This past Friday a few members of the #LAWatchGang and I had the pleasure to meet Jessica Gasser from Breva Genevè (also on Instagram) and we all got to play with a few of their timepieces. Prior to meeting Jessica, I had seen several photos online about the various Breva Genevè models and their unique features... needless to say, I was very excited to see these in person!
Breva Genevè is a relatively young brand that was founded by Vincent Dupontreué. They released their first timepiece, the Génie 01, in Baselworld 2013. Breva Genevè is known for seamlessly incorporating unique features into their timepieces. These features include weather forecast, speedometer, altimeter, and anemometer (knots).
Génie 03 Speedometer with DLC treatment
Génie 01 Weather Forecast Rose Gold
Génie 03 Speedometer, Génie 01 Weather Forecast, and Génie 03 Anemometer.
The Génie 01 in rose gold (limited to 55 pieces) is very attractive, very complicated, and very expensive (around $165,000). This manual watch has a 65 hour power reserve manufacture movement with a list of crazy features... besides displaying time and power reserve, it also displays altitude and weather forecasting barometric pressure. How in the world does it do weather forecasting? It uses two stacked aneroid capsules (one visible on the dial at 5 o' clock) that expand and contract as air pressure changes. Now, how many watches do you know can do that?
Can't access weather.com? Do not worry, the Génie 01 Weather Forecast has you covered.
The 44.7mm case looks great on my 6.5" wrist.
The manufacture movement has 46 jewels, 405 parts, and 65 hours of power reserve.
The Génie 03 (around $53,000) is also a very unique timepiece. The function on these two Génie 03s is similar, except that the extrusion mechanism is calibrated to measure different things. One is called Speedometer and the other one is called Anemometer. Both Génie 03s from that night had a titanium case, however, the Speedometer had a black DLC treatment (prototype). The Génie 03 has a patented extrusion mechanism that uses an anemometer to measure wind speed. The Speedometer version is calibrated to measure 10 to 125 miles per hour while the Anemometer version is calibrated to measure 5 to 65 knots. The extrusion mechanism (which is 6mm tall) can be deployed by pressing the button located at 2 o' clock. To activate it, put the watch in the way of the wind and the gauge on top of the extrusion mechanism will indicate the wind speed in real time. To hide it, simply press the extrusion system down. Not sure when I would ever use this function, but it sure is cool as hell. Aside from this unique feature, the Génie 03 has a micro rotor, a 70 hour power reserve manufacture movement, an exposed balance wheel, and a power reserve indicator. Unlike most power reserve indicators that display hours or days left, the Génie 03 has an exposed main spring (which is rare) that allows the user to see how loose or tight the coil on the main spring is. The tighter the coil, the more power it has left.
A real time speedometer.
The Robinson cups turn as air goes through the extrusion mechanism.
Once deployed, it sticks out 6mm.
The blue sapphire crystal and white rubber strap matches the nautical theme perfectly.
In case measuring knots was more your thing.
All-in-all, I was quite impressed with the originality of the features and the quality of the timepieces. The Génie 03s also came in a very soft rubber strap that was incredibly comfortable. They are definitely unique watches for the watch connoisseur that wants something different and exclusive, but be prepared to pay a pretty penny for that special function.
Three unique watches that do a lot more than just tell time.
Earlier this month I had the honor to attend the very exclusive Officine Panerai Dive Into Time VIP event in Beverly Hills. I had the pleasure to talk and dine with Giovanni Carestia (President of Panerai North America), Alessandro Ficarelli (Product Development Director), and several others from the Panerai team. And as if that was not awesome enough, we also had the chance to view and play with some newly released Panerai models. Needless to say, it was one heck of a night and one worth sharing with the rest of the watch community.