Porsche Design has over 51 years of experience creating luxurious and nearly indestructible watches; its classic 38 millimeter stainless steel Military Chronograph watch gained the praise of international air forces across the world for its remarkable comfort and durability. That explains the $13,000 price tag on the new Chronograph 1 Utility – Limited Edition watch, which is a modern reimagining of that classic chronograph.
Designer: Roland Heiler, Carsten Monnerjan (via Porsche Design)
Porsche Design noted in its official product page that this is the company’s first use of titanium carbide – an incredibly resistant material typically used to treat industrial machines – in any of its watches. It’s not only for military pilots, though. Given Porsche Design’s legendary track record, it’s not a stretch to call the Chronograph 1 Utility – Limited Edition an expertly-designed watch that is foolproof against normal wear and tear like scratches, making it a high ticket item for any watch collector who values impeccable craftsmanship.
The watch face is designed to be even more readable in dark environments than previous Porsche Design watch models as well, thanks to the use of blue Super-LumiNova material on the individual hands, dial, and signature instead of Tritium.
For those unfamiliar with analog chronograph watches, there’s no simple way to set timers and alarms as you would effortlessly with a digital watch, so the watch itself needs to be built well enough to juggle multiple times purely through mechanical functionality. This is something Porsche Design does particularly well; the Chronograph 1 Utility – Limited Edition internal clock is a COSC-certified Porsche Design-caliber WERK 01.240, which is described as ensuring “maximum precision” with a flyback function that smoothly starts, stops, and resets time measurements in hours, minutes, seconds, and days.
Much like the original military pilot watch it’s based on, the Chronograph 1 Utility – Limited Edition is designed for heavy use in extreme environments, with a scratch-resistant sapphire glass face and water resistance up to 100 meters. Porsche Design clearly loves paying homage to its classic design, saying, “The new edition’s design, especially the matte-black dial, is of course still reminiscent of the icon from the 1970s.”
Its strap, made of “Genuine Porsche vehicle leather and textile,” is coated with black titanium carbide coating and has the lettering “Porsche Design Utility 2024 Chronograph 1 Limited Edition” etched into the back. As a result, its all-black exterior is as trendy and chic as it is impervious to the elements.
The Chronograph 1 Utility – Limited Edition watch is currently available to pre-order on Porsche Design’s website for $13,000. Only 250 pieces will be manufactured, and they will begin shipping out on January 15, 2024.
