Five years after the release of the original TAG Heuer Carrera Connected, the Swiss company TAG Heuer launched its latest smartwatch in 2020 under the simple name TAG Heuer Connected. Presented in New York at a special Connected product event, TAG Heuer is justifiably proud of its latest "connected" creation.
The 2020 TAG Heuer Connected model is based on the brand's previous smartwatches and is enhanced with a range of improvements. Needless to say, these are the highest performing smartwatches created by a luxury brand, as they use the latest hardware and technologies. But beyond that, it can be confidently said that the 2020 TAG Heuer Connected is the most sophisticated TAG Heuer smartwatch, featuring many subtle details that make it convenient and enjoyable to use.
One of the best parts of the concept is how TAG Heuer designed the Connected to be as durable as possible (without needing replacement). A good example is a special system that allows the battery to be removed and replaced, as batteries are usually the first components to fail in such products. TAG Heuer also has a smartphone app that comes with the Connected and allows you to manage many features of the watch. In the app, users will receive notifications about new features, such as software updates and new custom-designed watch faces.
TAG Heuer Connected is not a Swiss model, but it is one of the most Swiss smartwatches, considering that much of the hardware and software was developed at the company's headquarters in Europe. Working with the software and hardware gives the impression that they were developed by the same team. For example, TAG Heuer did not want users to spend too much time interacting with the touchscreen.
While you can use the touchscreen, two buttons and the crown (which is also a scroll wheel) allow you to control many important functions (such as the chronograph and sports tools) without needing to touch the screen. This is especially relevant for the special TAG Heuer software included in the package, in addition to the basic Google Wear OS.
Regarding the screen, the new OLED touchscreen, topped with sapphire glass, is the most beautiful screen in the TAG Heuer Connected family. Overall, all the 2020 TAG Heuer Connected watches in steel or titanium cases with black PVD coating feel more like traditional luxury watches than tech products (and even more so than previous TAG Heuer Connected products). This is largely due to the efforts of TAG Heuer's own designers, who tried to use as many high-quality materials and finishes in the external design of the watch as possible. Under the ceramic bezel, for example, is an antenna that could not receive signals if it were under a metal element.
Finishing is undoubtedly one of the most important elements of luxury watches. This is something TAG Heuer has generations of experience in, and something Apple spent years on before releasing the Apple Watch. The sportier version of the TAG Heuer Connected watch is the matte black version in a grade 2 titanium case. On a black rubber strap, they are well suited for fitness and active lifestyle smartwatches, although they look practical.
Despite the fact that the TAG Heuer Connected can be worn as an evening watch (especially in the polished steel version with a matching bracelet), the software suggests that you will lead an "active" lifestyle. Given its history with chronographs and stopwatches, TAG Heuer wanted to ensure that using the watch to track time and activity is effortless. The hardware includes GPS and a heart rate monitor, which, along with an accelerometer, are integral parts of the activity tracking process.
TAG Heuer developed attractive software for the chronograph dial, which is activated by pressing the lower button, and then two buttons are used, just like in regular chronograph watches. Then there is special software for tracking sporting events, which makes it easy to track and measure a range of sports exercises. No, this last feature is not unique, but the appeal lies in the attractive graphic design and elegant presentation of the software, which is indeed a core part of the luxury.
A number of analog and digital watch faces are pre-installed on the TAG Heuer Connected smartwatch. Each has its own unique style, and overall they are well-executed, with no clear winner. I like that TAG Heuer combines playing with new concepts and creating quite sophisticated digital versions of analog watch faces. The system also allows for an always-on display, which in "idle" mode is not overly bright but is readable enough by the watch owner (just hard to capture on camera).
In conversation with TAG Heuer representatives, it became clear that the design team plans to regularly release new faces for the smartwatches, which users will be able to download through the TAG Heuer Connected app.
From a hardware perspective, the 2020 TAG Heuer Connected is clearly a next-generation product. Put it next to the original Carrera Connected, and you will clearly prefer the 2020 model. Why? First, it is much thinner. Although the case width is 45 mm, it is noticeably thinner and more elegant on the wrist - its thickness is 13.5 mm. The screen is also a perfect circle and has virtually no black bezel around the bright display.
The back of the case, where the heart rate sensor is located, is faceted, so it does not seem as thick as it might. The case is water-resistant to 50 meters.
Probably the best details of the case are the crown (which is a pusher as well as a scroll wheel for user interface control) and the two buttons. They look great and function comfortably. Overall, the TAG Heuer Connected watch case looks more comfortable than all previous TAG Heuer Connected models and most other luxury smartwatches on the market. In my opinion, the TAG Heuer Connected is the best luxury smartwatch currently on the market.
At the presentation of the TAG Heuer Connected 2020 watch, I spoke with Frédéric Arnault, TAG Heuer's Chief Strategy and Digital Officer. He discussed in detail how many different people at TAG Heuer are involved in the Connected project and how much time TAG Heuer dedicates to each of the new products. For this reason, even though the first TAG Heuer smartwatches were released in 2015, the company still does not have a release schedule for new smartwatches. This is not a bad thing, as it means the company does not need to release a new product until it feels it is ready.
Mr. Arnault also talked about the importance TAG Heuer places on the concept of "Connected," that it should exist within the wider history and pantheon of TAG Heuer products and ideas. Looking back at the company's history, it can be said that TAG Heuer has always invested in putting time-measuring devices on people's wrists. There are endless ways to turn smartwatches into useful chronometers, which opens up infinite possibilities for TAG Heuer to implement new ideas that were previously limited. Why limited? Because any traditional watchmaker is limited by the capabilities of a mechanical or quartz watch movement. Digital watches offered more functionality but with relatively uninteresting displays.
Modern smartwatch functionality actually offers old watchmakers new exciting tools that they are only now beginning to explore closely. Today's efforts are aimed at making smartwatches more like traditional watches, and perhaps tomorrow we will see traditional watches envy the functionality and convenience of timekeeping that smartwatches can offer.
Mr. Arnault also shared an interesting (albeit not too surprising) fact: most customers who buy TAG Heuer Connected watches were not previous TAG Heuer customers. Moreover, they believe that most of these people were not traditional watch buyers. Despite Connected being a successful product, it is also a gateway into the world of mechanical watches. TAG Heuer has already tracked people who came to the company to purchase a smartwatch and then bought mechanical watches. I predicted this behavior in 2016 when I wrote that smartwatches are a path to traditional mechanical watches.
While TAG Heuer Connected may not have the lifespan of mechanical watches, consumers also do not tend to wait as long to purchase them; it often takes consumers 6-12 months to make a decision on a traditional watch purchase. This means that TAG Heuer also gains more immediate and engaged customers (for example, through their use of the Connected smartphone app) when purchasing their smartwatches.
As a watch enthusiast, I like the TAG Heuer Connected because it feels more like what I am used to wearing on my wrist, despite being a smartwatch. I like smartwatches, but I still prefer to wear traditional watches. Why? I believe it is all about the feel of wearing and the expressiveness of traditional watches. Smartwatches still look very... generic on the wrist. The TAG Heuer Connected watches do not look like that; their rich and interesting identity complements the functionality of modern smartwatches.
The price of the TAG Heuer Connected ranges from $1,800 to $2,350 depending on the version.