Adventuring into 2014

In with the new and out with the old. I have never thought that resolutions should only be for a new year however it does give us a good excuse to try something new or buy something new.  For the promise to travel more or take more vacations. The Seiko Astron is the perfect companion for this resolution. Whether you are vacationing through the islands of Caribbean’s, or on an Alaskan cruise adventure, climbing the Mountains of Everest or even just jet setting for work through time zones. The Seiko Astron with one click of a button will adjust to the correct time zone anywhere on the planet.

This analog solar powered GPS watch recognizes 39 time zones.  With its limitless range, the Seiko Astron receives signals from orbiting GPS satellites which can automatically or manually sync to the correct time and date.  It does this by determining the location by GPS then comparing that information to its baseboard that divides the Earth’s surface into a million squares assigned to specific time zones. Its accuracy is within 1 second every 100,000 years. To account for such pristine accuracy, every 18 months the Astron receive leap-second data to adjust for the Earths gravital slowing rotation.  

 
 The Seiko Astron is powered by sunlight or any form of light source which charges its battery. It takes only six minutes of sunlight to operate the Astron for one day. There is a power reserve indicter on the dial between the 9 and 10 o’clock, E or F indicates empty or full status.  When fully charged in active mode the Astrons battery keep up to 2 months timekeeping.  When in sleep mode its reserve is good for 6 months however the GPS receiver will not operate when low on power and does not tell time until exposed to sunlight and “woken up”. It is important to keep the battery charges as it takes up to 65 hours of sunlight if charging from empty to full.

The perpetual calendar is accurate till 2100. Along with the power reserve indicator there is 3 other functions within, such as the inflight mode and an on/off, DST (daylight savings time) indicator. There is also a signal reception acquisition status of 1|4+. With the hour, minute, second hand there is also the day located at the 3 o’clock marker and a 24hr sub-dial along the 6 o’clock. The anti-reflective coated sapphire crystal gives 99% anti-glare visibility. The luminous markers come in orange (SAST025), blue (SAST009) or  white depending on what model and the case is lightweight high intensity titanium or stainless steel both with ceramic bezel.  There is the option of silicone band, stainless steel or titanium bracelet with a tri-fold push button safety clasp closure. 

The new Limited Edition 2013 Kintaro Hattori SAST100 comes with both a titanium and crocodile band.  Released in September to commemorate 100 years of Seiko and pay homage to its founder and visionary Kintaro Hattori. There are only 5000 produced worldwide. The case back has his name and moto saying, “One step ahead of the rest” and the traditional Seiko “S” stamp in gold. Prices range from 1,850 for the stainless steel version up to 3,850 for the limited edition pieces.

Seiko has always been an innovator in the technology of watchmaking with a long history of many awards.  As they produced the world’s first Quartz watch in 1969. This as we come to know was called the Astron which changed the forefront of modern watchmaking and continues the evolution with their latest creations.