Over the years
since the first model launched, we've seen numerous interesting reactions from
traditional watch makers, mainly from Switzerland – the Rolex motherland. Not
that there's anything surprising, considering how suddenly Apple became the
top-selling watch brand in the world.
The latest entry in a series of crazy offerings is
the Swiss Alp Watch Concept Black by H. Moser – a time piece that's as
ridiculous as it is expensive. You thought the Apple Watch Series 4 was pricy
at US$ 399? Well, the Swiss Alp Watch costs US$ 350,000.
Yet, despite the discrepancy in pricing, the Apple
Watch and the Swiss Alp Watch are quite similar in appearance. They have the
same rectangular form factor with rounded corners and a metal frame encasing a
glass screen. Only the Alp Watch doesn't actually have a display, because its
mechanical. It doesn't have a dial either, because it doesn't need one – it has
no numbers and no hands to point at them.
Instead of looking at this ultra-expensive H. Moser
watch, you're supposed to listen to it. That's right this timepiece conveys
time with sound. To do so, you're supposed to sound a minute repeater whose
chimes will tell you if you're running late, according to Engadget.
According to its creators, the Swiss Alp Watch
Concept Black is supposed to be "an attempt to go back to the roots of
watchmaking. This brings the watch to its rightful place as a timekeeper rather
than a time-wasting 'smart' device displaying notifications." That's, uh,
quite the statement about a watch that doesn't outright tell you what time it
is.
And what about adjusting the time? No, it doesn't
get the right time beamed to it from space. Instead it offers a minimalist
solution to the (decidedly simple) problem, as you'd expect from a watch that
doesn't show you the time: "Even the time setting system is discreet with adjustments made
via the crown. A marking engraved on the crown allows the time to be corrected
using a graduation, which only appears when the crown is pulled out, with
twelve indices each representing five minutes. A subtle system that respects
the minimalist spirit of the model," reads the official statement from H.
Moser & Cie.
It's a unique method of adjusting the time on a
unique watch, that's for sure.
