Ladies watch / Quartz watches / Swiss Watches
First offered around a year ago, the quartz-powered Breitling Colt 33 ladies diving (sic!) watch gets updated for this year with a wide choice of straps that are crafted from Sahara leather: a natural material that is easy to recognize on first sight thanks to the numerous “dunes” that are embossed on its surface.
Judging by the photo that came with today’s press release, a buyer can now choose from a range of straps of different colors: something that looks like indigo to me, as well as red, white, orange, black, brown and, yes: pink.
As you can see on the group photo below, the straps are not simply swapped at will, but are accompanied by the same color accents on the silver dial.
The hour-markers of the pieces are painted colors that match that of the straps and, to make them more readable in darkness, are complemented with tiny squares of Superluminova. The hands are also luminous, although I am not sure whether such a modest portion of lume will be adequate for a watch that is rated for whole 500 meters of water resistance.
Yes, this tiny monster is not just for show, like it is often the case with watches that are designed for women, but can actually be used as a real tool watch (of course, only in case if you won’t opt in for a version with a diamond-set bezel) and may be used for serious diving if the lack of lume is not an issue for you.
Like it is always the case with Breitling, the timekeeper is powered with a chronometer-grade Caliber B77 SuperQuartz movement. Based on the well-known ETA Thermoline 965.652 the thermocompensated (hence the name Thermoline) movement brings you the standard functionality of a three-hander spicing it a little with a date window at 3 hours. The movement is claimed to be around ten times more accurate than a typical quartz engine.
I don’t really want to make any comments regarding my opinion on the exterior of the watch since it was designed following the same lines as other Colt watches and you either like it or not. It is not deliberately massive, but it doesn’t look too fragile either. Its bezel with the traditional diving scale and a luminous dot at “00” mark doesn’t look too thick and is clearly easy to grip even with glowed hands.
Currently, the Breitling Colt 33 retails at some $3000 depending on the choice of materials and straps. Not sure how much Breitling plans to add to or subtract from the price if the piece is equipped with the Sahara leather strap.
See also: JeanRichard Aquascope Lady Day
Photos: Breitling
Breitling Colt 33 SuperQuartz ladies watch specification
Price: Around $3000
Movement: Quartz, caliber Breitling B77 SuperQuartz, base ETA Thermoline 956.652, EOL indicator, COSC-certified chronometer, Swiss Made
Number of jewels: 7
Power reserve: 3-4 years
Functions: Hours, minutes, seconds, date
Case material: Stainless steel
Bezel material: Matches case (also available with diamonds)
Crown material: Matches case
Case shape: Round
Bezel shape: Round
Case size: 33.00 mm
Case height: No data
Lug width: No data
Dial: Silver
Numerals: Arabic, applied
Hour markers: Luminous (red, blue, pink, orange, brown, black or white)
Hands: Luminous
Water resistance: 500 meters
Strap: Sahara leather straps of different colors on steel tongue buckle
Crystal: Sapphire, antireflective on both sides
Case back: Solid