https://www.thedivewatchconnection.com/ ... 10ee385994
What I like about it are the recognisable looks in an ocean of competing diver watches, the super round case design and IMHO the most comfortable design for a large dial watch, especially with smaller wrists.
I recently added the new Aquis to my collection (yes I know, it came out in 2018, I am just a little slow!) and wanted to just talk about the differences with the original.
I think Oris has done a superb job of tweaking a great design further, for comfort and looks, keeping the DNA of the original.
Talking about the case first, Oris has made the case thinner, the lugs slightly thinner, the lug-to-lug smaller whilst increasing the size of the dial by 0.5m to 43.5mm, making the watch more comfortable whilst increasing its presence.
The original 43mm Aquis was 50.5mm lug-to-lug. The new 43.5mm Aquis has a 49.5mm lug to lug. You can see, even on my small 6.7” wrist, the lugs don’t even reach to the edge.
From the front the previous version had a lightly polished ceramic bezel and a very dark grey/black dial. More toolish I would say. The new version has a high polished black bezel with an inky back and polished dial. This is more beautiful and I guess more dressy. On the colour scheme I picked it has orange lume pips, including at 12 o’clock on the bezel, which glows green rather then the blue of the previous version. I think the orange, as well as being a bit more sporty, is clearer to see, and allows the minute pips and bezel minutes in white to be differentiated better.
The new bezel protrudes slightly more then the older one, making it a bit easier to turn.
The hour hand has been slightly thinned and shortened, and the second segment has been moved towards the end. The minute hand has been lengthened, and in line with the hour hand, is now a tapering sword with no bump in the middle.
On the new 43.5mm the etching on the crown is finer and the crown guards are slightly smaller and sharper.
Lastly, the lug screws are now triangular like the crown screws. Previously they were a single slot and therefore more convenient to turn with a conventional screw driver, but looked a big out of place with the crown guard ones, which looked more jewellery like. Note that the latest Aquis 400 movements have introduced an easy release system which no long needs to be screwed off.
The bracelet has seen some quite large changes. It is 1.5 mm smaller at the lug, at 24mm across, and tapers much more sharply to a diminutive 16mm. The buckle and levers are still fully milled, with the excellent twin catch safety system, and still has the divers extension and three micro adjusts, but is proportionally smaller. The buckle has also been smartened up with edge bevelling. The bracelet is also thinner. The effect is a much more refined bracelet which is lighter, but not as hefty and tooly as the original.
In summary, the new 43.5mm Aquis has been made more comfortable, more refined and lighter. Making it the size of choice IMHO for even small wrists.
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