Smart connections with Louis Vuitton

LOUIS VUITTON'S LATEST SMARTWATCH, Tambour Horizon Light Up, beats to the rhythm of the heart, not just time. With a built-in heart-rate monitor, the luxury brand's Tambour Horizon Connected Watch range is perfect for the fit and fashionable set.

It isn't the only "first" for this third generation digital timepiece. At the heart of the Tambour Horizon Light Up is a custom-designed new operating system - OS - so sophisticated that it's the first outside Apple's own ecosystem to be accredited as "MFI", or "Made for iPhone". The watch can also pair with Android and HarmonyOS smartphones.

The iconic Tambour shape with its convex case is redesigned in the new connected watch, while retaining Louis Vuitton's familiar design codes. The same exquisite level of finishing given to any of the brand's mechanical pieces is also evident in this watch. The beautifully curved sapphire glass is lit by a fascinating LED Monogram ring, unveiling an endless screen much like an infinity pool merging into a distant horizon. The effect this creates is to make the watch's 44 millimetres wide case appear much smaller on the wrist.

What's more, the Tambour Horizon Light Up has a very unique, creative and colourful watch face. When the watch is activated, or receives a notification, 24 LED lights behind the LV Monogram ring over the smooth watch edge will pop up in a dancing kaleidoscope of colours to create a mesmerising glow-in-the-dark animation.

The first two models in the Tambour Horizon Connected Watch collection, first rolled out in 2017, were for travellers. The Tambour Horizon Light Up reaches out to the wider market. You can still plan your travel, store your boarding pass and consult city guides with the new watch, but it has a lot more things for non-travellers as well.

The real beauty is that the watch now presents more options for customisation. Louis Vuitton has designed the Tambour Horizon Light Up to be the "most customisable luxury connected watch in the world", offering never-seen-before levels of customisation and personalisation.

Customisation begins with the watch face, which in this completely overhauled model has an "always-on" display that can be easily tailored to suit a mood, look or occasion. There are eight built-in dial configurations to choose from - and each echoes the brand's timeless design code and spirit of travel that can be configured in a rainbow of colours. You can also add your own initials in a choice of colours and typefaces. The watch face sparkles awake with matching LED animations when a configuration is summoned.

More watch face designs will be added throughout the year to reflect collaborations, seasons, fashion shows and significant dates like Christmas and the Chinese New Year.

With the Louis Vuitton Connect app, the Tambour Horizon Light Up can also be connected to a range of devices, including the Louis Vuitton Horizon Light Up speaker and earbuds, to provide a seamless product experience. The app allows tapping into diverse customisation tools, from watch faces and system colour personalisation, to the selection of functions on the watch. It also provides control and further customisation of the Tambour Horizon Light Up via the smartphone.

The OS of the new watch is developed to deliver a highly intuitive experience and effortless integration into the universe of the wearer. Simply swipe the screen and the OS functions will appear. Swiping right brings up "My Day" displaying agenda, weather, step count, heart rate and even air quality.

Swiping down brings notifications, and swiping up reveals a control panel covering the gamut of functions from timers to alarms, music and Airplay. You will be taken to "My Travel" on swiping left, to access travel plans and boarding passes as well as 30 of Louis Vuitton's expertly curated city guides.

The Tambour Horizon Light Up is a triumph of technology. It makes many personalisation options and colourful animations possible. It's a technical marvel fitted with the lightning-quick Snapdragon Wear 4100 processor, a powerful platform for smart watches that offers a 85 per cent higher CPU and memory performance - and is faster.

The watch is water-resistant to 30 metres. It's equipped with an all-day battery in four modes to suit different needs and usage. In a sliding scale, the "Blossom", "Explorer", "Submarine" and "Saver" indicators reduce or expand the watch's animation and allow the wearer to adapt to his own mood and rhythm.

Push buttons are found on either side of the crown, a first for a Louis Vuitton connected timepiece. The push buttons increase the watch's functionality. Rotating the crown changes the watch dial. Pressing the top pusher brings on the watch face shuffle mode and configuration settings. The bottom pusher is a shortcut button that can be set to activate an application of your choice.

The Tambour Horizon Light Up features a quick-strap-change system that offers access to the vast and colourful world of the Tambour straps - and an even deeper level of customisation. The watch comes with a charging cradle and a universal adaptor pack.

The Tambour Horizon Light Up is available in polished steel, matt black and matt brown - the latter being a reflection of one of Louis Vuitton's iconic historic codes. Both the black and brown models have high-end PVD finishes. The black variant, with its contrasting titanium crown and lugs, evokes a particularly sleek look.

Prices (excluding strap): S$4,300 (steel), S$5,150 (matte black and matt brown)

Visit the Tambour Horizon Light Up Pop-In at Louis Vuitton Ion Store from Jan 14 to 28 Jan, and experience a full connected objects offer from Louis Vuitton, comprising the newly launched Tambour Horizon Light Up, Horizon Light Up Speaker and the Horizon Wireless Earphones. No registration is required. Clients can walk in or make an appointment online