Watch Of The Week: The New Rolex Oyster Perpetual Deepsea Challenge

Photo Credit: Courtesy of Rolex

The Rolex Oyster Perpetual Deepsea Challenge is the divers’ watch that defies the limits.

The Oyster Perpetual Deepsea Challenge was unveiled by filmmaker and explorer James Cameron. The watch was inspired by the experimental watch that accompanied him on his historic 10,908-meter (35,787-foot) descent into the Mariana Trench on 26 March 2012. The Deepsea Challenge represents a new milestone in the world of Rolex divers’ watches.

Photo Credit: Courtesy of Rolex

This watch has a waterproof guaranteed for up to a depth of 11,000 meters (36,090 feet), is crafted from RLX Titanium, and is equipped with a helium escape valve and the Ringlock system. This makes the watch capable of accompanying divers in any environment – during open-water diving, submersible dives or in hyperbaric chambers.

The Oyster Perpetual Deepsea Challenge is designed to turn pressure into an ally in any situation, and an invitation to expand yet further the horizons of the deep.

While the experimental watch of 2012 was attached to the manipulator arm of James Cameron’s submersible, the Deepsea Challenge is designed to be worn on the wrist. From the production of the case to that of the bracelet, each element of this 50 mm watch has been crafted with everyday use in mind. Thanks to the robust and lightweight composition of RLX titanium the new watch is 30% lighter than the experimental model of 2012.

Photo Credit: Courtesy of Rolex

The Deepsea Challenge incorporates the full spectrum of Rolex’s expertise in divers watches. It includes all the major innovations developed by the brand over many years: the Ringlock system, a patented case architecture that enables the watch to withstand extreme pressure; the helium escape valve, which allows surplus gas to escape from the watch during a diver’s decompression phase in a hyperbaric chamber, reducing the pressure inside the case which could otherwise damage the watch and more.

At the heart of the Oyster case is caliber 3230, a movement entirely developed and manufactured by Rolex. Thanks to its barrel architecture and the escapement’s superior efficiency, caliber 3230 offers a power reserve of approximately 70 hours.

The Deepsea Challenge is engraved with the words “Mariana Trench” as well as the dates “23-01-1960” and “26-03-2012” on the case back, in tribute to two historic dives into the Mariana Trench: that of oceanographer Jacques Piccard and U.S. Navy Lieutenant Don Walsh aboard the Trieste, in 1960, and James Cameron’s solo descent in DEEPSEA CHALLENGER, in 2012. Both expeditions took experimental Rolex watches with them.

Photo Credit: Courtesy of Rolex

The Deepsea Challenge marks a new milestone in the human and technical adventure that Rolex engineers and deep-sea explorers have shared for decades.