Rolex Submariner All Blue, Blue Than Ocean

Auction houses are always well-informed. I still remember that one month before the launch of Patek Philippe 5296, a rare Patek Philippe 570 with the same “rail-track” dial fetched a high price in a sale. Right before Patek Philippe 5565 unveiled, a stunning white gold Patek Philippe 565 appeared in another sale. It appeared to me that Rolex have also joined the game, with vintage Rolex Submariner All Blue paving the way for an all-new one. Just concidence? I don’t think so.

Any way, I like this new Rolex Submariner All Blue a lot.

The blue dial, blue bezel and blue luminous material shine under dim light conditions

I don’t feel anything wrong with the rare old All Blue but as always, stainless steel is not my type.The new All Blue is in white gold, thus catering for my desire of “weight”. With a modern savour, it is indeed the first white gold Rolex Submariner since the collection was launched almost 60 years ago.

Rolex’s move to think beyond steel and yellow gold to embrace more noble materials for their sports watches are in line with the taste and requirement of modern time. In 2007, a white gold high jewelly variation was added to GMT Master II for the first time; in 2008 the debut of pink gold Daytona and white gold Submariner to give more choices to consumers.

Life is meaningless for those being too calculative, though many people say Rolex steel sports watch keeps value better, I don’t really care.

The Rolex “Green Crystal” would be my cup of tea if it were in solid gold, and although I’ve bought the “Green Bezel” Submariner for years, it has been on my wrist for less than 2 hours in total. My love of “weight” has always driven me to solid gold watches. Then one day, when I found there were no Patek Philippe or A. Lange Sohne that I would buy in this ciity, my friend manager Yee took this new “All Blue ” out from his secret drawer, that left me with no choice but so sign but to sign on the bill.

It’s a watch that I would never regret buying.

Uni-directional bezel and crew-down crown

The blue is marvelous. It is featured on both the white gold and yellow gold variations of the 2008 model, and is different from the metallic tone previously used on Submariner. It bears a savour of ceramic, rendering a gentle charm. If the old blue could be describled as imposing, then this new blue is taming. The uni-directional bezel is made of ceramic, and the dial colour, as I believe, is made so to match the bezel. Water resistant to 1,000 meters, I could envisage the enticing charm of this blue under deep water.

31 jewels Rolex Caliber 3135 movement

The movement inside, the 31 jewels Rolex Caliber 3135 movement, features the patented Parachrom hairspring also used on the new GMT Master II, and Paraflex shock absorber. All these ensure seamless performance. The testing data is the proof, but it is indeed not needed. If the latest Rolex did not run well, then don’t expect any other brands would do.

The blue on white gold Submariner bears an elegant and subtle charm

The piece’s basic design doesn’t offer much new stuff to mention. If I could make some changes, I would take away the date and magnifier on the glass, or at least change the date disc to blue for the sake of harmony.

The Oyster bracelet on Rolex Submariner All Blue, on the other hand, impresses me a lot. Without any tools it could be adjusted for over one inch in length. Pull out the inner cover and push or pull along the track inside and that is it. Many people know this new device from Sea Dweller Deep Sea, the oversized steel watch, but not many know it’s also featured on the solid gold bracelet of this Submariner, too.

The bracelet’s length can be adjusted easily

Since the new century, Rolex have meticulously, and discreetly, applied many refinements on the watch details. The surprise, thus, belongs to those who actually buy the watches. There are not many, if not none, watch brands that would strive for innovations to enhance users’ convenience, and technical breakthrough to enhance the watches’ operating performance.

Tags: All Blue, Caliber 3135, GMT Master II, Rolex, Sea Dweller Deep Sea, Submariner

This entry was posted on May 19, 2010 at 2:48 am and is filed under Use of Watch. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.