The dial indicators are useful and legible, as well as beautifully designed in various layers. Just looking at the three dimensional and exposed Breva Genie 01 dial is a treat. To compliment legibility with aesthetics, many of the indicator scales are printed on semi-transparent sapphire crystal discs that offer a view underneath them. On the dial, you can read the time with subsidiary seconds dial, altitude, and the barometric pressure all with ease. Also, since the world relies on two separate styles of measurement units, Breva can produce the Genie 01 dial with metric or imperial units. The ones you see here use metric unit scales.
Of course, one of the coolest parts of the dial is the visible aneroid capsule near 5 o’clock that expands and contracts with changes in air pressure. It does so in a very predictable manner – which is why it can be used for measuring the barometric pressure. A small arm on the capsule measures its expansion, which is how the watch is able to indicate the values. While simple, the point is that the manner in which the Breva Genie 01 works is visible to the eye. You don’t get that with a digital or electronic item, and being able to visually understand its operation is a huge part of the appeal to lovers of mechanical instruments.
On the wrist, the Breva Genie 01 sits comfortably in its large 44.70mm wide case that is 15.6mm thick. The dial intrigue is never lost, and despite being a strange item, there is an elegance to the watch in person that is surprising. Would I actually use the Genie 01 as a barometric weather station? I don’t think so. I might play with it from time to time and just check to see that the barometer is functioning, but to be honest, I live in Los Angeles, and checking the weather often is not something I’ve become accustomed to doing.
Breva likes to suggest that adventurers going skiing or traveling to exotic places in the world will want to rely on the Genie 01’s functionality. Again, it asks the question of if you are traveling and seriously need weather prediction information, are you going to rely on a high-end luxury timepiece to do so? I can see someone wearing an electronic gadget on one wrist and a Breva Genie 01 on the other wrist as means of having a boy-like adventure in the mountains, but that is more or less akin to a grown-up way of playing GI Joe – yet I would argue that there is nothing wrong with that. Is the Breva Genie 01 watch all in good fun? I certainly think so. People with disposable income of this nature tend to get bored (it’s a fact), so the more toys the better, in my opinion. Breva produces limited edition Genie 01 models in 18k rose gold (limited to 55 pieces priced at $165,000), 18k white gold (limited to 55 pieces priced at $170,000), and in platinum (limited to 12 pieces and priced at $205,000). breva-watch.com
