TAG Heuer Connected Modular 45 – pictures from launch

Today, luxury Swiss watchmaker TAG Heuer, together with partners Intel and Google, unveiled the new Connected Modular 45. This is the second generation of TAG’s connected watch. Parallel announcements took place in Switzerland and in the USA.

TAG are obviously hoping that the new smartwatch does as well as its predecessor, the Carrera Connected. Even though this wearable was only planned to sell 20,000 in the first 6 months. This turned out to be more like 56,000!

Jean-Claude Biver, CEO of TAG Heuer and President of the LVMH Group Watch Division led the launch in Switzerland at an event held at the highly symbolic Rütli Meadow on Lake Lucerne.

Accompanying Mr Biver were Josh Walden, Senior Vice President and General Manager of the New Technology Group at Intel, and David Singleton, VP of Engineering for Android at Google.

Although the new Connected Modular 45 is at the forefront of the latest technologies available in Silicon Valley, the new piece is a genuinely and truly Swiss watch.

TAG Heuer Connected Modular 45

Designed in the purest of Swiss watchmaking traditions, the new watch benefits from over 150 years of Swiss expertise.

The wearable has been designed and assembled entirely at TAG Heuer’s manufacturing site in La Chaux-de-Fonds. This is not only recognised as being the cradle of Swiss watchmaking, it’s also a UNESCO World Heritage site.

As the new watch incorporates all of the traditional Swiss watchmaking attention to detail, rigour and accuracy, it’s the first and only Swiss Made Certified Connected Watch. Anyone that loves watches will recognise that this guarantees the highest standards of Swiss watchmaking quality.

Launch

TAG Heuer has chosen to present its new timepiece at Rütli Meadow. Rütli in German means “Little meadow”. It is Switzerland’s founding legend and considered a national monument. Back in 1291 the representatives of the primitive cantons took the oath of Rütli in this clearing just above Lake Lucerne to seal their alliance.

Over time, the Rütli meadow has become a “national shrine” and it is here on the 1st August every year where Switzerland celebrates its official national holiday.

Connected Modular 45

The name comes from the new watch packing a 45 mm diameter smartwatch module.

The connected module is interchangeable with an Haute Horlogerie mechanical module, – watch or chronograph tourbillon, COSC certified – offering a vast choice of materials, colours and combinations.

The concept of modularity also applies to the lugs, the straps, and the buckle.

The new Connected Modular 45 is a luxury watch, which can be completely tailored to suit its owner’s mood.

As you would expect, only high-quality materials have been used. Materials such as titanium, ceramic and rose gold.

The tech

TAG Heuer has worked closely with Intel and Google to create a luxury watch that combines connectivity and smart technology with Swiss watchmaking expertise.

The watch is powered by an Intel Atom Z34XX processor and runs Android Wear 2.0. This is mated with 4 GB of storage and a battery that promises 24 hours of active power.

It is water-resistant to 50 metres and packs an AMOLED screen. Other features include Wi-Fi, GPS, an NFC sensor for payments, as well as a wide selection of unlimited customisable TAG Heuer dials. There is also a new Companion app which simplifies all the operations on Android Wear.

You also get a small water-resistant microphone. This allows you to communicate using Google Voice control.

Your interface is via a sapphire crystal touchscreen and the command crown at the 3 o’clock position.

Even when the smart phone is off, the new watch will continue to calculate, display and exchange information while you have a Wi-Fi connection.

Naturally, the applications installed on the watch (music, timer, alarm, pedometer, etc.) remain active even when no connection is available.

iPhone and Android

Thanks to the very latest Android Wear 2.0 update, iPhone users can now benefit from over 4000 apps.

The watch can easily be synchronised with a mobile phone operating on Android 4.3+ or iOS 8.2+. It is recharged using a contact charger.

TAG Heuer Connected Modular 45 UK price and availability

The new TAG Heuer Connected Modular 45 is on sale now from £1400/€1600/$1650.