Clarity of form and lightweight designThe new Porsche Design P’6530 Titanium Chronograph
The new P’6530 Titanium Chronograph sees Porsche Design revisiting a milestone in watchmaking – one that is limited to an edition of 911 pieces. The re-issue of this classic is at the same time the first watch in the exclusive new Heritage collection, which will be completed with various models over the years to come. Its case and bracelet are fashioned entirely from titanium. This makes the timepiece incredibly robust as well as comfortable to wear, due to the low weight of the material, which is substantially less than that of stainless steel. Extremely light and resilient: features that were important in 1980 – when Porsche Design revolutionised the world of watchmaking with the first-ever titanium-built chronograph – are just as relevant now.
Thirty years after the premiere of the legendary timepiece, Porsche Design is evoking the classic with this faithful re-issue. The Heritage P’6530 is endowed with the same successful attributes as its forebear: clarity and purity of form, with push-pieces integrated within the lines of the shot-blasted titanium case, and a slender bracelet also in titanium. All that has changed in the appearance is the diameter, which has grown to 44 millimetres to suit today’s tastes. The watch sits perfectly on the wrist thanks to titanium’s many benefits: not only is the material light in weight, but it is particularly skin compatible and resistant to corrosion.
The chronograph features a scratch-resistant, double-sided non-reflective sapphire crystal, and it is waterproof to 60 metres (six atmospheres). The dial indicates the time as well as the weekday and date. The small seconds indicator is located at 9 o’clock. This is complemented by a 30-minute counter at 12 o’clock and a 12-hour totaliser at 6 o’clock. A tachymeter scale is inscribed on the back of the crystal, allowing speeds of between 55 and 300 km/h to be computed in conjunction with the red seconds hand. The Heritage P’6530 is powered by the proven ETA Valjoux 7750 chronograph calibre and offers a power reserve of 48 hours. The chronograph comes with a certificate of precision issued by the Contrôle Officiel Suisse des Chronomètres (COSC) in La Chaux-de-Fonds, Switzerland.
Classic form
The design idiom of the Titanium Chronograph expresses purity of form, functionality and timelessness. Like everything else produced by the brand, the Heritage P’6530 takes its cue from Ferdinand Alexander Porsche’s stated aim to create products capable of acting as ‘companions through life’. The creator of the legendary Porsche 911 in the early 60s is quoted as saying: “When you think about the function of something, its design sometimes emerges of its own accord.” The output of the Porsche Design Studio, founded in Zell am See, Austria, in 1972, has remained true to this idea. Today, the studio ranks among Europe’s most renowned design establishments, continuing to imbue its creations with the clarity, timelessness and distinctiveness so characteristic of all Porsche Design products. It is an expertise that has attracted more than 130 national and international awards. The Studio’s credo means that its wristwatches can only be circular: it is the shape that describes the movement of the hands.
The dial was also the subject of coherent thinking: it calls to mind the reflection-free instrumentation of sports cars, with its black background, white marking and use of white luminous material on the hands and bar indices. Setting a solitary colour accent is the large, red seconds stop hand. This monochromatic scheme helps prevent distracting reflections and enhances overall legibility.
Material power
Accompanying the clarity and purity of design espoused by Porsche Design is its commitment to innovative materials. The brand led the market in 1972 by launching the world’s first-ever pitch-black watch. Revolutionary at the time, the resilient, all-black appearance was the outcome of a coating process known as Physical Vapour Deposition (PVD). Porsche Design once again revolutionised the watchmaking world, this time in 1980, by launching the world’s first titanium watch – now the subject of this re-issue. Twenty years later came the world’s first watch featuring an aluminium case.
The Heritage P’6530 Titanium Chronograph is offered as a limited and numbered edition of 911 pieces. It comes with a booklet describing the history of this, the world’s first-ever titanium watch. The Heritage P’6530 is due for launch in the fourth quarter of 2010.