Ebel X-1 in Steel and Ceramic

Apr 10, 2013 by Evgueni Matoussevitch 1694 views

The new version of the elegant Ebel X-1 (ref. 1216156) ladies watch comes in the same glossy black ceramic body as previous iterations, but now features whole 71 diamonds adorning its bezel, setting crown and, of course, the signature galvanic black dial. Almost twice as expensive as the version that is not decorated with precious stones, the new wristwatch still looks worth every extra penny that the Swiss-based brand asks for it.

Since Chanel has introduced its “iconic” J12 series more than a decade ago, almost any serious watchmaking brand introduced its own collection of watches with ceramic bodies. While some managed to create their own design, others (like, say, TAG Heuer with its gorgeous Formula 1 Lady Steel & Ceramic Pavee) simply decided to play the “me too” game.

Regrettably, the Ebel X-1 is clearly one of the latter breed. Although all parts of the new watch are radically different from the aforementioned J12 (in fact, the flowing curves and elegantly shaped planes of the body are more in line with Ebel’s own Classic collection), the watch itself certainly looks like it was inspired by the Chanel’s famous gadget.

Well, that’s not really a bad thing since there are lots of people who want a similarly styled watch, but with a different logo on it.

Designed with ladies in mind, the new watch is adorned with lots of diamonds. While fifteen tiny stones decorate the timekeeper’s small setting crown, eight more diamonds adorn the matt black face of the watch making the bold Arabic numerals at 4, 8 and 12 o’clock look not too large, after all.

Its stainless steel unidirectional rotating bezel is, too, covered with four dozens of diamonds that total at about 0.624 carats.

Since the part lacks any markings, the use of a rotating bezel looks somewhat, um, strange, but is nevertheless explainable. You see, the original Ebel X-1, which is still on sale at the company’s web-site, was styled as a diver (probably mimicking a more expensive Chanel H0682 J12 model), so the Swiss watchmaker probably decided to cut some corners and simply took the same bezel and studded it with 48 precious stones.

Although the watch will clearly be quite expensive, it is still powered by the same inexpensive ETA 955.412 quartz movement as before. The mechanism belongs to their Normflatline collection of what they prefer to call “mid-range brass quartz movements” and offers pretty basic functionality that includes a battery end-of-life indicator, date corrector and a simple three-hands layout with rudimentary calendar. The only thing that makes it stand out is the power reserve: depending on the type of battery you use, the watch may go for as long as 108 months (whole nine years!) without the need to change the cell.

Well, being more a fashion item rather than an object of “haute horlogerie”, the watch will probably only profit from such a choice: a quartz movement doesn’t require so much attention to itself and replacing it in case of a problem will never be an issue for its owner.

The watch will be revealed at Baselworld 2013 and will officially go on sale later in the year.

Ebel X-1 (ref. 1216156) quartz ladies watch specification

Price: $6500 (MSRP)
Movement: Quartz, Caliber ETA 955.412, Swiss Made
Number of jewels: 7
Movement frequency: N/A
Power reserve: 78 or 108 months (40 mAh or 55 mAh battery respectively)
Movement decoration: N/A
Functions: Hours, minutes, seconds, date
Case material: Stainless steel & Black Ceramics
Bezel material: Stainless steel with 48 diamonds
Crown material: Steel with 15 diamonds
Case shape: Round
Bezel shape: Round
Case size: 34.00 mm
Case height: No data
Lug width: No data
Dial: Black
Numerals: Arabic, applied, luminous (Superluminova)
Hour markers: Diamonds
Hands: Rhodiumed, luminous (SuperLuminova)
Water resistance: 100 meters
Strap: Polished black ceramics with polished stainless steel inserts, branded folding clasp
Crystal: Sapphire, antireflective on both sides
Case back: Solid