READY FOR THE ROAD

One watch, two possibilities. This is what is on offer from Tissot with a protean watch that can be worn on the wrist or placed on the dashboard of an A110 car.

Since the rebirth of Alpine and its flagship model, the A110, Tissot has been releasing limited-edition watches in the colours of this star of the world of sports cars through a partnership that began in the 1970s. A new and highly original timepiece was launched at the recent Paris Motor Show. It is clear from the off that the On Board Automatic is a sports-style watch. To add to this impression, some elements have been borrowed from the PRS 516 chronograph, a reference model for Tissot: the rectangular, lume-coated hands, the piston-shaped monopushers and the perforated leather strap. The watch is completed by two counters in bicompax position and the date displayed at 6 o’clock. The Alpine blue is very much in evidence, as is the logo of the French carmaker present as a counterweight on the central second hand.

The watch is driven by an automatic movement. The Valjoux A05.H31 provides 60 hours of power reserve once fully wound. The three-hand version, powered by a quartz calibre and on offer at an attractive price, can also move from the wrist to the dashboard.

Price: 1,950 EUR (automatic) – 490 EUR (quartz) www.tissotwatches.com

By Dan Diaconu

ESSENTIAL ASSET

After the Everytime, now it is the V8’s turn to be equipped with the Swissmatic mechanic calibre. The result? Elegant, sports-style watches at very attractive prices.

Wardrobe basics are those vital clothing accessories to be selected for the day in line with our needs and wishes. Among the accessories for men, the three-hand watch with date is absolutely vital. Choosing the ideal watch, however, is not always an easy matter, and very often a purchase is like a puzzling equation with three unknowns. So is it possible to find a timepiece combining a strong personality with a Swiss-made mechanical movement at an affordable price? Fortunately, brands such as Tissot include collections in their catalogues with all the assets you could ask for. A good example being the various versions of the new V8 Swissmatic.

The V8 Swissmatic watches are attractive from an aesthetic point of view, but also for their mechanism. All the models are driven by a self-winding calibre providing over 70 hours of power reserve.

Price: from 390 EUR to 450 EUR www.tissotwatches.com

By Dan Diaconu

SHIFTING UP GEARS!

Fans of cycling and the Tour de France can now enjoy all the atmosphere of their favourite sport embodied in these new watches.

Tissot again became the official chronometer of the Tour de France in 2016 (editor’s note: as it was between 1988 and 1992), and has taken inspiration from the world of this great popular race to launch a collection of T-Race Cycling models. A lot of details in these chronographs recall the distinctive elements of a bike. So the internal bezel on the dial and the aluminium tachymetric scale represent a tyre mounted on a carbon rim. The chronograph monopushers recall brake levers, and the silicon strap and the space between the lugs look like a bicycle fork. The case back displays an engraving of the chain wheels on derailleur gears. What’s more, the watch is available in a wide range of sparkling two-colour tones evoking champion cyclists’ outfits.

The watch is not powered by pedals or a chain, but by a Swiss-made quartz movement providing all the precision needed to display the time information and the date. The calibre is housed in a 44.5mm-wide steel case with a black and grey PVD coating and with carbon fibre.

Split-time measurements are made and displayed in the traditional way. The wide hour and minute hands move around a dial designed to evoke asphalt. The T-Race Cycling is a very light watch, weighing no more than 90 grams, so can be worn on a mountain climb in the Alps or during your Sunday ride through the forest.

Price: 480 EUR www.tissotwatches.com

By Dan Diaconu

THE LIFE AQUATIC

The Seastar 1000 has all the advantages of a diving watch: it’s robust, water-tight, easy to read and what’s more, comes at an affordable price. Ready for the dive?

Some watches are like an invitation to travel. Others prompt you to pull on your diving suit and set off to explore the sea depths. The Tissot Seastar 1000 Automatique is one of them! With its 43mm steel case cut out for adventure, you’ll want it on your wrist whether you are immersed in the ocean or making your way against the urban tide. In any situation, it will give you the right time with ultra-readable elements displayed on the dial. The dial itself comes in deep black, electric blue, metallic grey or a blue-black tone somewhat reminiscent of the ocean, while large hands and hour markers with a luminous coating have the advantage of standing out perfectly in the dark.

The timepiece is driven by an automatic movement. The calibre Powermatic 80, which can now be found on many of the watches made by Tissot, guarantees a generous power reserve of over three days.

Price: 710 EUR www.tissotwatches.com

By Dan Diaconu

PERFORMANCE AND STYLE

Tissot has expanded its Ballade collection with a new model combining steel and pink gold PVD coating to adorn our wrists with elegance on all occasions.

Since 2017, the Ballade collection by Tissot has been carrying us away to an efficient and accessible mechanical world. So, as usual, the men’s watches for 2018 combine performance and style. As the proverb says, you don’t change a winning team! The new model, which will be officially introduced during BaselWorld, is still driven by the powerful self-winding Powermatic 80 calibre with a silicon balance wheel/spiral duo. Along with a healthy power reserve of 80 hours, this calibre, which is certified by the COSC (the Official Swiss Chronometer Testing Institute), is highly resistant to rust, impacts and magnetic fields. This year, the brand from the Swatch Group has combined the calibre with an elegant two-colour case with a transparent back. After a steel and yellow gold model, here the bezel and crown take on a more refined coating with pink gold PVD. The overall effect is enhanced by polished finishes with satin effects.

This new Ballade is worn on the wrist with a 316L solid steel strap with pink gold PVD links or a leather version with a butterfly deployment clasp.

Price: 1,070 EUR www.tissotwatches.com

By Dan Diaconu

FROM YESTERDAY AND TODAY

With the Heritage collection, Tissot brings us models in a vintage style, combining simple elegance with an up-to-date, efficient mechanism. A closer look at the Heritage 2018!

Feeling nostalgic? Tissot has travelled back in time to launch a vintage-style watch with classical elegance. In 1943, the brand launched its first collection of timepieces with an automatic movement. An early advertisement showed a refined model with a dial featuring sword-style hour and minute hands. The reference to “antimagnetic“ under the logo highlighted its resistance and modernity. A small second hand at 6 o’clock was used to check the calibre was working correctly. This model has inspired the design of the new Heritage 2018, launched in March at Baselworld. It has the same layout, but now the hands are leaf-shaped and rotate above a curved dial made of brushed silver and featuring vintage-style numerals.

While the dial borrows the aesthetic codes of the period, the mechanism is the very contemporary calibre ETA 6498-1. Once wound, the watch will provide up to 46 hours of power reserve. The Geneva Wave design on the bridges and plates of the hand-wound movement is shown beneath the sapphire case back. The steel case is watertight down to 50 metres and comes in a very modern size with a width of 42mm – far removed from the diameter of the earlier watch, which must have been around 35mm!

The Tissot Heritage 2018 comes with a black leather strap with a folding clasp.

Price: 990 EUR www.tissotwatches.com

By Dan Diaconu

KING SIZE

With a new collection and many different versions, Tissot has released multipurpose timepieces that can be worn on all wrists, no matter what your style.

While fashion dictates that watches should come in smaller sizes, Tissot has gone in the other direction. Today, a watch has become a vital accessory in the male wardrobe and is meant to be seen. So, you might as well think big! This is what the brand from Le Locle has on offer with its Chrono XL, a watch that stands out through its impressive 45mm-wide steel case. And to give them the cases even more character, they are coated in grey or black PVD and combined with simple or brightly coloured dials. Four large figures at the cardinal points and a railroad track make up the time markings. With their luminous coating, they provide optimum readability even in dim light.

All the models in the collection are driven by Swiss-made quartz chronograph movements. The calibres provide short-time measurements with a traditional display via a central second hand plus minute and hour sub-dials. They also measure “add” and “split” times. A running second and date counter at 4 o’clock round off the traditional design.

The watches come with leather straps available in a wide range of colours and finishes. They all feature a standard buckle, making them comfortable and easy to wear. So, whether you’re a fan of vintage or contemporary design, you’re sure to find the Chrono XL for you!

Price: 330 EUR www.tissotwatches.com

By Dan Diaconu

WHEN SIMPLICITY IS RIGHT

A chic and simple design is the main feature of the Everytime Swissmatic. A new calibre has joined the collection, beating all the competition hands down

Buying a mechanical watch is not within everyone’s reach And yet the brand from Le Locle has taken up the challenge with its Tissot Everytime Swissmatic. Part of the entry-level Everytime collection released last year, this new model marks another step towards wider accessibility for finely crafted mechanical watches with a price outdoing all the close competitors. Tissot has hit the spot.

Inside the 40mm-wide, 12mm-thick case, the Tissot Everytime Swissmatic houses a brand-new calibre, the Swissmatic, a Swiss-made automatic movement (ETA), providing almost 75 hours (three days) of power reserve. Tissot is rightly proud of this new movement, based on the remarkable Sistem51 by Swatch. It drives the hour, minute and central second functions with silvered hands providing a strong contrast with the black dial, plus the date in a window at 3 o’clock. The dance of the mechanism can be admired through the transparent caseback.

With its simple design, and chic and harmonious silhouette, the Tissot Everytime Swissmatic is suited to all occasions. The case is made of 316 L stainless steel, with a sapphire crystal that is tried and tested against scratching. This new timepiece is also available in rose gold with a PVD coating and is sold with a black leather strap featuring a jewelled clasp, tone-on-tone overstitching and crocodile embossing. But you can also get a stainless-steel strap or a synthetic fabric strap with a standard buckle. Tissot focuses on the simplicity of the design, it’s true, but with an elegant and timeless look.

Price: 425 CHF www.tissotwatches.com

By Isabelle Guignet

PERSONAL COACH

The practical and easy-to-use T-Race Touch Aluminium will be on hand for all outdoor sports and for work outs in your favourite gym.

The T-Touch collection features timepieces that are as well-equipped as the famous Swiss army knife. Using technology developed by Tissot, these watches have a wide range of features that can be activated with a simple press on the tactile crystal. The T-Race Touch Aluminium has two time counters, two alarms, a perpetual calendar and a second time zone. Activating some of these features also changes the role of the hour and minute hands. So if you are out and about, the two hands can be transformed into a compass, and the minute hand points towards the north magnetic pole. If you are sailing, a tide indicator shows the state of tidal currents with the minute hand, while the hour hand tells you whether the tide is rising or ebbing.

The T-Race Touch Aluminium is worn with a black silicon strap for optimal comfort during your sports activities.

Price: €480 www.tissotwatches.com

By Dan Diaconu

THE ELEGANCE OF TRADITION

Making luxury accessible: this is what is on offer from Tissot with their steel or gold watches in classic and timeless style, made in Switzerland.

The T-Classic collection is based on a timepiece combining elements from the impressive heritage and skills of the watchmakers, Tissot. The epitome of a classic watch, the Tradition Automatic Small Second, with a design inspired by a 1950s model, quite logically finds its place in the series. It comes in several different versions to suit all tastes and for all occasions. So for the 40mm case and the hands, you can choose between steel, yellow gold or rose gold. Whatever the colour of the matching dial (anthracite, black or silver), all have the same layout in terms of time information, combining simplicity and elegance. All versions also feature the same self-winding mechanical movement, ETA 2825-2 (38 hours of power reserve), to be seen at work through the sapphire case back.

Two sword-shaped hands show the hours and minutes, represented by a Roman numeral 12 and long, slim indices. A discreet date counter is set at 3 o’clock. A small second hand at 6 o’clock is used to make sure the watch calibre is working. The whole watch is crowned with a curved sapphire crystal. The Tradition Automatic Small Second is worn, depending on the model, with a strap with a leather push-button butterfly clasp or one made from the same material as the case.

Another strong point, and not the least important, is the price for the timepieces in this collection. Luxury watches have seldom been sold at such accessible prices!

Price: from €660 (Steel – leather strap) www.tissotwatches.com

By Dan Diaconu