Introducing – Oris Aquis Date with new colors to perform in the deep (specs & price)

When you have the concept of a rugged and functional dive watch in mind, with great quality and for a relatively affordable price, the Oris Aquis Date has to be on your wish-list. No debate, this watch is good for what it has been designed for – and it’s also a pleasant watch on a daily basis (even professional divers spend some time on land…). Although we thought it to perform well, it seems that Oris had some improvements to make, and this year, they add 2 new colors and dials designed to perform in the hostile conditions found deep underwater.

Underwater, the notion of color has to be seen on a completely different level. For instance, red, which is a bright and highly visible color on earth, totally disappear when underwater, and at just 5m down to the sea. On the other hand, some other colors, like blue for instance, remain highly visible, even at 200m. Aware of this issue, Oris looked at how they could make a diver’s watch as legible and therefore as safe as possible when at depth. They turned to research by John Adolfson and Thomas Berghage, who reported in their medical volume Perception and Performance Under Water that the most visible colours underwater are yellow and orange.

No more suspense, you have the main raison d’être of these two new editions of the solid, reliable and functional Oris Aquis Date. On both new Oris Aquis Date models, the minutes scale printed on the inside of the sapphire crystal, the zero marker triangle on the timer scale bezel and the central seconds hand have been coloured either yellow or orange. All of these 3 parts of the dial are crucial when diving and highlighting them will improve underwater safety. Not only the designers added some bright accents on the dial (and on the rubber straps too, but that is not going to help you for underwater visibility) but they also redesigned it, as the face of the Aquis now has been cleaned a bit, with different indexes and tracks, again to emphasize on the essential indications.

These new 2016 Oris Aquis Date feature a 43mm stainless case, with brushed and polished surfaces, a ceramic bezel insert and with a choice of three strap and bracelet options; yellow/orange rubber, black rubber or a stainless steel metal bracelet. The rubber straps are equipped with the Oris-developed quick-adjust, sliding-sledge folding clasp that can be adjusted for length without ever having to remove the watch from the wrist – something practical when having a diving suit. Inside the case ticks an automatic movement, the Oris Cal. 733, based on Sellita SW 200-1, with date at 6 and 38h of power reserve.

These professionally-oriented dive watches, with 300m water resistance and great quality of construction comes for the interesting retail price of 1,700 Swiss Francs and are already available in stores.

Specifications of the Oris Aquis Date 2016

• Case: 43mm diameter – stainless steel with unidirectional diver bezel in ceramic – sapphire crystal on front, plain caseback – 300m water resistant
• Movement: Oris Cal. 733, based on Sellita SW 200-1 – automatic – 38h power reserve – 28,800 vibrations/h – hours, minutes and seconds, date at 6
• Strap: choice of black rubber strap, orange or yellow rubber strap or metallic stainless steel bracelet, all on folding clasp
• Ref. 01 733 7653 4128 RS (orange) – Ref. 01 733 7653 4127 RS (yellow) – Swiss retail price: 1,700 CHF