Emporio Armani Men’s 43mm Chronograph Watch (AR11275)

Mother-of-pearl on a men’s chronograph is unusual, and on a black watch it is stranger still. Under the crystal the dial is dark, but tilt it and the shell underneath breaks into green, purple and bronze around the three sub-dials, which are otherwise almost invisible. \n\n Case and Wrist Presence \n The case is 43mm across, round, in black ion-plated steel with a matt finish. Two black pushers sit either side of the crown at three o’clock, low and rounded so they do not snag. The bezel is thin and the lugs curve down close to the case, which keeps a chronograph of this diameter sitting flatter than the movement inside it would suggest. \n\n Dial and Legibility \n Black mother-of-pearl, cut from shell, with a fine circular texture pressed into the outer ring. Three registers are laid out in a triangle: a 24-hour indicator at twelve, a 30-minute chronograph counter at nine, and a running seconds dial at six. The date sits between three and four in a white window. The applied hour batons and hands are black, so the whole dial is a study in dark on dark; the white minute track around the edge and the white sub-dial scales do most of the legibility work. This is a watch that needs light. In a dim room you will read the date long before you read the hour. \n\n Movement and Functions \n A quartz chronograph. The upper pusher starts and stops the timing and the lower one resets it. Because running seconds live in their own sub-dial, the large central hand belongs to the chronograph and stays still until you use it, which is worth knowing before you assume the watch has stopped. \n\n Bracelet and Fit \n A black ion-plated three-row steel bracelet with flat links and a matching clasp, sized by removing links. Plating is a hard surface layer, not paint, but it is thin, and the first place it goes bright is the clasp. Wearing the bracelet snug rather than loose slows that considerably. \n\n Who This Watch Suits \n Someone who wants a chronograph that stays quiet. Black on black with a shell dial reads as texture rather than as a sports watch, and it works with a jacket in a way that most three-register chronographs do not. \n\n Care and Maintenance \n Wipe the case and bracelet with a dry cloth; a black finish shows every fingerprint. Never use abrasives or polishing compounds. Do not press the chronograph pushers while the watch is wet. \n\n Technical Specifications \n \n Reference AR11275 \n Brand Emporio Armani \n Case diameter 43mm \n Case colour Black \n Dial Black mother-of-pearl \n Movement Quartz \n Functions Chronograph, date, 24-hour indicator \n Bracelet Black ion-plated stainless steel \n \n\n Buying With Confidence \n Covered by a 24-month international manufacturer warranty on the movement, excluding battery and normal wear. It arrives new and unworn in its original box with the manufacturer’s paperwork, delivered across South Africa with tracking, and may be returned unworn in its original packaging under the Consumer Protection Act. No two of these dials are the same, because the shell is cut from a natural material and the colour pattern falls where it falls.