I wanted to get a watch this year for using while exercising as the one I wear for work is fairly heavy and substantial and also has a clasp which will definitely come undone if I try and wear it whilst doing a zumba class (for example). I had seen these Breo watches all over the place in the last few months and it looked like exactly what I needed, at the bargain price of £7.80 from Amazon I figured it could be just the ticket.

Now, I had read the reviews on Amazon and realised that there seemed to be a few notorious problems with this particular watch, one being that it keeps irregular time and the other being that the band splits and breaks easily. I was mindful of this when purchasing but figured that as I would only be wearing it in short bursts a few times a week and it was less than a tenner I could live with it.

I ordered mine in a pale pink colour and it arrived quickly. It is easy to set, all the buttons are on the back which is why it looks so smooth and sleek from the front. There is one issue with this though which is that the date is also set here and the only way you can get the screen to switch between the time and date settings is to push the button on the back (with a pencil or such like) - now that is a bit of a hassle to my mind, why bother having a date function if, in order to access the date, you have to remove the watch and find something pointy to press the button?

Anyway, I did not buy this for the date function so it does not bother me too much - it just seems a little odd. I set mine against the clock on BBC news channel so assumed it was accurate and for the first few weeks it did indeed seem to track time quite reasonably. Six weeks in and I checked it again against BBC news this week and it is now 4 minutes ahead of their clock. I think it's safe to assume that the BBC have not lost 4 minutes so maybe the accuracy is a bit of a problem on these watches in general. To be honest - this is again not a major concern for me as I do not depend on this for work - but it is worth mentioning.

The word 'breo' is on the side in white letters when you receive the watch, mine rubbed off within a couple of times wearing it.

Other than these issues the watch is fine and exactly what I need whilst exercising. Because of the shape of the strap it stays where you put it, this means I can check it quickly while running or working out without needing to chase the face around my wrist. The strap seems pretty hardy to me and shows no sign of splitting or breaking. I have very small wrists and ordered a ladies small which is a good fit for me, I do wonder if the people who have had broken straps have ordered a size too small. You do need to be able to slide it over your hand to put it on so make sure you order the right size.

Basically this watch is a good buy at less than a tenner but I would not recommend it for everyday wear due to the timekeeping issues and potential to break (although mine is not showing signs of this yet). Ideal for light use or sports use, small, basic and nice to look at.