It wasn’t all that long ago that I dipped my toes in the proverbial Porsche Design waters when I wrote about them here. Well, they just released another model in the 1919 lineup that I’ve a feeling will appeal to folks out there who consider themselves fans of chronographs – the Porsche Design 1919 Chronotimer Flyback.
Unsurprisingly, the Porsche Design 1919 Chronotimer Flyback definitely has the look and feel of the prior 1919 I wrote about. This comes in via the form of the case, which has the same “floating lugs” look to it that visually isolates the case from the strap. Of course, inside of the case, you’ve got something quite different going on. This chronograph is not new to the lineup, but it does definitely bring a new color (of which I am a fan) to the fore.
Here, of course, it’s a shade of dark, dark blue (which presumably would be lighter in various lighting conditions). This allows the white of the indices and handset to stand out in stark relief. It also allows something to happen that I rather like with a chronograph – the subdials can sort of melt into the background, make it look less like, well, a chrono. Sure, those pushers sticking out of the titanium case give things away, but you can visually treat them as crown protectors as well (which, given how tall that crown is, looks like it could use them that way).
In many ways, this Porsche Design 1919 Chronotimer Flyback has a lot going for it just like the Tutima I recently reviewed – it’s lighter weight (due to the titanium and the strap, rather than a bracelet) and you’ve got a chronograph that’s a sleeper version of a chronograph. Though, you know something is hiding there given how thick it is (almost 15mm). Then again, you need some room for all of the engineering that went into their in-house movement as well.
So, while I’m still very much not a chronograph guy, this Porsche Design 1919 Chronotimer Flyback – at $6,350 – is not one that I’d be upset about having to put onto my wrist. I mean, aside from the big design details, look at the smaller things. For instance, the date window – it’s rotated to where it doesn’t cut into any other elements, and it’s color-matched. Or the running-seconds indication – it’s there, over on the right, subtle, but enough to let you know that things are running. In short, there’s a lot to like, and now you’ve got at least two high-end titanium chronographs to consider – the Porsche Design 1919 Chronotimer Flyback being your automotive-inspired one, of course – complete with Porsche leather on the strap. porsche-design.us
Watch Overview
- Brand & Model: Porsche Design 1919 Chronotimer Flyback
- Price: $6,350
- Who we think it might be for: You want an auto-inspired chronograph that doesn’t look like a chrongraph
- Would I buy one for myself based on what I?ve seen? Given how little I’d use the complication, it would just become a maintenance burden – so, no, not really.
- If I could make one design suggestion, it would be: I’m guessing that crown is as large as it is to make it easy to use – but does it have to be that tall?
- What spoke to me the most about this watch: As with the Tutima, the fact that it doesn’t look much like a chronograph
Tech Specs from Porsche Design
- Case
- Diameter: 42.00 mm
- Height: 14.90 mm
- Material: Titanium
- Finishing: Glass bead-blasted and polished
- Crown: Screw-down
- Glass: Sapphire crystal with hard coating, scratch-proof and with sevenfold anti-glare properties on both sides
- Case back: Screw-down
- Water-resistant: Up to 10 bar, dynamic
- Dial
- Blue with white accents
- Minute, hour, second counter at 9 o?clock
- Date window at 4 o?clock
- Armband
- Blue Genuine Porsche car leather with grey stitching
- Folding clasp with pusher
- Mechanism
- Caliber: Porsche Design caliber WERK 01.200, COSC-certified
- Rotor: Porsche Design Icon Rotor
- Diameter: 30.00 mm
- Height: 7.90 mm
- Power reserve: 48 hours
- Frequency: 28.800 per hour (4 Hz)
- Jewels: 25
