Luxury Smart Watches

The recent stratospheric rise of the Smart Watch must have been regarded with abject terror in Switzerland. Within the boardrooms of most of the major traditional houses, there will undoubtedly be those who still remember only too well the utter carnage wrought by the Quartz Crisis—being that it ended not that long ago. It would be only too easy to imagine that history was about to repeat itself.

However, all that worrying seems to have been for nothing. People seemingly have more sophisticated tastes now, and better appreciate the benefits of mechanical watches. As well as the artistry and engineering involved, there is the longevity. There is no such thing, for example, as an obsolete Rolex.

So, rather than seeking to oust mechanical timepieces completely, the makers of Smart Watches have instead positioned their products alongside.

Many collectors will have both, and each has its own place. An Apple Watch, no matter what anyone says, looks out of place with a tuxedo, just as wearing a Patek to the gym is downright bizarre.

What we have now is a surge of luxury Smart Watches hitting the market, taking the best of both worlds and merging them into one. And it’s not just the Silicon Valley powers producing them. Just as many of Switzerland’s oldest names branched out into the quartz space 30-40 years ago, today we are seeing some of the horology industry’s most established players creating wearable tech.

Below then, we have picked out three of our current favorites.

Top 3 Luxury Smart Watches

TAG Heuer Connected Calibre E4

TAG Heuer were perhaps the quickest traditional manufacture out of the gate when the Smart Watch craze really took off in the 2010s. To their immense credit, they were also the first to realize a meeting of the old and new was the way to go.

The original model in their Connected series came out in November of 2015 and, in contrast to many of the fledgling examples from other companies, eschewed cheap plastic cases for premium metals like steel, gold and titanium, basing the whole look around their own Carrera—one of the brand’s, and the industry’s, most famous sons.

That ground breaker has recently entered its fourth generation with the Calibre E4 which, while maintaining the Carrera as its inspiration, has gradually become even more streamlined and refined over the years. This latest version features integrated bracelets, domed sapphire crystals and actual physical buttons resembling traditional chrono pushers on the side of the case.

In addition, for the first time, the E4 comes in a choice of sizes, either 42mm or 45mm, and now boasts a battery life 30% longer than previous models thanks to its new Qualcomm Snapdragon Wear 4100+ processor. This is actually two processors, the main one plus a second which handles functions requiring minimal power such as time telling or step counting. Basically, you should expect a whole day’s activity without having to recharge.

Like every non-Apple Smart Watch worth the name, the E4 runs on Google’s Wear OS operating system, except the software is now customizable. That means TAG has been able to employ its own styling for the various applications as well as using its own signature fonts. It gives the whole thing a more cohesive, premium feel.

So far, there are 10 different dials to choose from, five digital and five based on the look of mechanical watches, all of which do an excellent job of displaying the wealth of information the E4 is able to provide. It comes preloaded with apps for golf and other sports, including indoor and outdoor running, swimming and even, with the help of its built-in altimeter, trail hiking. There is also a wellness feature, which provides live heart rate monitoring along with metrics for burned calories and daily step goals.

In all, the TAG Heuer Connected Calibre E4 remains the most viable high end alternative to the all-conquering Apple Watch, and its latest incarnation is the best yet.

The Frederique Constant Hybrid Manufacture

There can be no better evidence that Smart Watches have integrated into the traditional watch space than the Hybrid Manufacture from Frederique Constant. Released in 2018, at first glance the model looks like nothing more than a premium, and very sophisticated, conventional timepiece. And so it should, seeing that inside is a true automatic mechanical movement, combined with a battery-powered, digital module.

So, time telling is dealt with in the usual way, and there is a sub dial at the six o’clock to show the date while a second at the 12 offers a dual time zone display.

However, connect the watch to an iPhone and you suddenly have a step and sleep tracker, a fitness coach, a worldtimer and even analytics for the mechanical caliber such as rate, amplitude and beat error.

All of this is wrapped up in beautiful 42mm case, in either steel or rose gold-plated stainless, and with a choice of either a grey, silver or navy dial.

Overall, the Hybrid Manufacture is the perfect halfway house for those who love the aesthetics and feel of ‘real’ watches, but who have a need or desire for all the conveniences a Smart Watch can bring. Can it compete with the latest from Apple or Samsung? No, not at all, but that’s not the point of it. This is the Smart Watch for those who don’t want Smart Watch styling.

A brilliant achievement although, with prices starting at around $3,600, not a cheap one, Frederique Constant have produced an intriguing outlier.

The Hublot Big Bang e GEN3

There was roughly a zero percent chance that Hublot wouldn’t horn in on the Smart Watch craze sooner or later. And even less chance they wouldn’t pick their iconic Big Bang model to base it on.

The first Connected watch launched back in 2018 and we’re already on its third iteration with the GEN3 being unveiled this year.

As with both of our other Smart Watches, here we see the traditional shape of Hublot’s Big Bang creations blended with the very latest software to produce an impressively streamlined whole.

There are two variants available, both in 44mm, micro-blasted ceramic, one in black, the other in white. Everything is even held in place by the customary H-shaped titanium screws.

Inside, the GEN3 is powered by the same Qualcomm processor as TAG’s E4 and is compatible with both Google Android and Apple iOS operating systems. It is also one of the very few non-Samsung models already running the latest Wear OS 3.

What that means is that the Hublot can offer a heart rate monitor, accelerometer, gyroscope, a Low Latency off Body sensor (detects whether or not the watch is being worn and disables certain functions accordingly), an ambient light sensor, a GPS, and NFC payment connectivity among others.

In addition, there are 11 different faces to choose from, including everything from chronographs to haute horlogerie skeletonized dials, all depicted on the high resolution 454×454 pixel, 327dpi screen. It even carries over the patented ‘One Click’ strap changing system from the traditional Big Bang watches.

Best of all, this is far and away the cheapest model in the collection, retailing at $5,400.

Whatever your opinion on them, Smart Watches are definitely here to stay, for the immediate future at least. Luxury brands have certainly learned their lessons from the past and engaged with the technology early, and what we are seeing is a fascinating amalgamation of two worlds which have long been at different ends of the spectrum.

I think we’re a way off from seeing the likes of Rolex or Patek throwing their hats in the ring, but the manufactures which have joined the movement have produced some intriguing results. It will be interesting to see what the next few years bring.

Featured Photo: Pixabay (cc) Archive.