The Kickstarter campaign of Awake has started today, and their product is a premium, sustainably-designed watch that has been created from the ground up to be as eco-friendly as possible but uncompromising on quality at the same time. This includes selecting the cleanest processes, recycled materials and limiting transport.
This list seems obvious, but it is not that common to find products that are both eco-friendly and nicely built at the same time. Many eco-friendly products feel inferior, and it is a bit like you have to tolerate it to contribute to making the world a slightly cleaner place. Awake explicitly wanted to avoid this and carefully picked the quality of their materials.
For example, their “Phoenix” fabric is made from recycled plastic from Ocean trash and is certified by the Golden Recycled Standard label. Leather is also a strap option which does not require harsh chemical for protection. The leather comes from Italy, and the straps are produced by a French company.
Natural rubber is also an option, which is perhaps the most durable overall if you like to have a care-free experience. Finally, the Milanese mesh Stainless Steel (316L) strap available in Gold, Silver, and Black gives a classy, more dressed-up look, if that’s your thing. Maybe the best way is to have more than one strap since the built-in, tool-less quick release makes changing them super-easy.
The most recognizable design element is without question the watch’s Dial, which has some texture, color and lighting variations to it, especially once placed under the K1 Dome glass. K1 is a scratch-resistant glass that has the necessary performance for outdoor use and is easier to recycle than Sapphire, the ultimate anti-scratch material.
The Awake team has done a great job at finding an excellent balance to have something classy and colorful, but suitable for various situations and style. The colors are navy blue (limited edition), electric blue, khaki green, sequoia brown and grey-to-black.
"POWERED BY NATURE"Even the clock mechanics are inspired by nature. In fact, Awake says that “the watch is powered by Nature” thanks to two mechanisms: solar energy and kinetic energy, two known energy sources, not often seen together. Solar energy is the main power-source, while kinetic energy (the motion of your hand/wrist) serves as a 6-month power reserve. Even with very mild usage, you should never run out of energy.
This choice of power-source means one critical thing: no battery. Many people don’t realize it, but modern batteries have incredible benefits, but they are also quite a pollutant and hard to manage at the end of their lifecycle. Their building material can be a source of conflict in some areas of the world.
Since the watch’s only function (besides looking good) is to tell time, Key design elements are coated with C1 SuperLuminova a non-radioactive photoluminescent. It absorbs energy during daylight, then releases it afterward. It is an excellent alternative to Tritium, a radioactive material sometimes used in civilian and military diving equipment because it can glow continuously for 25 years.
"THE AWAKE WATCH IS BEAUTIFUL AND WELL THOUGHT-OUT"The Awake Watch is beautiful and well thought-out, with clear project objectives to satisfy the users and promote more responsible manufacturing methodologies.
The Awake (official site) project started when Lilian and Fred decided to show that great products could be made using the cleanest materials and methodologies. They hope not only to prove this to the world, but also to inspire a community of people sharing the same values.
Incredibly, we knew Lilian in an entirely different context from many years ago, when we were personally managing Ubergizmo France (it is now a Franchise, managed by a partner company). In his previous career, Lilian was a brilliant web-advertising expert. I will let them share that story if they choose to, but suffice to say that we did not expect to reencounter Lilian in today’s circumstances, although we knew that he is passionate about watches. This shows how far you can go when you follow your heart.
The Kickstarter campaign is off to a great start and easily surpassed its $30,000 goal by nearly 300%. The watch prices start at $229, and prices climb as you add more expensive materials. Awake has been working on this since 2016 and wants to start production next month, to reach their shipping objectives in December 2018. If you are not familiar with how Kickstarter works, take the time to educate yourself.
Filed in . Read more about Crowdfunding, Kickstarter and Watches.