I got myself one of these as a christmas present to myself and I am glad I did. The purchase was a result of a relatively new-found interest in wrist watches.



Appearance

This watch is from Breitling's AeroMarine line and has a quite rugged overall appearance. As is typical for this brand there is plenty of detail and has a very unique presence on the wrist. The full polished finish gives this model a definite air of refinement that balances the rugged lines and contours of the case and bracelet very well.



If you use the black leather strap for this watch you get a more constrasty and beefy look that is very nice on this model.





Useability

Breitling call their watches "Tools for professionals" and it shows in their products. The Chrono SuperOcean has a Day/Date display, a chronograph function (stopwatch) with screw-down lockable pushers for under water use, and a uni-directional rotating bezel. The watch hands, hour markers and index-point bezel marker are all luminous for seeing in the dark.



The bracelet that comes with this model, the Professional II, is rock solid and the clasp holds very securely.



If you keep the chronograph pushers screwed in, undoing them can be a bit fiddly if you suddenly feel like using the stopwatch. But since the lock-down screws are for underwater protection you can just leave them undone for normal use.



The dial has very good readability but not the best I've seen. You can tell the time at a glance under most any condition of course, but it doesn't jump out at you as with some other watches.





Technical stuff

All Breitling watches are C.O.S.C. Chronometer certified. This means that the movement in each watch has been tested and found to be in compliance with certain standards regarding accuracy, shock resistance, temparature tolerance etc.



The Chrono SuperOcean has a self winding/automatic movement (it winds itself when it's moved around) and when fully wound it will keep running for about a couple of days.



The crystal has anti-reflective coating for better readability so at certain angles you can see the hue of the coating in the minimal reflections that are there. At normal angles it looks like there is nothing between you and the watch dial. Cool.



Power Reserve: 42 Hours

Water Resistance: 500m

Bezel: Unidirectional

Crown: Screw-Locked

Crystal: Sapphire

Diameter: 42mm

Thickness: 15.1mm

Weight: 117.6g

Bracelet: Professional II

Lug Width: 20mm





Overall conclusion

The thing that you notice first when you strap on one of these beauties is how comfortable it is. It's heavy and chunky but it sits on your wrist like it was designed for you specifically.



It runs very consistently and has revealed absolutely no small weak points so far. No moving parts have become rattly or jiggly.



And of course, it looks stunning.



I am very, very satisfied with this purchase. Having a timepiece that you actively enjoy wearing really adds a little something to your day.



If you are looking for a watch that is more than just a watch, check out a Breitling.





Here is a nice video review of the Chrono SuperOcean:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BpDlsHaUaHg

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The path of least resistance is what
makes rivers and men crooked.
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