Last fall, Rolex released its Perpetual Spirit magazine for iPad. Rolex Perpetual Spirit magazine is a long-standing glossy high quality photo and print commentary documenting Rolex’s involvement in fine arts, sports, and adventure. The latest Perpetual Spirit magazine is a tribute to the company’s 80-year commitment to the world of exploration. Rolex teamed with National Geographic’s Photographer-in-Residence, David Doubilet, whose award winning underwater photography graces the publication, as well as Rolex’s bevy of high quality photographers and writers that make the printed version always an enjoyment to read. It is no coincidence that the app’s release coincides with the U.S. availability of Rolex’s updated 42mm Explorer II wristwatch. To buy a watch for exploration, one needs to feel like an explorer, which this Perpetual Spirit app certainly accomplishes.
Rolex applies its high print standard to its iPad app by working with Matchbox Paris, the meticulous French digital arts company, to develop an iPad app that exploits all the features that iPads infuse into the analog print world. Although the app is a gargantuan 822MB, it contains three full videos including National Geographic’s documentary of the Trieste exploration to the deepest part of the globe, diving under the North Pole in sub-freezing water, and an uninterrupted 27 minutes of climbing to the top of Annapurna in North Central Nepal. Each one of these videos makes anyone feel compelled to get out of the armchair and explore somewhere, anywhere. Because the videos are part of the app, no Internet or WiFi connection is required to view them. In addition to videos, the app dazzles with Harry Potter-like moving images within the printed pages including Mercedes Glietze’s water proof oyster worn while swimming the English Channel, Comex diving legend Henri Germain Delauze, and moving underwater species that are only seen thousands of feet undersea.
Like its watches, Rolex’s iPad app is in a class with Omega and IWC’s Red Dot-awarding-winning iPad apps. Although the app only reads in portrait view, the images, videos, and reading content compensates for this technical omission. Rolex aficionados who do not own an iPad now have a reason for running down to the local box store. Aside from the pleasurable reading that any well executed iPad app brings to the reader, Rolex’s release of Perpetual Spirit for iPad app marks the company’s venture into electronic publishing and distribution. Before the iPad app Rolex fans had to hover at a Rolex Service Center or have an Authorized Dealer hold a copy as there was no means for subscription and no timely distribution. Now that the magazine is available electronically, the passionate Rolex fan can enjoy both the magazine and Rolex’s interpretation of adventure and exploration without bribing a sales associate to stash a spare copy, or resorting to eBay to have one mailed. Rolex’s venture in electronic publishing is a welcomed treat for new and grizzled Rolex fans alike.
Specifications
Rolex Perpetual Spirit Magazine on Exploration
Version 1.0.1
Last Updated: 17 October 2011
Size: 822 MB
Language: English
Compatible with iPad iOS 3.2.2 or later
