San Francisco, CA (PRWEB) February 27, 2015 -- Ever since its launch of the Mondaine/SBB Swiss Railways watch in 1986, Mondaine has been synonymous with Switzerland and, by extension, Swiss watchmaking. Its use of such iconic emblems, such as its SBB Swiss railway clock and the Helvetica® font, has meant it is inextricably linked to this Alpine country and that most Swiss of pursuits.
Now Mondaine has launched a watch that proudly references its past, while simultaneously taking a bold step into its future. The Mondaine Helvetica No 1 Smart will be its first-ever smartwatch.
At first glance its dial bears little resemblance to the blinking LED screens of its smartwatch competitors; it just looks like a regular Mondaine Helvetica Bold. The clue lies in the sub dial at six o’clock. This isn’t a small-seconds or an annual calendar, but an analogue representation of the smart technology that is at the heart of this unique timepiece.
Inside this watch is the latest in smart technology focused on monitoring activity and sleep, featuring MotionX® activity tracking, Sleeptracker® sleep monitoring, Sleep cycle alarms, Get-Active alerts and adaptive coaching – all the data from which can be backed up and stored in the MotionX cloud.
It uses the horological smartwatch platform, power MotionX, which manages the bi-directional communication between the watch and whichever device, be it phone or tablet, it is connected to via the downloaded app. In complete contrast to other smart devices, where the data is shown digitally on the watch, the information is read in an analogue fashion via the sub dial.
This technology has been incorporated into a watch for the first time thanks to a collaboration between Peter Stas, CEO of the MMT and Philippe Kahn, founder of Fullpower Technologies and the first man who, back in 1997, managed to instantly upload a camera phone picture to a public network thanks to the technology he created.
The two men have set up Manufacture Movements Technologies (MMT) a Swiss-based company, operating out of Plan-Les-Ouates, dedicated to creating watches that straddle the two worlds of horology and technology. Along with Frederique Constant and Alpina, Mondaine is currently the only other brand licensed to use this groundbreaking quartz module, which has a battery life of two plus years – a dramatic improvement on most smartwatches.
“This is a beautiful Swiss watch that is also connected and smart,” said Andre Bernheim, CEO of Mondaine. “Don’t forget Mondaine, founded by our father in 1951, introduced one of the world’s first LCD and LED watches and now we are doing something which is the next step in today’s watch industry. This is the first-ever Swiss-made horological smartwatch. It is a world first and Mondaine is proud to be at the forefront of this new technology, thanks to a collaboration with MMT.”
The Mondaine Helvetica No 1 Smart in the Helvetica® bold shape will feature a classic brushed matte steel case, white dial, sapphire crystal and a soft leather strap. The official announcement took place on February 26, 2015, in San Francisco, and the first prototype will be launched at Baselworld in March 2015, with the first watches available to buy as of fall this year.
In the Helvetica No 1 smartwatch, Mondaine has managed to perfectly marry Swiss watchmaking and classic design credentials with the latest technological advances. This is the smartwatch choice for connected people.
For more information: http://www.mondaine.com
Beth Hurtubise, bde, http://www.mondaine.com, +1 2123531383, [email protected]
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