This is not a watch industry born timepiece but it is definitely one that wows the watch industry. Never have I had to take off my watch more than in the month I wore this Devon Tread 1 timepiece. Don’t bother to read on. Watch the video below to see how this bold beauty works, and then come back for the technical details.
So fun times wearing the watch aside, the technology is cool, too. The Devon Tread 1 watch features a patent-pending system of interwoven Time Belts ™. The belt assemblies are mounted on a central chassis that allows enough room for the moving parts. Four compact micro-step motors (driven by a microprocessor) drive the movement of the four belts (one for the hours, two for the minutes and one for the seconds) with exacting accuracy. The lubricant-free pulley system moves freely thanks to the integration of jeweled bearings. It is all a neatly orchestrated dance of pulleys, treads, numbers and flowing time — that ticks loudly enough that it definitely reminds the wearer that time is passing by (this could be good or bad, depending on your viewpoint).
The case is a five-piece CNC– cut and produced work of high-grade stainless steel combined with polycarbonate scratch-resistant, anti-reflective crystal. The Tread 1 is powered by a rechargeable lithium polymer cell that is supposed to run for up to two weeks on a single charge – IF the seconds are NOT continually running. This was a little something I had issue with when wearing the watch because everyone wanted to turn it on and off, and play with the seconds, so the power reserve was not always up to par. Carrying the charger around the world (I show the charger in the above video) with me was also a bit too much for me, so this watch doesn’t suit me for long trips. BUT – this is definitely the watch to wear to get people to notice you. No matter where I went, people stopped me, from business functions, to shopping malls, sports events and even on the security check at the airport – all to have a closer look at the Devon Tread 1. It retails for a relatively trendy $15,000.