The sundial is the oldest know time keeping instrument. The earliest known sundials are from about 1,500 B.C. And the sundial is referred to in the Bible in both Isaiah 38:8 and 2 Kings 20:11 (about 700 B.C.). It is of course logical to assume that man used the shadows of the sun long before that to estimate time. One obvious limitation of the Sundial was it's inability to tell time at night, although man quickly learned to use the movement of the stars, planets and moon for that purpose. If we "fast forward" about 3,600 years man is once again using the Sun as a primary source of power to tell time! Citizen Watch Company has certainly perfected the use of their ECO-DRIVE power system to harness light and store it to power very complicated watches that tell the time accurately anywhere on earth. Here, rather than casting shadows, the sunlight (or artificial light) is converted into electrical energy and stored in a capacitor for use. Most Citizen watches can store power for a year or more without recharging. Shown at the top of the page is Citizen Watch Company's newest generation of their Altichron Watch which not only tells time, but also the altitude and compass directions, all powered by light. The Watch Guys Blog reviewed the Altichron when the watch was first introduced and the functions have not changed. Here is a link to the original review with its in depth functional instructions: The Watch Guys Review of the Citizen Altichron Watches. The newest Altichron, model BN5058-07E, has a greatly reduced price, cleaner, more modern lines and superior strength and durability. Unlike the plastic watches offered by some competitors, the newest Altichron is all stainless steel and is entirely analog. It looks like a fine watch because it is a fine watch. The Citizen Altichron is available on both our Gem of the Dayand ourTop Flight Watcheswebsites at a great discount price with FREE SHIPPING.
Traser is a very Swiss and very European oriented watch designer and manufacturer. They promoted the grand unveiling of their new top-of-the-line flagship watch, the Swiss P68 Pathfinder Automatic aggressively in Europe. Our previous blog post has the teaser video that never really showed the watch but gave hints to its functions and appearance. The "Grand Reveal" date was yesterday, September 29, 2017. Traser elected not to pre-distribute the watches to dealers here in America for fear one of them might post pictures or, even worse, sell a watch before the reveal date. Traser is great company, but they lack the iron clad control over their dealers that Apple has. The watches have now been shipped to the U.S. and will be available here for sale in the next few days.
With each new release Traser has shown both its ability and its willingness to take on the premier Swiss manufacturers like Ball Watch and Luminox. Their watch equal and, in our opinion, often exceed the more well known prestige brands. Traser does have an advantage. They are the world's only manufacturer of Tritium Gas Tube Illumination. Others must buy the tubes from Traser. And Traser keeps the newest technology for themselves for a year or more. The P68 Pathfinder is a Swiss Automatic and is entirely Swiss Made. The movement has a date function with the date window at the 3 o'clock position on the dial. Traser has added an "under the sapphire glass" compass bezel controlled by an external crown at the 8 o'clock position. A watch compass bezel allows the wearer to use the relative position of the sun compared to the hour hand to determine direction. The technology here is, quite literally, as old as time. While other watches have had compass bezels, Traser has embraced the technology here and provides detailed and illustrated instructions on its use with the watch. As always with Traser the key is the use of multiple illumination technologies to create a watch that at dusk and through the night makes the watch a joy to see and to own. Tritium tubes are used on all three hands and on all 12 hour indices for permanent illumination. They then add Super Luminova paint to the numbers and the compass bezel to create a wonderland of illumination. You can see the result at the top of this page. The Traser P68 Pathfinder Automatic is available for order now on the Time 4 Tritium Website which also has a wealth of additional pictures in information about the watch, including fiull specifications. Be sure to check out the slideshow on the Time 4 Tritium home page. It takes a few seconds to load but is well worth the await!
Prepare to be amazed. This fall Traser introduces the P68 Pathfinder Swiss Automatic Watch with internal compass bezel and dual illumination. More info to follow.....
