Alpina watches

Swiss watch manufacturer Alpina been one of the leading makers of sports watches since 1883. As a pioneer in the Swiss watch industry, Alpina also holds numerous patents and has developed several innovative calibers over the years. The concept of the Swiss Alpina sports watch as we know it today was created in 1938 by company founder Gottlieb Hauser. His "Alpina 4" principle is based on the terms anti-magnetic, anti-shock, water-resistant, and stainless steel – characteristics that are still central to the brand’s watches all these decades later.

Thanks to these four principles or characteristics, Hauser’s now legendary Alpina 4 watches quickly became a favorite of alpinists, divers, air force pilots, the navy, and other military forces. The red triangle is an unmistakable trademark of Alpina timepieces and can be seen on every one of the manufacturer's watches.

The Geneva-based company has been operating under the name "Alpina Genève" since 2003, during which time the manufacturer introduced a number of new collections with fresh designs and modern technologies. Today, Alpina is synonymous with high-quality sports watches that are specially developed for outdoor activities and for athletes. The brand’s collections are divided into the Land (Alpiner), Air (Startimer), Sea (Seastrong), and Swiss (Heritage) lines, as well as the Comtesse ladies' collection.

Alpina offers both quartz-powered watches and timepieces with automatic calibers. For the latter, the manufacturer relies on modified movements from the Swiss manufacturers ETA and Sellita. Select models are powered by the Alpina in-house caliber AL-709. Ultimately, Alpina produces high-quality timepieces with excellent value for money.

You can purchase a pre-owned quartz timepiece from Alpina for just a few hundred dollars. Prices for quartz watches from the brand’s current collection, like the three-hand Alpina Startimer Pilot, start at around 275 USD. You can call a quartz-powered diving watch from the Comtesse ladies’ collection your own for approximately 400 USD. Quartz chronographs, such as the Alpina Alpiner on a stainless steel bracelet, change hands on Chrono24 for roughly 650 USD.

Prices for an Alpina watch with an automatic movement start at around 700 USD. For this level of investment, you can buy an Alpina Startimer Pilot with three hands, for example. An automatic Alpina Seastrong costs about another 200 USD. If you’re looking for a mechanical chronograph, the Alpina Startimer Pilot Automatic, for example, will set you back approximately 1,650 USD. At the upper end of the Alpina price spectrum is the Alpiner Extreme Chronograph, which costs around 3,300 USD in mint condition.

The Alpina Alpiner collection is divided into various sub-collections, of which the Extreme, Alpiner 4, and Heritage series are among the best known. Timepieces in the Extreme collection are equipped with automatic calibers and available as either three-hand watches or chronographs. All Extreme models have a cushion-shaped stainless steel case with an integrated bracelet, display case back, and round stainless steel bezel with six decorative triangles. All variants are also water-resistant to 200 m (20 bar, 656 ft) and share a dial decorated with triangles, available in an array of color options.

Ref. AL-525B4AE6 is typical of the Alpina Extreme with three hands. The watch measures 41 mm in diameter and features twelve applied trapezoid hour markers on a black dial.

The watch is powered by the caliber AL-525, based on the Sellita caliber SW200-1. Along with the hours, minutes, and seconds, the movement provides a date display at 3 o'clock. This model comes on a black rubber strap and changes hands on Chrono24 for roughly 1,500 USD in mint condition. Prices for versions with a blue or green dial are about the same. If you’d prefer a stainless steel bracelet, take a look at ref. AL-525G4AE6B, for example. This timepiece has a gray dial and demands an investment of around 1,900 USD new.

Ref. AL-730SB4AE6B is typical of the Alpine Alpiner Extreme Chronograph and measures 41 mm in diameter. The stainless steel case of this watch houses the automatic caliber AL-730, based on the Sellita SW510. The movement provides the watch with a chronograph function in a tricompax design, with subdials at 3, 6, and 9 o'clock and a date display at 4:30. A three-link stainless steel bracelet holds the watch securely on the wrist. This model costs around 3,150 USD on Chrono24.

Alpiner 4

The Alpiner 4 collection is home to various three-hand watches and a number of chronographs. Ref. AL-525GR5AQ6B is one of the three-hand models. The watch has a 45-mm stainless steel case and bidirectional stainless steel diving bezel. The dial is green with a horizontal stripe pattern and twelve applied, luminescent indices that make the timepiece highly legible in the dark.

The automatic caliber AL-525 provides this Alpina 4 with hours, minutes, seconds, and a date display at 3 o'clock. The watch comes on a three-link stainless steel bracelet with polished center links. You should budget about 1,350 USD for a specimen in mint-condition. Versions with a gray or blue dial change hands for roughly the same price, but variants with a leather strap are slightly more affordable.

The Alpiner 4 ref. AL-860DGS5AQ6B is a 44-mm chronograph on a stainless steel bracelet with polished center links. The dial is gray and features Alpina's popular bicompax design with subdials at 3 and 9 o'clock. The watch is powered by the caliber AL-860, based on the Sellita SW500-1, and will set you back about 1,800 USD.

Other models in the Alpiner range, like the Alpiner Quartz GMT or Alpiner Quartz Chronograph, are powered – that’s right! – by quartz movements and generally demand an investment of less than 1,000 USD.

Typical representatives of the Alpina Seastrong collection are models with the designation Seastrong Diver 300. These timepieces have a 44-mm stainless steel case that is water-resistant up to 300 m (30 bar, 984 ft) and coated black on two references. The Seastrong Diver 300 Navy Blue ref. AL-525LNN4TV6 has a black case. The dial, bezel, and rubber strap of this model are blue, while the line indices and bezel markings are white. A red minute hand provides the perfect contrast. The Seastrong Diver 300 is powered by the caliber AL-525 with a date display at 3 o'clock. In mint condition, this watch costs around 1,030 USD.

Ref. AL-525LNN4TV6 is a technically identical variant of the Seastrong Diver 300, but the bezel, dial, and rubber strap are brown. An unworn watch will set you back about 1,300 USD.

If you’d prefer a watch with an uncoated stainless steel case, check out the Alpina ref. AL-525LBN4V6B. This timepiece features a black dial, blue bezel, and three-link stainless steel bracelet with polished middle links. Plan on spending around 970 USD on this watch.

Seastrong Diver Heritage & 300 Heritage

The Seastrong Diver 300 Heritage offers wearers a more classic design and is available in two 42-mm stainless steel variants. Both versions have a sunburst dial and internal diving scale operated via an additional crown. Both models are also water-resistant to 300 m (30 bar, 984 ft) and feature a exhibition case back that allows you to view the caliber AL-520 at work inside. The Alpina Seastrong Diver 300 Heritage Green (ref. AL-520GR4H6) with a green dial changes hands on Chrono24 for roughly 1,500 USD in mint condition, while the Diver 300 Heritage Black (ref. AL-520BY4H6) with a black dial demands an investment of around 1,650 USD.

The two stainless steel watches in the Seastrong Diver Heritage collection also measure 42 mm in diameter. But while the ref. AL-525S4H6 is kept in stainless steel, the case of ref. AL-525BRC4H4 is coated with rose gold PVD. Both watches are equipped with an internal diver's scale operated via an additional crown. The stainless steel version comes with a silver dial, the rose gold model with a brown sunburst dial. The caliber AL-525 powers both variants and provides a date display at 3 o’clock. Alpina offers the watches on a black or brown strap. Plan to shell out about 840 USD for the rose gold version and approximately 1,470 USD for the model in stainless steel.

Fans of pilot's watches are likely to find a great timepiece in the Alpina Startimer collection, which offers particularly impressive models with streamlined designs and easy-to-read dials. The collection is home to both quartz-powered watches and models with an automatic movement. The 41-mm three-hand Startimer Pilot Automatic Black ref. AL-525BBG4S26, for example, is fitted with an automatic movement and matt black dial. The dial features Arabic numerals and a date display above the 6 o'clock position. The watch is powered by the caliber AL-525, hidden behind a screw-down steel case back. The timepiece is water-resistant up to 100 m (10 bar, 328 ft) and comes on a black calfskin strap with white decorative stitching. You can call a Startimer Pilot Automatic Black your own for approximately 1,000 USD in mint condition.

The Alpina Startimer Pilot Automatic is also available with a blue dial and steel bracelet. The Alpina ref. AL-525BR4S24 features a rose gold-plated case and brown dial, and will set you back about 1,400 USD.

Alpina also produces 44-mm variants under the name Startimer Automatic. The stainless steel ref. AL-525NN4S6, for example, features a dial design with larger Arabic numerals than its 41-mm counterpart, interrupted by bar indices at positions 3, 6, 9, and 12 o’clock. The red Alpina triangle is located above the 12. As with the smaller Startimer Automatic models, the watch is powered by the Sellita-based caliber AL-525, which sits securely behind a screw-down steel case back. The watch is water-resistant up to 100 m (10 bar, 328 ft) and comes on a black leather strap. Expect to pay about 890 USD for a specimen in mint condition.

The 44-mm Startimer Automatic is also available with a dark gray or rose gold-coated case. The former demands an investment of approximately 820 USD, while the latter model will cost you about 200 USD more.

Startimer Pilot Heritage Manufacture

The two models in the Startimer Pilot Heritage Manufacture collection feature a 42-mm cushion-shaped case. Ref. AL-709SR4SH6 is made of stainless steel, while ref. AL-709SR4SH5 is coated in yellow gold. Both watches have a white dial with applied bar indices. These indices are silver and red on the stainless steel variant and gold and red on the yellow-gold model. The color of the hands matches the color of the indices on each timepiece.

One of the Startimer Pilot Heritage’s special features is its movement, the in-house Alpina caliber AL-709, which was developed by the manufacturer itself. The movement pays homage to the "bumper movement" that powered Alpina watches in the 1950s. Rather than rotating 360 degrees as it does in a modern rotor, the oscillating weight in this movement rotates only 330 degrees. The watch is operated via a crown located at 4 o'clock. You can view the movement through the watch’s exhibition case back. Each model is limited to 188 pieces and is therefore rare. When one of these models shows up on Chrono24, it usually demands an investment of between 2,000 and 3,000 USD when new. The official list price is 3,336 USD.

Startimer Chronographs

As of December 2023, there are a total of three chronographs in the current Startimer collection bearing the additional designation of "Pilot Heritage Automatic." The design of these watches is reminiscent of the Alpina chronographs manufactured in the 1970s. The chronographs come with dials in silver or two different shades of blue. All three versions share a 42-mm cushion-shaped stainless steel case with a screw-down case back.

The Pilot Heritage Automatic is powered by the automatic caliber AL-727, which gives the watch its bicompax design with subdials at 3 and 9 o'clock. The subdials are black on the version with the silver dial, and silver on the blue variants. Applied bar indices serve as hour markers, and there is a tachymeter scale at the outer edge of the dial, which you can use to calculate speeds and distances. On the model with a silver dial, the scale is also silver, while models with a blue dial offer buyers a choice between a scale in the same color or in white. Depending on the version, a brown or black strap holds the watch securely on your wrist.

Prices for a mint-condition Startimer Pilot Heritage Automatic with a silver dial (ref. AL-727SS4H6) start at around 1,850 USD. Variants with a blue dial are considerably more expensive, requiring investments of between 2,500 USD for ref. AL-727LNN4H6 and 2,700 USD for ref. AL-727LNS4H6.

Alpina’s Comtesse collection is home to a number of quartz watches aimed specifically at active women. The range is divided into two subcollections, the Alpiner Comtesse and Alpiner Comtesse Sport. The former line consists of three elegant and sporty 34-mm watches with a stainless steel case and bracelet. The collection offers dials in "Blooming Purple," "Fresh Green," and "Light Brown."

The dials feature a radiant sunburst pattern and applied trapezoid hour markers. The watches are powered by the quartz caliber AL-240, which provides the timepiece with the hours, minutes, seconds, and a date display at 3 o'clock. Prices for an Alpina Alpiner Comtesse in new condition start at roughly 820 USD on Chrono24.

The Alpiner Comtesse Sport collection offers a range of different timepieces with a diving watch design. These watches are made of stainless steel and measure 36.5 mm across. When it comes to dial colors, you can choose between light or dark blue and silver. While some dials feature dot indices and Arabic numerals, other variants have applied trapezoid hour markers. An example of the former is the ref. AL-240ND3C6B with a dark blue dial. This model comes with a three-link stainless steel bracelet and costs approximately 620 USD in mint condition. The ref. AL-240LN3C6B with trapezoid hour markers will set you back about 700 USD.