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Chopard Happy Sport The First 33mm Stainless Steel 278610-3001
Ref. 278610-3001
The Happy Sport began in 1993 as something genuinely unusual: a sports-adjacent watch that placed seven loose diamonds between the dial and the crystal, free to drift and tumble with the wearer's movement. Chopard called that first piece a revolution in women's watchmaking, and this reference, labelled "The First," is a direct modern return to that original proposition rather than a development of it. The guilloché silver dial beneath those floating stones has a quiet depth that flat photography does not fully convey, and the single blue cabochon sapphire set into the crown is the kind of detail that reads as considered rather than decorative. The pebble-link bracelet is worth noting separately from the clasp: the individual links are shaped and jointed to move together with an almost textile suppleness, which at 33mm makes the watch sit against the wrist rather than across it. The 09.01-C movement was developed entirely in-house and runs at 3.5 Hz with a 42-hour reserve — compact for an automatic, properly finished, and built to the same tolerances Chopard applies to its larger complications. For a watch whose reputation has always rested on its visual character, the decision to put a movement of this standard beneath it says something about how seriously Chopard takes the case.
- Reference
- 278610-3001
- Brand
- Chopard
- Collection
- Happy Sport
- Case size
- 33mm
- Case thickness
- 10.95mm
- Case material
- Stainless steel
- Case shape
- Round
- Dial
- Silver
- Crystal
- Sapphire
- Movement
- Automatic
- Calibre
- Chopard 09.01-C
- Water resistance
- 30m
- Bracelet / strap
- Stainless steel bracelet
- Strap colour
- Silver
- Clasp
- Folding clasp
- Lume
- Luminous
- Condition
- Pre-owned
- Retailer
- Goldsmiths
Additional specifications
- Power reserve
- 42 hours
Learn more about Chopard
Louis-Ulysse Chopard founded a workshop in Sonvilier in the Jura in 1860, building pocket watches that sold well in Eastern Europe and Russia. The family ran it for three generations before the line ran out of successors, and in 1963 the company was sold to Karl Scheufele III, a Pforzheim jeweller.
The Scheufele family still owns it, and their dual background explains the house's character: Chopard is unusual in being both a serious watchmaker and a serious jeweller, with in-house capability in gem-setting and gold-working alongside movement production.
The Happy Diamonds concept of 1976 — loose stones rotating freely between two sapphire crystals — became the commercial engine of the jewellery side and remains instantly identifiable.
On the watch side, the L.U.C collection launched in 1996 with the calibre 1.96, a micro-rotor automatic that announced Chopard as a genuine manufacture rather than a fashion house buying movements. L.U.C watches have since collected Geneva Seal and COSC certifications and produced tourbillons, perpetual calendars, and minute repeaters made in Fleurier.
Chopard has timed the Mille Miglia since 1988, giving it a motorsport line with real provenance, and in 2018 moved its entire gold supply to ethically certified sources — the first major house to do so across all production.
- 1860
- Louis-Ulysse Chopard founds the workshop in Sonvilier.
- 1963
- Karl Scheufele III acquires the company.
- 1976
- Happy Diamonds introduces free-moving stones.
- 1988
- Chopard begins timing the Mille Miglia.
- 1996
- The L.U.C 1.96 establishes in-house movement production.
Also in 7 collections
This watch appears in the Chopard Happy Sport range (8), Back in Stock (5,241), Stainless Steel Watches (3,391), Watches Under 37mm (1,830), Automatic Watches (1,792), Women's Watches (1,754) and Sports Watches (801).
Best of 2 retailers
What the specifications mean
A mechanical watch for everyday wear.
Strengths
- 33mm wears small and slips under any cuff
- Sapphire crystal, which resists scratching
- Luminous hands and markers for low light
Worth knowing
- 30m means keeping it away from water
Chopard Happy Sport The First alternatives
Watches from other brands at a similar price, style and size, so you can see what else your budget can buy.
| Specification | 278610-3001 | 115200 | 102711 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | £7,050 | £6,850 | £10,200 |
| Case size | 33mm | 34mm | 33mm |
| Water resistance | 30m | 100m | 30m |
| Movement | Automatic | Automatic | Automatic |
| Strap | Stainless steel bracelet | Stainless steel bracelet | Leather strap |
| Power reserve | 42 hours | 48 hours | 60 hours |
| This watch |
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|
Your new watch
Frequently asked questions, and things you should know about this watch
Can I swim with it?
No. At 30m it will survive rain and handwashing, but not submersion of any kind.
Water resistance explainedWill the glass scratch?
Unlikely. Sapphire is second only to diamond in hardness and shrugs off everyday marking.
Sapphire, mineral and acrylic comparedDoes it need a battery?
No. It is automatic — the motion of your wrist winds it, and there is no cell to replace.
Quartz, automatic and solar comparedHow long does it run for when it's not worn?
About 42 hours fully wound — enough to survive a night off the wrist, but not a full weekend.
Is it a men's or women's watch?
Listed as women's.
Cheapest place to buy
Both Mappin & Webb and Goldsmiths list it at £7,050, so choose on delivery and warranty rather than price.
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