Here is my second Phoibos watch. Phoibos is a microbrand that I feel are doing everything right. I have been fortunate enough to receive two of their watches now for review on my channel. I thought the first one, the Eagle Ray was brilliant but there was a few minor gripes / room for improvement.
Well you know what Phoibos listen. They took what I, other reviewers and you guys that made comments and improved their quality based on this feedback. Amazing! could you ever see Seiko doing this??
So here we have their latest watch (as of December 2021) The Phoibos Kraken a 300mtr dive style watch. The Kraken is a mythical sea creature and Phoibos is all about Greek mythology so it would be only natural that they would pick this name to make a good dive watch.
The case is finished exceptionally well and completely brushed finish.
Watch has a stainless steel bezel insert with radial brushing. The same radial brushing appears on the dial.
There is excellent lume too on this one using C3 and BGW9 which gives two colours. The other stand out feature is the date wheel. Often we see on microbrands a white date wheel as they are using off the shelf movements. Here though on the Phoibos Kraken the date wheel is the colour of the dial, and this applies to any of the dial colours they use. They will have specifically ordered this to be made for them. A really nice detail.
The movement is a Miyota 9015 which is a high beat movement at 28,800 beats per hour. One of Miyota’s better movements, its also thin at 3.90mm which makes the watch case thinner making the watch more wearable.
This watch has many standout features but the one for me is the lugs. They have a claw like shape to them, very Omega but it suits the style of this beautifully.
Then there is the strap! solid links and each is individual. This was a criticism on the Eagle Ray as it had the appearance of a 5 link bracelet but in fact they wear solid. With the Phoibos Kraken they have changed this to single links with screw pins for adjustment. I like to think that the bracelet looks like tentacles of the Kraken.
Phoibos have also amazed me with the caseback. I am liking interesting casebacks on these new watches I am getting the opportunities to see but this one is something to behold. Its machined deep into the steel and shot blasted finish which shows all the detail.
The last improvement was the clasp. With the Eagle Ray this was a complaint of mine because they just etched on “Phoibos” it looked like an afterthought and would have looked better if they had left it plain. I commented that had they used their logo instead of such a basic type font it would be much more appealing. Again they listened and this is the improvement they made.
Overall this is a fantastic watch from a brand that is impressing me. Well designed and manufactured to a high standard. I am actually excited about what their next watch might be like so stay tuned as I might just get to review that if I am lucky.
If you would like to pick one of these or any of their other watches up I have an affiliate link and a discount code here.
I will receive a small commission on any qualifying purchase.
Use promotion code RetroWatch to receive 10% discount. https://phoiboswatch.com/?ref=47
