I'm a big fan of Bell & Ross watches. Recently, I got hands on with its new Astro model, but I've also been wowed by the salmon dial BR-03 in the past.
Still, they're not perfect. The square nature of the case makes them wear quite large – not great if, like me, you've got wrists made from disposable tea stirrers. As a result, I've asked for the same thing in every review of the brand – make a smaller case.
At Watches & Wonders 2025, the brand delivered. And it didn't just deliver, either. It blew away any expectations I could have had.
The Bell & Ross BR-05 36mm looks like the offspring of the Patek Philippe Nautilus and the Rolex Explorer. The dial is all Rolex, with Bell & Ross' signature legible dial making everything super easy to read.
The case and bracelet is much more in keeping with the Patek. And no, that's really not just exaggeration for effect. The bracelet kicks things off with a beautiful polished centre link, but it's the case where things get really interesting.
It sits just 8.5mm thick, which is absolutely fantastic. The Vacheron Constantin 222 which I got hands on with a few months ago is just 7.95mm, and that was praised widely for its slim, wearable case.
The big difference between the two, of course, is the price. The Vacheron is a £30,000+ watch, while the Bell & Ross will hit the market significantly cheaper than that.
In fact, the model will cost just £3,900 / $4,300 / AU$6,900 which is incredibly reasonable for something like this. It's remarkably good value given the spec sheet – a case that slim is usually reserved for watches with prices an order of magnitude higher.
In short, Bell & Ross didn't just release a 36mm variant of its other watches. In keeping everything neat and slim, the brand might just have dropped one of the most enjoyable watches of recent times. We'll be talking about this one for a long time.
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