Did a Rugged Tool-Watch Brand Just Launch the Year’s Prettiest Watch?

This watch’s iridescent dial showcases a different color practically every time you look at it.

bell and ross watch closeup against a colorful background

Published October 9, 2024

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Since its founding in the 1990s, French watchmaker Bell & Ross has established itself as one of the premier tool-watch brands in the luxury space.

Through its trademark “Instruments” line of pilot’s watches, B&R has effectively transferred airplane cockpit aesthetics onto the wrist, with big and bold square-cased watches that put toughness and utility over beauty.

But in recent years, the brand has simultaneiously softened its image and broadened its horizons (no pun intended). The line most emblematic of this shift is the BR-05, Bell & Ross’s take on the ever-popular integrated luxury sports watch that the brand debuted back in 2019.

Today, the next evolution of the BR-05 has arrived, and not only is it the most beautiful watch Bell & Ross has ever made, but it might just be the prettiest watch of the year period.

Bell & Ross BR-X5 Iridescent

$8,400 at Bell & Ross

A Thing of Beauty

Bell & Ross’s new watch is the BR-X5 Iridescent. The BR-X5 is effectively a higher-end version of the BR-05 that uses a manufacture movement from B&R.

The BR-CAL.323 calibre boasts a 70-hour power reserve, displayed on the dial via an indicator at 9 o’clock, and it’s COSC-certified. The movement also sports some industrial-style decoration and is visible through a sapphire caseback.

The BR-X5 is an existing line of watches for Bell & Ross, but what’s new about the BR-X5 Iridescent is, you guessed it, the iridescent dial.

bell and ross watch on an iridescent surface — With a stunning color-changing dial, a manufacture chronometer movement and chic integrated bracelet styling, the BR-X5 Iridescent has a whole lot going for it.

Chameleon Dials: The Next Big Trend?

The dial is downright gorgeous, with an iridescent quality that effectively means it’s always changing color depending on the light. Bell & Ross compares the effect to soap bubbles, certain fish scales and mother of pearl.

The dial can appear in any number of blue, green or purple shades depending on the lighting and the angle, an effect created by the application of many very thin layers of PVD in several different colors.

a bell and ross watch worn by a man wearing a white sweatshirt and holding a pair of aviator sunglasses — The dial can appear blue …

a bell and ross watch worn by a man wearing a green sweatshirt and holding an iphone — The dial can appear blue …

I’ve seen similar effects before, most notably in Oris’s ProPilot X Calibre 400 Laser, released last year. This watch features a laser-treated dial that only reflects blue, green, and violet light.

Grand Seiko also released a watch earlier this year with a specially treated dial that changes from red to yellow to orange. Similar to Bell & Ross, its patent-pending dial process also utilized PVD treatments. Even Christopher Ward’s “Dragonfly Blue” dial, while not boasting any special technological innovations, also boasts notable color-changing effects.

These types of color-changing dials are gaining in popularity, and it’s easy to see why: They’re absolutely stunning and serve as another way for watches to stand out in a very crowded market.

bell and ross watch against a colorful gradient background — For a slightly toned-down and sportier look, the watch is available on an integrated white rubber strap in lieu of the bracelet.

Although the dial is obviously the star of the BR-X5 Iridescent, it’s the dial’s pairing with the watch’s sharply finished case and integrated bracelet that really makes the watch a head-turner. This thing sparkles and shines all over — even the hands and indices are rhodium-plated — and it’s hard to describe the new BR-X5 as anything but beautiful.

Pricing and Availability

Bell & Ross’s head-turner predictably won’t be all that easy to find. The brand has launched the watch as a boutique exclusive, meaning you can only buy it from the brand’s boutiques. The good news is that applies to the brand’s e-boutique, too, meaning you can purchase this watch online.

On the bracelet, the watch retails for $8,400. If you want to tone down the bling a bit, you can opt to get it on a white integrated rubber strap complete with a folding deployant clasp instead for $7,900. Both versions are available now.