INTRODUCING: Maurice Lacroix Pontos S Diver

The fan-favourite diving watch is making a comeback by popular demand.

With the phenomenal success of its Aikon collection, one can hardly fault Maurice Lacroix for focusing a tad too much on the mid-range luxury sports watch. Unfortunately, this is often at the expense of other fan favourites like the Pontos S Diver, which was discontinued a few years after its 2013 debut. Therefore, it’s a welcome surprise that the model is making a comeback, albeit with a few tweaks, purportedly due to numerous customers’ requests the Jura-based brand has received.

During the development phase of the new Pontos S Diver, Maurice Lacroix roped in ML Crew member Lidija Lijic, a world champion freediver who holds the record for staying underwater for five minutes and 43 seconds. While the brand is vague when it comes to Lijic’s specific inputs on the design of the watch, one cannot deny that the revamped diver comes in a more versatile and attractive package than the original, one that looks just as good on land as it functions in the deep blue.

While it retains the inaugural model’s vintage-style dual-crown and internal rotating bezel, its dial is more striking than before, with crisp, elongated markers and facetted hands coated with Super-LumiNova to enhance its eligibility. The date window at 6 o’clock has also been updated, colour-matched with the dial for a more cohesive look. Marked with a count-up scale, the internal rotating bezel can be adjusted via the dedicated crown at 2 o’clock to measure the elapsed time spent underwater.

Perhaps to make the new Pontos S Diver more suitable for everyday wear, its 42mm case is 1mm smaller than the original’s and slightly thinner at 12mm. As a result, the Pontos S Diver no longer has a helium escape valve like its predecessor, and its water resistance has been reduced by half to 300m. This might be a deal-breaker for some saturation diving enthusiasts, but the new specs are more than sufficient to satisfy most tool watch lovers.

Currently available in stainless steel or, for the first time, bronze, the Pontos S Diver is equipped with the self-winding ML115 calibre, a reliable movement with a 38-hour power reserve. For the launch, the steel models come with a choice of white lacquered or black grained dial options, each supplied with three colour-coordinated straps – one in nylon with tone-on-tone stitching and two in rubber. Limited to 500 pieces, the bronze model, on the other hand, comes with two straps, one in vintage dark blue leather and the other in dark blue rubber. The brand’s Easy Strap Exchange System makes switching up the watches’ styles a breeze without any tools. 

All things considered, there’s a lot to love about the new Pontos S Diver, even though the revamp didn’t come without some sacrifices. Nonetheless, Maurice Lacroix should be applauded for listening to its customers and bringing back an enhanced version of a well-loved model. It certainly is an excellent alternative for those who are suffering from integrated bracelet fatigue.

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