A. Lange & Söhne

TonyR
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A. Lange & Sohne Datograph vs. 1815 Chronograph comparison........

So my friend and I swapped two very nice Lange’s a week ago. I had the opportunity to wear his Datograph and he had my 1815 Chrono for the last week.  After wearing the Datograph the last seven days my thoughts at the end of the week are a little different than what I thought they would be and since the topic of "which one should I get" has come up a number of times over the years I figured it would be a good time to do a comparison. So here we go............

(Note, some of these photos were taken with my camera phone when I met with him today so those pictures are not the best but you can still get the idea!)

Let’s start with the dials. The Datograph dial to me is out of this world. The applied markers and numerals give it somewhat of a 3-D look. Most chronograph purists would say that a two register chronograph with a date is out of place. For me, I'm a sucker for a date on my watches and this big date complication works really well on this piece!

The sub-dials on this one are great too, they are the perfect size for the diameter of this watch. The contrast of the white sub-dials against the black dial is a stunning match. This version is a much better looking to me than the all silver dial of the rose gold Datograph.

Another feature that I really like about this watch are the hands. I know a lot of Lange enthusiasts would have preferred solid hands but I happen to really like the look of the luminous ones they produce. With that being said, the lume on any of the Lange watch I've worn including this one is not great.

The 1815 chronograph on the other hand has more of the typical "purists" two register chrono look to it. As you can see, the dial has painted rather than applied numerals. Both dials have a lot going on which can be typically of a two register chronograph.

The blued hands are really nice but I still prefer the luminous hands on the Datograph which probably puts me in the minority. I would say that the same holds true if I were to compare my Lange I Moonphase to the regular Lange 1. I just really like the look of the luminous hands even though the lume doesn’t work all that well. Also the sub-dials of the 1815 chrono are not as symmetrical as the Datograph’s. I remember seeing this watch about 4 years ago and being turned off by the smaller than normal sub-dials. Over the years as I looked at this piece more and more I became mesmerized by it. The sub-dials actually work really well with the overall look of this watch after you get used to them and the blued hands against the white dial are a stunning match.

One complaint that you hear a lot about the Datograph is that it is way to top heavy and those comments are true. It is very top heavy. I found that the watch would float around my wrist quite a bit. It does take some getting used to. I think that the watch being platinum contributes to the top heaviness along with the fact that the watch is thicker than the 1815. You can see the difference in these photos below.

This is the Datograph. Its 12.8 mm's thick, on top of that you can see the rim of the case sticks out pretty far. Add to the fact that this watch is in platinum and you get somewhat of a top heavy watch.

The 1815 chrono on the other hand is one of the most comfortable watches that I've every worn. It fits perfectly on my wrist. The watch is not quite as thick measuring in at 10.8 mm's which is two mm's thinner then the Datograph. Aside from that, the 1815 chrono is made in white gold and not platinum which makes it weigh quite a bit less. These two factors in my opinion make the 1815 chrono much more comfortable to wear. 

Let’s look at the movements. Not much to say here, they are both out of this world. Pretty much the same look to them but the Datograph has the date function within it. Can you tell the difference?

Both together.........

You'll notice the crowns of both watches. The Datograph crown is a little bit bigger which makes it very easy to wind, the 1815 chrono on the other hand is a little difficult to wind with its smaller crown. I think that problem, small as it is, has been fixed on the newer version released last year. Both models are smooth as butter to wind!

 Here are some more photos of both watches together. They were taken by my camera phone today when I met my friend for lunch.

Here are some wrist shots. As you can see both watches are really nice!

So the question is................which one should you go with? To me as much as I like the 1815 chrono it would be hard for me to say I'd take it over the Datograph if all things are equal. The Datograph to me is one of the most iconic chronograph offerings of all time. 10 years ago when it was released no one had seen anything like it. Most manual wind chronographs produced by the high end brands had two registers, no contrast on the dial for the most part, and no date. When the Datograph was released it was an “in your face" watch for what it is. The dial is black, the sub-dials are white, and it had a date. Add an in-house movement to die for and what is better that that? With the 1815 chrono being an offspring of the Datograph it’s hard to say that it’s more special other than the fact that it was only produced for about 4 years until it was re-introduced about a year ago.

BUT...........With all that being said. The platinum Datograph retails for about 25k USD more than the 1815 chrono. When I was deciding on which one to buy my options looked like this........

Keep the Lange 1 Moonphase and the Langematik big date then add the 1815 chrono........ 

Or sell the Langematik big date then add about 20k to buy the platinum Datograph while keeping the Lange I Moonphase.

Well I ended up keeping the Langematik big date and adding the 1815 Chrono for the same price it would have been just to have the Datograph. I will say that even after a week of Datograph ownership, and as much as I liked it, three Lange’s are better than two!

To me as nice as the Datograph is, the watch is only slightly nicer than the 1815 chrono and certainly not 20k or so nicer. So in ending, if money is no object then go with the Datograph but if you want to maximize the quality or size of your watch collection then there is no way that you can't choose the 1815 chronograph. Either way both watches are about as nice as it gets for a chronograph. I hope everyone enjoyed the review!

Tony 

(Although the Datograph does look good squeezed in between the other two, you never know!!!)