In this latest hands-on, we take a look at the Tissot Gentleman 38 in blue, a refined and highly wearable take on one of the brand’s strongest everyday collections.
What We Love:
- The new 38mm size is perfect for those with smaller wrist sizes
- Beautifully executed case finishing
- Blue dial presents itself as a fantastic all-round option, adding a touch of vibrance without being too bold
What We Don’t:
- Date window placement slightly interrupts the dial balance
- The white date wheel could be better colour-matched to the dial
- The bracelet would benefit from more sizing flexibility
Overall Rating: 8.8/10
- Value for Money: 9/10
- Wearability: 8.5/10
- Design: 8.5/10
- Build Quality: 8.5/10
Tissot has long built a reputation for offering timepieces that strike a strong balance between quality, style, and value for money. As one of the more accessible names in Swiss watchmaking, the brand has consistently delivered watches that feel dependable and well thought out in terms of design, without pushing too far into expensive territory. I myself own several Tissot timepieces, including PRX variants, and I can certainly attest to the quality you get for the money spent. Whether through sporty chronographs, everyday automatics, or more elegant dress-inspired pieces, Tissot has carved out a strong space in the market by making Swiss luxury feel far more attainable to a wider audience.
There is one particular collection, however, that has become one of the more modern success stories for Tissot, offering elegant styling at an accessible entry-level luxury price point. The Gentleman collection is definitely one for those who want a versatile timepiece built around an elegant and well-proportioned design. It is also a collection that can move effortlessly between everyday wear and more formal settings without ever feeling out of place.
The Gentleman collection officially debuted in 2019, and it was positioned as a modern everyday watch within Tissot’s catalogue. This approach made perfect sense, as the idea behind the collection was never to create something too dressy or overly casual, but rather an all-rounder that could honestly cover office wear, weekend events, and daily use with ease.
When the collection first launched, it was part of a broader family rather than a single automatic-only model, with Tissot rolling out both quartz and automatic references as part of the Gentleman collection’s early identity. The original models were offered in 40mm case sizes for both the quartz and automatic editions, with a range of classic dial colours including silver, blue, and black, while later versions also introduced ice blue dials on a bracelet.
Over time, and perhaps as expected thanks to the brilliant Powermatic 80 movement, the automatic model quickly became the headline piece of the range, making a strong appeal to watch enthusiasts at this price point. The collection also grew to include more premium executions, with models featuring stainless steel cases paired with 18-carat rose gold or 18-carat yellow gold bezels, offering a more luxurious and upmarket addition to what was already an elegant collection.
The 40mm case size of the original models was ideally suited to the period in which the timepiece was released, reflecting broader late-2010s market preferences and giving the watch a contemporary stance while still remaining refined and wearable. Now, however, for 2026, Tissot is updating the collection with a more compact and modern case size, once again improving the overall wearability of the timepiece.
With a new case size of 38mm, the brand is offering four different dial colours to go with it, from the classic black, silver, and blue to a green dial variant as well. What we have on our hands for this in-depth review is one of my two favourites from the collection, alongside the stunning green dial: the beautiful classic blue. As a whole, however, this new 38mm Gentleman release feels like a smart evolution of the collection, refining an already successful formula in a way that better suits current tastes and a wider variety of wrists.
Initial Impressions
When I first saw the Gentleman 38 release through the press material, it felt like a very natural fit for the collection. It did not come across as a design forced purely to chase market trends, but rather as an update that made the collection much more wearable, especially for those with smaller wrist sizes. The 38mm sizing gives the Gentleman a more refined and balanced presence, making it feel even more versatile as an everyday timepiece.
This new collection carries all of the same clean and elegant design language that made the original models so appealing, but now in proportions that make the timepieces more compact, more wearable, and arguably more in tune with what many enthusiasts are looking for in today’s market.
The reason this blue dial stands out so much is that it strikes the perfect middle ground between everyday versatility and refined elegance, giving the watch a modern, slightly dressier feel while still remaining easy to wear in almost any setting. Compared to the black and silver dial variants in the new Gentleman 38 collection, the blue has enough visual depth and richness to catch your attention as light moves across the dial, yet it never feels overdone or too bold.
Beautifully Proportioned Elegance
Tissot has given the Gentleman line a thoughtful refresh with these new 38mm case sizes, and in my opinion, it feels like a very smart execution. While the original 40mm models certainly had broader appeal, this case size brings a more refined and versatile presence to the overall collection. With the addition of this size to the existing range, it now naturally opens the door to a wider range of wrists, particularly for those, such as myself, who find the larger models can be slightly too commanding. It also caters to a watch market that has a growing preference for more compact and better-proportioned case sizes.
From a design perspective, the case does a great job of balancing everyday versatility with the collection’s understated luxury appearance. The surfaces of these Gentleman timepieces feature a vertical satin-brushed texture, which gives the watch a sporty and contemporary feel. The polished finishing on the domed bezel, crown, and chamfered edges of the case then adds a more refined contrast. While these polished surfaces are kept to a minimum compared to the satin-brushed areas, they still play an important role in elevating the overall design, ensuring the watch retains an elegant edge without taking away from its easy-wearing, everyday appeal.
This mixture of finishes is then carried through to the three-link bracelet, with the outer links featuring a vertical brushed finish, while the central links offer a beautiful shine through their polished surfaces. The contrast between the brushed and polished elements allows the watch to strike the perfect balance between sporty versatility and refined sophistication. It also adds greater depth to the overall design, ensuring the Gentleman 38 has just the right amount of wrist presence without becoming overly flashy.
Where Simplicity Meets Sophistication
As mentioned previously, Tissot is offering the new Gentleman 38 collection in four different lacquered dial colours: silver, black, dark blue, and dark green. Each colour gives the timepiece a distinct personality, adding a strong sense of versatility to the collection depending on the wearer’s taste and style. The silver dial offers the most classic and timeless look of the lineup, while the black model leans into understated elegance with a slightly more formal feel, making it well-suited to special events and nights out.
Then we have the blue lacquer and green dial variants. The dark green certainly stands out, with the way the sunburst effect shifts the tones of green under different lighting, making this colour feel more expressive than the others in the collection. It comes across as a little more dynamic and vibrant, yet still refined enough to suit the Gentleman line perfectly. This is a dial colour that brings a fresh energy to the collection while still maintaining the elegant design language that defines the range.
However, if you are after something that still has classic styling and everyday wearability, the blue dial is honestly the best option. To me, it strikes the perfect middle ground within the collection, offering enough richness and character to stand out while still remaining subtle enough to suit almost any occasion. It has that versatile quality where it can feel refined in more formal settings, yet still relaxed and understated enough for daily wear, which is exactly what the Gentleman line is all about.
On the wrist, the blue dial comes to life beautifully, with the subtle pyramidal texture and sunray finish adding just the right amount of elegance.
The dial also features a subtle pyramidal shape, which is a detail that does not immediately jump out at you, but rather reveals itself beautifully under different lighting angles. Tissot pairs this design with a sunray finish, which, according to the brand, is intended to “capture and shape the light”, giving the dial surface more richness and a more modern character. Combined with the baton-style indices and sharp hands, which contrast beautifully against the blue tones of the dial, the result is a display that not only remains highly legible but also enhances the overall elegance of the timepiece.
One aspect of the Gentleman collection’s dial design that I think could be improved is the integration of the date window. Personally, I am not overly fond of a 3 o’clock date window sitting opposite the hour marker. If the window replaced the marker altogether, I think it would present a much cleaner and more balanced design, rather than looking like something added in purely for convenience. And now with the dial size reduced, it would arguably make even more sense to take that approach, as the display is more compact overall.
Powered By The Proven Reliability Of The Powermatic 80
At the heart of this new Gentleman 38mm collection lies Tissot’s Powermatic 80 automatic movement. The use of this movement provides a significant advantage for daily wearers, frequent travellers, or those who may regularly rotate between multiple timepieces, as you can leave the watch off the wrist for a couple of days and still come back to it with a beating heart. The movement suits the Gentleman collection perfectly, reinforcing the watch’s role as a versatile everyday companion designed for modern lifestyles.
It’s not just the power reserve that makes this movement worthy. The Powermatic 80 is also fitted with a Nivachron™ balance spring, which has been engineered to improve resistance against magnetic fields, shocks, and temperature variations. These technical additions help ensure the movement stays accurate throughout the time it is on the wrist, making the Gentleman 38 more than just a good-looking timepiece.
Through the transparent caseback, the Powermatic 80 also presents itself nicely, especially for a watch at this price point. While this is certainly not haute horlogerie finishing, the movement still offers a clean and attractive display, with the rotor featuring striped decoration, while the overall architecture looks neat, modern, and well executed.
And yes, considering the Gentleman 38 is priced at A$1,240 in Australia, the overall package represents genuinely strong value for money. You are not only getting an automatic Swiss-made watch with an exhibition caseback, but also the performance of the Powermatic 80, which beats at 4Hz (28,800 vibrations per hour) for solid accuracy, while also delivering an impressive 80-hour power reserve.
How Does The Gentlemen 38 Wear?
Let’s start by addressing the elephant in the room. As expected, this new 38mm size wears beautifully on my 16cm wrist. Straight away, it feels more natural and proportionate than the larger 40mm model, giving the Gentleman a neater and more balanced presence overall. It still has enough substance on the wrist to feel like a proper, everyday sports-elegant watch, but now with proportions that feel more refined and easier to wear over long periods.
The blue dial really comes into its own once it is on the wrist. And as we say quite often in our hands-on reviews, product shots and press photos rarely do the watch full justice. While the timepiece certainly looks good in official images, in person, the dial comes to life, especially when light hits the surface at the right angles and brings out the sunburst finish. On the wrist, the colour strikes that sweet spot between classic and expressive. It is not overly bold, yet it has enough richness to give the watch a slightly more elevated and luxurious feel compared to a standard black or silver dial.
Another aspect that stands out while wearing the watch is how nicely the polished elements of the case and bracelet catch the light. Aside from the domed polished bezel, the other polished surfaces on the case are kept relatively subtle, but that is also what helps give the timepiece its sense of refinement. Rather than leaning fully into a polished dress-watch aesthetic or going all-in on a vertically brushed sports-watch finish, Tissot has combined the two in a restrained way that highlights the Gentleman’s versatile design. It is not purely a sports watch, nor is it a strict dress piece, but rather something that sits comfortably in between.
The bracelet also wears comfortably, contouring nicely around the wrist while showing its aesthetic appeal through the combination of vertical brushed finishing and polished links. Through its design and finishing, this three-link bracelet complements the 38mm case well, giving the whole watch a cohesive and easy-wearing feel. The only downside, at least for me, is the lack of micro-adjustment, which would have added a bit more flexibility when trying to get that perfect fit throughout the day. That being said, at this price point, it is not exactly a surprising omission, and it does little to take away from what is otherwise a very comfortable and well-executed wearing experience.
Final Thoughts
Tissot’s Gentleman collection has always been a great offering for those who want a value-for-money timepiece from one of the Swiss giants. Aside from the PRX range, which I can attest to being fantastic value for money within the entry-level luxury space, the Gentleman collection is another standout in Tissot’s catalogue for exactly the same reason. Unlike the PRX, which features a more integrated sports-watch design, the Gentleman collection takes a more timeless route, making it an excellent option for those who want something understated, refined, and easy to wear across a variety of settings.
Then, when you add a more wearable 38mm case size to the mix, the appeal of the Gentleman collection broadens even further. This new Gentleman 38 collection feels like a very natural evolution of one of Tissot’s strongest modern lines. Rather than simply shrinking the original formula for the sake of following market trends, the brand has refined the watch in a way that genuinely enhances its everyday appeal.
The blue dial variant, out of the four new releases, is for me the one that hits the sweet spot. This deep blue dial offers enough visual richness to feel special on the wrist, while still maintaining the understated versatility that makes the Gentleman collection such an easy watch to wear day in and day out.
If you are after a Swiss-made everyday timepiece that brings together accessible luxury, refined styling, and genuine practicality, then the Tissot Gentleman 38 is a very compelling option and one that I think will resonate with a wide audience!
Tissot Gentlemen 38 – Blue Dial
Reference & Specifications
| Feature | Specifications |
|---|---|
| Reference | T165.807.11.041.00 |
| Dimensions | 38mm x 11.53mm thick |
| Case | 316 Stainless steel with brushed and polished surfaces |
| Crystal | Sapphire with an anti-reflective coating on both sides |
| Dial | Lacquered dial in blue, with a pyramidal shape and date window at 3 o’clock |
| Caseback | 316 Stainless steel with brushed and polished surfaces, with a sapphire crystal |
| Movement | Automatic, self-winding Powermatic 80 Calibre, operating at 4Hz (28,800 VpH) |
| Functions | Hours, minutes, seconds & date |
| Power Reserve | 100 hours |
| Water Resistance | 30 metres (3 ATM) |
| Strap | Three-link stainless steel bracelet with brushed and polished links. Interchangeable quick-release system. |