Breitling Transocean UB0510

The top news stories from all the best watchmakers in the world, including Audemars Piguet, Richard Mille and Breitling, plus we announce the winner of our Rolex Explorer competition prize.

Breitling is the yeast extract-based spread of watchmaking. Some people can't get enough of them, others wouldn't even wear one on a bet, but either way we've all heard of the brand. Pre-quartz revolution, Breitling watches were the go-to tools of the experts, found on the wrists of pilots, engineers, scientists and even astronauts, but post-quartz revolution, well—let's just say that Breitling seems to have taken a little longer than most finding its groove.

Thanks to the Romans, Pope Gregory XIII, Jesus and of course the orbit of our home, Earth, we have a calendar system that is as concise and efficient as the English language itself. I can imagine that early watchmakers loathed the fripperies of our months, years and leap years when devising methods of recording and displaying the path of our journey through space, but thankfully they persisted in their endeavours, giving us today what we call the perpetual calendar. And despite the complexity of microchips and atomic clocks, we can still enjoy the hard work of previous generations in devising what just might be the most impressive complication ever to sit inside a watch.

Ever caught yourself looking at a watch that’s well out of budget, thinking, ‘What if?’, only to mentally slap yourself back to harsh reality? Those most exquisite and expensive timepieces may forever be consigned to only the wildest dreams, but that doesn’t mean you can’t get something rather special for the price of a mid-range Breitling. Here are three underrated watches that offer exceptional watchmaking for much less than you’d expect.