Pricing and Availability
Tissot has quietly been putting together a pretty stellar roster of affordable mechanical and automatic chronographs, including the PRX Chrono integrated sports watch, the dressy Telemeter 1938, and the ’70s motorsports-inspired PR516 Mechanical and Heritage 1973.
For my money, the new PR516 Automatic Chronograph is the best of the bunch. It’s well-sized at 41mm, practical with its sapphire crystal and high water resistance, and best of all, it looks the business.
Yes, it looks a lot like a modern Rolex Daytona, but that’s a good thing. The Daytona is gorgeous but unobtainable for most people, so I have no issue with a far more affordable watch from a reputable brand taking some stylistic cues from it. I love the choice of blue instead of black for the panda scheme, too, as I’m more of a blue panda guy — I think it’s a very attractive and massively underutilized color scheme in the industry.
Now, let’s talk price, which should please most people. This watch costs $2,050. That is a damn good bargain, placing it a full $1,700 below the blue panda Longines Conquest Chronograph, which is arguably the next rung up on the ladder of more affordable Daytona alternatives.