As an International Man of Mystery I’m often parachuted into dangerous places where I only have my wits, my iPhone, my iPad Mini, my protein bars, my suitcase full of clothes, my special travel socks, my hair gel, my toothpaste, some magazines, and my Advil to protect me. Now I hope to have a Division Furtive Type 50 watch.
Originally announced in 2012, these odd watches are a mix of low and high tech. Designed to look like the guts of a 1970s jet fighter, you tell the time in up to three time zones by looking at bright LEDs that light up along the face. The LEDs double as a flashlight as well and can brighten your clandestine roaming to the minibar for a Toblerone.
The coolest thing, however, is the setting mechanism. The watch connects to your cellphone through a light sensor and a special app with synchronize with your watch automatically by flashing the time. This means you never have to press tiny buttons on the side of the piece to set it.
Created by Gabriel Menard, the watch pays homage to a Bondian not-so-distant past where Nixie tubes were the norm and enemy henchmen could bite through iron bars.
Menard is looking to raise $50,000 and is at $13,000 right now.
The watch costs $295 and runs on a single AAA battery, which means this thing is pretty darn big. However it pays to have a huge watch in order to deflect the bullets shot at you by evil henchmen as you go down to the hotel bar to eat free peanuts and run up a massive margarita bill. International Man of Mystery-ing, after all, makes a body thirsty.