Patek Philippe 5520P Alarm in Platinum
Patek Philippe Calatrava Pilots Alarm Travel Time 5520P-001
Forget holiday “beaters”, this is a watch for the discerning gentleman of the type where only a platinum grand complication will do when travelling.
This is the Patek Philippe Calatrava Pilots Alarm Travel Time, so not only will you have a couple of timezones covered, you’ve got a glorious chiming alarm to boot.
First launched in 2019, initial impressions are that this is a big watch for Patek both in complexity and stature.
Its a 42.2mm piece, just under 12 thick with a lug to lug of 51mm.
Due to being platinum which is a dense metal, its a reassuringly hefty chunk of goodness.
The slightly inconvenient lug width of 21mm keeps the head balanced well on the wrist. Fortunately the matte black pilot style leather strap is a perfect choice for this watch so I doubt that you’d be inclined to “change it up” regularly.
At first glance, if you’re a watch fan, you’d identify it as a Pilot’s watch. You may even clock it from a distance as being a Calatrava Pilots, but unless you live and breathe watches, it’s unlikely that you’d immediately associate it with being a Grand Complication with a retail price just shy of quarter of a million.
It is broad, black, and utterly clarified. It has a uniquely utilitarian appeal which really does ring my bell. (As it’s an alarm watch, do you see what I did there?)
It is only on closer inspection that you find little details to give the game away that this is likely The King of alarm pieces, and really, isn’t that part of the enjoyment?
One definitely not little detail is the series of 4 lockable pushers surrounding the watch case.
These are used to set local and home time, plus the alarm function.
The buttons on the left are marked with plus + and minus - signs.
These are pushed to adjust the local time, and jump the hour hand either forwards (plus) or backwards (minus)
The top button on the right side of the case is pushed to switch the alarm on and off.
The alarm is always synchronised with local time.
Note that when the alarm is on, the cut out of a bell below 12 on the dial shows in white.
The alarm has a day night mode for AM and PM setting. This is shown in a circle beneath the alarm time with AM in white, and PM shown in blue.
This follows the same theme as the day night indicator for local and home time with cutouts at 3 and 9 on the dial.
Its really important to remember that without the watch being fully wound, the alarm wont strike as it needs the power to fully charge the gongs, which when you hear this thing is completely fair enough!
The 5520’s crown is on the bottom right side of the case and marked with the Calatrava cross.
It has 3 positions:
Winding, then position 1 to set the alarm which jumps in 15 minute increments and can be viewed in the two windows at the top of the dial. The crown pulled out fully sets the home time.
At this point you might be wondering where setting the date comes in to all of this, via the crown, it doesn’t. The date is set using a nicely tucked away pusher which is set between the lugs of the watch.
It is a remarkably intuitive and easy to use set-up despite the complexity of the watch and although the buttons are large and broad for easy grip, they are positioned in a manner that elevates them from the wrist and avoids that ever irritating crown dig.
Taking a tour around the rest of the watch, the 42mm case is fully polished platinum with a broad bezel and lugs so it wears REALLY well.
The signature Patek “Top Wessleton” diamond sits between the lugs at 6 so that whenever you look at the watch on wrist you have a little sparkly reminder that you’ve gone seriously full diesel with your metal choice.
The dial, which Patek refers to as “Ebony sunburst” is exactly that, a rich black with brushwork that radiates from the centre. Its quite subdued so this isn’t going to perform any magical tone shifts in sunlight, but I’m definitely in the less is more camp and think that this is a perfect choice given that the watch is already complex.
The beefy white gold applied numerals which have got a fantastic dose of lume so these things are seriously legible under any conditions. The rail track minutes around the outer edge of the dial give it quite a vintage vibe which I’m always a fan of and the hands are similarly broad and well lumed.
The typeface for the alarm, logo, and local/home time markings is a simple sans serif font, and mercifully, it is the only style used on the dial.
One of my personal peeves is a mish-mash on the font front but his one is clean, crisp, and minimalist. Nice.
The calfskin strap has a lovely matte finish and is as supple as you would expect from the brand. Takes no breaking in and is just superb. It is fitted using quick release spring bars as well which is very useful if you dont fancy gauging a platinum case with a spring bar tool after an ill-advised slip of the hand. As I said earlier, the lug 21mm lug width is a bit of an awkward one but personally I wouldn’t even consider swapping the strap out on this one.
The buckle is, of course, platinum.
Patek made a dedicated movement exclusively for this model which took 5 years of research and development. Completely understandable given that this is a completely new mix of complications.
It has 52 jewels and a matching 52 hour power reserve, has all of the cutting edge Gyromax, Spyromax, Pepsimax innovations and is accurate to well within COSC standards at +/-2 seconds per day.
It is also a drop dead gorgeous calibre and can be viewed through the sapphire display back.
The watch comes with an additional platinum closed caseback and in all honesty, although I love a good drool at a movement, I prefer the closed rear on this one as I think the movement on display reduces the utilitarian look by being on the fancy side.
This is of course all down to personal preference, and I’m glad that both options exist on this piece.
I’ve been a bit of a devil with this review and edged ever closer to the main event of the Travel Time Alarm while deliberately saving it til last.
The chimes. Oh man. The chimes.
Most mechanical alarms through the ages have been very useful but dreadful on the ears, if you’ve been able to hear them at all and not just alerted to their reminder by a vibration on the wrist.
Usually they sound like you’ve trapped a seriously irritated wasp and offer you a dull persistent buzz rather than anything more appealing.
This is where the 5520P really hits the stratosphere.
It has a loud, clear, and musical chime very similar to that of a minute repeater with absolutely no unpleasant buzzing or distortion to be heard.
The alarm will continue to ring for 40 minutes unless you stop it earlier, and I suspect that until the novelty wears off its wearer will let the chimes run just for the grin factor which is massive.
The whole watch is just an absolute peach, and one which in my opinion doesn’t get nearly enough hype given that it’s so well executed.
Quite genuinely, if I had the beans for this beast its competitors wouldn’t get a second glance.
I think its one of Patek's best kept secrets.