ON THE WRIST: TAG Heuer Aquaracers at Bicester Village

WAP2014.BA0830        WBD2111.BA0928        WAY201D.BA0927

TAG Heuer Outlet / Bicester Village, 4th December 2019

Three distinctly different and interesting Calibre 5 Aquaracers to look at today, so let's get into it...

WAY201D.BA0927

I'm surprised to see this 'Premier League Matchtimer' Aquaracer in the store already, it's funny how some watches are making their way to the outlets relatively quickly while others take forever; but sometimes, especially with these kind of 'Special Edition / Limited Edition' there can be contractual limits on the time they are for sale, or maybe it just means there's a replacement model on the way and they want the old pieces off the shelf to make way for new stock. Regardless, even though I haven't watched football regularly since about 1981, I really like this watch!

Sized at 43mm, this has plenty of wrist presence and the black polished ceramic bezel insert looks fantastic. Those alternating solid and hollow minute markers look pretty neat and the red 'Extra Time' portion of the bezel creates an extra bit of colour interest. Similarly the red second hand and point details around the dial continue the theme, while the red minute hand accentuates the watch's 'Match Timer' function; simply turn the bezel so that the '12' lines up with the minute hand at the start of the game and use the bezel to time the halves.

This one has a list price of £2350, but at the moment this watch is available at the Bicester Village outlet for £1645.

WAP2014.BA0830

On the face of it you would be forgiven for thinking that this watch was perhaps a little dull, flanked as it is by two very distinctive and eye-catching designs. But in truth, this relatively simple grey dial Aquaracer is by far the hardest of the three to source or to find any information about on the internet. This is the perfect Aquaracer for someone who wants something a 'little' different, but wants to keep it stylish and business like. Sure most people won't realise that your Aquaracer isn't the standard run of the mill model available in every high street jeweller, but maybe that's the way you like it? I certainly thought it looked quite attractive, you can't really go wrong with a dark grey dial and it would make a perfect 'only watch' for someone who wants something that goes with absolutely everything in their wardrobe.

Dial aside there isn't much to say about this one is it really is just your bog standard Calibre 5 Aquaracer with a grey dial, but if that tickles your fancy this one is currently available for £1300, which is a £700 (35%) saving off its £2000 list price.

WBD2111.BA0928

I really don't know what this one is doing in the outlets already, it doesn't seem five minutes since it was released. This is the smaller, 41mm version of the TAG Heuer Aquaracer 'Explorer II', which makes it ideal for those who found the original 43mm a little on the large side and who didn't want to purchase the 41mm quartz model.

This is a very nice watch and I think, of the three, this is the one I would go for. Normally I would be quite happy to go with the quartz model, but unfortunately the battery powered version has a rather flat, lifeless variation of this dial which does away with the horizontal slats and I can't say that I care for it much at all. You wouldn't think it would make that much difference, but it really does.

At one time I was saving with an eye to purchase the 43mm version of this, but I got sidetracked by other things and in a way I'm kinda glad, because now that I've finally seen this (I have never actually seen the 41mm Calibre 5 in a proper shop, believe it or not) I think 41mm is perhaps the better option. No doubt by the time I get my fund back up to where it needs to be this will be long gone, but never mind I can't buy everything and you never know what else is just around the corner...

The WBD2111 is currently available at Bicester Village for £1225, down from £1795.