ON THE WRIST: TAG Heuer Aquaracer Solargraph 'Green Dial' Quartz Watch

 

TAG Heuer Boutique / 28th September 2024, Meadowhall, Sheffield

When the green Solargraph was announced I must admit I was a teeny bit concerned that maybe I had rushed into buying the Calibre 5 version. I've always said that given the choice of two identical watches one quartz, one automatic, I would probably choose the quartz... and a solar powered quartz appeals even more. 

But generally speaking there never really is a choice of identical looking watches is there? So the question that required answering here was primarily how do the two dials compare, and secondly was the light blue second hand a deal breaker?

Taking the second question first, I'd have to say while I'm not crazy about it, the second hand isn't an issue for me. It's something I would prefer wasn't there, but I think I could get used to it. But the dial is another matter.

Back when the blue dial Solargraph came out I remember being quite shocked at how it appeared in person. Not only was it rather unsatisfactory to the eye, but worse than that it looked 'cheap'. Hardly a positive when you are talking about a £2000 watch... and, sadly I have to say, not only does the green version of the watch also look 'cheap', but to me it looks even worse than the blue one. 

As promised in my 'First Impressions' post a week or so ago, I did indeed wear my Calibre 5 to get a side by side comparison, and while my pictures aren't exactly magazine standard, it was damning enough that four of the COCO members reduced their scores on the spot. 

You may remember that one of the members even commented that the dial reminded him of the thick, glossy paint they use to paint park benches, and he pretty much hit the nail on the head. As it happens, my garage door is painted with green enamel paint and with the vertical slats there's more than a hint of similarity about them. 

I mean, I get that there are limitations to what can be done with the dials on the Solargraphs and these were never going to share the fumé look of the Calibre 5, but even so...

So in a way it's kind of a relief that I don't regret buying my green Calibre 5, but at the same time it gives me no pleasure to say that this is one of my least favourite TAG Heuer watches released this year. And to be 100% honest I can't really see why anyone preparing to spend £2050 on this wouldn't reach a little deeper into their pocket and find the extra necessary £750 to upgrade to either the original carbon version (that I have) or the titanium version, both of which are far superior watches in my opinion.