Pound for Pound, This Could Be the Most Capable Dive Watch on the Market

Two years ago, Oris launched the Aquis Pro, the most capable and technically advanced dive watch in the history of the 120ish-year-old brand.

With an innovative patented bezel system and a 4,000m depth rating, it joined the ranks of other extreme luxury divers like the Rolex Deepsea and Omega Seamaster Planet Ocean Ultra Deep. And, like those watches, it isn’t exactly wearable as a daily watch, with a diameter of 49.5mm and a beastly thickness of 23.4mm. It’s also pricey, with its current $6,900 SRP sitting near the top of Oris’s lineup.

But now, Oris has expanded its nascent Aquis Pro line with a new, slightly less extreme version that’s a whole lot thinner and a good deal cheaper. For the money, it might just be the most capable diver on the market.

Oris

A little off the top

Oris’s new extreme diver is the Aquis Pro 1000M, which, as you’ve no doubt surmised, has a water resistance rating of 1,000m as opposed to the 4,000m rating of the original.

While not quite as eye-popping as 4,000m, a 1,000m depth rating is still pretty rare for a dive watch — the vast majority of brands don’t venture that deep. What’s more, it remains a far more water-resistant tool than you will ever need. The deepest dive ever performed by a human was 332.35m. The new Aquis Pro can go three times deeper than that, meaning your body will give out far sooner than the watch will when plummeting under the waves.

Of course, the best tradeoff in shaving off 3,000m of water resistance for the new Aquis Pro is that it results in a far thinner and more wearable watch. While by no means a small watch — the case maintains its intimidating 49.5mm diameter and 55mm lug-to-lug — case thickness has been reduced by nearly 3/4 of a centimeter, dropping from 23.4mm to 16.6mm.

Oris

That puts the watch in far more practical territory and squares it up quite nicely against what is arguably its closest competitor, the Omega Seamaster Ploprof, which has a depth rating of 1,200m, 55mm x 45mm case dimensions, and a thickness of 15.5mm. But here’s where the Oris really shines: The Aquis Pro 1000M is priced at just $4,100, just over a quarter of the price of the $16,100 Omega.

In addition to the reduced water resistance, thinner case and lower price tag, there are a few other things to note on the Aquis Pro 1000M, like what else has changed and what’s stayed the same.

For changes, we have a new case treatment. While the multi-part case is still made of lightweight titanium, it now features a gray PVD coating, giving it more of a toolish look. The crystal, while still an AR-coated sapphire domed on both sides, has been slimmed down considerably, now sitting nearly flush with the bezel, whereas before, it rose above it by several millimeters.

Oris

Inside, there’s a new movement, which has helped reduce the cost of the new watch. While the Aquis Pro 4000M uses an in-house Oris Cal. 400 automatic, the Pro 1000M goes with a Sellita SW200-1-based Oris Cal. 733 auto. With a 41-hour power reserve, the movement lacks the bells and whistles of the Calibre 400, but it’s a tried-and-true workhorse and is considerably more affordable.

That’s just about it for changes; the rest of the 1,000-meter watch is basically the same as the original Aquis Pro. It retains the patented Rotation Safety System (RSS) locking bezel that must be lifted to be turned to prevent accidental adjustments while underwater, and it keeps the same fully lumed, gradient ceramic bezel insert.

It also features the same gradient blue, wave-patterned dial, and the same luminous handset and applied markers. The date window remains at 6:00, but it’s been changed from white text on a black disc to black on white. The rehaut is also now coated in gray PVD on the new watch and features the name “Aquis Pro” in blue. Lastly, the watch still includes the same two blue and black rubber straps, along with the tool required to change them.

Oris

Pricing and availability

As stated previously, the new Oris Aquis Pro 1000M is priced at $4,100, which feels like a bargain for a luxury dive watch so technically advanced. Finding something comparable from Rolex, Omega or Blancpain is a wallet-hurting endeavor, and I hope to see Oris explore this space more in the future to further cement its foothold as one of the best values in Swiss luxury watchmaking.

Oris

Oris Aquis Pro 1000M

Specs

Case Size	49.5mm
Movement	Oris Cal. 733 automatic (Sellita base)
Water Resistance	1,000m

• $4,100 at Oris

Want to stay up to date on the latest product news and releases? Add Gear Patrol as a preferred source to ensure our independent journalism makes it to the top of your Google search results.

Related Topics