Some Rolex sellers are asking more than retail for the new D-Blue Deepsea. It had us wondering, is it just cool looking or is there a deeper meaning? So we went diving for the answer…
What do the colors on the D-Blue dial represent?
The blue at the top of the new D-Blue dial (Ref: 116660/126660) is the sea we see from the surface. The gradient into black signifies the darkness at great depths (great depths is an understatement considering this watch can go 0.7 leagues under the sea – that converts to about 3,900m for the non-Jules Verne readers), the bright green DEEPSEA represents James Cameron’s submersible expedition vehicle during the Rolex Deepsea Challenge.
In Rolex’s own words:
“James Cameron’s submersible was carrying a specially made experimental Rolex Deepsea Challenge watch on its hydraulic manipulator arm and two others attached to its hull. By scaling up the technology developed for the Rolex Deepsea divers’ watch, waterproof to 3,900 metres (12,800 feet), Rolex engineers created an experimental model capable of withstanding the crushing pressure of about 12 tonnes on the crystal. The Rolex Deepsea Challenge watches emerged unharmed from this cold, dark and barren world some 11 kilometres (7 miles) below the surface of the Pacific Ocean. They kept time perfectly throughout nearly seven hours beneath the water, as Cameron demonstrated by looking at the watch on the manipulator arm at the bottom of the Mariana Trench.”
It is worth it to get the D-Blue VS the black dial?
The only difference between the “Cameron” and the original black Deepsea is the dial. Same movement (Rolex cal. 3135), same 44mm x 18mm 904L stainless steel case, same titanium caseback with the same text, same tapered bracelet.
The slight touch of blue and green font might be enough for you to drool over it, but is it enough for you to lose money over? There is a lot of market hype over the D-Blue dial, but it’s just that: hype. Unless you really have a thing for blue or tagging #mondayblues on Instagram.
Sure, it’s a thing of beauty, but this isn’t a limited edition piece and it doesn’t even have its own reference number. So, before you go rushing to pay over retail for a splash of blue, don’t forget to take a second look at the original black dial DSSD – which you can probably get at a bargain price while everyone else is overpaying for the blue. Retail price at the time of this post: $12,350 USD.
Additional Resources:
network of watch sites
