Patek Philippe

In searching for a grail watch, I wanted something a bit complicated and horologically interesting, without being so complicated that it would be too expensive for my daughter to maintain. I also wanted something under the radar, which wouldn’t present an undue security risk for my daughter (or me for that matter!). This 5236 ticks all of my boxes.

If I were to sum up this watch in one word it would be “classy”.  But “elegant”, “sophisticated” and “timeless” would also work. The only slight problem is that I am none of these things!

The blue/black dial is understated to the point of being almost boring, until you roll your wrist and the watch catches the light. Then the iridescent blue shows itself. It’s a delight.

For those who may be considering this watch, some pros and cons:

Pros:

- it’s a sophisticated, elegant and understated design that doesn’t call attention to itself;

- the platinum case gives it a nice weight, without being too heavy. It’s roughly 135 grams. The platinum deployant helps balance the watch nicely;

- the 41.3mm case is perfect for me and my 19cm wrist. Not too big and not too small. To make it any smaller would have affected the size of the date aperture and made it harder to read;

- I love the hands. The facets on them make them easy to catch the light and read, and the way the minute hand reaches the minute track is particularly pleasing for some reason. Some people have asked for a different shape for the hands but that would cause the date aperture to be blocked from view for longer;

- the dial, especially when the iridescent blue is revealed. The different blue tones for the minute track and the area surrounding the moon phase also help bring the dial to life and stop it being too monotonous.

Cons:

- this blue dial version may be too understated for some. The new salmon dial version has more immediate wrist presence;

- I wish it were easier to unlock the iridescent blue. It has to catch the light “just so” to come alive (although it’s fun to play with the angle of the watch to make the blue shine);

- I can just about read the date aperture without my glasses but it would have been good to make it a bit bigger, even if that meant increasing the case size to 42mm, like some of the other Pateks.

All in all I am very happy with my choice so far.

All the best,

Jon

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