Hands-On With The Tissot PR516 Automatic Chronograph

Tissot released the PR516 Automatic Chronograph last month. The cool colorway and automatic caliber piqued our interest. So today, I’m going hands-on with one to see what it is all about. Could this be the chronograph to buy the sub-€2.5K segment, or does it miss the mark?

This new model debuts a self-winding chronograph movement in the Tissot PR516 line. That has the potential of making it the ultimate PR516, so let’s find out!

The Tissot PR516 Automatic Chronograph

Let’s start with a quick recap of the PR516 Automatic Chronograph’s specifications. For a full rundown, track back to RJ’s introduction article. You get a 41mm stainless steel case with a 49.5mm length and 14.2mm thickness. The lugs are spaced for 20mm straps, which is especially useful when paired with the quick-release bracelet. Tissot rates the watch’s water resistance at 100 meters. A sapphire crystal protects the dial, while a see-through case back provides a view of the movement inside. A mineral crystal ring serves as both a tachymeter and a pulsometer.

Inside ticks caliber A05.231, an evolution of the Valjoux 7753. In this guise, it offers a healthy 68 hours of autonomy while ticking at a 28,800vph frequency. A new regulating system with a Nivachron hairspring enables an accuracy of ±5 seconds per day.

The Tissot PR516 Automatic Chronograph comes on a stainless steel five-row bracelet with quick-release bayonets. The two-sided folding clasp has the advantage of presenting minimal visual interruption while it has the disadvantage of not offering micro-adjustments.

An icy theme

The Automatic PR516 Chronograph comes in a new colorway, pairing white and blue. The result, unsurprisingly, feels icy cool. I particularly like the dial’s texture, which is purely matte and non-reflective. Interestingly, the white isn’t quite as clinical as it can be on white-dial watches.

Tissot opted for decorative blue details rather than color-coding the chronograph functions. I agree with this choice as it leads to a very clean, balanced aesthetic without compromising legibility or functionality. The characteristic Tissot handset and relatively large logo claim the watch as Tissot’s.

The blue theme extends beyond the dial onto the mineral glass bezel insert. The combined pulsometer and tachymeter scales, printed in white, are on the edge of readability. I think a specialist typographer could have made them more legible and prettier. All in all, the color scheme works well otherwise, resulting in a watch that is easy to pair with attire.

Wearing the Tissot PR516 Automatic Chronograph

So far, so good. Unfortunately, the good news ended when I strapped on the watch. Granted, 41mm by 49.5mm by 14.2mm does not even sound all that unreasonable. Unfortunately, the Tissot PR516 Automatic Chronograph presents its dimensions rather clumsily. The watch is slab-sided, and there is no curvature to contour to the wrist at all. Adding insult to injury, its substantial weight makes it particularly top-heavy. Granted, this would not be nearly as bad on a larger wrist than mine. My wrist measures 18cm now, and I would not wear this because of both discomfort and how chunky it looks.

The bracelet feels quite sturdy. It makes a valiant effort to negate the top-heaviness with some mass of its own. The tiny chamfered edges on the outer links add a particularly nice bit of detail. I do wonder why Tissot opted for this bracelet design. The PR516 has so many historically interesting alternatives that this feels like a needless homage to The Crown. This bracelet seems like the wrong choice, especially with the Tudor Black Bay chronographs following such a similar overall design and offering the five-row option.

What stood out most positively was the sturdiness of the Tissot PR516 Automatic Chronograph. It feels like a solid chunk of steel, which is reassuring. The rotor is audible, but there is no wobble as on older Valjoux 775x iterations. To put it bluntly, this feels like a watch you can use to drive a nail into a two-by-four, which I appreciate in any sports watch. Sub-€5K chronographs can sometimes feel delicate, but the PR516 Automatic does not suffer from any such issues.

Closing thoughts on the Tissot PR516 Automatic Chronograph

Overall, I would describe the Tissot PR516 Automatic Chronograph as rugged but unrefined. Its proportions could be more elegant, and some design flaws keep it from greatness. Admittedly, I like the design quite a lot. From the press images, I shared RJ’s enthusiasm about it. The neat dial layout and cool color scheme work quite well. If this review comes off as harsh, it is because I had such high hopes.

So, would I recommend the Tissot PR516 Automatic Chronograph? Well, yes and no. No for the reasons outlined above. Yes because the design flaws I described may not bother you, and you may like the massive wrist presence. If that’s the case, I cannot tell you this is a bad watch because it isn’t. I just wish it were a little more refined.

That said, automatic chronographs are notoriously tough to get right, especially with ébauche calibers. The thick movements often dictate thicker cases, which then call for greater diameters to keep them from looking tubby. In short, it is a serious challenge, and — in my humble opinion — Tissot did not nail it.

What do you think of the new €1,975 Tissot PR516 Automatic Chronograph? Let us know in the comments section below!