Launched at this year’s Monaco Yacht Show, the Diver Chronometer is Ulysse Nardin’s latest timepiece that really speaks loud and true with respect to just how much quality this watchmaker has to offer. This new and fresh timepiece combines the look and feel of a true ocean-goer with the technical brilliance that we’ve all come to love and expect from Ulysse Nardin. The Diver Chronometer is, perhaps, one of Ulysse Nardin’s most appealing pieces as of late, and whilst it doesn’t carry with it the extremely intricate engineering of the Executive Tourbillon Free Wheel we featured a few weeks back, it is, of course, a certified chronometer.
The Diver Chronometer is available in four different versions, two of which are limited editions. The first limited edition is the Diver Chronometer Great White, with a picture of a great white shark stamped on the caseback. Its titanium case measures a very wearable 44mm in diameter. This is a beautiful timepiece whose monochromatic colour combination is really quite appealing to me. The touches of blue on the grey textured dial do just enough to break up the visceral palate of whites and greys. The Diver Chronometer Great White is made in a limited run of only 300-pieces and costs $12,850.
The second limited edition is the Diver Chronometer Monaco, a piece that actually features the Monegasque flag at the top of the dial at 12 o’clock. The caseback also has the Monaco coat-of-arms, and while the Diver Chronometer Great White had a softer look to it, I think the Diver Chronometer Monaco is a far bolder timepiece that can definitely be called a statement piece. It shares with it the same dimensions as the Diver Chronometer Great White, but this time it has a titanium black PVD case, a rose-gold crown and bezel and, of course, a black dial. The Diver Chronometer Monaco is made in a limited run of 100-pieces and costs $18,050.
The last two Diver Chronometer releases are actually production pieces, and the deep-blue and all-black variants exude the true genome of Ulysse Nardin. I find myself taking a bit more of a liking to these two non-limited pieces. Perhaps it’s because I can relate to Ulysse Nardin a bit more through them, or perhaps because I’m a stickler for originality. Either option comes with a 44mm wide titanium case, and either a blue or black dial (with matching rubber strap). The price for the standard Diver Chronometer is $11,400.
All of the Diver Chronometer pieces are powered by Ulysse Nardin’s manufacture movement, the calibre UN-118. This is a wonderful movement that has been chronometer certified, has a power reserve of 60-hours, and features the passing hours, minutes, seconds, as well as displaying the date and the power reserve.
As far as wearable diver’s watches go, the Diver Chronometer really is right up there with the best of them. An avant-garde, eyebrow-raising, almost “what-the” choice, but definitely one that will serve you well, in the ocean and on land.
Ratings:
Movement: 4/5
Aesthetics: 4/5
Wearability: 3/5
Affordability: 3/5
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