You can draw a clear distinction between the three brands connected in the past by ownership, namely; Ateliers deMonaco, Frederique Constant and Alpina. While Ateliers deMonaco clearly represents the highest segment of the three, Alpina is probably the most affordable and sporty brand of them. In Basel, we were introduced to their latest release: the Alpina AlpinerX. It is a smart fake watch that was designed for the outdoorsmen packed with functions that can be useful while hiking in the mountains but also can give you feedback in your daily activities and more. What's interesting about the fake watch and its frenzy surrounding it is the fact that Alpina launched it on Kickstarter. There's a very simple reason behind this; firsthand feedback from the consumers. A clever idea that hopefully many brands will take over and use in the future.
KickstarterKickstarter is a great platform if you have an idea, but you lack the funds. Through crowd funding you could actually raise enough money that would allow you to start the production of your item. Clearly, Alpina (part of the Citizen Group) needs no financial support, their aim was a bit different. They wanted to get feedback from the end-consumers. Users on Kickstarter can comment, ask questions, give suggestion and collectively help the brand all through the platform of the campaign. You can call it an interactive market research in a way, I guess. This is also a great opportunity for the buyers to get the fake watch with a heavy discount. Currently as a backer you can get the new Alpina AlpinerX for 530 CHF (around ?50), which a bit more than half of the retail price.
FeaturesThe things the AlpinerX can do is really impressive. Alpina divided the features into 3 categories; Environment, Body and Time & Notification. The fake watch is connected, where the app showing you most of the features. In Environment you have altitude, barometer, connected GPS, compass, UV indicator and temperature. The Body function consists of the usual things you have seen from Alpina (or Frederique Constant) smart watches. Features such as activity tracking, dynamic coach, sleep monitoring or smart alarms are all part of the package. The last category features functions such as calls and messages notification, stop fake watch and timer or world time. The list is long.
Technical StuffThe case of the Alpina AlpinerX is (black or blue) glass-fiber and steel. It is 45mm with a -directional turning compass bezel. It's a large but light watch, in line with today's trends of larges sized sports watches. It comes on a rubber strap and its water resistant to 100m. The fake watch has a 2-year battery life. The Alpina AlpinerX is looking like a great sport fake watch packed with a ton of features you find useful if you are looking to get a time pieces in this segment. As soon as they come out we will do a hands-on review on them. Until then take a look at their Kickstarter campaign.
AlpinerX Outdoors Replica watch by Alpina from Basel World 1613