Remember that time the world thought Apple had gone mad because it launched a $17,000 Apple Watch Edition? That figure is dwarfed by the price of TAG Heuer’s new luxury smartwatch, the Connected Modular 45. Its asking price: $198,000.
By our count that’s equivalent to around 396 units of Apple’s brand new $499 cellular Apple Watch Series 4 watches. It also qualifies for the status of most expensive smartwatch in the world.
When it comes to smartwatch sales, Apple Watch has well and truly embarrassed the entire Android Wear ecosystem, even though it hasn’t spent anywhere near as long on the market. But with Google’s platform getting a high-profile supporter this week, is it time for change?
TAG Heuer’s new Connected is the first smartwatch from a luxury watchmaker, giving consumers a high-end alternative to the Apple Watch. It has beautiful hardware, great specifications, and even comes with an upgrade program that lets buyers swap it for a traditional TAG watch when it’s no longer useful.
So, is this the device Android Wear needs to mount a threat against Apple’s popular wearable?
Join us in this week’s Friday Night Fight between Cult of Android and Cult of Mac as we battle it out over that very question!
TAG Heuer is ready to take on the Apple Watch.
Its first smartwatch, powered by Android Wear and called the Carrera Connected, is set to make its debut later this week, and it will retail for $1,500.
Apple Watch is by far the most successful smartwatch to date in terms of sales, so perhaps it’s no surprise that Apple has been voted the “coolest wearables brand” by smartphone users.
The Cupertino company not only beat technology rivals like Samsung and LG to the top of the list, but also high-end watchmakers and fashion brands like TAG Heuer, Rolex, and Ralph Lauren.
Swiss watchmakers have been tripping over themselves to dismiss the Apple Watch as a threat, but TAG Heuer CEO Jean-Claude Biver has come out with what I think is one of the fairer assessments of Apple’s debut wearable device to date.
His take? That the Apple Watch is hella bad news if you’re a low-priced watchmaker, but probably okay if you’re making timepieces over the $2,000 mark.
Jean-Claude Biver, the watch division president of LVMH — which owns brands including Bulgari, Chaumet, Hublot, TAG Heuer, and others — has revealed that the French luxury conglomerate plans to enter the smart watch space to take on Apple.
Making no attempt to disguise their plans to ride on the Apple Watch’s coattails, Biver said that Apple’s presence “will help create a new class of clients enthusiastic about luxury watches,” who LVMH will target with their forthcoming devices that will start at around $1,600.
You’ve got to hand it to Sir Jonathan Ive: Apple’s head of design knows how to scare the competition. Wearables at CES were a huge disappointment, and there was a palpable sense that everyone was just waiting for the Apple Watch to come out.
Even the Swiss watch industry is scared. After initially dismissing the Apple Watch as a design joke, TAG Heuer’s luxury watch guru is singing a new tune.
Luxury Swiss watch makers were originally dismissive of Apple Watch, but now that its launch is inching closer, their tone is changing. TAG Heur’s chief squirmed in front of the press today and announced that his brand is working on something that might be totally amazing. They’re just still looking for partners to make it happen.
Jony Ive prophesied in September that Swiss watchmakers were in “trouble” thanks to his new creations, and it’s looking like he was right. TAG Heuer CEO Jean-Claude Biver said his company is creating a product to take on Apple Watch, but only if it “can be first, different and unique.”
Biver told reporters that TAG has already struck several partnerships for the watch, and they’re also considering acquiring a few companies to speed up the process.
Now that Apple has entered the watch game, even the horological old guard is starting to take notice. Just a few days after Apple unveiled the Apple Watch, Swiss luxury watchmaker TAG Heuer has announced that it’s planning on making a smartwatch too … although they say they don’t just want to copy the Apple Watch.
Rumors that Apple might bring fun faces to the iWatch thanks to a partnership with Swatch have already been shot down, after the Swiss watchmaker denied a report claiming it and other watchmakers were helping Apple create a diverse lineup of smartwatches.
A report from Venture beat on Wednesday claimed Swatch, Timex and possibly others, were secretly helping Apple make a whole set of iWatches for all tastes geek to chic, but it appears that Apple is definitely making the iWatch all on its own.
