IN PRAISE OF SLOWNESS

This was one of the stars of the 2019 SIHH with an ingenious energy-saving mechanism as its chief asset. We take a closer look at a new watch certified with the Geneva Seal!

Resetting a perpetual calendar after it hasn’t been used for a while can turn into a tedious operation, as tricky as mounting a piece of Ikea furniture without the instructions. To make life easier, Vacheron Constantin has come up with an innovative solution: the option to slow down the frequency of the calibre. How does it work? On your wrist, the Traditionnelle Twin Beat Perpetual Date runs at a frequency of 5hz for perfect accuracy. But what happens if you have to go away on a trip and leave your precious timepiece at home? A press on the monopusher at 8 o’clock is enough to slow down the frequency, which falls immediately to 1.2hz. This “stand-by“ mode gives the watch an incredible power reserve of 65 days. The reduction in energy consumption has no effect on the perpetual date function throughout this period. So you will not have to reset the watch when you put on the watch again.

By Dan Diaconu