It would be interesting to see which segment eroded most. I would guess lower price bracket swiss watches like Swatch will suffer the most.

 

Just wait until the geeks' batteries run out, or worse - corrode and ruin the computer chip inside.

 

Dennis, long time no see..... I already sorely missed Josey on fall season (no snow please)

 

Hi H, how's it going?

 

Not much D. I couldnt have enough time as I wanted to take care this hobby again. Thats why my posts count decline considerably in the past year.
Looking forward to meeting you again and checking out yours and M wonderful collection again

 

Next time you're on this side of the planet make sure to let us know. Lunch and watches..... lunch and watches...... lunch and watches.

 

Great....thanks M & D

 

Smart watches - the Chronograph Suisse of the 21st century.

 

Outsold the Swiss in units, but I doubt it outsold them in value.

 

One has to take this sort of information in perspective; lots of people bought a fruit watch. Many of them bought it because it was made by that fruit company. Fashion statement, conversation piece. Maybe even functional for a tech geek. Yep, lots of pieces sold..."smartwatch sales for 2016 could hit $11.5 billion this year, with Apple leading the way."
BUT...Swiss watch sales are valued at 22.5 billion CHF this year alone, and that is only the export figures, so anyone who buys a watch in Switzerland is not included. So lots more tech geeks would have to buy a lot more watches, and really, those who want a fruit watch have bought it already, and they are waiting for the software update...
And did the stories say that the sales of Swiss watches are down? Are certain segments suffering? No details on that, although we will get those reports in the future from the Swiss Watch Federation.
Or is this an example of people who never used a watch before buying their "gateway watch", likely buying something mechanical in the future?
All very interesting, but still doesn't compel me to buy a smart watch...
Another view from Hodinkee:
http://www.hodinkee.com/articles/ne...ose-heightened-threat-to-swiss-watch-industry

 

Another view from Hodinkee:
http://www.hodinkee.com/articles/ne...ose-heightened-threat-to-swiss-watch-industry

Good comments following the article.

I have primarily collected high end clocks over the years. There used to be 6-8 local clockmakers and now only 1 plus a newbie. As collectibles go, the lower/mid grade items fall off in a declining economy. The premium items still hold on.

But I wonder how the lack repair people will impact the prices of clock and watches in the future.

 

See this article regarding the new Swatch smart watch http://www.ablogtowatch.com/swatch-smartwatch-touch-zero-one-volleyball/
Of course smart watches will outsell Swiss watches, they are for the mass market. Just like quartz outsells mechanical it is for the mass market.
I congratulate the Swatch Group at entering the market at the correct low end level. I hope this is a sign that Omega will not make the almost fatal error made in the early 80s. I doubt Rolex or PP will launch a smart watch.

 

The premium items hold on indeed. Rolex had the Oyster quarts in the 80s but they did not sellout 100% to their credit they are what they are today. Omega's mistakes in the 80s nearly finished them off let us hope the Swatch group do not allow lightening to strike twice.

 

I am reminded of the numerous "Apple Killer" articles over the years. From MP3 players to now phones the press touts the "killer" and Apple laughs its way to the bank.

Apple doesn't make entry level anything.

Apple makes high margin products above the entry level. You can find cheaper smart watches and most will have a less intuitive interface and lack the style appeal of Apple. If you look at phones Android passed iOS in units sold but Apple's profits on iPhones are larger than the entire remainder of the cell phone market, THEY DON'T CARE if the person looking to spend less buys a cheaper phone. They want to own the market of people willing to spend $600 or more on a cell phone. Who cares if random maker owns the sub $600 market?

This isn't very different than the watch market. Omega division of Swatch doesn't care who owns the sub $4k market for watches. People willing to spend in excess of $4k will they get their itch scratched owning basically the same watch as the intern in the office just with a nicer band?

So Swatch Group is straddled. They have the market for the people who think $350 is a ridiculously high outlay for a watch and the market for people who don't blink spending $4k and much much more for a fashion statement.

A friend is hiring manager for a local bank group. He told me he is always leery of the candidate who arrives to an interview wearing a watch capable of receiving emails and texts. They have a strict no cell use policy except on scheduled breaks. The applicant with a bare wrist or traditional watch is better regarded because he sees the smartwatch as temptation to violate the communications ban, even unintentionally.

 

I didn't think places like this still existed. I am so glad I am out of the corporate world...

 

There are also the high security places that don't allow cell phones into the office at all. I assume a smart watch would be treated similarly and not allowed in at all.

 

I wonder when Apple will but a Swiss House ... Fred Constant?