Since the 19th century, precise timekeepers from Glashütte have also been used as reliable instruments for navigation and for determining one’s position on land, at sea and in the air. And Marine chronometers feature strongly in the history. Here we present the new Glashütte Original’s SeaQ Diver in blue.
The SeaQ by Glashütte Original
Numerous historic marine chronometers, observation watches, pilot and diver’s watches made in Glashütte, testify to the use of high-precision watches as instrument watches, which found widespread use in highly specific areas. The brand adds to its line of Spezialist models with a new blue dial and bezel SeaQ. The SeaQ is a new collection first introduced in Time to Move 2019, and now comes with a gorgeous blue dial.
The Case and Dial
Inspiring the design is the vintage “Spezimatic Type RP TS 200”, developed specifically for sports divers. The dial layout is iconic, with large arabic numerals and a large arrow minutes hand.
Measuring 39.5 mm wide and 12.15 mm tall, the SeaQ is a well-sized retro-vintage timepiece with the bandwidth for water resistance through a thicker case. The watch is water resistant to 20 Bar, and comes fit with standard modern dive-watch features like the screw-down crown.
As expected of Glashütte Original’s obsession with quality, the DIN and ISO tested diver’s watch meets the most stringent German and international quality standards in terms of water resistance, legibility, shock resistance, resistance to salt water and many other criteria.
The case features other elements of modern diver watches. A unidirectional, counter-clockwise rotating bezel with a minute marker click. The ceramic inlay bezel makes the surface of the bezel exceptionally scratch-resistant.
The dial made in-house in Pforzheim, is a deep metallic blue with sunburst finish.
Under water, divers often have to contend with difficult light conditions. In such situations, the SeaQ offers superb visibility. The printed / applied hour markers and indexes are highlighted with Super-LumiNova, as are the hour, minute and second hands. Their blue radiance guarantees – through the antireflective sapphire crystal – optimal legibility and a secure diving experience, even in murky waters.
The movement
The engravings on the caseback features a trident maritime symbol and the Glashütte Original Double-G. But behind it, runs the automatic movement 39-11. Beating at 28,800 a/h the base Glashütte Original caliber also features a date, and has 40 hours power reserve.
While hidden behind a closed caseback, the movement features a skeletonized rotor with heavy metal oscillation weight, bevelled edges, plates with Glashütte stripe finish, and a swan-neck fine adjustment mechanism.
Concluding thoughts
The watch is available in either a fabric or rubber strap starting at US$9000, or in bracelet at US$10,200. Riding the blue trend, the SeaQ in blue provides an alternative luxury sports diver for the market. That said, while its blue sunburst dial is very attractive, the original black dial variant might be still a better choice for its subtlety. At this price range, the SeaQ competes with Blancpain’s Bathyscaphe, Chopard’s Alpine Eagle, and of course Rolex.
3 Comments
Let’s assume you’re in the market for a dive watch for 10k and don’t want the obvious choice from Rolex. Why would you buy this over a Blancpain Bathyscaphe, an Omega diver in ceramic or titanium, or a JLC Polaris? The field is crowded and although this Glashütte is perfectly fine it’s hard to see how it’s differentiating itself from the Swiss heavy hitters…
A nicely laid out diver’s watch dial with exceptional movement design housed in an altogether suitable casing; exactly what one would expect from this brand. And priced appropriately, given the other competitors in this range. Given it’s quality and availability, along with the broken crown’s manufactured scarcity and its AD’s collusion in an opec style of doing business, It’s preferable. The refrain remains the same, only more so now, “Boycott Rolex.”
Sounds like somebody is throwing a little hissy-fit because they can’t buy a Rolex at retail. Awww… LOL!