Pre-Baselworld 2015 – HYT H3 – specs & price

02/03/2015 | By Brice Goulard | 4 min read |

Oops, they did it again!… Back in 2012, HYT introduced a watch that was a real blast in the world of watchmaking, by integrating a liquid directly into the movement and using it as an instrument to indicate time. One year after this first attempt named HYT H1, they came back with a new watch, even more exiting and technically advanced called the HYT H2. We’ve been waiting with strong appetite for the successor of these two and here it is: it’s the HYT H3 and it’s even more complicated. Is it still horology?

For this new edition, the teams of HYT Watches are still working closely with one of the most renowned manufactures, APRP. The HYT H3 is, of course, using again the concept of a fluidic indication of the time. However, when the H1 & H2 are based on a circular tube with a retrograde fluid, the new HYT H3 comes with a brand new architecture called ‘fluid portrayal of time.’ The brand wanted to have a linear indication that results in a rectangular design, with the bellows at opposites ends.

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Once the idea of having the fluid on the top and in a linear way was decided, the rest of the design comes in a natural (but highly complicated) way. The watch thus follows this linear shape with a case measuring 62mm x 41mm. It is made of Charcoal grey PVD-coated titanium and platinum with a micro-blasted, satin finish. The sides are shaped like a drop, meaning that the top is substantially curved. This curved shaped, combined with a reasonable width of 41mm and screwed offset lugs, should be easier to wear than the 49mm of the HYT H1 for example.

Even if this new shape is quite impressive, the piece-de-resistance of the HYT H3 is its movement and its totally crazy mechanics. The upper part of the dial is occupied by the two bellows / pistons that drive the fluids. The first, on the left, drives the progression of the fluid and therefore the time display. Its counterpart, on the right, compensates for this progression in the capillary. The glass tube, operating in a vacuum, still contains two fluids: the first, (water-based) yellow fluid serves to tell the time; the second (viscous-based) translucent fluid works in opposition. Like in the HYT H1 & H2, the liquid works like a retrograde indication, meaning that when it reaches the end of the tube, it goes back in a few seconds to its original place to start its journey again.

The fluid however here is made to indicate only 6 hours. As you can see, bellow the glass tube sits a time scale graduated from 0 to 5. This scale is in fact a rotating dial with four faces that rotates at the same time that the liquid goes back to its original position, in order to be ready for next 6 hours. Because this cube scale has 4 faces, it’s a 24-hour indicator. This bar is set via a push button on the left side of the watch. With each press, the central time display bar turns on itself by one quarter of a turn. The exact hours and minutes are classically adjusted by the crown.

The minutes are located on the right side of the dial and are also displayed in a linear way, to ensure the technical and stylistic cohesion of the HYT H3. It’s a twin articulated arm, which sweeps across a graduated rule. At its end, the retrograde mechanism instantaneously returns to its starting point. The rest of the dial is occupied by the regulating organ, the crown position indicator and a crazy load of mechanical sweetness (gears, levers and wheels). Like in the HYT H2, the mechanics are parts of the watch and fully exposed.

The back reveals 2 barrels for a 170-hour power reserve (approximately 7 days) and a power reserve indicator. The movement is finished with micro-blasted charcoal grey PVD-coated titanium bridges with titanium-coloured satin-finished accents, rhodium-plated bellows and all the respect due to Haute Horlogerie.

This first edition of the HYT H3 is for the moment only available in a combination of charcoal grey PVD-coated titanium and platinum with a black alligator leather strap. It will be produced in a limited run of 25 watches and available from September 2015. Price for this amazing piece of modern horology: 280.000 Swiss Francs.

More on HYTwatches.com and soon on Monochrome-Watches for a detailed hands-on just after Baselworld 2015.

Case

Charcoal grey PVD-coated titanium and platinum with a micro-blasted, satin finish – Length: 62 mm;
Width: 41 mm
Height: 16 mm
Screw-down dynamometric crown sheathed in rubber
Screwed offset lugs
Domed sapphire crystal (box) with anti-reflection coating
Open screw-down back in titanium
Water-resistant to 30 metres

Functions

Retrograde fluidic hours
Retrograde minute indicator
Crown position indicator (T-N-W) – Power reserve indicator (on back) – Push-button for hour rotation

Movement

Mechanical with manual winding, exclusive HYT calibre
21,600 Vph, 3 Hz, 53 jewels
Decorated micro-blasted charcoal grey PVD-coated titanium bridges with titanium-coloured satin-finished accents, rhodium-plated bellows
170-hour (7-day) power reserve

Dial