De Bethune returns to the world of digital timekeeping with the new DB25 Digitale, bringing its distinctive jumping-hours display into the DB25 collection. The concept combines a jumping-hour display with a rotating minute disc, presented in a 42mm titanium case with the celestial aesthetic that has become characteristic of the DB25 family. The result is a watch that pairs De Bethune’s unconventional approach to displaying time with its signature spherical moon phase, blued titanium, guilloché and hand-finishing.
We begin with our commentary and analysis, followed by the complete official De Bethune press release.
De Bethune DB25 Digitale: A New Take on Jumping Hours
Price, Specifications & Official Press Release
The De Bethune DB25 Digitale retails at SGD 185,000 inclusive of GST / CHF 106,000 before VAT.
Deployant’sCommentary & Analysis
This novelty is an interesting take on inserting a digital jump display onto De Bethune’s popular DB25 case. The case is appropriately sized. At 42mm, the diameter may seem to be rather large, but the shape of the DB25 case is such that it actually hugs the wrist very well, and wears substantially smaller. This is a common feature on De Bethune watches and one of the facets of the design genius of Denis Flageollet.
The signature blue dial is executed in titanium. It features a guilloché pattern which depicts the image of a nocturnal scene of a river in the moonlight shows up beautifully on the dial. The sky theme is repeated right in the center where the moonphase stands out in 3 dimensions. The large jumping hour display is shown in an aperture over the moon, and a trailing minutes disc is shown inside an aperture below. The same tonal blue echoes in the periphery, but shows stars around the “river”. Another guilloché with a more technical aesthetic surrounds the “river”.
The dial carries the signature of modern De Bethune watches, and is absolutely captivating.
The movement is the DB2144 now in version 3, and the maison’s random guilloché depicting the river on the dial side extends to the deltoid bridge seen on the case back. The view on both sides is equally stunning!
A comparison to its stable mate predecessors, the DBD and the DB28 Digitale is shown in this table:
Jumping hours (at 12), trailing minutes (shifted to 6), central spherical moon phase
Movement / PR
Calibre DB2044 (5 Days)
Calibre DB2144 (5 Days)
Calibre DB2144V3 (5 Days, 8 Patents)
Overall, this is stunning looking watch. With absolutely marvellous proportions. Beautiful colour play between a very special deep blue with polished silvery look of the titanium. The 3 dimensional moonphase display right in the center of the dial is a masterstroke. As is the flanking of said moonphase by a jumping hour and trailing minutes. Magnificent!
Pricing notes
The DB25 Digitale is an interesting beast in the world of high horology. There are no direct comparisons for a jumping hour watch with rotating analogue minutes display and a central spherical display of the moonphase. Hence the family comparisons to earlier De Bethune digital watches. But these watches were released more than 12 years ago, and meaningful comparisons in pricing is not instructive. Having said that, the DBS Digital already had a retail of SGD 158,700 (in white gold) back in 2015.
One competitive landscape occupants is possibly the Lange Zeitwerk, but the German alternative has no moonphase display, and the time hour display is in 4 digits with instantaneous jumping. It also has a conventional subsidiary seconds hand.
De Bethune DB25 Digitale Specifications
REFERENCE
DB25VD
FUNCTIONS
Jumping hours in an aperture, analogue minutes on a rotating disc, central spherical moon-phase indication (inclined at 60°)
MOVEMENT
Caliber DB2144V3 Components: 416 * Jewels: 32 rubies * Diameter: 30 mm * Power Reserve: 5 days, ensured by a self-regulating twin barrel — De Bethune innovation 2004 * Frequency: 28,800 vibrations per hour Special features: * Titanium balance wheel with grey-gold inserts — De Bethune patent 2004 — optimised for temperature variations and aerodynamic efficiency — De Bethune innovation 2016 * “De Bethune” balance spring with flat terminal curve — invented in 2004, De Bethune design registration 2006 * Silicon escape wheel — De Bethune innovation 2005 * Central spherical moon-phase indication, accurate to within one lunar day every 1,112 years — De Bethune patent 2004 * Blued triple pare-chute shock-absorbing system — De Bethune innovation 2005 Finishing * Concave titanium mainplate — De Bethune innovation 2013 * Titanium barrel bridge, hand-bevelled and hand-polished * Central insert in blued titanium with random guilloché — De Bethune innovation 2023
CASE
Case in Polished Grade 5 Titanium * Diameter 42mm * Thickness 11.9mm * Sapphire crystal with double anti-reflective coating * Caseback screw down open case back in polished grade 5 titanium and sapphire crystal * Water resistance 30m
DIAL
Display Analogue minute indicator on a rotating disc at 6 o’clock * Central spherical moon-phase indication in palladium and flame-blued steel, accurate to within one lunar day every 1,112 years — De Bethune patent 2004 Dial in blued titanium with random guilloché — De Bethune innovation 2023 * Silvered minute sector, with hand-guilloché barleycorn motif * Fixed chapter ring and spherical moon surround in polished, blued Grade 5 titanium, set with grey-gold stars
An invitation to a moment of reverie, of escape — like the soothing notes of Moon River. Following in the footsteps of the DBD, one of the Maison’s emblematic models, De Bethune revisits the digital display of time with the DB25 Digitale.
Reflections by Night, Beneath the Stars
De Bethune expresses a contemporary aesthetic, alive with glints of light, riffing on its own codes while drawing its inspiration from nature.
The dial of the DB25 Digitale is a meticulous study in evoking the delicate imagery of a nocturnal scene beneath the stars. The layered, refined finishes recall the reflections of a tranquil river in the moonlight.
Eighty-two elements combine to create this contemplative tableau. Every detail, from the starlit sky to the guillochage, contributes to its sense of serenity and wonder. The barleycorn motif evokes the language of classical watchmaking, while the random guilloché on blued titanium introduces a distinctly contemporary expression.
Legibility and Contemplation
This multifaceted display — digital for the jumping hours, analogue for the minutes, spherical for the moon phase — frees the watch from hands and hour markers, giving full expression to a richly considered work of aesthetic composition.
The dial’s concentric architecture is anchored by the spherical moon at its centre.
Its two polished hemispheres — one in palladium, the other in flame-blued steel — indicate the moon phase with an accuracy to within one lunar day every 1,112 years.
The way the materials are worked, together with the various heat treatments applied to the titanium, produces a deep gradient of blue that underpins the technical complexity of the piece.
Beneath this serene display lies a sophisticated micro ball-bearing system that drives both the jumping-hour display and the rotating minute disc.
Performance and Precision of the 3rd rd Generation DB2144 Calibre
The sapphire exhibition case-back reveals the latest evolution of an in-house De Bethune movement. For the first time, the Maison’s random guilloché motif extends onto the deltoid bridge, creating a visual dialogue between dial and movement. Through this window, a number of patents and innovations on the Calibre DB2144V3 come into view — among them the self-regulating twin barrel, the latest titanium-and-grey-gold balance wheel, the De Bethune balance spring with its flat terminal curve, and the triple pare-chute shock-absorbing system.
A De Bethune Signature
Crafted from grade 5 titanium for lightness, the DB25 Digitale’s 42 mm case is mirror-polished, with a discreet bezel that leaves the dial to take centre stage. The slender, openworked and rounded lugs, with their hallmark ‘bullet’ aesthetic, accentuate the case’s sloping geometry — a design that underlines the roundness of the piece and hugs the wrist.
Paired with an extra-supple, dark blue, lined alligator strap and a matching polished titanium pin buckle, the DB25 Digitale joins the Maison’s signature DB25 collection.
