Skip to main content

This $30,800 watch outgeeks the Apple Watch with its cheeky dial design

Ever since it launched the first Swiss Alp mechanical watch five years ago, luxury watch maker H. Moser & Cie has repeatedly poked its tongue out at the high-tech Apple Watch by making no secret about taking inspiration for its shape from Apple’s smartwatch. Now, for the final, super-limited version of the Swiss Alp, it has gone beyond the shape to include even more cheeky references to the downsides of smartwatch ownership.

Swiss Alp Watch Final Upgrade - H. Moser & Cie.

The Swiss Alp Watch Final Upgrade utilizes the shape of that most frustrating of icons, the downloading spinner, for its second counter, set at the six o’clock position on the dial. Despite its total blackness, the dial is not a screen, and is instead made using Vantablack technology — an artificial, totally black material that absorbs 99.9% of visible light — to mimic the deep black color of a depressing, inactive screen. The “screen off, loading” style is completed by blacked-out hands. The black screen and loading icon are annoying reminders that we’re waiting for something to happen, but as the Swiss Alp Watch Final Edition is mechanical, it always tells the time. Even the watch’s full name takes a knowing swipe at the tech industry.

Recommended Videos

How about the watch itself? The 38mm case is made from stainless steel, finished with a diamond-like coating, and matched to a black alligator leather strap. The dial is covered by sapphire crystal and the movement can also be seen through a sapphire crystal window on the case back, while the second counter is a shaded disc set under the dial, exposed through tiny openings. Inside the case is an HMC 324 hand-wound movement with 27 jewels and a power reserve of 96 hours, or about four days. There’s a power reserve indicator visible through the case back, too.

In its press release, H. Moser & Cie’s CEO explains that the inspiration for the design came from a customer and friend of the brand, and was approved immediately after being pitched. The Swiss Alp watch was the 200-year old company’s mischievous response to smartwatches in 2016, when it embraced the new era of design, but matched it with cutting-edge mechanical movements and exciting new tech like Vantablack. This final version is the ultimate expression of the Swiss Alp line’s playfulness.

Yes, the final version. This will be the last Swiss Alp watch produced ,and only 50 will be made, making it very limited. H. Moser & Cie isn’t a large-scale watchmaker, and its handmade watches are always produced in small numbers. The price reflects this exclusivity. The Swiss Alp Watch Final Upgrade will cost $30,800, but what a wonderful mix of luxurious traditional watchmaking and geeky tech appeal it is.

Andy Boxall
Andy is a Senior Writer at Digital Trends, where he concentrates on mobile technology, a subject he has written about for…
I bought a $12 ‘Apple Watch’- and it’s bizarre
Homescreen on a $12 Apple Watch Series 10 copycat product

One of my favorite things about Huaqiangbei, the world's craziest tech market, is the diverse range of wares available in its various stalls. Visit this market in Shenzhen, China, and you'll find thousands of small retailers selling a wide range of products, with the majority being branded or inspired by Apple. 

I found $9 AirPods Pro that were original and a great bargain, as well as a host of drones and other tech products. The strangest purchase? This $12 Apple Watch Series 10, which resembles the original Apple Watch at least until you start using it. 

Read more
Apple Watch saves another life by helping detect woman’s fast-spreading cancer
The Apple Watch Series 10 and the Apple Watch Series 3, seen from the front.

There are countless heartwarming stories about different ways the Apple Watch has helped saved people's lives. In addition to the emergency SOS and fall detection features, the Watch offers a suite of insights which can help identify precursors to life-threatening diseases. Recently, a similar story made news when a woman's cancer was caught, thanks to active alerts from an Apple Watch 10.

Amanda Faulkner, a consulting psychiatrist from New Zealand, recently narrated her story where her Apple Watch 10 helped diagnose a rare form of blood cancer, which, if left undiagnosed, would have left her dead in a matter of few days. Faulkner told the New Zealand Herald that her Apple Watch notified her of her unusually high resting heart rate of around 90 beats per minute -- which would typically be around 55 for her.

Read more
This modular Pebble and Apple Watch underdog just smashed funding goals
UNA Watch

Both the Pebble Watch and Apple Watch are due some fierce competition as a new modular brand, UNA, is gaining some serous backing and excitement.

The UNA Watch is the creation of a Scottish company that wants to give everyone modular control of smartwatch upgrades and repairs.

Read more