I hope you have experienced love at first sight at least once in your life and you can understand me. Because I don’t even know how else to explain the feelings that this watch can evoke. Everything is like in that song: “I look after her, there is nothing in her. And I keep looking, I can’t take my eyes off.”
In general, I am quite picky when choosing watches. But when I saw this model on the website, I fell in love at that very second. And only then, when I was able to take Boccia Titanium 3334-05 in my hands, tactilely and visually evaluate them, my emotions found rational justification.
First glance
At first there was a feeling that the color of this model was selected from a palette of fashionable shades of lip tints. On the manufacturer's website it is called "merlot". It was thanks to this “delicious” color that I fell in love with this watch. And upon closer inspection, I found a lot more advantages.
I’ll say right away: I appreciate elegant minimalism in clothes, in interior design, and in watches. Therefore, I consider the Boccia Titanium 3334-05, if not the most beautiful watch on my hand, then certainly in the top three.
It would seem, what so interesting can be done in a minimalist watch? But it is possible.
- All elements of the dial are applied: simple straight marks, the number “12”, and a logo of 14 small letters.
- The axis of the very simple straight hands is closed with a wide, color-matched plug—not all much more expensive watches do this neatly.
- The small crown is not decorated with a logo, but with a narrow groove around the perimeter. This gives her personality.
At first glance, the case did not present any surprises: the outlines were simple, the corners were smooth, and no flaws could be found. But then I recognized the noble qualities in them. The design of this watch clearly reflects the streamlined lines of Patek Philippe's Golden Ellipse collection. If you are inspired, then the best!
German roots, Hong Kong prices
Boccia may not be as well-known as Patek, but it also has a long watch history and a respected pedigree.
In 1927, the Tutima company was founded in Germany, which is known for the production of pilot's watches. In the 1970s, Tutima was one of the first to make watches in Hong Kong. And in 1996 she created the budget fashion brand Boccia Titanium. As the name suggests, it specializes in titanium watches.
Boccia is also known as “Angela Merkel’s watch.”
The country of manufacture is not indicated on our watches. But I read the forums and websites of retailers in different countries and found out that specialists from Western Europe and the USA are responsible for the design, the mechanisms are usually Japanese, and watches are produced in Hong Kong. This is the secret to affordable prices for thoughtful watches.
European design
The Boccia Titanium 3334-05 model is part of the collection with the aristocratic name Royce. The essence of the collection is the minimalist design of men's and women's watches, high-quality materials (sapphire crystals, coated titanium), strict straps (leather or woven Milanese bracelets).
For my taste, model 3334-05 compares favorably with most of the other, minimalist, strict representatives of the collection. This model is made in the spirit of aristocratic vintage.
The rich wine color combined with the rose gold of the case and markers immediately evokes associations with the era of The Great Gatsby. The arms of the clock remind us of her. At the beginning of the twentieth century they were made continuous. On our Boccia, the temples also look like a solid brace. But this is a masterful stylization, but in fact, there is an ordinary hairpin inside. So it’s convenient to change the strap, and you can use any standard 16mm wide strap if you wish. And at the same time it looks unconventional and sophisticated. Boccia itself has a model 3334-09 in the same case, but on a Milanese woven bracelet.
In general, I believe that European designers really worked on the watch. And their ideas about beauty are consistent with mine.
Caring for nature
Having tried on the watch, I noted that it had a good leather strap: it exactly matched the dial, thin and soft. He immediately hugged the hand affectionately, without requiring breaking in for a comfortable fit. Frankly, I’m not a big fan of the stiffer, denser padded leather straps.
And the tag on the strap said that the strap is not only comfortable, but also made from an environmentally friendly leather substitute, Apple Skin. It consists half of food waste - apple peels and cores, as well as polyurethane obtained by recycling plastic bottles. The material is LCA compliant and PETA approved. The strap is also Standard 100 by Oeko-Tex certified. It is issued to products that have passed laboratory tests and are found to be environmentally friendly and safe.
As far as I know, Apple Skin is still a rare and therefore quite expensive material. As a long-time supporter of WWF, I am pleased that Boccia is taking the path of environmental concern and has found an opportunity to apply it to affordable watches. And it’s great that the material doesn’t affect the feel of the watch, since it’s no different from regular good leather.
Laconic mechanism
To find out what mechanism was inside, I again had to arm myself with Google and go to foreign sites. Several foreign retailers have let slip that inside this watch is a Japanese Miyota GL22 (this is a brand of the Citizen concern, which sounds like a sign of quality). The mechanism is as minimalistic and practical as the watch as a whole (the only functions are hours and minutes, accuracy ±20 seconds per month). The only peculiarity is that it is thin. But the watch will last for five years on one battery! Again resource saving.
By the way, the absence of a second hand is more of a plus than a minus for me. On inexpensive quartz watches, it usually does not hit the markings accurately. This irritates watch connoisseurs, so they prefer mechanics. I don't watch the clock that closely. Although, if I notice flaws in a second, I am also upset. But I don’t have time to wind my mechanical watch in the morning. But here there is no second hand, and there are no problems.
Light and warm
Don't be fooled by Boccia's size. Yes, even if the watch were round, by the standards of modern watch fashion, 33 mm is not so much. But square watches look larger and weightier than round ones, and lovers of micro watches Boccia Titanium 3334-05 may seem huge at first glance. But don’t rush to conclusions until you try them on in a salon. They fit very comfortably on my 15,5 cm hand and look like a glove.
The characteristics make it possible to take the Boccia 3334-05 as the only watch for every day. The sapphire crystal will retain its pristine purity without scratches in a year or five. The simple markings of the dial ensure good readability - I would say 9 points out of 10. In the light the time is clearly visible, but at dusk the markers and hands begin to merge with the dial. However, if you catch any light source, the polishing of the hands and markers will sparkle, and readability will return. There is no phosphor in them, so you won’t be able to use them for hours in complete darkness.
Thanks to the titanium case, the model is very light: during a full day at the office, the hand does not get tired at all. Water resistance of 3 BAR allows you to safely wash your hands, and I don’t plan to use any other water procedures in such an elegant watch.
By the way, unlike steel, titanium feels warm on the hand. In the summer it doesn’t matter, but in the winter it’s much more pleasant to pick up, put on and wear a titanium watch than a steel one. Alas, few offer titanium in the inexpensive segment, and even then usually in sports models. There are even fewer gold-plated titanium watches. And then the stars aligned: an elegant all-titanium women's watch. We must take it!
The titanium is protected with a rose gold PVD coating: beautiful and durable. The most important thing is that it is quite durable and also hard (harder than titanium itself). And although PVD can still be scratched, Boccia with such a coating will retain a beautiful and neat appearance much longer than without it.
Maximum quality for reasonable money
Boccia Titanium 3334-05 has an excellent balance of price and quality. For little money we get a beautiful design, well-designed parts, no processing and assembly flaws, sapphire glass and titanium case with PVD, a smartly selected mechanism with a “long” battery and a strap made of expensive environmentally friendly material. Great!
What and where to wear it
I experimented:
- Jeans and white shirt: easy. The watch looks like a bright bracelet.
- Dark business suit: great if you add another accessory in color (earrings, shoes, handbag, neckerchief or wear a linen top under the jacket).
- A bright summer ensemble with a yellow jacket and green chinos: go bold. The eye-catching color accent more than fits in with the company.
- Light summer dress: quite, if its color scheme is in the flamenco style.
- Evening dress: perfect. Moreover, the color may not even match, the main thing is that the color saturation matches.
- The only thing these aristocrats didn’t get along with was shorts and a T-shirt with sneakers.
Overall, despite the bright, complex color and unusual design, this watch goes well with a wide variety of clothing styles.
