ON THE WRIST: TAG Heuer Formula 1 'Gulf' Special Edition Quartz Chronograph

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TAG Heuer Boutique / Spitalfields, London 15th April 2023

This post has been kicked into the long grass more times than I care to mention, hence why I'm now writing about a watch I tried on in April (you can blame TAG Heuer's relentless release schedule for that... still lots more 'First Impressions' posts to come, I just can't keep up with them!) and yes, of course you could be forgiven for thinking that perhaps I wasn't excited enough to make this a priority? Well maybe there's a little bit of truth to that, but to be fair I wasn't disappointed by the new 43mm Gulf Formula 1 quartz chronograph either.

In my 'First Impressions' post I said how I thought this was a great improvement over the previous model and this on the wrist experience solidified that impression. This definitely looks like a 'new' model, kinda like when you put a 2023 car against it's 2013 predecessor; everything looks a bit sharper, a bit fresher and a bit more 'on point'. It pops a lot harder too, which is probably what you're looking for if you want a 'Gulf' branded Formula 1 and it looks like it was expensive, which is probably important to a lot of the target market.

For sure it's a busy looking thing, and those cool skeletonised hands do disappear a bit against all that background noise, but in all honesty my number one criteria for buying a watch has never been ultimate legibility and I think a lot of people would rather have a watch that appeals to them aesthetically rather than one which can be read from across the room. I mean if that's all that matters then lets have matt black dials all round and huge superluminova hands and be done with it. Besides, I bet after wearing this for a while and getting used to it the hands are just fine. I've never had a problem reading my Aquaracer Chronotimer and that has very similar hands.

This is a LOUD watch though, maybe even too loud for me... but I'm sure it will appeal to a lot of younger buyers, though I haven't changed my mind about the £2000 ceiling for the quartz chronograph range; it fundamentally seems too much for an entry level watch, which this still basically is (improved bracelet or not). 

I suppose the only question mark is whether it's too 'modern' looking for a 'Gulf' watch, which is basically harking back to the 60s and 70s; though I guess you could level the same criticism at the previous model. There's a bit of a disconnect there for sure, but at least they got rid of the previous model's dreadful black pushers and crown and for that we must be truly thankful. 

On reflection I'd probably give it 7.5 out of 10, a good solid effort but not something I'm likely to invest my own money in.