06 April 2015 | Tudor , 5 minutes on the wrist , Go deeper! , Baselworld 2015

In my first post about the new Tudor North Flag I highlighted how the year 2015 will be remembered as a milestone in the history of the Tudor brand: from now on the Geneva based company will be no longer regarded as the “Cinderella” of the Rolex Group but rather as a true independent manufacturer with its very own identity. The ability to conceive and assemble fully in-house calibers is key to the development of the brand's independent production strategy. The first result of this concept is that all the manufacturer's new three-hand-timepieces have had or are about to have their robust sourced ETA 2824 caliber replaced by an in-house built one, thus making the brand even more attractive.

The Tudor Pelagos is one of the most successful timepieces ever released by Tudor. Despite being designed from scratch and not being part of the Heritage collection (although it reminds some models from the past thanks to its snowflake hands), which is easily recognizable and marketable thanks to its direct connection with the brand's historical models, the Pelagos has quickly stood out as one of the most appealing “affordable luxury” diver's watches thanks to a neat, and sober design and a passion for fine details.

The watch's satin finished titanium case sets it apart from a Submariner (please keep in mind that the retail price of the two timepieces is completely different) and would possibly appeal to those Rolex addicts who would never consider purchasing a Tudor. In quantifying the overall appeal of a watch I would say that an in-house movement would weigh more than 5% of the final score and the 2015 Tudor Pelagos scores high in this category as it sports the new MT5612 manufactured caliber (the last two digits are actually inverted because this caliber has no power reserve like the North Flag's caliber).

This is a movement with a maximum of 70 hours of power reserve, a variable inertia balance wheel and a silicon balance spring. By introducing this newly updated caliber the Swiss brand has achieved another great result as the Tudor Pelagos has now become a certified Chronometer. This is actually written on the new dial, where the wording “Pelagos” has appeared for the very first time.

The addition of the MT5612 caliber joins the introduction of a blue version of this watch, today's trend among luxury sport timepieces. Despite the fact that most brands have recently opted for a midnight, lacquered blue colour, Tudor has gone the opposite way and chosen a somewhat matte, light, pastel blue colour instead. This hue makes the watch appear brighter and perfectly fits the case's satin finish and the matte ceramic inlay as well. Between the black version and the blue one I would personally go for the latter one. When worn around the wrist the 2015 Tudor Pelagos confirms its newly acquired position as the king of the accessible diver's watches, it's the closest item you could replace a luxury sport watch with when wearing business attire.

It is hard to find a similar diver's watch in this price category featuring such a high quality standard like the 2015 Tudor Pelagos does. For a 4200€ retail price you are granted a watch sporting a nice bezel's ratcheting, an in-house built movement, water resistance up to 500m and the renowned patented extension system of the titanium bracelet plus a replacement rubber strap.

(Photo credit: Horbiter's proprietary photo-shooting)

Gaetano C. @Horbiter - Watches & Luxury

TWITTER @Gaetano Cimmino

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