Fratello’s Top 5 Chronograph Watches Of The First Half Of 2025 — Featuring Patek Philippe, Singer, Grand Seiko, And More

It’s Friday again. Then Saturday, Sunday, what? If you recognize this, you know your music. It’s also a nice cue for our next list article with the best watches of the first half of 2025. This week, we’re focusing on our five favorite chronograph watches that came out in the past six months. Some of them might be surprising, and others might be expected, but just like every year, the options are abundant.

As always with these lists, there are so many great potential candidates that we will never do all the brands justice. In the end, though, it’s all about making choices. After much debate, we devised a list of five chronographs we love. While general opinions on some of them are diverse, we feel that our five picks are a great and varied overview of the best chronographs we have seen in the first half of the year. Without further ado, let’s jump in.

Patek Philippe 5370R Split-Seconds Chronograph

An immediate pick was the stunning Patek Philippe 5370R Split-Seconds Chronograph. This new version of the beautiful 5370 was my highlight of Watches and Wonders this year. I’d even go as far as labeling this a potential new grail. But aside from my love for the watch, everyone on the team agreed that this is another stunning release from Patek Philippe. At Watches and Wonders, it was not an immediate highlight as the brand also introduced the 40mm Cubitus and the much-praised Calatrava 6196P, which took the spotlight right away. But I think that one glance at this stunning classic rose gold rattrapante chronograph will be enough to make most watch enthusiasts fall in love.

The majestic stage for the watch is set by the beautifully sculpted 41mm rose gold case. It originates from the brand’s past and shows incredible detail. Just look at the lugs, each with a gold cabochon, and the case flanks with brushed recessed grooves.

It is the perfect canvas for the incredible brown Grand Feu enamel dial with sub-dials and a tachymeter scale in beige champlevé enamel. The craftsmanship and refinement make this a work of undeniable beauty. The colors and finish, combined with the Breguet numerals and the detailed scales, are utterly mesmerizing.

An absolute highlight of 2025

If you turn the watch around, you can see the glorious caliber CHR 29-535 PS. This movement is the rattrapante version of Patek’s first in-house-manufactured manual-winding chronograph caliber. The traditional chronograph movement comprises 312 parts, including dual column wheels and a horizontal clutch. It offers a healthy 65 hours of power reserve and displays immaculate finishing, making it a joy to admire while the watch is off the wrist. At a whopping US$288,700, the Patek Philippe 5370R is the most expensive watch on this list. However, when a timepiece is this beautiful, the price is an easily overlooked detail.

Grand Seiko Tokyo Lion Tentagraph SLGC009

Another immediate pick was the spectacular Grand Seiko Tokyo Lion Tentagraph SLGC009. I must admit that I was skeptical when I first saw the images of this uniquely sculpted chronograph. But once we got the watch in the office, there was no escaping the brutalist beauty. The watch has a 43mm Brilliant Hard Titanium case with a 15.6mm thickness and a 50mm lug-to-lug. In a world of small watches, this is a big boy. But it’s not just the sheer size that is impressive. Just look at that angular case form, and you will understand that there is plenty to admire.

Grand Seiko matched the case with a stunning, complex brown dial and a black rehaut holding the minute/chronograph seconds scale. The dial features a standout set of indexes with a matching handset. We don’t see this set of hands or hour markers often, but they fit the design of the case perfectly. Additionally, the brown dial contains three sub-dials, two of which are executed in black with white numerals and markings. These two chronograph counters feature hands with orange tips, matching the central chronograph hand that also has an orange tip.

The Hi-Beat Grand Seiko 9SC5 caliber

Grand Seiko’s Tentagraph 9SC5 caliber powers the SLGC009. This Hi-Beat movement operates at 36,000vph, has 60 jewels, and offers three days of power reserve. As Lex explained in the intro article, the caliber features Grand Seiko’s Dual Impulse Escapement, which transfers energy to the free-sprung balance wheel indirectly through the pallet fork and directly from the escape wheel. Thanks to the incorporation of a three-pointed hammer, the chronograph hands return to zero instantly with a press of the reset pusher.

Speaking of which, look at the glorious chronograph pushers! They make operating the complication an absolute joy. Plus, once on the wrist, the watch wears like a charm thanks to the case’s curvature and the brilliant rubber strap. This brilliantly designed and executed Grand Seiko SLGC009 can be yours for €17,500.

Angelus Chronographe Télémètre Steel Rose

Our third pick is the beautiful Angelus Chronographe Télémètre Steel Rose. The elegant monopusher chronograph was another Watches and Wonders highlight for quite a few of us. The watch features a 37mm stainless steel case with a mere 9.25mm thickness.

Thanks to the 44mm lug-to-lug, the watch has plenty of wrist presence, and it ensures that people with larger wrists will also be able to enjoy it. Cranking up the vintage appeal is a box-style sapphire crystal that protects the wonderful salmon dial.

Angelus describes the dial as rose-bronze and domed with concentrically engraved sub-dials within a grained main dial. Additionally, the dial’s outermost edge features circular brushing. The finishes mix well and bring beautiful depth and detail. Especially in natural daylight, the dial looks stunning. Contrasting the salmon-colored backdrop are applied indexes and lume-filled hands plated with black rhodium. As Thomas explained, the font types used are another vintage touch that gives the dial more character.

The Angelus A5000 caliber courtesy of La Joux-Perret

Inside the case, you will find the A5000 monopusher chronograph movement produced by La Joux-Perret. This beautiful caliber is only 4.2mm thick, allowing for the watch’s slim overall profile. The A5000 ticks at 21,600vph and has a 42-hour power reserve. The finishing is done with a great eye for detail, which makes it a joy to behold through the case back’s sapphire display. It is the perfect caliber to complete this stunning monopusher chronograph.

Angelus produced the Chronographe Télémètre Steel Rose in a run of 25 pieces that are available for CHF 17,900. Or perhaps “were available” is more appropriate because they likely have all sold out by now.

Singer Heritage Collection Chronograph

Another highlight of the first half of this year was the Singer Heritage Collection Chronograph. We are great admirers of what Singer has achieved over the past few years. As some of you know, last year’s Divetrack was one of our favorite watches of 2024. The brand surprised us this year with a beautiful duo of vintage-inspired chronographs. But the beauty is not just in their vintage appeal. What also makes these watches so great is the instantly recognizable Singer design signature. On top of that, these two-register chronographs are powered by a movement based on a vintage (1974) Valjoux 236 column-wheel chronograph caliber.

To be more precise, they are Valjoux 236 calibers in New Old Stock condition that, as Robert-Jan explained, had never been touched by watchmakers since their production. Now dubbed caliber SR2361, each movement was carefully disassembled, refinished, and assembled again by the Singer Reimagined team. Caliber SR2361 operates at 18,000vph and offers a 48-hour power reserve. As it is a two-register chronograph, the dials display the running seconds at 9 o’clock and a 30-minute counter at 3 o’clock.

Two versions that make it hard to choose

Singer offers two versions, both of which have a 38.8mm stainless steel case that is 11.75mm thick. The top of the case displays a sunray satin finish with polished chamfers for extra visual brilliance. The first of the two variations houses a green lacquered dial with a toothed golden flange, while the second has a black lacquered dial and the same flange. Both dials feature applied faceted hour markers and an applied Singer logo.

One thing that makes these watches unmistakable is the sword-style handset that features orange Super-LumiNova for better readability under low-light conditions. Additionally, the circular-brushed metal cabochon topping the chronograph seconds hand is another recognizable element typical of the brand.

All the printing on the dial is ecru, matching the flange and the markers perfectly. The orange chronograph seconds hand finishes the look in style. There is no going wrong with either of these Singer Heritage Chronographs. They look stunning, and Singer will produce 100 pieces in total of the two models for a retail price of CHF 16,700 (ex. VAT). These might be this year’s most surprising chronographs, and they certainly deserve the fourth spot on this list.

Rolex Cosmograph Daytona ref. 126518LN-0014

The last pick is a controversial one. Lex and yours truly are big fans of this new yellow gold Rolex Daytona with the lacquered turquoise dial. For other members of the Fratello team, this new option is a bit too extravagant, and they prefer either the new full-Everose-gold version with the chocolate-brown dial or the all-yellow-gold version with the green dial. On top of that, the brand also graced us with new meteorite-dial versions and a Daytona in white gold with a blue dial.

This string of impressive Rolex Daytona variants might not have initially taken the spotlight during Watches and Wonders. However, once we had a chance to see them all together, there was no denying that it was a good year for the brand’s iconic chronograph. So, why do I love this turquoise-dial version so much?

The best way to explain it is that it is surprisingly distinguished in real life. It would have been a lot more extravagant if this model came with a yellow gold bezel and bracelet. But the combination of the yellow gold case with the black Cerachrom bezel and the black Oysterflex bracelet perfectly tones down the impact of the dial color.

Magic on the wrist

In addition, the black sib-dials and yellow gold hands and indexes work well with the turquoise base. You have to see it in real life to fully appreciate it. The moment I put the watch on my wrist, I was sold. While I have never thought the Daytona was one of my favorite Rolexes, this new version immediately became one of my favorite current models from the Genevan brand. The watch has a wrist presence that I adore, and I could see myself wearing it every day.

In addition, the Daytona on an Oysterflex bracelet is an absolute joy to wear in terms of comfort. The proportions of the 40 × 46 × 11.9mm yellow gold case are spot on, and the Oysterflex bracelet wraps itself beautifully around the wrist. From the moment I closed the yellow gold clasp with a firm click, I knew it would be hard to take the watch off my wrist again.

Rolex equips the Daytona with its in-house caliber 4131. The automatic chronograph movement operates at 28,800vph and offers 72 hours of power reserve. The Superlative Chronometer caliber is accurate to ±2 seconds per day and completes this impressive package. As I said, I was seriously impressed by the incredible looks of the watch that made it stand out in a string of brilliant Daytona variations. Those looks would completely make me forget about the impracticality of the screw-down pushers. The €37,700 Daytona 126518LN-0014 is one we didn’t see coming, and it turns out to be awesome. That’s why it closes out this Top 5.

Final thoughts on the best chronograph watches of the first half of 2025

As mentioned in the intro, there have been too many great chronographs so far this year to make this list of just five picks. Honorable mentions are the Louis Moinet 1816 Chronograph, the two gold Breguet Type XX Chronographe 2075 models, the TAG Heuer Monaco Chronograph Stopwatch, the Ming 20.01 Series 5, and the titanium Farer Moritz Green Chronograph. And I’m probably forgetting plenty more. That’s why I turn the question over to you. What were some of your favorite chronographs of the first half of this year? Let us know in the comments section, and we will see you next week for another list.