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TAG Heuer’s Underrated Dive Watch Collection Gets a Titanium Upgrade

The Aquaracer is swimming with the big boys now.

Silver TAG Heuer Aquaracer watch with black and orange bezel and textured dial, side view on blue background.TAG Heuer
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By Brad Lanphear

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TAG Heuer commands as much respect as any tool watch brand out there, but these days that mostly applies to its chronographs and sports watches.

The Swiss brand has a rich history of dive watches, dating back to the 1978 Heuer Monnin and peaking with the Professional collection in the 1980s and 1990s. But the modern Aquaracer line has long flown, or rather swam, under the radar.

Black TAG Heuer Aquaracer watch face with orange accents and silver metal strap.
The Aquaracer Professional 500 packs an impressive performance upgrade in a familiar package.
TAG Heuer

Watches and Wonders Geneva: Rolex, Grand Seiko and dozens of other heavy hitters gather in Switzerland every year to release their biggest watches. Catch up on all the new novelties.

The new Aquaracer Professional 500 reasserts that the collection belongs in the same pool as fellow luxury divers like the Seamaster Diver 300m and the Fifty Fathoms. In fact, a new titanium case build offers a far more impressive depth rating while cutting weight.

At first glance, TAG Heuer’s upgraded diver is nearly indistinguishable from its steel 300m predecessor, and that’s kinda the point. The improved water resistance and reduced weight were achieved without altering the well-established dimensions and appearance.

Silver metal bracelet watch with black bezel and textured dark dial worn on a wrist.
The Aquarace Professional 500 retains the same 42mm case design as its steel 300m predecessor.
Image by Brad Lanphear for Gear Patrol

Signature elements like the ceramic dodecagonal unidirectional dive bezel, branded handset and applied octagonal and keystone hour marks remain unchanged. The lacquered dial plate even has the same 3D wavy texture, shimmering like uncalm water as it reacts to light.

A date window still lives at 6:00, equipped with a small “cyclops” magnifier, and the dial is framed by the same flat chapter ring.

It utilizes a case shape, complete with a subtle crown guard, that dates back to the quartz-powered Professional collection of the 1980s.

Black waters

The Aquaracer Professional 500 debuts with two color options, but it’s really a difference in accent color. Both references use the same black dial and black ceramic bezel with white Super-LumiNova inlays on the hands and hour markers.

Black dial dive watch with white and blue markers and a gray metal bracelet on a wrist.
The light blue reference uses the accent color on the 15-minute bezel graduation, the seconds hand and the crown warning.
Image by Brad Lanphear for Gear Patrol

One reference features light blue on the 15-minute bezel graduation, the seconds hand, the “Chronometer” wordmark on the dial and the crown warning ring. While the other uses orange in the same manner, but with a steel seconds hand and a colored chapter ring.

Going deeper

Another visual difference that hints at the material upgrade is the matte dark gray hue of the Grade 2 titanium case, crown, caseback and bracelet.

Silver TAG Heuer Aquaracer watch back with engraved diving helmet and text "500 meters," "Swiss made since 1860.
The titanium caseback is decorated with a relief of an antique diving helmet.
Image by Brad Lanphear for Gear Patrol

The screw-on titanium caseback is decorated with a relief of an antique diving helmet within a honeycomb mosaic. It protects the same COSC-certified TAG Heuer Caliber TH30-00 automatic movement used in the discontinued 1000m Superdiver.

The robust and well-tested movement beats at 4Hz and provides a 70-hour power reserve.

Another functional improvement over the Aquaracer Professional 300 is the addition of a helium escape valve at 10:00. This allows for saturation diving, making it a genuine “professional” dive watch.

Matte silver metal watch clasp with a pentagon-shaped logo and linked bracelet segments.
The three-link titanium bracelet has a convenient sliding dive extension in the clasp.
TAG Heuer

A cool feature that dates back to the old Professional collection is a dive extension built into the bracelet clasp. Where the old steel version folded out, the modern titanium three-link bracelet has a convenient sliding system that can be engaged without removing the watch.

Availability and pricing

A couple of decades on, the Aquaracer hasn’t managed to gain the respect held by the affordable, robust Professional collection a generation ago. This new titanium iteration should finally gain the recognition it deserves because it is damn impressive.

The TAG Heuer Aquaracer Professional 500 will be available this summer for $5,400. An email signup is available to be notified as soon as it drops.

Stainless steel TAG Heuer Aquaracer watch with black dial, orange accents, and date display at 6 o'clock.TAG Heuer

TAG Heuer Aquaracer Professional 500

Specs

Case Size 42mm
Movement TAG Heuer Caliber TH30-00 automatic
Water Resistance 500m
About the Author: Brad Lanphear is an associate editor at Gear Patrol covering watches and style. Before joining the publication, he previously wrote for Heddels and Men’s Health. Now, he’s on a never-ending quest to find the perfect pair of Japanese denim.

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