Breitling Premier B25 Datora 42 micro review

Here's a new review format I'm going to try; I've only ever reviewed watches I've personally owned, with one exception. Most of these reviews were written months after I had owned the pieces, so act as in-depth buyers advice… buyers advice for niche watches nearly impossible to find.

I'm going to write a few brief reviews on watches I've only handled in boutiques and chewed the fat about with salespeople or other Crunchers.

The subject of today's review is the Breitling Premier B25 Datora 42 moon phase. I visited a Breitling boutique and they had this one in stock. It had just come in. So far, if memory serves me well, the boutique has sold three. The Datora is one of my dream watches. I think its finishing and level of complication is unparalleled at its price point. I'm going to remain impartial as best I can here. Let's get into the details:

The good: As mentioned before, the value is impossible to beat. It looks like a Patek Philippe. It looks high horology. It's also immensely satisfying to use. It winds smoothly, and almost silently, like churning a bucket of warm, thick cream. The pushers also offer some tingling sensations in the haptic department, with a satisfying click at every press, although that's nothing special for a mechanical chronograph. One thing I was surprised to hear (or not hear) was the rotor. It spins with little resistance and isn't plagued by any wobble. The leather strap is very comfortable too, but be prepared to see creases in the yellow undercoating; the display model saw some creases just from my limited handling.

The bad: It's chunky. 42mm case diameter and the thickness of all those complications makes it stand out on smaller wrists. I can manage a 42mm watch, and it's thicker than I prefer, but I'm willing to sacrifice some slimness for all the mechanical goodies inside. You need a special tool to adjust the weekday; the manual says a "soft pointed object," so I assume a plastic takeaways fork. I tried reading how to set the time, but gave up because I have never thought so hard in my life. This is understandably a result of having a complicated watch, but now I see the appeal of watch winders. I would rather eat a bakelite telephone than set this watch every few days. Finally, some may criticise its Patek Philippe-ness. From browsing the Patek Philippe catalogue for 2022, one or two references come eerily close to the Datora. Is this because they both take inspiration from models in the 1940s? I would like to think so, but if someone was steadfast in the belief that the Flying B looked over Patek's shoulders, I don't know how else to dissuade them. This is only really apparent on the salmon dialed version I viewed. The pistachio dialed one is nuts (pun not intended, honest) even if it lacks a moon phase.

The verdict: It's hard to not love it. The salmon dial, full-fat reference is my favourite, with the Premier B09 pistachio coming in at a very close second. The cons seem like mere niggles when the pros are considered. With that, if there's one watch I'm grateful I got to handle and can recommend without a shadow of a doubt, it's this one. If you can find it, that is.

I had one job not to take a blurry photo. They always seem in focus under boutique lights but come out as blurry messes when I get home.

Cover image: Ethos Watch Boutique