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You may often ask yourself which of the two brands is better, Breitling or Tag Heuer? In this article, we will compare these two brands in terms of popularity, accuracy, prestige, price, resale value, complexity, warranty, water-resistance, and international recognition.
Before we dive into these comparisons, let’s have a preview of these two elite brands. Breitling is a Swiss watchmaking company formed in 1884 by Leon Breitling. The Breitling Company began making chronometers for planes and chronographs for pilots in the aviation industry.
Breitling focuses on features like quality, skillfulness, elegance, and its evident power. Breitling is a well-established company in the area of high-end automatic movement timepieces.
The design of Breitling watches assures high quality and high utility. The value of Breitling timepieces is based on simplicity and a well-built design. When given as a gift, a Breitling watch will place a significant value on any person.
Is Tag Heuer worth the money? The answer is yes. Tag Heuer watchmakers have made some significant achievements in the craft of traditional watchmaking. They make great quartz watches, mechanical watches, precise chronographs, and tourbillion watches.
At the moment, they make the hottest luxury smartwatches called Tag Heuer Connected and have some elite watches like the Tag Monaco. How does Tag Heuer compare to Breitling? Let’s have a look and come up with a verdict.
Popularity
Tag Heuer is more popular than Breitling since their fashionable watches start at a lower price than Breitling watches. Most people wear Tag Heuer watches because they are affordable and on point. Nonetheless, both brands manufacture popular watches.
Accuracy
COSC certified watches are thoroughly tested for dependability and accuracy. To get a COSC certification, a watch’s accuracy needs to be -4/+6 seconds daily.
Most Tag Heuer watches are COSC certified. On the other hand, some of the Tag Heuer watches that are not COSC certified are thoroughly tested to achieve a high accuracy level.
Similar to Tag Heuer, there are only a few older Breitling watches that are not COSC certified. Most of Breitling’s quartz watches are COSC certified. A quartz movement is found in non-mechanical and battery-powered watches.
Breitling watches are typically more accurate than Tag Heuer watches. This is because all their new watches are COSC certified. The Breitling’s quartz watches are a rare high-quality quartz movement called COSC certified movement and are more precise than Tag Heuer quartz movements.
Resale Value
It isn’t easy to differentiate between these two brands in terms of resale value for a few reasons. The first one is that you can never consider a watch a good investment option. They do not appreciate in value like a mutual fund, so watches should not be considered securities.
Tag Heuer produces more watches than Breitling. Breitling produces a watch for around one year and then changes it up slightly by introducing some new variations and redistributing it with a different model number.
The models that do not sell end up in closeouts for high discounts for around a year. Within that one year, there is a high demand, and they sell a lot.
The resale value is not dependant on the brand. Specific models from any brand will have a higher resale value than other models. Other variables are considered, like the watch’s condition, availability of all documents if still covered by the warranty, limited or special edition, and the original box.
When compared to a Tag Heuer, a Breitling watch will fetch a higher resale value. This is based on its iconic status and rarity. Of course, specific models from both brands have a higher resale value and are known to be collector pieces.
The resale value, therefore, can be judged depending on the model from either brand. However, you will generally fetch more money when selling a Breitling watch than selling a Tag Heuer.
Warranty
Tag Heuer timepieces come with a two-year warranty compared to Breitling, which comes with a five-year warranty. Tag Heuer has a two-year warranty because mechanical watches last for a very long period and can be passed from one generation to the next if adequately maintained.
These warranties cover battery replacements and manufacturing defects. Things not covered by the warranty are damage to the crystals that cover the watch, the strap, water damage caused by submerging the watch to depths not recommended, and damage caused by carelessness.
Complexity
Both brands include mechanical complexity like tourbillions. Breitling watches have more features; they have custom features designed for pilots that Tag Heuer lacks.
Tag Heuer, on the other hand, is known for its magnificent chronographs. One of the most respected chronographs ever made is the Carrera Collection. This collection is likened to brands like Rolex Cosmograph Daytona and Zenith El Primero.
Despite a chronograph being a complicated mechanism that needs an experienced and skilled watchmaker to manufacture, it is not more complicated than a perpetual calendar or tourbillon.
Both are considered to be highly complicated. However, Breitling has many complex watch models making it a more complicated watchmaker than Tag Heuer.
Brand Superiority
Among the top 50 Swiss brands, 25% of them are watch manufacturers. Tag Heuer is the 34th most famous brand and the 12th famous watchmaker globally, and they have a brand value of $868,838,383.
Breitling, on the other hand, is the 12th most famous Swiss brand globally. They are slightly behind Tag Heuer in the top 50 Swiss brands at the 41st position. The estimated brand value of Breitling is $408,357,833. This is less than half the brand value of Tag Heuer.
In terms of international recognition, Tag Heuer is more popular and, according to Interbrand, has two times more value than Breitling.
Water Resistance
The water resistance component is an exciting feature of Breitling watches. The water resistance is measured in bars or meters. This is the technical standard based on the pressure to which the watch will be exposed when deep diving.
Breitling watches have a sophisticated seal system resistant to heat changes, perspiration, UV rays, salt water, and chlorine. A perfect example is the Breitling Navitimer, which has been water-resistant since 1993 to a depth of up to 30 m.
However, the modern versions of the Breitling Superocean are water-resistant up to a depth of 1,500 meters. Tag Heuer comes with water resistance features like the three screw-down crowns. When the crown is screwed down, the watch becomes watertight thanks to an extra seal.
This feature ensures that the watch does not change some functions accidentally. The screw-down crown has the function of changing the date and time, among others.
The helium release valve feature is present in the 500 meters models. The release valve activates automatically when the outer and inner pressure difference is critical. The valve releases the helium trapped in the watch case.
In terms of water resistance, Tag Heuer is the better watch brand.
Durability
Breitling watches are built like tanks with the exceptions of El Primero Stratos Flyback and Pilot Montre Aeronef. On the other hand, Tag Heuer watches have a classic build and lack heavy-duty military-level cases that hold complicated mechanical movements. Breitling watches have a solid case that is intricately built to withstand falls.
Smartwatches
Most Tag Heuer smartwatches operate on Android software. Most recent watches operate on both IOS and Android. On the other hand, Breitling manufactures two in one watches (a smartwatch and a mechanical watch combined) like the Breitling Exospace B55 smartwatch.
It is a mechanical watch and digital operator for a pilot on a critical mission. Most Breitling watches automatically change the time zones and have impressive readouts both digitally and mechanically.
There you have it, a comprehensive review of Breitling vs. Tag Heuer. Both brands stand out, and it’s difficult to select which is the best. It also depends on your preference and taste. Both are well-respected brands that make outstanding collections of watches with high functionality.
My final verdict is Tag Heuer is the better brand. This watchmaker manufactures affordable, readily available, and unique watches without compromising on quality.
