Spellbound
1343
Absolutely fascinating
Interesting to see how this plays out. Fascinating that Silicon Valley has tried to lure Swiss talent away. I am excited at the prospect of seeing a meticulously crafted smart watch but fearful that the younger generation may wholeheartedly accept smart watches as the norm, and within a generation, mechanicals will be reduced to hobbyists.
Dean
Baselworld 2014 - Reaction to smartwatch boom: AHCI to switch focus on electronic watches!
In a rather unexpected and unprecedented move the world-famous association of independent watchmakers, l' Acadmie Horlogre des Crateurs Indpendants (AHCI), today revealed what insider believe to be one of the most industry-shaking decisions the group ...
Why if I didn't know better...
I'd wonder if it's just past midnight in your current timezone ;) Some fine work there! A
Kari Voutilainen
If anyone can make a electronic watch look sexy with a high finish, KV can. This is an interesting time for AHCI.
Great "breaking news" report
I actually have a HTO in red which I use daily to wear or as part of my control system. But this one in green --- melts my heart away. Thanks for your savage satire! Amery This message has been edited by amerix on 2014-03-31 13:24:37
Very funny - great pic's
Very funny. Somehow I figured the whole watch world is in Basle at this moment in time, and the date hadn't yet arrived.
Oh great highly finished and stylish Quartz watches!!!! Wait! What.....
Do you mean this is an April Fool's joke?
I'm only interested if I can lay my hands on a triple-axis battery....
to neutralize the effects of gravity on the electric timepiece. I'm worried about accuracy, so let's get the fuel cells rotating. Enjoyed this "breaking news" piece quite a bit! Darren
Our dear Magnus
You have managed to "out-pplater" our friend pplater! You had me going through the photo of the HTO, but the at the Peseux 260 with battery I started to laugh -- loudly. Happy April 1 to all! Best, Gary G
You couldn't dream this stuff up
Absolutely brilliant !!! Even down to their reactions ! I especially liked the Paul Gerber "reaction" and ofcourse Philippe Dufour ! It was the "Captain Nemo Submer-lectro" that had me laughing out loud. Very elaborate, bravo ! Thankfully we don't have to...
While going through your post..
I was thinking of playing a trick with one of my friends and you got to me first with this one! Well done! :) fernando
Early April fools?
Please tell me its early Aprils Fool.....no? I stand by PD on this one.
Amazing! Unbelievable! Audacious! Funny......
Anyhow I am in the line for the Simplicity HEP, definitely:) Cheers Francois from Down Under
Finally, A Voutilainen I can afford...
On the downside, this is band news. Even the AHCI independents are going Quartz... But there's a silver lining. I can probably finally afford a Voutilainen. This is good news. Good news indeed. Once the tech company executives hear about these smart watch...
I am not so sure Patrick...
as the largest proportion o movement elements still have to be finished to Kari's standard. Plus, Kari makes the point that also the battery, a non-serviceable part, will need to be finished. These are actually recurrent costs that increase the service co...
I want my batteries to have engravings...
I'm going all out on this one. No disguising my battery powered watch with a mainspring barrel cover. That would be less than genuine. Mine will have the battery be proud. I want disposable batteries custom finished to my specifications; the entire batter...
Oh no
You have revealed the next secret commission of the NorCal group! We will have to go back to having our meetings in secret underground bunkers :-) Best, Gary
Exactly a discussion I had with my AD
I was thinking about Indie's work when the HM5 was launched (after the Amida watch from the 80's) and thought, as it looked like the GP "casquette"electonic watch too, that brands like MB&F or Urwerk could easily integrate in their collection an elect...
Since your post isn't
dated April the 1st alI can say is hell is freezing over Best D
Awesome article on the future of horology
I laughed so much on the voutilainen photo and the Gerber, fantastic job :D :D :D François
Some great insights!
Must say, that Prescher is super cool. I had no idea that the Nemo Sub's time indicators acted as a battery storage for an in-house fuel cell unit in case the watch runs out of juice... ingenious;) Loved (and laughed through) every bit of this lighthearte...
Fantastic!
Great piece of work - I' still giggling! Surprising how far down I read before I realised....duh! Vernon
Happy April fool's day!!!! - but PARTLY true!
as many have guessed - this was a hoax. But not entirely: some of the 'facts' I presented were fiction (Kari Voutilainen, Thomas Prescher), but other facts stay true: - of course Vianney Halter produced quartz watches under his 'HTO' brand - the workshop ...
Absolutely fascinating
Interesting to see how this plays out. Fascinating that Silicon Valley has tried to lure Swiss talent away. I am excited at the prospect of seeing a meticulously crafted smart watch but fearful that the younger generation may wholeheartedly accept smart w...
I've heard that there is a new quartz Sarpaneva coming ...
where the batteries fit into the moon face receptacles. A replica of the current moon face appears magically on a tiny LED display fitted onto each of the batteries (alternatively you may choose custom engraving of the battery itself). This movement was a...
Loved this
Hilarious - and loved your explanation email even more to set things in (relative) context.