The watch that intrigued me at the Watches & Wonders Geneva 2024 was the Tudor Black Bay Chrono Pink, revealed just a week or so before the event.
Tudor surprised us all by unveiling the Black Bay Chrono with a pink dial, and then again in Geneva by stating that this watch was not a Watches & Wonders novelty per se, but simply a "novelty in general", hence it wasn't available. These arbitrary rules could drive me up the towering walls of Palexpo, but before that happened, I spotted these watches on a distant table. A duo there allowed me to borrow them to wear and photograph, and all was right with the world again, because this meant I could return to you with a photo report and impressions of working with the metal.
Correct color representation remains one of the most challenging aspects of modern watchmaking. Despite the excellent techniques in surface treatment, paints, coatings, and craftsmanship, the end result often suffers, not to mention that brands and journalists frequently struggle to convey how a color truly appears on a watch and how it affects wearing and owning it.
Moreover, there's a subjective element. Indeed, a poorly chosen or used color can ruin a great watch. Tudor, under Rolex, acts as the "shield protecting the crown", not only by being one of the best value propositions just below Rolex's price point but also by experimenting with new materials and executions.
During an unrepresentative survey, retailers told us that the 41 mm Tudor Black Bay Chrono is favored by men and that customers rarely, if ever, actively request a watch with a pink dial. Thus, the Tudor Black Bay Chrono Pink is another experimental model from Tudor, following other cool projects in bronze, gold-plated steel, titanium with fixed lugs, etc. To its credit, the Chrono Pink operates quite differently from many other recent Tudor novelties, as product updates have often been gradual in terms of size and color changes in the Black Bay lineup - which is standard operating procedure for any brand of this size.
These incremental variations, let's be honest, were hard to spot from across the room unless you are a true Tudor enthusiast. On the other hand, the Black Bay Chrono Pink... I didn’t have to look twice to spot it across the room.
The first surprise was that it wasn’t a saturated or extremely bright pink. A significant part of the dial is pink, so it's far from invisible, but it's not a Barbie or bubblegum pink. If anything, it's more lavender, as someone noted. An important factor here is that the dial doesn’t reflect or is covered with a thick layer of lacquer; instead, microscopic black dots in its grainy texture play a crucial role in softening the saturation and brightness. None of this was visible in the official Tudor photos that led us to expect a glossy pink lacquered dial.
Under direct lighting, as you see in the photo above, the pink-lavender hues come to the fore, and the dial becomes as bright as it possibly can – but it's still not as blazing pink as it could have been. Whether this is a positive surprise or a negative point is more a matter of taste than anything else. Generally speaking, a matte dial with glossy fixtures (hands and indices) is a strong combination, enhancing contrast and, consequently, readability. You could argue that it gives the Tudor Black Bay Chrono a more serious and less cartoonish look.
At the other end of the spectrum, you see the Tudor Chrono Pink photographed under yellow light without a flash: Quite restrained, although we can't call it serious. The conclusion is: upon first impression, the Tudor Black Bay Chrono Pink was not as bright and pink as we expected, and official photos (and unofficial ones, for that matter) should be taken with a grain of salt, always trying not to judge until you see the watch in metal.
Speaking of encountering such watches in the wild: several people from Tudor independently confirmed to us that the Tudor Black Bay Chrono Pink will be released in only one batch, after which it will no longer be produced. This is somewhat disappointing, although Tudor has not yet been targeted by scalpers and flippers, so you might still have a chance to buy them in a boutique and live happily ever after.
The five-link bracelet is a very successful combination and apparently the only option for this watch. As we wrote in the release news article: “Tudor does not specify, but I believe this is the first time the Black Bay Chrono is equipped with this Jubilee-inspired bracelet, and honestly, it suits it perfectly.” It’s a flexible, comfortable bracelet that became even more comfortable thanks to the Tudor "T-fit" quick adjustment clasp we know and love.” It matches the alternating matte and polished surfaces of the case: the top of the wide lugs is matte, while their beveled edges and the entire case profile are polished to such a degree that they act like mirrors, reflecting the hairs on the wrist and sleeve.
The solid steel case back hides the manufacture caliber MT5813, which is a reworked version of the famous Breitling B01 chronograph caliber. Tudor offers you this fantastic movement at a significantly lower price than the brand that developed and produced it, which remains an interesting phenomenon in the luxury watch industry. It’s an excellent movement with a three-day power reserve, supporting a 4 Hz operating frequency, and Tudor even adds a silicon hairspring, resistant to magnetism and temperature fluctuations. The only compromise is the 7.23 mm thickness, making the case relatively thick, although 200-meter water resistance and the cool domed sapphire crystal somewhat justify this.
Perhaps the most surprising result of our acquaintance with the Tudor Black Bay Chrono Pink was that the watch itself is not so surprising or shocking. Perhaps it’s the week of watch excess that the Watches & Wonders Geneva 2024 has become that changed our perception, but in fact, the Tudor Chrono Pink struck us as a very natural and pleasant continuation of the collection. How well it fits into your wardrobe and daily wear habits, or how well it performs as a watch you pull out only for special occasions, is up to you. Overall, it’s a full-fledged model with a strong movement, a sufficiently pleasant look – the aluminum bezel and its cheap markings are the most compromising elements – and a new refreshing color to boot.
Tudor does not specify how many Black Bay Chrono watches with a pink dial will be released, but it is expected to be one batch and no more. The price of the Tudor Black Bay Chrono Pink is $5,675 USD. Details can be found on the brand's website.