TAG Heuer Teams Up With Mario For Special Edition Connected Watch

Collaborations and special editions are nothing new around here, and most of them make a good deal of sense. Others, however, seem to defy conventional wisdom. We received word of just such a crossover this week from TAG Heuer when they revealed the new Limited Edition Connected X Super Mario watch. It’s TAG’s smart watch that’s been given the full Mario treatment, from the hardware to the software. That means a handful of new UI elements and skins designed around, well, Mario. 

I enjoy Super Mario games quite a bit, and, like many of you, grew up playing the original three games (insert quip here about remembering hidden 1-up block and warp zone locations). These days, I build levels with my son in Mario Maker 2, a game we’ve gotten a lot of mileage out of and one that’s brought out all manner of creativity from him and myself (shoutout to DGR for the inspiration). Distilling all this into a digital luxury watch, TAG Heuer looks to leverage that nostalgia in hopes of netting more Connected users.

And just what is a TAG Heuer Connected, anyway? In short, it’s a smartwatch built into an analog looking case. Brushed and polished surfaces, real lugs, and a fixed bezel means it looks a lot like their traditional chronograph watches, but a fully digital screen gives up the game pretty quick. A heart rate sensor, a GPS, an accelerometer and gyroscope are all present and accounted for, while Wear OS by Google will keep you plugged in to your day to day notifications. If all that sounds familiar, it’s because G-Shock recently announced their own move to Wear OS within the Move Pro, also aimed at helping you track and measure physical activity. 

TAG Heuer adding a Mario theme to the watch brings a literal gamification to activity tracking, where it typically is represented by filling rings and hitting goals, we now see a game character along for the ride with us. You can unlock animations and screens by completing milestones. Sporting a 45mm steel case, the Connected Mario Edition may suffer from the same shortcomings I’ve found in the G-Shock, in that its size prevents it from being a suitably discreet workout partner, something options from Apple and Garmin excel at. Note that TAG Heuer does offer a Connect with a titanium case, which may effectively mitigate the bulk.

While the activity features are a big draw with the Connected, TAG Heuer presents this is a watch that can be worn in far more formal situations as well thanks to the traditional case, and the fact that the screen can be put in a mode that looks an awful lot like the dial of their mechanical watches. I’m not sure they would fool anyone in person, doubly so with Mario hanging out of one of the sub dials, but there’s no denying the steel case has a presence not typically found in digital gadgetry. 

The TAG Heuer Connected Mario Limited Edition will be limited to 2,000 examples, each priced at $2,150 and available through select TAG Heuer boutiques as well as through their website. TAG Heuer.