ReviewWhen Heritage Meets Modernity: The All-New TAG Heuer Aquaracer Professional 300

Since its introduction in 2004, the Aquaracer line has been progressively refined and modernised to offer exquisite tool watches featuring forward-looking technology and innovative materials, such as carbon, titanium and ceramic. However, this year, TAG Heuer have looked back into their past and added a slew of new watches that draw inspiration from the brand’s illustrious legacy without replicating it. 

Available in two different sizes—43mm and 36mm—the Aquaracer Professional 300 looks sleeker and more streamlined than its predecessors due to its slimmer, lighter and shorter lug-to-lug profile. Apart from offering the novelties in a host of colours, TAG Heuer have also released a special edition in titanium and a limited edition, which pays tribute to the Swiss manufacturer’s first-ever dive watch launched in 1978—Reference 844. 

Over the years, the Aquaracer line has offered several timepieces with futuristic technology and innovative materials

However, in 2021, TAG Heuer have looked back into their past and added a slew of new watches that draw inspiration from the brand's illustrious legacy without replicating it

The Aquaracer Professional 300 looks sleeker and more streamlined than its predecessors due to its slimmer, lighter and shorter lug-to-lug profile

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Tracing Back The Roots

To understand the origin of the Aquaracer line, we need to first get acquainted with the Heuer 2000 collection, first introduced in 1983. The Heuer 2000 was a crowd-pleaser and offered a wide range of watches with quartz and automatic movements. It consisted of not only dive watch variants but also chronograph models and simple, three-hand timepieces. In 2004, TAG Heuer released the fourth generation of the Heuer 2000 and named it 2000 Aquaracer. It was the first time that the Swiss watchmaker used the Aquaracer name and after its immense success and fanfare, they decided to drop the ‘2000’ from name and stick to just ‘Aquaracer’ for future editions of the watch. The latest Aquaracer Professional 300 retains all the major elements of its 2004 predecessor, yet it looks original, ultra-modern, and damnably cool. The new timepieces aren’t just a nod to the Aquaracer collection. They actually celebrate Huerer’s entire history with diving watches, which began in 1978. 

Redesigned For A Better Fit

During the brand’s presentation at Watches and Wonders in April 2021, when this new generation was unveiled, Guy Bove, creative director of TAG Heuer, pointed out that while crafting the new iterations, ergonomics was at the centre of redesigning and re-engineering. He added, “In today’s world, a customer who is looking for a tool watch or diving watch wants a timepiece that will go to the edge of the world with him or her but fits under a shirt, for everyday use as well. Ergonomics is really at the heart of a lot of the work we did on this watch.” 

The new Aquaracer variants have been designed and engineered to sit comfortably on a wide range of wrists. The designers have shortened the lugs of the timepieces and fitted an all-new bracelet with a highly sophisticated fine-adjustment system that can extend or reduce the bracelet length by up to 1.5cm

To ensure that the timepieces sit comfortably on a wide range of wrists, what TAG Heuer have done is shorten the lugs, while the case edge has been chamfered and polished to lend the watch a more harmonious look, and to add refinement. Not only this, the brand have fitted an all-new bracelet with a highly sophisticated fine-adjustment system that can extend or reduce the bracelet length by up to 1.5cm. Bove explains, “This new mechanism enables wearers to resize the bracelet so the watch can be worn over a wetsuit, or adjust the bracelet size on a hot summer day, without taking the watch off.” 

Vintage Yet Modern And Futuristic 

At first glance, you will not notice any major upgrades on the façade of the new Aquaracer, as it retains the signature dodecagonal silhouette of its predecessors. But look closer, and you will see that the designers at TAG Heuer have refined the bezel of the timepiece by integrating a new scratch-resistant ceramic insert, in addition to the fluted edges for a better grip and a more discreet look. The dial has also been updated, but it still sports the trademark horizontal pattern of the collection. The date aperture has been moved from three to six o’clock, the hour indices have been reshaped from rectangular to octagonal, and the sword-shaped hands have been given luminous inserts. One notable exception here is the blue-coloured 36mm Aquaracer, which features eight exquisite diamond hour markers. 

TAG Heuer Aquaracer SHOP THE COLLECTION

The seven new watches include 43mm and 36mm variants, while six of them are in stainless steel, and one is a special edition in titanium. This 43mm timepiece comes with a sandblasted matt-finished titanium case, a green sunray-brushed dial and a radial-brushed ceramic bezel insert. The combination of the green dial and the non-glaring titanium case makes the watch an instant eye-catcher and gives it a unique identity. 

What has not changed in this fully refreshed collection is the movement. TAG Heuer have chosen to equip all the iterations with their trusted and reliable automatic calibre 5, which has been part of many previous Aquaracer models. Based on the ETA 2824-2, the movement beats at the frequency of 28,800vph and provides a standard power reserve of 42 hours. It is hidden behind a solid caseback that helps ensure water resistance up to 300m, and features a motif of a diving helmet against a honeycomb pattern.

TAG Heuer Aquaracer SHOP THE COLLECTION

A Tribute To Reference 844

Alongside the seven iterations mentioned above, TAG Heuer have also introduced a limited edition to pay homage to their first-ever dive watch. The Reference 844 came into being in the mid-1970s when the brand were fighting to stay afloat due to the quartz crisis. Seeing the writing on the wall, Jack Heuer—then CEO of the brand—knew that he had to do something radical to save his company. It was then that he decided to enter the dive watch market for the first time. 

Heuer outsourced the initial production of the timepiece to a French watchmaking company called Georges Monnin, which built the watch with military looks and a captivating, red 24-hour scale on the dial. Presented in a 42mm stainless steel case, with a classic black rotating bezel, an automatic movement, a perforated black rubber strap, and water-resistant up to 200m, the timepiece became an instant hit, and it helped the company survive when they were struggling financially.

It’s to this watch and its enduring legacy that the new limited edition Aquaracer Professional 300 pays its sincere respect. Sized at 43mm, the timepiece comes with a grade-5 titanium case and features a polished bezel and vertically-brushed finishing. The overall design of the watch is almost similar to the aforementioned Aquaracer variants except for a red 24-hour scale on the flat black dial, vintage lume, and a black perforated rubber strap—design cues that are directly borrowed from the Reference 844.  

Stealing The Limelight  

The new iterations of Aquaracer are bold yet elegant, highly functional yet versatile. They’re essentially highly robust timepieces that set new standards for ergonomic, high-performance mechanical watches. During the presentation, Frédéric Arnault, the CEO of TAG Heuer, said that the chief reason for introducing a totally revamped Aquaracer collection is that they want it to achieve the same cult status that the brand’s racing chronographs—namely the Carrera and the Monaco—have attained. 

The new iterations of Aquaracer are bold yet elegant, highly functional yet versatile

They are essentially highly robust timepieces that set new standards for ergonomic, high-performance mechanical watches

A big reason for this updated Aquaracer is an attempt by the brand to achieve the same cult status that their racing chronographs—namely the Carrera and the Monaco—have attained

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He quipped, “We are conscious of the fact that today. Carrera and Monaco probably garner more attention; collectors and watch specialists get more excited with these watches. It’s one of the reasons for this launch. I believe there are great stories to tell with the Aquaracer and its whole history. We have a strong legitimacy in that segment. And we are also looking at repositioning it as a higher-end offering than it was in the past.”