For the last couple of years haute horological brands have been stepping up their game with smartwatches that bridge new-age technology with traditional watchmaking craftsmanship. With the world becoming more conscious about health and fitness, these connected watches offer to keep track of your sleep and fitness, recommend exercises, monitor your heartbeat and more. Others, even help you to improve your game of golf.
We list the top luxury smartwatches released in 2020.
Montblanc’s Summit 2+
Launched in March 2020, Montblanc’s Summit 2+ is the first luxury smartwatch with 4G LTE connection. Powered by Wear OS by Google, you can answer and make calls, read messages, make online payments and even stream music to wireless headphones directly from your watch.
The new features include an outdoor toolbox with speedometer, altimeter, barometer, compass and GPS. It also includes the Timeshifter app, which provides personalised advice to minimise jet lag, based on the traveller’s sleep pattern, chronotype, and flight plan.
It can also double up as your wellness coach as VO2max, a smart virtual fitness assistant can recommend exercises and an improved Heart Rate Algorithm to track personal health.
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The watch comes in different case finishes —black DLC steel, stainless steel, rose gold and bronze coloured steel that can be combined with a variety of interchangeable 22mm strap options.
The watch is powered by Snapdragon 3100, has extended battery power of 440mAh, 1.28 inch AMOLED Screen and has a built-in speaker—all housed within Montblanc’s distinctive design inspired from their 1858 collection.
TAG Heuer Connected Golf Edition
TAG Huer launched its third generation connected smartwatch in March 2020 and has launched a special edition for golfers in June. Last year, the brand launched an in-house golf app to track and improve performance, record shot distances and scores, and display 99 per cent of golf courses around the world (40,000 maps) with a precise 3D mapping technology and regular updates
TAG Huer has now integrated this into the smartwatch with an added feature: the Driving Zone. It will show the player the best zones to target based on their past rounds.
A sports application can also track a person’s running, cycling, walking or fitness sessions and gain insights from it.
The watch has been designed with high-intensity activities in mind and as a result offers sapphire glass screen protection, rubberised straps for optimal grip and a 5 ATM water resistance rating.
The watch’s design, too, such as the 18 engraved graduations on the black ceramic bezel, lacquer on the rotating crown and green lacquer on the pushers as well as the white rubber strap with green stitching—draw references from the game of golf. The watch comes with an alternative black perforated rubber strap for more formal uses.
It is powered by WearOS by Google and one can use it for daily activities as well using Google Assistant and Google Translate.
Hublot Big Bang e
The second connected watch from Hublot, Big Bang e is a fusion between tradition and innovation, cutting edge materials and the latest digital technology. The 42mm ceramic/ satin-finished and polished titanium case comprises 42 components, that houses a connected timepiece made of 42 components, 27 of which are used to build the ‘cage’ which houses the digital heart of the watch.
The scratchproof sapphire crystal, and its rubber strap—with deployant buckle invented by Hublot in 1980 for the Classic model and the patented One Click system for easy interchangeability add to the watch’s appeal.
Powered with Wear OS by Google, users can access apps on Google Play, get answers on the go with Google Assistant and make fast simple payments with Google Pay.
The water-resistant watch (up to a depth of 30 metres) also features a Perpetual Calendar with an immaculately precise moon phase or a second GMT time zone, which presents the earth in a very realistic way.
Frederique Constant Vitality
Frederique Constant was the first Swiss watchmaker to introduce horological smartwatches that combine classic aesthetics with onboard intelligence in 2015.
Vitality, the fourth-generation smartwatch from Frederique Constant, has one dial with two faces. One can enjoy the classic design of the watch characterised by Roman numerals and the hand-polished hour and minute hands on its own or press the crown to access its smart features.
Apart from features such as sleep tracker, second time zone, call and message notifications and active alerts, which were seen in earlier smartwatches by the brand, the 2020 edition can monitor your pulse right from the wrist, thanks to a new-generation sensor developed by Philips. If your heart rate drops too low or climbs too high, the watch will vibrate and send a visual alert. The additional features also include reading the last five messages received from various apps and weather updates.
There are four 36 mm variants for women and four 42mm variants for men. The user can choose to display all the timepiece’s connected functions on the screen or configure a selection of information only. The ladies model smartwatch can last up to seven days on a full charge, while the men’s model can stretch up to 11 days.
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