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A deep dive into incredible 40 years of Porsche design

There are plenty of car-inspired popular swiss watch brands and watch brands that work with car companies. But few have more true car and timepiece credibility than owning the most famous car name: Porsche Design. The Porsche Design watch goes beyond a mere brand joint activity, but carries the design DNA and philosophy of the company's founder, Ferdinand Alexander Porsche. Indisputably, in its 40-year history, it has produced some revolutionary, collectible and significant watches.

To get to know a Porsche Design watch, like many things, you have to go back to where it started. In 1963, Porsche AG presented its latest model, the 911, at the Frankfurt Motor Show. The car is the successor to the brand's popular but aging model, the 356, with a newer, more minimalist design language written by Ferdinand Alexander "Butzi" Porsche, son of the company's founder. Of course, we don’t need to remind anyone of the success of the 911, which, along with the James Bond films, the Leica rangefinder and the Rolex Submariner, has continued to evolve as a true cultural icon, yet still retains its perfectly original form.

Form is an important concept for all designers. For German designers following the Bauhaus philosophy, the form of an object is inextricably linked to its function. This connection of form and function guided Ferdinand Alexander Porsche's design of the Porsche 911, whose popularity over the past 50 years has proven its success. FA Porsche Not content to rest on its laurels or become a one-shot miracle, FA Porsche made the bold decision to leave the family business to turn his unique design vision into products beyond the automotive world. In 1972 he founded Porsche Design and his first product was a high quality replica watches.

It's hard to believe that before 1972, there were no black watches, as PVD, DLC and ceramic timepieces are ubiquitous these days. So when Porsche Design launched a minimalist chronograph with a black steel case and black bracelet, it made a splash. Its name is simple, and the Chronograph I and Ferdinand Porsche said his design was inspired by the functional advantages of white dial markers and hands on a black background, as evidenced by aircraft and car instrumentation. 40 years later, this watch still looks very modern with its functional, almost austere layout. The only colour that flashes is the sweeping seconds hand, which is red to distinguish it from the bottom central minute hand of the Lemania Power Self-Winding Chronograph.

As we mentioned, Porsche Design is first and foremost a design entity, not just a watch brand. In fact, in addition to watches, the brand also produces some other iconic products, such as their 1978 sunglasses, the first sunglasses to offer interchangeable lenses for civilian fashionistas (Ray-Ban made it back in the 1950s). Manufactured pilots with interchangeable lenses for the military), innovative ink pens, shoes, luggage and electronics. Recently, they released a new smartphone in partnership with BlackBerry (for better or worse). While this varied offering may seem haphazard, they all have a distinct design language - Teutonic, functional and very Porsche.replica Porsche Design watches

For a design company with no expertise in making watches, Porsche Design had to collaborate with other companies to make timepieces. Since its inception in 1972, they have worked with Orfina, IWC and since 1998 with Eterna. Undoubtedly, the most productive cooperation with IWC was between 1978 and 1997. Those were dark days for the Swiss watch industry, but it was during this time that Porsche Design and IWC came out with some amazing watches, many of which broke new ground in the use of materials and made the most of both The brand's emphasis on Germanic functional design.

The first extraordinary creation from Porsche Design's collaboration with IWC is its Compass watch, which, as the name suggests, integrates a liquid-filled compass beneath the dial and movement. Worn like a standard watch, the time can be read normally, but the watch flips up via a hinge to reveal a compass underneath. The case of this watch is made entirely of aluminum to reduce metal interference with the compass, and it is very lightweight. Fitting perfectly with Ferdinand Porsche's design philosophy, this watch is very easy to use, wear and read, and maintains the distinctive style of Porsche design.

In 1980, the world's first titanium watch came out. As with the Black Chronograph I, it's easy to lose sight of the importance of the Titan chronograph today, as we see so many titanium watches now. But in the 1970s and 1980s, titanium was an exotic material whose raw material was extremely expensive and extremely difficult to machine. Therefore, its use is limited to the aerospace industry. But IWC innovated new tools and methods to machine titanium to the tight tolerances of the case to fit the minimalist lines of Porsche Design, and gave birth to a stylish chronograph with an integrated bracelet and "invisible" pushers. It is one of Porsche Design's most iconic creations, a milestone in watchmaking and a piece of IWC's status as a specialist case maker.replica Jacob & Co. watches

Porsche Design and IWC took what they learned from the Titan chronograph to create the legendary marine diver's watch. Part of the Ocean was designed for the German military, and after several iterations, one was designed as a completely non-magnetic demining diver who couldn't risk detonating underwater mines that were sensitive to the proximity of metals. To this day, the details of the watch’s proprietary movement remain a secret. The Ocean 2000 version of the watch was water-resistant to 2,000 meters, the most pressure-resistant at the time, while the smaller Ocean 500 version was designed for female divers. All versions feature the iconic Porsche Design integrated bracelet with hidden clasp and a Velcro diving strap that can be slipped over a wetsuit sleeve.

The collaboration between IWC and Porsche Design is significant, and not just because of the revolutionary watch they developed together. In the late 1970s, IWC was owned by VDO, a German company that made dials and gauges for many German cars, including Porsches. It is because of this synergy between VDO and Porsche that IWC began designing and manufacturing watches for Porsche. At the time, the VDO in charge of IWC was a certain Günter Blumlein, whose decision to partner with Porsche Design was credited with saving the brand from the woes of the entire Swiss watch industry (perhaps BlackBerry would be so lucky). ). Of course, Blumlein was also the director of Jaeger-LeCoultre and was the one responsible for resurrecting A. Lange & Söhne, but that's another story.De Bethune Replica Watches

In the Eterna era, Porsche Design continued the design trends that began in the Orfina and IWC eras - the minimalist dial, one-piece bracelet and gauge aesthetic, and introduced carbon fiber into the mix. A few years ago, the Concept Diver developed by Eterna hit the market and was an immediate hit with diving watch fans. Beginning as a design experiment, it was officially released with the Porsche Design label as a reference P'6780. It features a steel case hinged forward from a skeletonized titanium frame that provides access to a non-locking winding crown at twelve o'clock. The chronograph bezel sits beneath the sapphire crystal, but instead of using the second crown to rotate, it uses the outer bezel ring. Despite all the amazing features,

2012 marked the 40th anniversary of Porsche Design, and to celebrate, the brand released three "Heritage" editions: the P'6510, a reinterpretation of the Chronograph I, the P'6530 and P'6520, the upgraded versions of the Titan chronograph, the P'6520 for the Compass watch. new version. All of these are faithful updates to the original, with some necessary updates to movement and materials.

Ferdinand Alexander Porsche, who died in April, was widely and justifiably celebrated for his role in the Porsche 911 design icon. But his legacy lives on in the brand he founded to continue the "form follows function" philosophy of design that he is so convinced of in timepieces and beyond. At 40 years old, Porsche Design is still a young brand in a long-established watch company. But what it has achieved is remarkable. While it comes at a difficult time for the Swiss watch industry, it may well come at the right time, as it introduces a new, more contemporary design lexicon for an industry that is often rooted in the past. Porsche Design is further proof of the importance of watch designers and watchmakers, and Ferdinand Porsche has a place in the pantheon of great watch designers. Now that the founders are gone, it will be interesting to see what the next 40 years will bring to the brand.fake men watches