Sometimes we lose sight of the fact that our enthusiast romance associated with a mechanical movement can be another’s annoyance. Our beloved rituals of winding and setting, feeling the grinding clicks in your fingertips, and double-checking you’ve set it correctly can act as a barrier to entry for some, leaving a mechanical watch inside a dresser drawer. That is why I am a proponent of luxury brands exploring quartz calibers, particularly within their more popular collections. Removing that barrier and often lowering its price point means that the watch and the hobby as a whole can be accessed by more people, which is the ultimate goal, after all. All that being said, if a luxury brand is going to make a quartz watch and charge a luxury price, you have to make it a good one.
Stepping off of my soap box, I’ll happily admit that when TAG Heuer released the Aquaracer with a solar quartz caliber inside, I too scoffed at the price and questioned its purpose. While the design language spoke to me with its warmly hued titanium construction and tasteful accents, I just didn’t understand why TAG Heuer would charge a price many multiples of what other solar quartz calibers commonly sell for. That was until I had the opportunity to have a period of hands-on time with it. I found myself enjoying its lightweight yet solid construction, the fun application of lume, and even became a bit enamored by the angular case lines, which had previously been a bit off-putting. So when I saw that TAG Heuer was releasing the model in steel and an even more accessible price point I was interested and waited for the editorial reviews to hit the web. Few ever did.
So here we are, steel solar quartz Aquaracer on wrist for a review of a watch that the enthusiast community seems to have zoomed past. But should they have?
My first impression of the long-titled TAG Heuer Aquaracer Professional 200 Solargraph was that it felt a bit cheaper than I was expecting. The polished centerlinks, the visually soft faceted case edge, the rounded inside edge of the lugs, and the slightly clunky articulation of the bracelet all felt borrowed from a lesser brand than I would expect from one with such historical pedigree. While a lot of enthusiasts may not regard TAG Heuer as a power house luxury brand, it remains one of the most recognizable names in the industry worldwide and stands as an entry into luxury watches for many. So when arguably the biggest touchpoint of the watch, the bracelet, doesn’t feel quite how you want it to, it is a big deal. But in opening up the clasp and sliding it onto the wrist, the watch immediately starts to make a lot of sense.
It just wears incredibly well. Slightly lighter and noticeably thinner than its contemporaries by way of the Solarquartz TH50-00 caliber, the Aquaracer Professional 200 is meant to be a comfortable grab-and-go option for those who want a dressier diver. The mixed finishing of the overall package is well suited for a boardroom-to-beach approach which cleverly aligns with TAG Heuer’s target demographic of “sporty professionals”. At 40mm in diameter, the case offers ample presence wearing true to size but does conform to the wrist nicely thanks to its slightly curved architecture. Its 9.97mm thickness means the watch can easily slide under a shirt cuff, leaving some of its angled design visible for a bit of showiness. Measuring 48mm from lug to lug, it doesn’t overextend itself and remains versatile for those with medium to large-sized wrists. An oddly asymmetrical case, TAG Heuer leans on a raised case side to counterweight the large crown guards flanking the large screw-down crown at 3 o’clock. It is around these two features though that the case finishing transitions a bit differently than I would have expected.
Running the length of each case edge is a small faceted polished edge breaking up the fine vertical brushing otherwise dominating its appearance. At the case’s center, the polished line is at its slimmest, slowly broadening as it runs toward the lugs and eventually falling off its side edge. Oddly enough though, when looking at the watch head-on, the facet almost appears largest at its center due to the facet slowly rotating from the case’s top surface in favor of the case side. I know that description may not translate to text all that well, but trust me when I say that it has the effect of softening the edges and making it not appear as visually crisp as you might want from a watch of this stature. Apart from this slight annoyance, case finishing is on par with others in its category if not slightly better. If it matters to you, and to be clear it does to me, the caseback on this model is quite nice with its deeply embossed compass.
An instantly recognizable staple of the model, the dodecagonal bezel sits atop the case with shallow grooves still offering decent grip. Due to its straight lines not matching the slightly curved angles of the case, they don’t quite line up at their points which visually bothers me but does not inhibit your finger’s grip like some others out there with angled designs. Despite the thin overall design, the bezel still keeps a pleasant thickness and tactile feel. Confidently snapping into place, the 60-click unidirectional bezel has excellent action utilizing its flat portions as solid resting points. Set inside, the steel bezel insert with black recessed markers is well-finished with radial brushing that comes to life before the case does in direct light. The effect elevates the look of the Aquaracer as in lower-lit conditions you can really start to appreciate these small details.
A flat sapphire crystal with a decent antireflective coating holds guard over the dial beneath. The standout feature for me, this dial blends texture and color in a well-balanced way that contrasts the rest of the design. Dark grey with an ever so slight blue tone, the dial is separated into two levels with a raised minute track holding printed minute markers surrounding the rest of the dial details. Deep horizontal striations run across the semi-translucent surface adding depth with the topmost surface being further finished with a fine sunburst effect. The polished applied hour markers with a central facet are generously filled with white lume contrasting the darker details surrounding them. At 3, the index is cut short in favor of a date window revealing a color-matched date wheel beneath. Following suit, the hour and minute hands are polished with a central facet and generous portion of lume while the pale blue tapering seconds hand ticks above. Dial text is quite heavy though utilizes a mixture of applications to diminish its presence. At 12, the TAG Heuer logo is polished and applied with Aquaracer printed in white above while at 6, “Solargraph” is printed in pale blue above a white-printed water resistance callout of 200 meters or 660 feet. Legibility is fantastic thanks to the heavy contrast in detail while the pale blue seconds, five-minute marks, and dial text add a fun pop of color without overpowering the design. The same is true at night when the white lume shines brightly. The hour indices and hour hand shine a pale green while the minute hand and fully lumed second hand shine in blue to aid in quicker legibility. It is both a charming and effective display that screams of its years of refinement.
Though you may not notice at first, the dial is semitranslucent to allow the solar cells hidden beneath to gather and generate power for the quartz caliber inside. Borrowing technology from the Citizen brand, the TH50-00 is based on the E168, a tried and true reliable caliber powered by any light source. They claim that just 20 hours of charging is enough to keep this watch ticking for six months, again playing into its grab-and-go nature and adding peace of mind. This also comes with an accuracy of +/- 15 seconds per month making it truly set it and forget it, that is until the dreaded daylight savings time shakes things up twice a year. Some have been quick to criticize the caliber’s origins versus the asking price, though personally, I see it as a positive that it is a proven caliber, developed by the proven maker La Joux-Perret, in a lightweight package.
Despite my gripes, I find myself enjoying the Aquaracer Professional 200 quite a bit. While the brand name may come with some baggage in the enthusiast arena, TAG Heuer still produces solid offerings with unique visuals. Sure, this particular Aquaracer may not be the hardcore dive watch that some may want, but what it lacks in ruggedness it makes up for with dressy details that ultimately serve the greater market better. To boil it all down, this model just wears so incredibly well. When I put it on my wrist, I forget that it is there until I need the time, and then find myself really enjoying its visuals.
At $2,500, there is a ton of competition out there that in many ways outstacks the Aquaracer in terms of specifications and perhaps your preference in design. But if this model resonates with you, it is an absolutely solid choice and certainly one that I believe others should go back and take a look at. Don’t let the titanium model continue to outshine it, the Aquaracer Professional 200 Solarquartz is just as good in steel. TAG Heuer
