Alpina, established in 1883 by mountaineers aiming to create exceptionally durable watches for outdoor use, pioneered the development of anti-shock, anti-magnetic, stainless steel, and waterproof timepieces. The brand’s production facilities are located in Geneva, Switzerland. With a heritage spanning over 130 years in watchmaking, Alpina is committed to crafting luxury sports watches that offer utmost precision and dependability under the most challenging sporting conditions.
Let’s take a closer look at the Alpiner 4 Automatic Blue, which stood out to us because of the eye-catching design.
Alpina Alpiner 4 Automatic Blue Overview
The Alpiner 4 is a real outdoor watch with a robust appearance. The deep colors, such as the glacier blue sunray dial are paired with a substantial 44 mm case width, creating a very masculine aesthetic. The overall simplicity of the watch creates a confident, straight-to-the-point look and feel.
The blue sunray dial and stainless steel combination is made a bit more dynamic with small patches of a vibrant red that are vertically aligned along the center of the watch.
Specs:
- Movement: Automatic
- Caliber: AL-525
- Battery Life: 38 hours
- Case Width: 44 mm
- Water Resistance: 100 meters
- Price: Around $1,500
Dial
The beautiful glacier blue sunray dial is the focus point of the watch. It provides depth, and the specific shade of blue has a cool and sturdy feel, which is an excellent choice for a robust outdoor watch.
The dial itself doesn’t have Arab or Roman numerals, the hour markers resemble the design of tips of a pencil hand design, providing a few angles to the otherwise very round appearance. The 12 o’clock position has two of these design elements, and the date window is positioned at the classy 3 o’clock position.
In our opinion, the design of the hour and minute hands is an essential part of the overall design of this watch. They resemble the Alpha hands, however, the ends are “cut off”. This way the hands do not have a pointing end, which is interesting as the hour markers are designed as a continuation, and a connection between the hands and the hour markers are created in this way.
Additionally, the slimmer base of the hands create an elegant, lighter, and more dynamic feel, which is enhanced by the touch of vibrant red at the base of the second hand.
These understated dynamic elements create a well-balanced look for an outdoor watch that can be worn in smart casual, as well as business casual settings.
Bezel
The brushed stainless steel bezel is another element that’s strengthening the sporty look of the watch. The Arabic numerals for minute markers are visible, but they’re using a light font to maintain the understated look and feel of the watch. The bezel is finely serrated as a touch of elegance, however, the vibrant red triangle brings the dynamism an outdoor watch needs.
Case
The brushed stainless steel case is 44 mm wide, and has a 13.15 mm height. The distance between the lugs is 22 mm. While these dimensions are not surprising for an outdoor watch, we want to call out the fact that this is not a small watch. An overall simple design, no crown guards, finely serrated bezel, and a vibrant red triangle that connects the bezel with the dial.
A straight-to-the-point design, with anti-magnetic, anti-shock features, and water resistance up to 100 meters.
Movement
The Alpina Alpiner 4 comes equipped with the AL-525 caliber. This 26-jewel automatic movement is based on the Sellita SW 200-1 caliber, and provides 36 hours of power reserve. The Sellita SW 200-1 is a Swiss made automatic three-hand movement that comes with a date function and it has a 38-hour power reserve. Sellita provides very reliable Swiss made movements for companies that are not manufacturing their own in-house movements.
The accuracy range is within +/- 12 seconds per day under normal conditions.
Pros and Cons
Let’s take a look at the summary of pros and cons, in our humble opinion:
Pros
- Overall design: rugged yet versatile and can be dressed up
- An overlooked brand, could be a unique purchase
- Reliable automatic movement at a reasonable price
Cons
- The argument can be made that Alpina doesn’t have a huge brand power.
- The 100 meters water resistance might seem underwhelming at first, however, keep in mind that this is not a dive watch.
Summary: Takeaway and Final Thoughts About The Alpina Alpiner 4
Alpina is an often overlooked brand, and if you’re searching for something that’s off the beaten path, the Alpiner 4 could be quite literally the perfect outdoor watch. Its evergreen design provides a timeless look, and its combination of brushed stainless steel case and bezel with the deep glacier blue sunray dial creates a unique appearance: the balanced union of elegance and resilience.
Specs:
- Movement: Automatic
- Caliber: AL-525
- Battery Life: 38 hours
- Case Width: 44 mm
- Water Resistance: 100 meters
- Price: Around $1,500
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