My view on the Breitling Transocean Chronograph Unitime
foversta
The in-house Chronograph movement B01, unveiled in 2009, is a fundamental pillar in the Breitling strategy. Beyond the strengthening of the horological contents, this movement also answers to the industrial logic that must give to Breitling a greater independence from traditional providers including obviously the Swatch Group. It also gives, thanks to its growing presence in the collection the ability to significantly grow the average price of the sold watches to position the brand in a higher segment. This strategy is also supported by the acceleration of the opening of Breiling store including the latest one at the prestigious street of Rue de la Paix in Paris.
Breitling had therefore not the right to get any error with its movement. This is the reason why it is characterized both by significant technical features (vertical clutch, column wheel, self-centering device for the resetting hammers, facilitated setting of the raquetterie, instant date change without risk of damage etc...) but also by a resolutely contemporary architecture that facilitates the maintenance and the assembly. This assembly process is optimized, each movement being placed on a belt to move from one position to the other throughout the process, alternating interventions of men and machines. Breitling highlights this industrial approach which is required taking into account the high number of movements to produce by guaranteeing homogeneity of quality and reliability.
The B01 is also designed to easily evolve and to power additional modules. And in this context, during the 2012 Basel Fair, the Transocean chronograph Unitime was unveiled, inspired by the rich history of Breitling and which also symbolizes its new ability to produce complicated in-house calibers.
Breitling had therefore not the right to get any error with its movement. This is the reason why it is characterized both by significant technical features (vertical clutch, column wheel, self-centering device for the resetting hammers, facilitated setting of the raquetterie, instant date change without risk of damage etc...) but also by a resolutely contemporary architecture that facilitates the maintenance and the assembly. This assembly process is optimized, each movement being placed on a belt to move from one position to the other throughout the process, alternating interventions of men and machines. Breitling highlights this industrial approach which is required taking into account the high number of movements to produce by guaranteeing homogeneity of quality and reliability.
The B01 is also designed to easily evolve and to power additional modules. And in this context, during the 2012 Basel Fair, the Transocean chronograph Unitime was unveiled, inspired by the rich history of Breitling and which also symbolizes its new ability to produce complicated in-house calibers.
Unitime is a name that resonates very nicely to the ears of Breitling fans because it incarnated in the past a line of watches, with civil or military vocations which used complications allowing to read the time in multiple time zones. The most famous Unitime was recognized thanks to its outer bezel with specific graduations, the sign before the figures being a day&night indicator. In the 1950s, Breitling produced a Unitime WorldTime fully faithful to the system imagined by Louis Cottier, based on the use of two independent rings, one with the cities of reference of 24 timezones, one with 24 hours. This very clever system allows direct reading of the time in each timezone. The only "effort" that requires the complication is to define the local timezone as the reference zone so that the main two hands display the time of the place where the owner of the watch is. When this setting is done thanks to the rotations of both rings, all other timezones automatically find their right positions.
In my mind, 3 brands embody the true worldtime complication nowadays:
- Patek Philippe of course for its extremely pure and effective approach through two hands watches.
- Girard-Perregaux for its ability to have created a full collection of watches around this complication,
- And Vacheron Constantin for its Patrimony traditional Worldtime allowing to display 37 different time zones including the most tricky ones like Nepal!
In my mind, 3 brands embody the true worldtime complication nowadays:
- Patek Philippe of course for its extremely pure and effective approach through two hands watches.
- Girard-Perregaux for its ability to have created a full collection of watches around this complication,
- And Vacheron Constantin for its Patrimony traditional Worldtime allowing to display 37 different time zones including the most tricky ones like Nepal!
Maybe I could now add Breitling inside this prestigious list which makes a very worthy and big step with its Transocean chronograph Unitime. Big is the appropriate adjective because the case has an impressive diameter of 46 mm. And as the lugs are not that short, small wrists will have to forget it... as fast as possible. One of the reasons for this large size is the addition of two complications: Chronograph and Worldtime. The presence of the two rings makes necessary the use of a larger case. However, I think that Breitling should have tried to contain the watch around 43 mm as Girard-Perregaux does it in a similar configuration to make it wearable by more people. The dial would have earned a better balance: counters and date window seem to be a little lost in the centre.
But the Unitime has also some strong assets. The first advantage is the excellent quality of the finishings, including the details of the dial. The applied index and logo, the world map, the different typographies are all perfectly executed. You will notice the presence of small suns that extend the range of some cities of reference on the timezones ring. It is of course a way to take into acount the daylight saving time.
The second advantage is the easy way to use the worldtime complication: you don't need here to press a quite stiff pusher like with the Patek Philippe 5130, adjustment of the local zone as the timezone of reference is done forward and backward through the crown. This is a true relief for those who move often between London and Paris and who have to press the pusher 23 times to get the correct setting.
But the Unitime has also some strong assets. The first advantage is the excellent quality of the finishings, including the details of the dial. The applied index and logo, the world map, the different typographies are all perfectly executed. You will notice the presence of small suns that extend the range of some cities of reference on the timezones ring. It is of course a way to take into acount the daylight saving time.
The second advantage is the easy way to use the worldtime complication: you don't need here to press a quite stiff pusher like with the Patek Philippe 5130, adjustment of the local zone as the timezone of reference is done forward and backward through the crown. This is a true relief for those who move often between London and Paris and who have to press the pusher 23 times to get the correct setting.
The third asset is linked to the specific performance of the B05 movement, actually a B01 base with an in-house worldtime module. It is the reason why the Unitime movement has a frequency of 4hz and a significant power reserve of 3 days. With the effectiveness of the system of instant date change, the date is automatically set going to the next day if you travel to the East or going back to the previous day if you travel to the West . Personally, I would have preferred this watch without the date window due to its position on the dial. But it would have been a pity to not take advantage of this technical performance. Please note that Breitling made the right decision to put a solid caseback since the base movement would have appeared to be too small for the size of the case.
Finally, the last asset is the "personalization" service offered by Breitling. The bezel of the cities of reference available in several languages, the dial in two colours (polar white or black), the steel or gold rose case without forgetting a steel bracelet that can be used with the steel case, all these combined elements define a broad range of Unitime models to meet the expectations of the client. It is a pity though that to my knowledge, it is not possible to change the central world map of the dial with other continents. It would have been great!
Finally, the last asset is the "personalization" service offered by Breitling. The bezel of the cities of reference available in several languages, the dial in two colours (polar white or black), the steel or gold rose case without forgetting a steel bracelet that can be used with the steel case, all these combined elements define a broad range of Unitime models to meet the expectations of the client. It is a pity though that to my knowledge, it is not possible to change the central world map of the dial with other continents. It would have been great!
Obviously, the Unitime is a watch that has a very large presence on the wrist due to its size, the pushers and the complexity of the dial. The central map easily attracts the gaze. The good side of the imposing size is the overall readability of the information including those positioned on the two rings of the worldtime complication. Convex sapphire glass also contributes strongly to this excellent readability. You will notice that the minutes of the chronograph, graduated on 30 minutes counter, is faithful to Transocean line by putting forward the first 3 sections of 3 minutes. Despite the size, the Unitime was comfortable on my wrist. It is the visual rendering which is more embarrassing for wrists which have similar sizes than mine, lugs tend to spill over. It is clear that on small wrists, the Unitime will be inappropriate. It is important to properly test it before making his choice.
Undoubtedly, Breitling created a very worthy watch with the Transocean chronograph Unitime. It reflects the qualitative leap of the brand and the capacity of the B01 movement to power additional complications. At the same time powerful and seductive, the Transocean chronograph Unitime however misses the perfect score due to its XXL size which is an obvious obstacle for small wrists or fans of more discrete watches. 2 or 3 mm less would have to make it more accessible without compromising readability. Despite this flaw, the balance remains clearly favourable, the ability to change the language of the cities ring brings a last positive point.
Thanks to the team of the Breitling Paris boutique.
Undoubtedly, Breitling created a very worthy watch with the Transocean chronograph Unitime. It reflects the qualitative leap of the brand and the capacity of the B01 movement to power additional complications. At the same time powerful and seductive, the Transocean chronograph Unitime however misses the perfect score due to its XXL size which is an obvious obstacle for small wrists or fans of more discrete watches. 2 or 3 mm less would have to make it more accessible without compromising readability. Despite this flaw, the balance remains clearly favourable, the ability to change the language of the cities ring brings a last positive point.
Thanks to the team of the Breitling Paris boutique.
Fr.Xavier
Comments:
foversta August 14th, 2012-15:42
And to give you an idea... Please find below some wristshots with WT watches: 5110: 5130: Breitling Unitime: Vacheron Patrimony WT: Not a WT but it features the cities ring: Fx ...
=RWK= August 14th, 2012-20:37
Super watch and review FX... I like the black dial varian. Best! -- Richard.
foversta August 15th, 2012-00:57
Thanks Richard! Indeed, the black dial reduces the feeling of size which is a good point. Fx
sanro August 15th, 2012-12:45
Just added to my wish list... Thank you for the review Fr.Xavier, ...or maybe not :) As you say, due to its size I definitely need to see it on my wrist before making any final judgement. But it is the best looking Breitling I have seen in a long time...
foversta August 15th, 2012-14:24
Thanks Sanro! Sure you have to try it... let's have a dream, with a smaller case, I could take the plunge... Fx
watchme August 15th, 2012-13:59
A couple of thoughts... (1) I would definitely include JLC in the "world time" lineup, as the Geographique has been a "Masterpiece" since it debuted in 1989, and the newest incarnation is clean and well-proportioned (not to mention the Geographic World, the Extreme World Chronog...
foversta August 15th, 2012-14:23
Thanks Dean for your comments! Of course, you are right about JLC. Fx
dxboon August 17th, 2012-22:00
While I generally am not... ...interested in world timers, I have to say that there is something really desirable about the dial on the Unitime. The map image has a sort of vintage charm that appeals to me for some reason. A very thoughtful review, Fr.Xavier! Thanks! Daos
foversta August 19th, 2012-11:56
Thanks Daos! What about now a travel watch with Piaget using the Gouverneur case? Should be great! Fx
dxboon August 20th, 2012-21:05
I think the ovoid case shape would work well. Yes, Piaget Gouverneur worldtimer could be quite interesting! Cheers, Daos
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