To risk a tired automotive comparison, if it weren’t for the Cayenne, Porsche might not have made it out of the early aughts. When it was introduced in 2002, it has been widely reported that the luxury crossover single-handedly saved the company, enabling it to continue building its legendary sports cars, like the 911 Carrera and the Boxter. Granted, Glashütte Original is likely quite far from Porsche’s dire financial straights two decades ago, but the fact remains — crossover luxury-sport products in just about every category remain white-hot — and the more capable, the better. Building on this concept, the SeaQ diver that was re-launched in 2019 is getting a red-gold refresh from the German manufactory, with two new references: a two-toned diver with a gray dial, and an all-gold reference with a black sunburst dial. Both are gorgeous, but the “Bicolor” reference is likely to be the standout when it lands a bit later this summer.
Specifications
Brand: Glashütte Original
Model: SeaQ Panorama Date Bicolor (ref. 1-36-13-04-91)
Dimensions: 43mm-wide, 15mm-thick
Water Resistance: 30 bar (300 meters)
Case Material: stainless steel with sapphire caseback, 18k red gold bezel and crown, ceramic bezel insert
Crystal/Lens: domed sapphire
Movement: Glashütte Original Cal. 36.13 (automatic, grande date)
Frequency: 4Hz
Power Reserve: 100 hours
Strap/Bracelet: synthetic nylon or rubber w/ stainless steel buckle
Price & Availability: $15,100 USD (bi-color), July 2020
Gray and rose gold is one of my favorite color combinations in watchmaking, and it’s executed to near-perfection here with the Bicolor variant, which marries a solid red gold bezel and knurled crown with oversized hands and applied hour markers – both generously filled with Super-LumiNova. While plenty could be said here about the quality of the dial itself, I’ll spare you the details and will instead direct you to go inside our manufactory visit to see how the SeaQ dials are made, firsthand. The watch itself is water-resistant to 300 meters, but Glashütte Original takes it one step further, ensuring the entire watch meets the strict DIN (German) and ISO (international) standards for dive instruments, with respect to water resistance, corrosion resistance, shock resistance, and legibility. The movement itself is also noteworthy, bearing 100 hours of power reserve, exemplary finishing, and a uniquely secure “bayonet-style” mounting system that further protects its chronometry from damage from case impact.
This pair of new SeaQ watches joins a growing number of “super-divers” that endure all the same rigorous testing certifications of their stainless steel or titanium counterparts but with ultra-luxe trimmings and a high level of finishing. The perennial favorite Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Offshore, the Panerai Submersible “Oro Rosso” PAM684, 2019’s two-tone Rolex Sea-Dweller, the rose gold Cartier Calibre Diver, Blancpain Fifty Fathoms Bathyscaphe in Sedna Gold, and the two-tone Omega Seamaster 300 Chronograph all come to mind as similar competition in the space. However, the SeaQ is, to my knowledge, the only German-made dive watch of similar provenance and capability, making it a particularly neat entry to consider.
In addition to the bi-color reference ($15,100 USD), a black-dialed solid-gold-cased variant (ref. 1-36-13-03-90) will also be joining the SeaQ collection a little later in the year, but this will kick the price up to $24,900 USD. We’ll be going hands-on with both these references shortly to deliver more firsthand impressions, but in the meantime, you can learn more at glashuette-original.com
