Swatch Full-Blooded

Swatch has just released 3 new colours to bolster the already popular Full-Blooded range that was launched originally in 2007. The first run of Full-Blooded Chronographs featured the classic Black, Gold and Silver models that have stood the test of time and also the now discontinued Baby Blue and Pink models.

2009 saw the next wave of Full-Blooded watches, with the release of Sunset (deep red), Earth (brown), Green and Sea (Dark Blue) models, all of which priced at £89. Christmas 2009 heralded the launch of Full-Blooded white, retailing at £103.50 and now, the Summer of 2010 has welcomed Caramel, Raspberry and Blueberry to the collection, all selling for £103.50.

The new colours are a vibrant, on-trend addition to an eye catching selection, and their release will mark the end for some of the recent additions – Sea, Sunset and Green will fall out of the collection by the end of the year.

The watches all feature metal bracelets, with the original colours carrying steel straps and the newer models boasting light-weight aluminium. The cases are made from tough plastic diaphane and edged in trendy aluminium. As for features, no updates have been made. Every Full-Blooded watch features a three dial Chronograph that counts decimals, seconds and minutes up to one hour. There are no numerals to mark the time, only sparkly diamante studs. The date aperture appears between 8 and 9 o’clock and the tie-shaped hands are luminous.

One great and ostensibly underappreciated feature about these watches (as with all watches, but especially watches such as these where the main attraction is the colour options) is the interchangeable straps. This might sound obvious, but rather than buying every one of these vibrant timepieces, I purchased the Silver model and then bought all the other straps, which are easily changed at home using a pin to remove and hard surface to replace the strap. So now I can change in less than five minutes the look of my watch to match whatever outfit I choose to wear. The straps come at £20 each and so, for a total of £289 you have effectively 11 watches. You might not want or need every combination, but the black and brown are particularly useful to own so you can match your watch with most belt/shoe combinations. I also splashed-out and bought the Gold watch too so I could always wear a Full-blooded with my suits. I chose it as my everyday watch because of its affordability and, more than anything, comfort. The watch is supremely light and sits nicely on the wrist. Unlike most bracelet watches I have worn, the chunky links of this strap do not catch on your arm hair – an irritating side-effect of many metal watches.

And I must confess I couldn’t resist buying a third: the Earth model. The brown face looks remarkably good with a black strap (a combination I’m trying to bring kicking and screaming into fashion). A year ago, if I’d seen a man wearing brown shoes with a black suit I would have likely been sick on them, more so if they were brogues and that, as I’m sure you can imagine, is a quick way to ruin a pair of socks. But the men to whom I refer would have been wearing a black belt and a watch that had never been acquainted with the idea of coordination. But when black and brown is done with gusto it can be an edgy and industrial look. All Saints is one high street retailer that springs to mind where the missing of base colours, the combination of which usually sidestepped, is advocated.

All in all this is a top watch with a decent Chronograph function and a handily water resistant to 3 bar – a nice price, too, and definitely affordable for that low-end wear-watch for everyday activities. Don’t be too rough with it though as, with all Swatches, it has a Plexiglas face and does pick up scratches easily (these can be removed by a buffing machine at most jewellers as they are not covered in the 2 year guarantee).

And finally, if you’re feeling mega-creative, why not mix-up the links so you’re left with a chequered strap? I did this with my Black and Gold strap and get comments all the time. It’s a cheap statement and top quality watch from Swatch.

Rating: 8/10


Pick up THE HARE newspaper at Night and Day; Bar Centro; or Tiger Lounge in Manchester town centre, or the Oakwood in Glossop.

E-mail theharenewspaper@hotmail.co.uk with questions, comments or contributory pieces.