Bell & Ross has just taken a giant leap with the release of its new watch model. The BR-X5, based on the French brand’s pre-existing BR-05 series, foregoes its typical Sellita-based mechanical movements for the newer Kenissi-manufactured movement.
The change might seem innocuous enough for the uninitiated. Still, essentially Bell & Ross has positioned itself towards the top of the sub-$10,000 range in terms of quality (albeit one piece in the new series still surpasses that benchmark). The self-winding caliber BR-CAL 323 bumps up the 40 hours of power reserve on the BR-05’s 321 movement to a whopping 71 hours and is also COSC-certified to guarantee better precision.
For those who simply love Bell & Ross’ timepieces for their aesthetic charms, the new BR-X5 will still find a great deal of appeal. While the case structure is, again, similar to the BR-05 with the octagonal shape and integrated bracelet, the dials have now eliminated the Arabic numerals in favor of batons and added a power reserve indicator and an arced date window. Likewise, a new colorway — ice blue — has entered the mix to go along with the typical black steel and orange carbon fiber versions.
With the improved movements, the BR-X5 is also over $2,000 more expensive than the BR-05, ranging from $6,900 for the rubber strap versions all the way up to $11,800 for the Carbon Orange.
