several hours a week to your free time.  Technology that is designed to improve your life should do just that.  At this point, I have to question whether we have now over-shot the runway.

Finally, it is expensive for an item (like a cell phone) that has obsolescence already factored into its lifespan.  $995 US.  This is not a watch that you will hand down to others.  It will have a lifespan, then it will be consigned to landfill.  And this is not unique to Montblanc, Tag, or Apple.  It is just the reality of this type of watch.

But as always, here are the pertinents straight from the source, and you can judge for yourself -

#StayAhead With Summit 2: Montblanc Redefines Connected Elegance With Its New Smartwatch

• Bridging fine watchmaking and state-of-the-art technology
• Brand new 42mm case designed for both men and women includes the new Qualcomm
  Snapdragon Wear 3100 chipset and exciting new features
• Summit 2 is the ultimate wearable built for work, leisure, fitness or travel, accompanying today’s
  achievers through their everyday adventures
• Includes the new Timeshifter® app and watch face – an effective way to reduce jet lag
  Named after its ambition to be a wearable companion that keeps its owner ahead in all aspects of life, Summit 2 is a new digital interpretation of fine watchmaking that seamlessly brings together the Swiss design codes of traditional timepieces, premium materials and brand-new technology. First launched in 2017 as luxury smartwatch with a distinctively classic and vintage look, the latest edition of Montblanc’s signature smartwatch features a more compact unisex 42mm case size that delivers the feeling of a mechanical watch on its owner’s wrist while offering innovative new features. Powered by advanced technologies on the market, Summit 2 is the first luxury smartwatch to feature the Snapdragon Wear 3100 chipset by Qualcommfor enhanced performance, improved battery life and a weeklong time-only mode. The latest Wear OS by Google powers Summit 2 with iOS and Android smartphones.

“Built for travel, fitness or exploration, Summit 2 is a versatile companion created for urban explorers, business travellers and performance seekers looking to push boundaries in everything they do,” explains Nicolas Baretzki, Montblanc CEO. “These high achieving individuals want to be connected at all times with easy access to functional features and apps that allow them to always stay ahead and be productive on-the-go, while still enjoying the experience of wearing a fine timepiece. Whether work, leisure, fitness or travel, Summit 2 is built to seamlessly power them through their everyday adventures stylishly and reliably.”
Inspired by the design codes of the Montblanc 1858 collection, the new iteration of Summit offers several design expressions, from the classic elegance of 1858 and the vintage sophistication of the Summit, from the feminine allure of Bohème Date and Bohème Classic variations to the sporty Energy and Fitness styles designed for peak performance and physical activity.
With the built-in watch face configurator, over a thousand watch face combinations are possible by customizing indicators, background, hands and complications.
The different case finishes – black DLC steel, stainless steel, bicolour steel and titanium Grade 2 – can be combined with 11 different interchangeable strap options including calfskin, Milanese steel, rubber sport and nylon, to create a total of over 70,000 individual looks across the Summit 2 assortment. Each timepiece is fitted with a rotating crown and two additional programmable pushers.

Montblanc Summit 2 | New Technologies

A Companion for Urban Exploration

• With the help of the Google Assistant, users will get proactive, personalized assistance like their flight status or upcoming reservations. They can also use the watch's microphone, to ask for help or get directions or translations. The Google Assistant can also manage tasks like setting reminders or checking your heart rate.
• All notifications – including incoming calls, messages, social media updates, calendar events, news and more - are directly synced to the Montblanc Summit 2 from a smartphone. When there isn’t time to start typing a reply on the smartphone, the Montblanc Summit 2 offers built-in smart replies and other quick ways to respond with handwriting, keyboard or voice dictation.
• The always-on colour ambient mode allows for the watch faces to be visible at all times, while delivering a full day of battery life running Wear OS by Google. The battery life can be extended by an additional 3 - 5 days by deactivating smartwatch functionality while still showing the time at a flick of the wrist.
  Making Travel A Seamless Adventure

• Summit 2’s exclusive travel functions include the new Timeshifter® app and watch face, providing personalized advice to minimize jet lag based on the traveller’s sleep pattern, chronotype, and flight plan. Used by astronauts and elite athletes, and based on the latest in sleep and circadian neuroscience, Timeshifter provides timely updates and instructions directly on the Summit 2 watch face, helping travellers to adjust fast to a new time zone.
• The new Montblanc exclusive Travel Info app provides relevant local traveller information.
• The practical voice-activated translator gives its user direct translations from a multitude of languages directly to the watch’s display, making travelling in foreign countries simpler than ever.

• With the addition of Google Pay, meals, tickets and new experiences can be purchased in a fast easy way, without cash.
Reaching New Heights of Fitness

• Achieving peak physical performance is a key function of Summit 2. The exclusive Montblanc Running Coach app, powered by scientific insight from the Firstbeat* analytics engine, enables runners to track fitness levels (based on VO2max) and specify a fitness goal which translates into a personalized training plan built around ideal efforts and recovery times.
• The integrated live coach provides the right pace and intensity level during training to help users reach their fitness goals.
• Summit 2 features an improved Heart Rate Algorithm and 5 ATM water-resistance making it resilient to swimming. The integrated GPS allows navigation and more precise fitness tracking when away from the phone.
  *Firstbeat is a registered trademark of Firstbeat Technologies Oy
  Summit 2 is available from October 15th 2018. For further information, visit
  www.montblanc.com/Summit2

14 Days with the NOWA Blue Matter

Starts now.

Introducing NOWA

A new smart/connected watch will be hitting the market place in the next few weeks, and it looks set to be a strong contender in a somewhat befuddled market space.

Courtesy of NOWA

And in fairness, a great deal of this befuddlement has been down to over-promising and under-delivering on features beyond the basics found in a Withings.  Promising seemingly exotic functions ceases to be relevant when said features and functions don't work.  So in fairness, as of right now?  The choices are still either getting a Apple/Android watch or getting a connected watch that will give you sleep, steps,  possibly a second time zone.  

And it seems that more and more, that is what is realistic and also what is needed and wanted right now. 

Courtesy of NOWA

NOWA is going to try to push the envelope a bit further by offering a few features found in other, more expensive connected watches, such as the ability to take a selfie with a push of the crown, an alert to an incoming call, and a feature to locate a lost phone.  This last feature was also promised by Kronaby, and in my test experience worked initially, but following a few weeks it did not, and no amount of contact to customer support was able to correct it.

Now to a certain extent, there are several watches out there that will offer these features, but many will come at a higher cost.  And the ones that come in at, or under this amount are somewhat lacking in the aesthetic department.

Courtesy of NOWA

One other thing that NOWA did that was a few steps ahead of the others?  They realized that the watch, in and of itself, did not need to come in multiple sizes.  Their take was simple and to the point - one size fits all with a few variations.  Without the need to create multiple sizes and case designs, they have streamlined their supply chain.  You can have stainless, gold finish or black.  And the other smart idea (which is really simple when you think about it)?  Quick change straps.

The battery life is somewhat limited - 8 months when in use.  But on the plus side, it does not require nightly recharging.

And the price might finally fit the ideal sweet spot -

Pre-orders will cost $149, and the proposed retail is $199 (for stainless), slightly higher for black or gold finish.


Here are the pertinents -

CASE SIZE

40 mm

CASE THICKNESS

9.75 mm

STRAP WIDTH & FITTING

20 mm (165 to 215 mm circumference)

WATER RESISTANCE

30 m (3 ATM)

BATTERY LIFE

Up to 8 months

MOVEMENT

Swiss Parts Ronda Quartz

CASE & CLASP

316L Stainless steel

COMFORTABLE STRAP

Full grain Italian leather with real nubuck lining

SCRATCH PROOF GLASS

Flat mineral with Sapphire coating

INDICES

Solid metal

BATTERY

Standard CR2025

BLUETOOTH LOW ENERGY

Connect wirelessly to your Smartphone

WORLD TIME UPDATES

Gives you exact time anywhere in the world

ACTIVITY TRACKING

Daily record of your steps, distance, calories burned

SLEEP MONITORING

Sleep duration, Sleep quality (Deep, light)

SMART CONTROLS

Reject call, Find my phone, Camera control

FITNESS CLOUD

Connect to Health Kit and Google Fit

A Few Weeks with the Kronaby Carat

So, it seemed about time that you might get to hear about the Kronaby connected watches from someone other than a fashion or tech blogger, so here we go ; )

While fashion influencers were posting carefully curated outfit collections chronicling their "must haves" for London fashion week, many of the folks who write and read about watches were wondering just exactly how the Kronaby watch might work in real life.  

With BaselWorld approaching hope was renewed, but alas a few of us had our appointments rearranged on fairly short notice making press appointments virtually impossible.  Fortunately, I was able to lay hands to a Kronaby watch, wear it, and offer some feedback - and here it is.

This is the Kronaby Carat -

 
It measures 38 mm in diameter and despite its positioning as a watch for women, I have to be honest that even with my rather large, hairy wrists, it is a very good size.  I would really not want to go any larger.

The blue dial with the gold tone of the rose pvd is quite beguiling and it is a very good looking watch.  Interesting to relate that the color of the dial itself tends to shift and change a bit depending on the light.  

The case back is also treated in rose gold pvd, and the finish of the case, on the whole, is really quite good.

The strap is a very nice dark blue, and referred to in the Kronaby literature as vegetal tanned, which I presume means vegetable tanned.  It is comfortable and the perfect match to the watch, and is finished with a gold pvd buckle -

The physical portions of the watch - the case, dial, hands, etc., are first rate and of a class you would expect from a much more expensive watch.  A lot of this is down to the design, but it still needed to be produced, and in terms of the finished product, Kronaby did not disappoint.

Here are the pertinents, direct from Kronaby:

Case
38 mm, Stainless steel 316L, Rose gold tone PVD

Crystal
Double domed sapphire crystal with AR coating

Dial
Blue metal plated circular brush with applied indexes

Hands
Rose gold tone

Bracelet
18 mm dark blue Italian vegetal tanned leather strap, Rose gold tone buckle18

Water-Resistant
10 bar/100 metres

Movement
Kronaby connected movement BT002, 2-hand-bi-directional micro stepping motor, Bluetooth 4.1 Low Energy (BLE), vibration motor, accelerometer

Battery
Battery Life up to two years (depending on use), CR3032 coin cell

App
Kronaby App working with (or later version) Android 5.0 and 
iOS 9  

The suggested retail price is 395,00 € 
It is important to note that the Kronaby collection is currently available in limited markets, and I will assume that the US price will be whatever the conversion rate bares, but we will see.

The additional connected functions of the watch itself are assigned to the crown, and the two push pieces (2 o'clock and 4 o'clock).  It bears mentioning that in terms of actual functions you are limited in terms of how many can be utilized without making an addition/adjustment via the Kronaby APP on your phone.  There are (at present) 9 functions to choose from, with only 3 that can be used at any given time (1 for the crown, 1 for the upper push piece, 1 for the lower push piece).  Now in fairness, the majority of functions that you might want are not necessarily dependent upon activation from your watch, and include the filtered notifications that trigger the watch to vibrate (one, two or three "buzzes") to get your attention.  The vibration is, perhaps, a bit too gentle.  I have missed more than a few notifications.  Having said that, here are the various notifications:

PEOPLE - this enables you to select different people from your contacts list and receive a buzz (or buzzes) when they are trying to reach you.

GET MOVING - this notifies you when you've been stationary for an hour.

CALENDAR - this notifies you when an appointment (via your calendar) is coming up.

ALARM - essentially like any other alarm function - watch vibrates at the appointed time.

It also gives you the option of various APP notifications:
Facebook, Instagram, Linkedin, Messenger, Twitter and WhatsApp.  As my students are WhatsApp addicts, I have opted to leave that one off ; )

And as I said, these are not dependent upon a button assignment so you can have them all at the same time.

But then we get to the features, and these are divided up into two sets.  One set operated via the crown, the other via the pushers.

Currently, the crown offers a choice of:

1.  Daily hundred - this essentially allows you to track your steps on the watch face.  IMPORTANT - you can still get that also get that information via the Activity section which gives you a running total - but this requires you to look at the APP on your phone rather than the watch itself.

2.  Date - essentially shows you the date (i.e. 1, 2, 3, etc.) 

3.  Second time - this is a second time zone.  This is the option that I chose as it is the most useful for me.

4.  Timer - essentially a count down.  

And then you have five other features to chose from that can be assigned to the pusher buttons:

1.  Find phone - I love this feature, hit the button, it connects to your phone which then sends a signal.  I have this one assigned to the bottom pusher.

2.  Music control - allows you to adjust the volume of you iTunes, etc.

3.  Camera - essentially a "shutter release" button on your watch.

4.  Remember this spot - remembers your location, great for finding your car, bike, etc. 

5.  Walk me home - allows you to set-up a friend or family member as a safety contact.  You press the pusher and your contact can see your location on a map.  Your location is updated each time you hit the pusher.  This can also be used as an emergency signal when you hold the pusher for 3 seconds.  This is a VERY useful feature.

As near as I can figure, Kronaby is using their own proprietary modules and utilizing (it would appear) a Swiss quartz movement.  

Overall, the watch was very comfortable to wear and it is quite good looking as well.  Interesting to relate that it took a few days for all of the features to "sync" completely, but at this point they all work well.

Now when I was at the launch, there was a bit of a different sense as to the total number of features the watch could offer at any given time. The impression that was given was that all of the functions were there to choose from, but there was not an understanding conveyed as to just how many features could be used at any given time, and the likely need to shift them around on your phone's APP should you wish to utilize something other than the three currently assigned at any given time.  This is something that the folks at Kronaby will want to make as clear as possible to customers to avoid potential complaints.  If you know that you are limited to 3 of the features at a given time, you will adapt your expectations accordingly.

I was also curious as to how good the customer support would be, and this was a bit of a curiously strange and not 100% satisfactory interaction.  But in fairness, Kronaby is pretty much brand new and it will take some time for all of the bugs to get worked out.  In fairness, the request was made over the weekend, and a response was received late morning Monday - not too bad in terms of time frame.  The actual instructions received were not really clear, and could have been better.  I understand that English might not have been the first language of the person who replied to me, but the easy solution to this is to have prepared (canned) responses that the customer service agent can simply cut and paste and drop into the reply.  This will also help solve the language gap.  Again, this is something that in time will be smoother.

Also, per the Kronaby site there is also a Reject Call function which I believe would be operated via the crown, but there is no mention of it in the APP that I could find, so I am not sure if it is, essentially, hardwired in?  If the website is anything to go by, pushing the crown when the phone rings automatically rejects the call, at least that is what I would deduce, so I will give it a try shorty.

One other curiosity - nowhere in the packaging that the watch came in, nor on the website, are there any DIRECTIONS about the need for the APP, where you would obtain the APP, etc.  And I realize that it would be easy to assume that people would simply understand the need to do this and visit the APP Store, but having manned the customer service lines for a watch brand in the past, I can tell you that you should never, ever assume anything.  Consider that at least in the US, it is likely that there will be a fair amount of direct, online sales.  Or perhaps a watch that is given as a gift.  Wouldn't it make sense to ensure that the person receiving the watch knows EXACTLY what they need to do?  And I make this point because the lack of this type of documentation indicates to me that Kronaby is missing a HUGE potential market - people over 50.  That particular age demographic might not seem sexy, but they are perhaps one of the best potential customer groups that Kronaby could have.  People who want the traditional look and feel of a watch, and would appreciate and make use of the connected features of the Kronaby watch.

So all in all?  A very nice watch at a good price point.  Kronaby already has a tough row to hoe as there are quite a few competitors already in the various market spaces.  Several brands are already out there that offer not dissimilar watches with very similar features at lower prices in more market segments.

Me personally?  I'd really like to see them succeed, but ultimately that will be up to them.  They are, unfortunately, a wee bit late to the dance.  But if they can tighten up and focus, and connect a bit better with people other than celebrity fashionistas?  Well they just might make it ; )


Enjoy your watches.