Introducing the Roue TPS Collection of Racing-Inspired Sports Chronographs

Roue, the brainchild of Brazilian designer Alex Iervolino, has returned with their sophomore collection (we covered their inaugural release here), known as the TPS. Short for “Tachymeter and Pulsometer,” the new chronographs in this small series are deeply indebted to automotive inspired design from the 1960s, but if you’re familiar with Iervolino’s prior watches, these unmistakably bear his signature.

Roue TPS

• Case Material: Stainless steel 
• Dial: Black (One), Silver (Two), Blue (Three)
• Dimensions: 40 x 13.4 x 48mm 
• Crystal: Mineral 
• Water Resistance: 50 meters 
• Crown: Push/pull  
• Movement: Seiko VK-63
• Strap/bracelet: Driver style leather/sports silicone 
• Price: $290
• Reference Number: n/a
• Expected Release: November 

Sports chronographs are nothing new, and sports chronographs with a distinctly automotive flavor are fairly common, so Iervolino had his work cut out for him to set himself apart in a crowded market. I think he’ll find his audience for the TPS series because he seems to have done his homework and has a good understanding of what people want in a watch like this. The TPS has a classic case shape with proportions that will make modern consumers happy – there’s nothing new under the sun here. But the dials have a funk to them that’s sporty, fun, and anything but conservative. If you’ve been looking for vintage inspired chrono that’s still somehow design forward and quite expressive, you may have found your home here.

Three colorways are available, each in a limited edition of 1,000 individually numbered pieces. The TPS One is black on black, with well placed highlights in orange, and yellow throughout. This version is stealthy and sleek, and you could almost call it traditional if it weren’t for the bright yellow Roue signature on the dial, contrasting with the bright orange chrono seconds hand.

The TPS Two is perhaps the most pedestrian variant, but not unattractive by any means. This one is a panda configuration, with similar touches of color in the pulsation scale (which only takes up the first quarter of the watch’s perimeter – the rest is given to the tachy). This one, to me, is the most purely automotive inspired look of the bunch. This is an element of the design that clearly means a great deal to Iervolino – he’s embossed an image of the iconic Porsche 910 that inspired the series on the caseback of each TPS series watch.

The real star of the collection, in my view, is the TPS Three. This is a color variant I genuinely can’t recall seeing before, so Roue gets points for showing me something different, but it also just looks great. Described by Iervolino as “grizzled blue,” it has a pale, almost gray, tone, matched effectively with silvered sub-dials. Careful inspection reveals that the top half of the dial is a slightly darker shade than the bottom half, creating a nice effect at the 3:00 subdial, making it look sliced in half by the two tones pale blue. This will surely rile some who favor symmetry above all else, but I think it works quite well in the context of the TPS, which takes its design cues from a more adventurous time. 

All TPS variants are powered by the Seiko VK-63 Mecha-Quartz caliber. This movement combines quartz timekeeping with a mechanical chronograph mechanism, giving the user the feeling of a mechanical watch when they actuate the chrono pushers. For a watch like this, which is above all else an exercise in style, I think this is a perfect movement choice. It allows those who are curious to take the plunge on something they know is cool looking but might be slightly outside their comfort zone with minimal investment. It’s a response, in some ways, to everyone who has ever said “I love that watch, but I couldn’t pull it off.” Well, now you can find out for sure, for a little less than $300. Roue Watch

What do you think of the Roue TPS series? Drop us a line in the comments and let us know.