Baselworld 2017: Patek Philippe Advanced Research Aquanaut Travel Time 5650G Watch

By Jovan Krstevski

It’s seldom we hear about it but for Patek Philippe, a watchmaker who showcases their research on a watch, it’s just an ordinary day for Baselworld 2017. So without further ado, here is the Patek Philippe Advanced Research Aquanaut Travel Time 5650G Watch designed to exhibit the brand’s latest innovations and material developments in watchmaking. It contains 2 developments being introduced namely a Spiromax balance spring and a flexible mechanism for 2nd timezone setting. The first one uses a new material called Silinvar which is basically a silicon variant developed by Patek. Plus this watch is also the first to have a partially open dial on the left side. Well, if you want to exhibit something this is the proper way to do it.

The watch comes with a 40.8mm wide 18k white gold case with combined brushed and polished finishes. At 11mm, it’s not too thick at all for a watch this caliber. Moreover, the case guarantees water-resistance of 120m. By design, it’s magnificent with 2 pushers on the lest side. the crown has a protective guard and the bezel is just perfect. The lugs nicely hugs the night-blue strap which is very cool.

As for the partially openworked bright blue dial sporting an embossed pattern and light-to-dark color gradation, all I can say is that it serves its purpose quite well. Being a travel watch, it can display multiple timezones without a hitch and with very effective legibility. As for the skeletonized left side, well, it really does look quite odd since it shows off very little details. Moreover, I like the day/night indicator for both time zones located near the 9 and 3 o’clock. The lumed hands and the thin seconds hand look fantastic against the blue background and the sharp Arabic numerals and distinctive indices with white highlights.

What’s very interesting is the watch’s power source which is the 324 S C FUS movement which is funny because this is being used on non-Advanced Research models. Perhaps it’s the new technologies added to it which are the ones mentioned in the first paragraphs.

Technically, the Spiromax dual terminal curve Silinvar balance spring is the star in this timepiece. Other than its proprietary material known as Silinvar, it sports 2 terminal curves and an inner boss which happens to be Patek’s improvement for the isochronism of the balance in vertical orientations. This breakthrough allows the movement to have a superb accuracy of –1/+2 seconds per day, this is really impressive, to say the least.

Not to mention other upgrades also include flexible mechanisms based on steel material to be used on the pivots and leaf springs. The brand managed to make an assembly of only 12 parts for the new mechanism. It has also lubricant-free functionality that greatly improves the overall performance of the mechanical movement by reducing friction.

If we examine closely, some features of the watch have been introduced on early models but then again being Patek, innovation is the key. The name alone signals the brand’s dedication in improving its watch collections.

Finally, the Patek Philippe Advanced Research Aquanaut Travel Time 5650G watch is limited to only 500 pieces. At $59,000 a piece, I don’t see you may be interested in grabbing one. For more info, please visit patek.com