SIHH 2016 – Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Offshore Diver Chronograph 26703ST (specs & price)

In terms of Audemars Piguet Royal Oak, the choice is vast and you could easily find the right one. You’ll have the classical one (the 15400), the luxurious and slim one (our favorite here at Monochrome-Watches, the 15202ST) but you can also go for sportier ones, with the Offshore collection, that includes the recently renewed Chronographs and the Diver edition (also one of our favorites here). What about if you mix these two? What about a diving chronograph? It’s exactly what AP is about to introduce with the new Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Offshore Diver Chronograph 26703ST – and be prepared, it is very, very colorful.

Basically, with this new Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Offshore Diver Chronograph 26703ST, the brand mixes two of its best-sellers, both in the Offshore collection: the chronograph and the diver. Two watches that are widely known, two watches that are icons in the world of horology. One is a pure tool for Divers (of course with a luxurious feel, AP obliged) and the other is a more refined sports watch. The concept of this new Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Offshore Diver Chronograph? Mixing the toolish aspect of the Diver and adding to it two main features: a chronograph (with a different layout and thus a different complication module) and some bright, funky colors. One concept, 4 watches:

• The blue one: Blue dial and inner bezel, yellow markers on the diving bezel, polished hands and white markings and indexes – on blue rubber strap. Ref. 26703ST.OO.A027CA.01
• The green one: Green dial, black inner bezel with green markers, black sub-dials and blackened hands, white markings and indexes – on green rubber strap. Ref. 26703ST.OO.A038CA.01
• The yellow one: Yellow dial, black inner bezel with yellow markers, black sub-dials and blackened hands, white markings and indexes – on yellow rubber strap. Ref. 26703ST.OO.A051CA.01
• The orange one: Orange dial, black inner bezel with orange markers, black sub-dials and blackened hands, white markings and indexes – on orange rubber strap. Ref. 26703ST.OO.A070CA.01

To say that this watch is colorful is quite an understatement (and if the colored strap is too much for you, just imagine the green, yellow and orange ones on a black rubber… That wouldn’t be bad either). However, this watch is a bit more than just colors. It is the first time that Audemars Piguet combines the two concepts of the chronograph and the diver (at least in a regular watch and not a concept watch priced over 100,000 Euros). The Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Offshore Diver Chronograph relies on the case of the normal Diver, meaning a 42mm brushed stainless steel tonneau-shaped case with the iconic octagonal bezel with 8 gold screws (straight brushed on the top, with highly polished chamfers). We also find back the same crown at 10, in order to actuate the inner rotating bezel (that is printed with a 60-minute scale, with a contrasting part for the first 15 minutes – a classical feature of dive watches).

As with the Royal Oak Offshore Diver ref. 15710 introduced in 2015 (in both black and white dial), this new Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Offshore Diver Chronograph features a sapphire crystal on the back, to reveal the movement. The dial is also based on the one found on the normal Diver, with the Mega Tapisserie” pattern (large squares). The hands are similar, with their large dimensions, which allow a good visibility during a diving session. The case, even with the extra chronograph feature, still is water resistant to 300 meters. We also find some features of the normal Offshore chronograph (non diver), with the same protection piece around the crown and pushers, which are here made of black ceramic (and not in rubber anymore).

One difference however can be seen with this new Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Offshore Diver Chronograph. Compared to the classical Offshore chronograph (non diver), this new edition shows a bi-compax layout and not a 6-9-12 layout – meaning that the movement is different. For this diver edition, Audemars Piguet still relies on the Calibre 3120 as a base (the same movement used in the normal Diver and used as a base in the Offshore chronograph) but in the 3124/3841 version – sadly, Audemars Piguet still uses modular movements… Anyway, the Calibre 3124/3841 boast a minimum of 50 hours of power reserve, a small second at 3 and a 30-minute counter at 9.

Prices are not yet revealed but expect around 25,000 Euros. We’ll update that article with official prices after the SIHH. More details on www.audemarspiguet.com.