Taking fine watchmaking into the digital age, Montblanc showcased the luxury Maison’s first smartwatch collection in South Africa on Friday (17th March 2017). True to the pioneering spirit that has pushed the Maison to continuously innovate since 1906, Montblanc Summit is a luxury smartwatch that combines the design codes of traditional fine watchmaking, premium materials, and state-of-the-art technology. Montblanc unveiled this distinguished digital timepiece to a select group of VIP clients, society personalities, and friends of Montblanc at an elegant reception in the Maison’s flagship boutique in Sandton City, Johannesburg. Guests were introduced to the Summit Collection and its many life-enhancing functionalities. These include a partnership with Google that gives users access to the technology brand’s all new Android Wear 2.0 operating system for smartwatches, a heart rate monitor to track personal fitness with high accuracy and a selection of pre-installed apps including Uber, Foursquare and Runtastic. From an aesthetics perspective, the introduction of curved glass is a world first for a smartwatch adding even more classic beauty to a digital watch defined by its vintage and classic looks inspired by the Maison’s iconic 1858 Collection. Montblanc’s 1858 design meets digital technology In the creation of the Montblanc Summit’s design, the Maison wanted to bring a one-of-a-kind vintage design expression into this new product category to inspire the younger generation who appreciates the vintage look, especially when it is combined with high-quality steel and titanium cases and contemporary straps that give the feeling of a mechanical watch on the wrist. As such, the award-winning 1858 collection has served as the main inspiration for the 46mm watch case design, as well as for the classic watch faces, which are a digital representation of the 1858 collection. This line of mechanical timepieces stands for vintage sophistication and is crafted to the highest standards. With the new Summit collection, Montblanc has managed to bridge a gap between analogue and digital in the most pioneering way. Functions and Features The high-contrast and 1.39” large AMOLED display delivers vivid and brilliant colours for the finest visual experience. Furthermore, the AMOLED display is covered by a curved sapphire glass, a world-first in smartwatches. The Montblanc Summit features a full round touch-screen display. Each timepiece has a water-resistant standard of IP68 making it resilient to the splashes of everyday life. The watch features a microphone for voice commands and numerous sensors: a heart-rate monitor, and sensors for measuring steps and activities; a gyroscope and a compass to measure the orientation of your watch; a barometer that can indicate the altitude, and an ambient light sensor that automatically adapts the brightness of your screen according to the lighting conditions. The watch can be charged via micro USB on a magnetic Montblanc dock. It connects via Wi-Fi® and Bluetooth® and features 4GB Flash storage that can be used to sync and play music without the need of a smartphone. Tailored Apps for simplicity of use Android Wear 2.0 is compatible with both iOS and Android smartphones and is available in numerous languages, so everyone can enjoy fine timekeeping in the digital era. Montblanc Summit can access thousands of different apps on the Google Play Store, creating a tailor-made experience for each and every user based on their own particular interests and preferences. App personalization makes each watch a truly unique piece of equipment designed for the life of its user. In addition to this, there are a number of pre-installed apps ready for immediate use. With today’s increasingly fast lifestyles, notifications are essential. The Montblanc Summit can send reminders about appointments and show messages or incoming phone calls. Notifications can be sent directly to the Montblanc Summit from the phone, and a simple shake of the wrist, either up or down, scrolls through them, so the watch doesn’t even need to be touched to access information, allowing each user to stay quickly and discreetly ahead of the crowd. All included: Integrated heart-rate monitor + Runtastic Montblanc Summit offers different fitness features. It allows each user to monitor their heart to help them keep track of their fitness goals. The mechanical protrusion at the back of the watch enables proper fit at all times, making the integrated heart-rate monitor one of the most accurate for wearable devices. The specially-conceived Montblanc sports watch face also shows daily fitness progress in the shape of a summit. A unique collaboration with Runtastic, the leading activity tracking app with 100 million users, is also included in the form of a free three-month Premium account pre-loaded onto each Montblanc Summit watch. Music: Freedom to move The Google play Music app allows the synchronization of music into the Montblanc Summit’s internal memory. Like this, music plays directly into the Bluetooth headphones during exercise, without the need to take a phone along for a run. The power of the Google Assistant The Montblanc Summit has Google Assistant built-in. With the watch’s microphone, users can ask their Google Assistant to search for all kinds of information, directions or translations, and to help perform tasks like setting reminders or dictating emails. When there isn’t time to start typing a reply on a phone, the Montblanc Summit offers quick and smart replies using the keyboard, swiping, handwriting or even voice messages. Getting around: Uber and Foursquare The art of travelling has been redefined with the Montblanc Summit thanks to a number of hands-free functions. Airplane boarding pass bar codes can be scanned directly from the screen; exploring a new town couldn’t be simpler with hands-free, turn-by-turn navigation; a collaboration with Uber offers quick access to cars; and a preloaded Foursquare City Guide app offers a unique search function for discovering the best restaurants and experiences in any city, immediately locating the user’s position. Voice-activated translator Another highly practical tool when travelling is the voice-activated translator, which can tell its user things like how to order coffee in Italian or how to buy train tickets in Japan. The Montblanc Summit gives direct translations from a multitude of languages directly to the watch’s display, making travelling in foreign countries simpler than ever. Creating a personal style The Montblanc Summit’s 46mm case comes in a choice of four different materials & styles —black PVD coated stainless steel, a bicolour stainless steel case with a black PVD-coated stainless steel bezel, stainless steel case with satinated finish and a grade 5 titanium case also with satinated finish. Each timepiece is fitted with a pusher in the design of the iconic crown from the 1858 collection. The classic watch faces that are a digital representation of the award-winning 1858 collection feature complications like an Automatic with date, Small Second or Chronograph. The Small Second and Chronograph can be combined with digital complications providing useful information to the user, such as a world time, next meeting or fitness goals. For those who prefer a sportier look, there is also a TimeWalker Urban Speed watch face with an Automatic date or Chronograph complication. Taken from the mechanical watch of the same name, this modern dial comes in a number of colour options that can be configured directly by the user on the watch, offering each user the possibility to define their own distinctive style. A new watch face will also be unveiled regularly (available to download on the store), for those who like to switch and change dials. The ultimate personalization For those who like the idea of having their very own bespoke dial, everything is possible with the Montblanc Summit. Starting from 15,000 EUR, clients have the possibility of designing their very own personalized dial, working hand-in-hand with the Montblanc Creative Director, designers and engineers to create their very own unique watch face, available exclusively to them. Straps and style There is a choice of eight different straps offering an extensive choice of styles for every taste and occasion. A sporty, water-resistant and excellent grip Rubber NATO strap is available in black, blue, green or red; a black calfskin leather strap provides a classic look; a brown or navy blue Sfumato calfskin leather strap from the Montblanc Pelletteria in Florence, Italy brings a sophisticated, yet vintage style and there is also the option for an exclusive alligator strap. Straps can be easily exchanged via the quick-release spring bars for a multitude of looks and moods. An online configurator will be available for finding the perfect case/strap combination for every occasion. In total Montblanc Summit offers more than 300 different Montblanc wearable combinations enabling the user to personalize their watch according to their needs and style, giving every timepiece a personal touch. A new interpretation of time – always on Digital technology allows for a new and richer timing experience. The additional urban watch face gives all the info at a glance like notification content for emails or messages, meetings or the weather, not to mention a Montblanc designed alarm clock and a stopwatch (to 1/100th of a second). The three complications can be customized at wish, all into a modern and sophisticated digital look. The unique Montblanc fitness face visualizes heart-rate measurement and four daily goals (steps, calories burnt, distance, active time) with a progress bar visualized in the shape of a mountain’s summit, to inspire the user to take on new challenges and bring out the best of his or her performance. The sophisticated Worldtimer micro-app with day & night visualisation shows the time in any one of the world’s 24 time zones. This micro-app provides the data for the Worldtimer complication that can be enabled within the available watch faces. The always-on display allows the watch faces to be visible at all times, enabling the user to see all relevant info without the screen ever turning black while delivering a full day of battery life. Be ahead The Montblanc Summit is an empowering digital timepiece that better prepares users to follow their mission and enables them to advance better than ever. The luxury isn’t just felt on the wrist, but in every aspect of life. The Maison’s first smartwatch is the ideal travel companion for users to undertake their journey quicker and smarter, so they can focus on what really matters, being ahead. Montblanc Summit, an empowering digital timepiece that marks a new era in luxury wearables for men, is available from May 2017. 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