TAG Heuer Announces Smartwatch Plans as Threat From Apple Watch Looms

[thekeyring]

I think you've been drinking the koolaide too much to make that comment. Android is not junk and Apple are not a status symbol for the rich, if they were then Apple wouldn't sell anywhere near the amounts they do.

And as has been said, you can get an iPhone for free or very little on contract.

I agree: Owning an iPhone does not guarantee you're wealthy.

However, on average iPhone users earn 40% more than Android phone owners and spend more time in apps.

Sources:
http://www.comscore.com/Insights/Da...Income-Engage-More-on-Apps-than-Android-Users

There will obviously be examples that show the opposite of this - I know people on benefits who buy iPhones, but then that's how screwed the UK benefit system is.

 

[smchan]

The watch market is very different from the smartphone market, horse market or any other market for that matter. What most people here seem to miss is that high-end watches are not an inferior type of watch due to less functionality. Fuctionality is not the main driver in high-end watches, but manufacturing complication and materials.

Maybe, maybe not. I certainly get tired of setting and winding my automatic TAG because I don't wear it everyday.

The high end markt is not about functionality and is driven by entirely different consumer behaviour than the lower end.

Agreed. I treat my automatic watches as more of a fashion accessory that I wear for business meetings, dates with my wife, etc.

Sam

 

[peterdevries]

Your post is full of inaccuracies and Tissot make cheap watches, with most selling for around £300-£800. For comparison, the very cheapest current TAG Heuer watches are the F1 branded ones which retail around £1000 (grey imports can usually be found a little cheaper online). My most recent Carrera cost £4500.

TAG Heuer watches have actually gone up in price in recent years, reflected in the much higher quality timepieces they are now producing. As another example, Monaco's are at least £500 more compared to 2 years ago. So TAG are trying to compete with Omega etc, not the low end of the market.

Well, I do concede that I'm not following TAG that closely anymore. But in Germany a few years ago, their bottom rung watches could be picked up for about 700-800 euros (not pounds). TAG is also very popular in the UK, while it is less so in the rest of Europe. The markets are different.

And I wasn't saying TAG isn't competing at the higher ranges. What I'm saying is that they for a long time they have been less effective in that range. And you are right about their classics, which are the carreras and the monacos which have always been the best pieces they make.

I do like that they have gone back to more angular designs and some of their flagships are seriously impressive in terms of fast time measurement.

 

[Zendokan]

Tag, Rolex and Breitling may well find that their best-selling models have become that squeezed mid-end. Only their top models (and much higher end brands) will escape that fate.

Yes, that will be the market targeted by the Watch.

They aren't going for Tag and Breitling's top models and non of the Rolex models, but Tag and Breitling 's best-selling models, which make up the bulk of LVMH watch sales are the ones being threatend by a high-end smartwatch.

That can hurt even if Apple only takes 10% of that market with the Watch.

Probably the LVMH smartwatch will be positioned in that same segment and will also not be an internal competitor for their mechanical top watches.

 

[Steve121178]

and some of their flagships are seriously impressive in terms of fast time measurement.

So they should be for something that costs anything from £50,000 - £250,000!

http://www.tagheuer.co.uk/int-en/luxury-watches/tag-heuer-carrera-mikrotourbillons-watch

http://www.tagheuer.co.uk/int-en/luxury-watches/monaco-v4-watch

 

[nando87]

Why would TAG, a very respected and high end watch company mess with "toys" like this? Dorks that buy Apple watches are NOT the intended audience for an elegant and stylish TAG. What a joke. What's next, Rolex making one? Patek Phillipe? Cmon.

I don't see why TAG would consider a gimmicky toy to be a threat at all.

A- TAG is not a very respected high end watch company, it's a mall-low end luxury watch company

B- They already made smartphones which used crappy android versions so they were gimmicks for arab petrodollars

They are the wildcard, brand of experiments of the LVMH group

As the Apple Watch will be a bad watch and a good smartwatch, the Tag Heuer whatever will be a rather good watch and a bad smartwatch.

 

[Col4bin]

So TAG will try producing a smart watch to compete with Apple??? On average the lowest-end TAG watches retail for $1,000. So we can trust that they can produce a smart watch with better technology than Apple, oh and at 4x the cost of the base Apple Watch??? (Yeah, I'm sure TAG will sell 8 of these. Good luck with that.)

 

[JGRE]

Rolex has produced the Oyster Perpetual since the 1930's whereas the quartz watches didn't appear until the late '60's. The quartz didn't spur on the birth of the automatic movement as it had already been in production for decades. The quartz was more a response to improved accuracy (15 seconds fluctuation per month rather than 15 seconds per day with mechanical movements) rather than the need to wind a watch every night.

As for upgrades, it is true that Apple is sealing their products and making it more difficult for "us" to upgrade. But I'm guessing (and only guessing) that Apple would feel differently about upgrades if they knew they were getting paid $300-$500 for the "service" to upgrade.

'Perpetual' has nothing to do with self-winding, perpetual refers to the calendar mechanism. On a simple mechanical watch, you have to manual adjust for the different number of days in the month, the better-onces do this automatically, but still need manual adjustment for the 29th February every four years, the best can even handle this. The story about the automatic winding system can be found on the website of Breitling:

Quote: "In 1969, the brand took on one of the greatest 20th century watchmaking challenges by presenting the first selfwinding chronograph movement. In 1984, Breitling heralded the rebirth of the mechanical chronograph by launching the famous Chronomat, which has since become its leading model."

Btw: 'chronograph' has nothing to do with a 'stop-watch'.

 

[Damian83]

I have a Tag Heuer and i'll never replace it with a watch for kids like iWatch

 

[bobob]

I would like to see an analogue hands/touch screen hybrid. If I raise it for more than <average time to read time> a transparent screen above the hands turns black and then all the touch interface appears. When I lower my watch, it goes back to transparent. It may be a bit complicated to produce, but it's something I'm more likely to switch to from "regular" watches.

Now that's a direction that might work for the Swiss!

Of course, it'll be 5+ years until the smartwatch tech guts are miniaturized enough to fit in beside the mechanicals, but wouldn't that be cool - - high end Rolex automatic waterproof watch that looks entirely stock, until you flick your wrist and an overlaid smartscreen kicks in on the crystal!

 

[panther quest]

Been wondering what happened to him / her since the 6 Plus was announced.

1080p, is that you?!

 

[FieldingMellish]

I envision Swatch as a company to be concerned about doing a computerized watch, not TAG. TAG, do what you do best and do not water yourself down with me-to failures and waste of resources chasing a nerd market that typically wears rags to work.

 

[iMcLovin]

I dont understand the fear though. Until apple can make this clock with a months battery time at least. Currently its a product for a few tech geeks (not even me) and for working out and some fashion. Apart from that its a premature gadget.

If I could choose a tag heuer or a apple watch Id get the tag heuer.

 

[Rossatron]

Now that's a direction that might work for the Swiss!

Of course, it'll be 5+ years until the smartwatch tech guts are miniaturized enough to fit in beside the mechanicals, but wouldn't that be cool - - high end Rolex automatic waterproof watch that looks entirely stock, until you flick your wrist and an overlaid smartscreen kicks in on the crystal!

yeah, thats what would get me to buy one of these. i mean, its not that the Iwatch or pebble are unattractive, they just lack the flare of a regular watch. if

 

[Keirasplace]

The amount of delusion is incredible. The high end watch market will never be broken by a smart watch. Watch collectors and enthusiasts may add a smart watch to their collection but if anyone thinks that they are going to give up the rest of their watches and own 1 watch, and that 1 watch be a smart watch, well then they don't have much of a clue about watch enthusiasts or the watch market.

There are companies that have stayed afloat perfectly fine while offering watches for no less than thousands of dollars. Why on earth would they feel threatened by a watch that costs a couple of hundred bucks? They will coexist because their customer base can quite easily afford both.

Most of the watches sold ARE NOT HIGH END. Good fracking god! That's a minuscule part of the market. And Apple is going to wreck the lower and mid range market, no question about it. Some will suffer more than others, but many will have drops in profits.

A sub $1000 watch, for me it is not an heirloom. I spent 10 times more than that on my computer in 1990... Yes, that's were most Apple watches sold will live.

The Edition version will probably only dent the lower range of the top end, take away profits without damaging them mortally.

 

[bobob]

I dont understand the fear though. Until apple can make this clock with a months battery time at least.

Don't hold your breath on any full-function, back-lit high-res color screen smartwatch having a month long battery life until the 2020's.

 

[cosmichobo]

I have rarely worn my moderately pricey Citizen watch since becoming an iPhone owner. It takes a few seconds longer, but I can discover the time with the push of a button, and I really just don't see a need any more to strap something to my wrist every day.

Not that I currently have need... but if I was into jogging etc, I'd be happy with an iPod of some description in an arm-band, rather than a watch...

 

[RobertMartens]

Only a matter of time ...

I like what you did there.

 

[icolove]

Says a Blackberry owner 5 years ago when first iPhone just released.

Completely different. I don't recall anyone saying the iPhone was a hideous looking design disaster. The Apple Watch is exactly that.

 

[technopimp]

'Perpetual' has nothing to do with self-winding, perpetual refers to the calendar mechanism. On a simple mechanical watch, you have to manual adjust for the different number of days in the month, the better-onces do this automatically, but still need manual adjustment for the 29th February every four years, the best can even handle this. The story about the automatic winding system can be found on the website of Breitling:

Quote: "In 1969, the brand took on one of the greatest 20th century watchmaking challenges by presenting the first selfwinding chronograph movement. In 1984, Breitling heralded the rebirth of the mechanical chronograph by launching the famous Chronomat, which has since become its leading model."

Btw: 'chronograph' has nothing to do with a 'stop-watch'.

Actually, both of your points are incorrect. In the case of Rolex's "perpetual", that's exactly what it's referring to-the fact that it's self-winding. It has nothing to do with a perpetual calendar. My Deepsea says "Oyster Perpetual Date" on its face, and I assure you it isn't a perpetual calendar. It's a self-winding watch using their Oyster case with a date complication.

And a chronograph is a stop watch.

 

[lowendlinux]

A- TAG is not a very respected high end watch company, it's a mall-low end luxury watch company

B- They already made smartphones which used crappy android versions so they were gimmicks for arab petrodollars

Image

They are the wildcard, brand of experiments of the LVMH group

As the Apple Watch will be a bad watch and a good smartwatch, the Tag Heuer whatever will be a rather good watch and a bad smartwatch.

Thank you, I don't know where this Tag is high end thing came from. They just recently started making their own movements not rehashing existing ones.

 

[TWSS37]

So when Tag Heuer releases its smart watch are people going to complain about it being too expensive, not timeless, poor battery life etc?

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So basically Almost 360 and every other current Android Wear watch is screwed. Because if we're saying Apple can't complete with a Tag Heuer in the luxury space then certainly Lenovo, LG, Samsung and Asus can't either.

Well last I checked none of these companies you outline was aiming for the high end market like Apple is.

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It seems short sighted to think TAG can design a mobile computer like device better than a computer giant.

What? No - TAG designs the watch, you outsource the internal components to be retrofitted with Android Wear.

 

[Karma*Police]

Everyone knows that TAG will design something stunning, but the software will be absolute crap as it will be an after-thought and a "bought in" package, probably Android based. So all you are going to have is a very expensive watch that does little more than a crappy Pebble.

You seem very passionate about this but maybe that's coloring your views here a bit cos I have a hard time seeing the difference between a beautiful watch that does little more than a crappy pebble vs a beautiful watch that does little more than a crappy swatch.

Now the longevity thing I can understand, but just like people spend a small fortune to upgrade their luxury cars and wardrobe every few years, some people will spend a small fortune to upgrade their smart watches every few years. Luxury goods are an emotional purchase. They're not meant to be justified with reason.

 

[DanielSw]

None of us know "where the puck is going to be" with respect to what impact the Watch will have on the market.

Traditional luxury watches' designs have been predicated on their analog components and complications and the functioning of such. A major part of their cost is also predicated on those components.

They've been relative mechanical "wonders" and therefore worth such prices to many.

Now that such mechanics will have been wiped away by the greater desirability and "wonder" of Apple's brand of horological "magic", there may very well be some opportunity for these high-end watch makers to bite the bullet and transition into designing enclosures for the Apple "complications", given acceptable licensing terms.

 

[i5pro]

Personally, I'd welcome a TAG smartwatch..if it can last more than day and be at least 50/100m waterproof. I think the Apple watch is more akin to the first iphone. It appears to be a little bulky, and needs to focus on streamlining. Do I really need a luxury high-end overblown fitbit that I need to charge everyday and be barely waterproof? Can't someone figure out an "automatic" or kinetic charging for such a watch?

Another thing, when my son was born I bought a Rolex...with the intention of passing it along to him when gets of age to appreciate a fine mechanical instrument. How is any of that possible with something else?