The O-ring Digi watch is the latest watch by Philippe Starck for Fossil. It has a unique circular digital display that shows the hours as numbers while the minutes are displayed in segments. As the time passes, the segments make a complete ring every hour. Retail Price is USD 110.
For those not in the know, Fossil designs and distributes watches for a number of famous lifestyle designer brands i.e. Burberry, Diesel and even Giorgio Armani which is a lot of work, mind you and given that I’ve seen too many licensed brands loose their way due to ill-conceived partnerships, it is always good to stop and appreciate a company like Fossil and their work.
For example, this year’s new collection of Diesel watches are simply gorgeous with their fusion of materials i.e. the Dz4081 that combines a dark brown leather strap with a black overlay and a gold plated case.
Also, did you know that Diesel had a seperate Swiss Made Automatic collection? I certainly didn’t.
Designer Arman Emami’s Neolog is this year’s Red Dot Design award winner in the wristwatch category with a watch that, according to their press material, creates a new definition of time even though it’s very suspiciously similar in concept to the Nooka.
The Neolog A-24 II lets you tell time by counting the digital bars, so for example: if the first column has 3 bars, the second 2 bars and third 5 bars, then the time is 3:25. The price tag is 189 Euros.
Switzerland’s digital renegade luxury brand, Ventura, has announced plans for the world’s first automatic digital watch - The V-Tech Sigma ∑ MGS which will generate its own independent, constantly renewable power-source.
The announcement came at the heel of Ventura’s new Sigma watch which comes with Ventura’s patented EasySkroll Knob and operating system, a hardened and scratch-resistant stainless steel case (Durinox) and a price tag of $1,750.
The watch is part of a long term strategy by Ventura to create futuristic and top-end designer watches with the latest technology.
The MGS version will look exactly like the Sigma watch except the Lithium battery would be replaced by a micro-generator powered by the movements of the user’s wrist and the case would use an even more hardened material called Titanox. The generator will be located on the top of the case and will be visible through a sapphire crystal glass for posterity purposes.
Update:
It seems I have made a grave error. While Ventura is indeed the manufacturer for the world’s first automatic digital watch, this particular watch is actually the first second generation automatic digital watch. I apparently mis-read the statement in the press release. I apologise for the mistake and will refrain from making excuses for myself.
The latest incarnation of Louis Vuitton Tambour series is a black analog-digital chronograph. Available in both stainless steel and 18kt rose gold, the case measures 41mm and has a sapphire crystal. It is water resistant to 100 meters.Price begins at 2,300 Euros.
Seasoned Inventor Greg E. Blonder writes in about his concept watch called the “About Time” that does away with accuracy and only tells “approximate” time. “Most of the Swiss producers look somewhat askance when you suggest a watch that tells only *approximate* time”, he writes in. Digital precision, according to him, is not only unnecessary but a disadvantage. A more human time scale is an approximate phrase like “It’s about 1 pm” instead of a 12:58 am. “Digital watches make it all too easy to miss a meeting believing it is closer to noon than to one.” he adds. So instead of showing the accurate time, the About Time LCD displays the nearest hour in the center of the watch i.e. It’s about 1pm, It’s Around 6 o’clock, Slight After 3, Nearly 5 fourty five. etc.
The watch isn’t available commercially yet, but Greg hopes to have it out soon. When I first received this in my email, I sent Greg a link to a similar watch by Fossil to which he replied: “That’s disturbing, because I contacted Fossil twice about a license 4 years ago. But, as far as I can tell, the Gehry watch still displays “exact” time, just with phrases. My watch displays “approximate time”, with a wide variety of words and colloquialisms. As does the linear display- the idea is to break the tyranny of rigid time- “”its about half past 10″, rather than “27 past 10″.
Seiko unveils their first commercial version of the e-paper watch that we covered back in July. The company intends to release only 500 units of the watch in January and hopes to use the novelty of the product to spark new demand for such wristwatches.
SPARC rx is Ventura’s latest product offering - a watch with an automatic rotating bezel.
When it comes to digital watches, few luxury watchmakers have been as successful as Ventura, the rare brand that has built most of its future on luxury digital watches.
With several design awards under the belt, Ventura’s watches are all about attention to detail, for example, their watches are either created with Titanox, a hardened, scratch-resistant titanium or Durinox, a steel with the same hardening applied. In addition to that, the digital Type is customized and each new watch face involves working the world-famous typographer, Adrian Frutiger.
Prices range from $690 to $4400.
Miss V - I simply love the combination of the dress watch look with the digital aesthetic, especially in the model on the left, the one with the gold plating.
The O-ring Digi watch is the latest watch by Philippe Starck for Fossil. It has a unique circular digital display that shows the hours as numbers while the minutes are displayed in segments. As the time passes, the segments make a complete ring every hour. Retail Price is USD 110.
Seasoned Inventor Greg E. Blonder writes in about his concept watch called the “About Time” that does away with accuracy and only tells “approximate” time. “Most of the Swiss producers look somewhat askance when you suggest a watch that tells only *approximate* time”, he writes in. Digital precision, according to him, is not only unnecessary but a disadvantage. A more human time scale is an approximate phrase like “It’s about 1 pm” instead of a 12:58 am. “Digital watches make it all too easy to miss a meeting believing it is closer to noon than to one.” he adds. So instead of showing the accurate time, the About Time LCD displays the nearest hour in the center of the watch i.e. It’s about 1pm, It’s Around 6 o’clock, Slight After 3, Nearly 5 fourty five. etc.
