It’s not that often that this magazine have a dedicated focus on Alpina. The brand makes reliable, affordable watches…like many other brands. However, a recent model deserves a specific focus, for once. Because it’s a model for women. Coming from a brand that is recognized for its men portfolio, with robust design, it’s quite a challenge. And it gets even more interesting if this piece is a sport watch for ladies. A segment in which Alpina’s presence is pretty equal to nothing. And, in the end, it’s really intriguing when this watch appears to be a diver’s piece for ladies !
Alpina 300 Extreme Diver Midsize Orange – A true diver’s watch
The piece is called the « Alpina 300 Extreme Diver 300 Orange Midsize” – don’t ask us why there are two mentions of « 300 » within the same phrase ! It offers the main characteristics of a diver’s watch, such as the use of orange.
Orange is the most highly visible of all the colours in the spectrum, and particularly so when set against a dark, contrasting background. Water is responsible for the attenuation of light due to absorption. In other words, as one goes deeper on a dive, the water absorbs more color. Color vision is also affected by turbidity of the water as well as particulate matter. Orange is the most visible color in all types of water, and therefore offers the professional diver the best in dial and bezel visibility.
For a professional diver, good visibility isn’t just mildly important; it can be lifesaving. Being able to access important information relating to the time spent under water, or the number of minutes of air supply still available to the diver who is in deep or murky waters is essential.
Both models share a number of professional diving features. The Alpina 300 Extreme Diver Midsize Orange is water resistant to a depth of 300m/1000ft. It has a screw-in crown and a screw-down case-back, as well as a jet black polished unidirectional rotating 60min diving bezel. The bezel markers are luminous. Both models also feature an anti-reflective treated sapphire crystal.
Other shared features include the rich black dial and white luminous indexes. The bright white minute hand is bordered with luminouse orange, and the second hand has the signature Alpina triangle, also in orange, at the base. Finally, a large three-day date display is situated at the 3 o’clock position. It has an engraved case-back with a diving theme and divers have the choice between rubber or metal straps.
Alpina 300 Extreme Diver Midsize Orange – The final word
It was a serious bet Alpina took here. Diver’s watch for ladies is a small niche with huge players, such as Audemars Piguet. But Alpina decided not to play against this type of manufacture, which would have been a lost fight even before its inception. Instead, Alpina took the wise decision to stick to its core values, with a technical piece devoted to ladies’ wrists. Simple as that, and efficient.