Tissot T-Touch Connect Solar

Innovators by tradition, Tissot are putting their experience to good use. The long-awaited T-Touch Connect Solar comes from a long line of tactile watches, namely the successive generations of T-Touch since 1999, and as a connected watch it is ahead of its time, just like 2004’s High-T, created in association with Microsoft. By injecting its know-how into the interface between wristwatch and mobile app environment, Tissot has created a connected watch that has a multitude of functions, can be recharged by solar power, and is durable. But it is first and foremost a watch for experiencing and wearing, and with a sophisticated design.

Design

The T-Touch Connect Solar is first and foremost a watch. Not a gadget, not a “device”, and not a wrist-worn mini-tablet. Its 47-mm titanium case with an extremely scratch-resistant ceramic bezel is ergonomic and displays Tissot’s characteristic attention to detail. Those details include satin-finished surfaces, softened corners, an engraved ceramic bezel, and even a brand new titanium bracelet with links that bear the stamp of a sharp, modern design. In addition, it is water-resistant to 100 metres.

It is being launched in several versions with rubber straps or titanium bracelets, and a case in satin-finished titanium, black PVD or rose gold PVD. And these hardwearing materials mean that this watch, unlike the more disposable smartwatches, is naturally protected from obsolescence, especially the built-in obsolescence of electronic products.

Functions

The T-Touch Connect Solar has the basic functions of a T-Touch Solar Expert, such as a perpetual calendar, countdown, various timekeeping functions and alarms, and meteo and altimeter functions. To these it adds an activity tracker and the opportunities afforded by interaction between the SwALPS operating system, developed specifically for this project, and a smartphone with app notifications and updates. And like every T-Touch, it is controlled via its original defining feature, the tactile sapphire crystal.

The T-Touch Connect Solar is a Swiss-Made connected watch. This certification of component origin and workmanship is a guarantee of manufacturing quality and of security. No provider can access data via a component or the operating system. And neither the watch nor its app send data to a third party.

Profile

The T-Touch Connect Solar is also autonomous. This is firstly because it is energy-efficient, all its component being low-consumption. On the other hand, it is solar recharged thanks to photovoltaic cells, developed in Neuchâtel by the CSEM, located on the dial. The T-Touch Connect Solar is therefore able to keep running almost indefinitely in connected mode, and for up to 6 months depending on its usage and sun exposure.

Lastly, the T-Touch Connect Solar is universal. It is compatible with the iOS, Android and Harmony mobile operating systems. The Tissot T-Touch Connect Solar is the first smartwatch compatible with the Huawei system. Subsequent upgrades will increase its capabilities. And in the event the user opts not to connect their watch to the app, the T-Touch Connect Solar is still the equivalent of a T-Touch Solar Expert, but redesigned and updated.

Tissot has created an operating system specifically for the T-Touch Connect Solar. SwALPS was developed by the SwatchGroup in partnership with a research and development institute, the CSEM. Several manufacturing entities of the Swatch Group, to which Tissot belongs, are involved in the creation of the T-Touch Connect Solar, as they have been since the first one in 1999.

Technical features

• Swiss Made
• Low consumption operating system SwALPS
• Titanium case, black PVD coating and rose gold
• 47 mm in diameter; 15.3 mm thick
• Engraved pushers
• Electronic crown
• Ceramic bezel
• Luminescent wind rose markings
• Scratch-resistant and tactile sapphire crystal
• Waterproof 100 m (10 ATM)
• Quartz movement, solar recharging
• Dial with photovoltaic cells
• Low consumption digital MIP screen (Memory In Pixel)