Quick Summary
Panerai has launched a new dive watch with some seriously impressive testing behind it.
The model is designed to be used by the US Navy SEALs.
When it comes to dive watches, few brands have the heritage of Panerai. Spending most of its life under wraps as a supplier of the Italian Navy, the brand enjoys a handsome reputation as a maker of exceptionally rugged pieces.
That's no different today, with a new Panerai Submersible Navy SEALs model arriving with an enviable spec sheet. That includes a staggering 500m of water resistance, which is far more than many of the dive watches offered elsewhere in the market.
The model sports a grey sunburst dial, with a small seconds register at the nine o'clock position and a discrete date window at three o'clock. I'm always a fan of this dial design, which stays clutter-free and readable.
That's surrounded by a ceramic bezel, and sits within a 44mm case crafted from brushed stainless steel. Personally, I think that brushwork is a masterstroke, adding a grey hue which marries up nicely with the dial and bezel.
Inside, the brand's P.980 calibre beats away. That's an automatic calibre which offers three days of power from a 4Hz beat rate. The model also comes with both a black rubber and a grey canvas strap, to suit different people and scenarios.
Even more impressive than the spec sheet is the list of testing scenarios these watches are put through. In order to ensure they're fit for the most gruelling and demanding environments, Panerai employs a range of tests to ensure thermal shock resistance, movement winding, magnetic resistance and more.
The watches are even tested in saline and humidity, exposed to UV and given some pretty intense shock tests, all to make sure they will continue to work in such environments. It's a seriously impressive suite of testing, and should ensure the watch is more than capable of dealing with any stresses and strains it comes up against in use.
Priced at £10,400 (approx. €12,025 / US$14,000 / AU$19,725), this model feels like a bit of a bargain, all things considered. It'll probably outlive you or I, and that makes it a pretty decent deal in my book.
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