The Quartz movement took the next step when it began charging the power. Tissot began using Light as “fuel” in 2014, when it introduced the T-Touch Expert Solar. This year, the Le Locle brand will showcase the next technical steps in the form of the Lightmaster Solar Quartz movement. This movement is at the heart of Tissot’s most important release in 2025, the sporty chic PRC 100 solar quartz. This next-generation quartz watch does not have a solar panel on the dial. Instead, there is a barely visible grid of thin, small hexagonal solar cells to absorb light. This means, for example, there are no restrictions on dial design. Fratello went behind the scenes at Tissot and visited the production site in Switzerland to learn everything you need to know about new Lightmaster technologies: how to create them, benefits, future possibilities, and more.
Visiting Le Locle’s Tissot is like going to space. No, I don’t mean that the traditional clock-making town in Jura, Switzerland, where stones are abandoned away from the French border, is in ruins. I’m referring to the enclosed production site of Lightmaster Movement x. People working on the movement are in carefully sealed spaces within the space. Only their eyes can be seen. The rest is meticulously covered, and these masked people look like scientists working within the space research lab of extraterrestrial technology found on a galaxy exploration mission. Well, in a way, they’re doing something else in the world. They use the power of the stars we spin to make time visible.
Behind the Scenes at Tissot: Discovering the Lightmaster Solar Quartz Movement
The development of the Lightmaster movement required ch. 20 million investments and a lot of effort from professional partners within the Swatch Group. The combination of money and within-group expertise has enabled the next generation to move. Find solar-powered watches on the Fratello website and type “Solar” in the search box and the tag Heuer has solar power, Cartier has solar power, and Seiko and G-Shock watches have solar power. The commonality between these watches is the solar panels on the dial. Tissot followed the same pass on T-Touch Connect. However, the limitations of dial designs on watches, particularly elegant than the sporty and practical T-touch, have led to the development of new ways to capture and turn light into power.
You may have heard of solar cells integrated into the windshield of a car. It provides a way to generate electricity from sunlight while driving or parked, but that’s not a wide range of technology. The windshield surface is quite impressive, but the sapphire crystal on the watch is limited. The advantage of a large surface is the size and the number of solar cells that can be used. Yes, the cells need to be invisible, but they are much thicker than the ones that make sense to use on watches. For the PRC 100 solar quartz, Tissot and his partners developed a thin hexagonal solar panel that is barely visible to the naked eye, providing an uninterrupted view of the dial below and hands.
The Light Master Solar Quartz Movement explained
Light passing through the sapphire crystal of the watch reaches a solar cell with a microscopic honeycomb structure that absorbs it. Energy is then transferred via a “zebra connector” connected to a case, an elastomeric component that has been named for alternating layers of conductive and non-conductive (insulating) materials similar to zebra stripes. The excess energy is stored in a rechargeable accumulator, and with a full charge, guarantees 14 months of autonomy in the dark. The diameter is very efficient to charge. The 10-minute sunlight provides up to 24 hours of power, and a full charge filled with direct sunlight takes about 6 hours. In other words, you are always wearing a fully charged watch in real life situations.
Solar cells capture natural and artificial light and supply it to the accumulator, allowing them to run continuously with minimal exposure with low consumption movement. In unlikely cases, the battery is low, so the Energy (EOE) indicator warns you by moving seconds at 4-second intervals. A little light allows you to resume normal pace immediately.
Millions of movement
Did you know that Tissot makes around 4 million watches a year? In other words, brands are all about volume. With that in mind, let’s take a look at the Lightmaster Solar Quartz Movement again. WatchIt Debuts Prc 100. The three letters in the name are stands for “Precise”, “Reliable”, and “Classic”, and the first PRC appeared in 2005. Currently, we have a 5-piece collection of 39mm models. There are three dial collars and an option of interchangeable straps or bracelets. The 34mm model will debut later this year.
The silver and deep blue sunray dials shine and have a rather typical, luxurious look. The gloss equals luxury. The 9.22mm thickness of the 39mm model is certainly luxurious. And the truth is said, the PRC on the bracelet punches beyond its weight. That’s true from a look and quality perspective, but in future practical reviews I’ll share more about how it will be worn and felt.
As mentioned before, Tissot is all about volumes. But creating enough Lightmaster moves for the most important release of the year proves challenging. The success of the PRX surprised the brand, but demand for watches in the PRC collection (the leather strap version priced at 445 euros). Nevertheless, demand and production capacity are still not in balance. If you look at the manufacturing setup and think about six-figure production, which is calculated to win a big investment, it’s not a surprise.
Optimal light absorption
In a strictly controlled, dust-free environment like the world inside the world, the construction of the Lightmaster solar quartz movement begins with a raw mineral glass panel coated with a thin layer of amorphous silicon. This layer undergoes an acidic treatment to form a dense honeycomb pattern for optimal light absorption. Laser then shapes the panel, and a protective film is applied, leaving only a small area exposed to the zebra-shaped connector. Mineral glass is a glass of choice in microelectronics, among other aspects, for its efficiency and cost-effectiveness.
The honeycomb patterned mineral glass is visible only through thorough inspection, and is laminated below the outer layer of sapphire glass. This final assembly shields the dial and active electronic glass from the external elements. The solar cell is also sandwiched between two glass layers and secured to the case with a lock ring, which improves performance.
The construction of the Lightmaster Solar Quartz movement is incomparable to building a mechanically fine repeater. Still, it is a new and challenging way of production that will continue to streamline and expand Tissot. It should also be noted that the human hands and eyes still play an important (and time-consuming) role in generating the perfect solar-driven quartz movement.
“This technology should not be on such an affordable watch.”
Despite considerable investment and complex construction, the PRC 100 solar quartz, the price of the final product, is very affordable. Tissot CEO Sylvain Dolla took the time to take a look at every aspect of the watch and its entirely new and innovative moves after a massive factory tour. He jumped at the statement that it was a huge surprise to see this groundbreaking and frankly expensive technology in such an affordable watch.
“You’re right. This technology costs money. Honestly, it shouldn’t fit in a 400 euro watch. It can’t fit in a 1,000 euro watch. But we were a major Swiss brand, so we were a strategic decision to reduce margins and provide the best solar-powered watches possible, as we are a major Swiss brand.”
It seems Tissot is winning because of the hot demand for PRC 100 solar quartz. Currently, demand is outweighing production numbers, which is a positive sign. One comment: Those waiting for the creation of complex, luxury Hollogary are more patient than those willing to spend around 500 euros on entry-level luxury watches. However, with all the expertise and experience that exists in Tissot and Group, it is on the horizon to balance supply and demand appropriately. It’s a priority for volume-driven brands.
Solar-powered luxury
It’s exciting to see the laboratory-like conditions in which the Lightmaster movement is created. That made me think too. Accurate and carefree operation is luxurious, so watch brands not only offer elegant pieces, but also functional watches such as Omega X-33 and Braitling emergency and aerospace. These watches don’t just work, but they need to represent a tradition of innovation. And perhaps it will push the old motivations of Swiss watchmakers through technical boundaries? If watches remain relevant, whether mechanical or quartz, technological advances are required.
Solar-powered watches also serve as the perfect gateway to mechanical watchmaking. That’s because the lack of batteries that require modifications, as well as friendly prices, is in the same spirit as the automatic movement. Now, this next statement requires a bit of mental exercise, but battery-powered movements require human interaction, like hand-winding movements. Like solar-powered movements, automatic movements are theoretically executed forever.
Thinking about the future
During my factory tour, I also thought about future quartz movements using Lightmaster technology. Is it possible to create a chronograph or a perpetual calendar? The limiting factor so far is the number of hexagonal solar panels in the glass. The smaller the clock, the fewer the cells and the less energy. The existing 39mm PRC 100 solar quartz and the upcoming 34mm models will work fine. However, the 28mm model is difficult. If you want to use this technology to create something of a reasonable case size, the challenge is to strengthen something more complex than three people’s lattices than three people’s. The market for 50mm chronographs is small. And we have to be patient as Tissot does everything in volume. Eventually, technology evolves and emerges with more complex watches. Give it time, and it will come.
