Integrated and versatile – The Isotope Flyway

If there is a flaw with integrated steel sports bracelet watches is that they always brings one issue: versatility. It is not as black and white as it sounds, but in order to enjoy a completely integrated watch, the case must be outstanding and the bracelet 3 times better. This is mainly because steel on steel would be the main configuration that the watch would live on.

To go even further, this category of watches is ainly bought by watch enthusiast. People who enjoy design and the retro feeling of a well-made object, this is the same kind of owners who likes to change the look of their new acquired timepiece.

Today, we have a design which combines all the advantages of a regular watch with the looks on an integrated one, the newest launch from the brand Isotope: the Flyway. The name is inspired on the paths left by the bird migration, a noble concept as the watch feels like a light breeze in terms of design.

There is much to unveil about this new collection but also the particular version we have for testing, the Terra Maris. This is not the first time we see this colour combination as we also have the unique Moonshot Chronograph which brings brown and blue together in harmony, more on the design cues later.

Isotope has developed its own design language for a while, and the Flyway collection is not exception, join me to discover what could be a great addition to their current line up and the British watch scene altogether. Let’s begin.

The specifications

As mentioned, this is a new watch for the brand, and it is specially reflected on its 36mm case by a 42mm lug to lug. If you have been following the brand, this would be a big surprise as so far 40mm seemed to be the lower limit in terms of sizing, and as stated before, it feels like a light breeze.

The use of colours for the Terra Maris are very unique. The diamond like pattern, really shines with the warm bronze degrade and the blued hands (plus the blue Isotope logo). The whole composition is inspired in the beautiful Portuguese scenery from Cascais, where land meets sea.

The concept of this limited-edition Flyway has another trick under its sleeve. It was conceptualised by Miguel Seabra, a tennis pro with a passion for art and watches, an avid collector and conoisseir.

Coming back to the watch itself, the case has some great details to highlight. The 3 part construction includes brushed and polished finishing to separate each part as an individual section. The mid-case is nicely arched and ends in a tear drop like shape, just like the en links on the side, it all matches. The bezel also continuous the pyramid theme giving the Flyway a bit of a vintage feeling, together with the applied ‘’explorer’’ style numerals on the dial, it is a busy watch but it works well in terms of symmetry and design.

Turn the watch over and you will be greeted wit a display case back showing the Swiss Landeron movement which has quite a bit of decoration and gives the Flyway 40 hours of power reserve. It is on the low spectrum specially nowadays when the standards are around 70 hours, but again because there is no screwdown crown, it is easy to manipulate and give a little to up.

The Flyway also comes with a 100 meters of water resistance which makes it a true sports watch, ready for anything.

On the wrist

We wanted to save the bracelet description for the wearing experience. With a 12.3 mm thickness we can already say that conform is halfway done. Coming to the bracelet, Isotope decided to give a lug aperture of 18mm and create the second link which is wider to have this integrated illusion that not only works wonders but also keeps that versatility alive,the watch looks great on both straps and the stock bracelet. The links are polished in the centre and brushed on the sides improving the tapering which ends on the butterfly style clasp.

The bracelet also includes screws for sizing and although it doesn’t have any type of micro adjustment, plenty of those links can be removed achieving good fit.

Legibility is also very good, the contrast between the dial and its pattern makes the Flyway easy to live with but at the same time pleasant to look at. Is not a minimalist watch but it feels rich in terms of colour and warm in terms of character, something quite hard to achieve in my opinion.

The blue hue of the superluminova also aides with legibility when the watch is in the dark, it jumps quite a bit. I quite enjoy the mixed of colours on the dial, I have to say that as soon as Jose and the team asked me at the British Watchmakers shows which version I wanted to review, this was the first one that came to mind.

I wore the Flyway mostly on an office environment and as always, nothing fits better than a 36 steel sports watch. It is quite a refined piece, the polished centre bezel gives the watch a more luxurious aura and then, the no date with numerals on the dial, bring the sporty nature of the Isotope.

It would be great to see in the future a rubber strap that would imitate the shape of the bracelet, could elevate the look and to an even sportier feeling.

Concluding thoughts

There are watches that have certain design cues that I enjoy. To me the Flyway has a balance in terms of execution that work well as a whole. The case is very unique with a dial that looks like no other watch out there. The sizing is quite adequate for men and women and then, the built construction is quite high, specially at the price point that Isotope operates.

The Flyway is available in several versions, from purple to pink to even a full lume version and they are all available form 1200 GBP. This is a good price for a quality product with a unique design and also limited. We have been waiting for a tool classy version from Isotope and we finally got it, exactly as we wanted it and a bit more.

For more information please visit https://isotopewatches.com/products/isotope-flyway-terra-maris

Technical specifications

·       Case: Three-piece 316L stainless steel case with polished, brushed, and sandblasted finishes. Screw-in sapphire crystal exhibition case back.

·       Dimensions: 36mm diameter × 12.3mm thickness / 42mm lug-to-lug.

·       Crystal: Anti-reflective hyperbolic paraboloid sapphire crystal.

·       Crown:  Mirror-finished push-down crown at 3 o’clock with Lacrima logo.

·       Dial: Brown and bronze degradé pyramids with a satin finish, bronze indexes and numerals filled with Super-LumiNova.

- Hands: Lacrima-shaped, heat-blued, filled with Super-LumiNova.

·       Water Resistance: 100m / 10 atm

·       Bracelet: 18mm quick-release 316L stainless steel bracelet with a signed butterfly clasp.

·       Swiss Landeron Mechanical Movement

o   Automatic, self-winding

o   Power reserve 40 hours

o   25 Jewels, 28800A/h

o   Accuracy -12/+12 s/day

o   Customised finishing with blued screws, Perlage and Côtes de Genève