Sistem Upgrade
CROWN Singapore|December 2016

There’s nothing ironic about this year’s follow-up to the hugely popular Sistem51.

Alvin Wong
Sistem Upgrade

When the Swatch Sistem51 debuted two years ago, the S$209 plastic-clad, machine assembled mechanical watch induced hysteria among watch lovers on a scale unseen since, well, the introduction of the very first Swatch watches back in 1983.

During the initial months of its launch, the Sistem51 flew off the shelves as collectors bought multiple units in every available execution (There were four colours). Yours truly took the opportunity to snare a couple on a fortuitous work trip to Swatch’s home ground in Switzerland, eager to get my hands on the curious new mechanical marvel as the watches were yet unavailable in Singapore.

And what we got for approximately the price of a Michelin-starred meal for two in Singapore was quite a horological milestone: an inexpensive, Swiss-made automatic watch that had the potential to be the greatest leveller yet in contemporary horology. But was it worth the (comparatively inexpensive) price tag?

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