Posted by 
Aqua better than Tico, or a short review of Nautilus from Aquatico
For as long as I can remember, I have a problem making decisions if the choice involves more than two things. Here the manufacturer himself came to the rescue, who sent me to test the model he had chosen. Since I can remember, I also have a weakness for diver watches. I have several requirements for such a watch. The most important of these is the overall look. An important element for me is also the type of material from which the bezel insert is made. I prefer ceramic inserts or covered with sapphire glass. Unlike painted aluminum bezels, we can be calm that the watch will keep its aesthetics for a long time. The quality of workmanship is also important, but I will mention it in a moment.
The watch was sent in October and it had to face many interesting stories, because its journey resembled an Odyssey, after which it came to me in early January.
Box
Here I will link you to Konrad’s review, where the object of his tests was another Aquatico model —> click. I will only add that my pillow is prettier.
Case
The width of the case is 44 mm without crown, and its lug 2 lug size is 53 mm and it looks massive, although due to the bezel and the downward-curved ears, the watch doesn’t wear large and it has nothing like the 44mm JR Terrascope, which I have in my collection.
The bezel is 120 clicks and its work is really nice to use. It seems to me that among all Aquatico models I had in my hand (Konrad models), the bezel in Nautilus works best. The bezel is nicely shaped, and its lateral milling prevents fingers from sliding on it when turning. The ceramic insert is dark blue, or even navy blue, which contrasts very strongly with the Superluminova C3 fillings. Luma is evenly distributed, which is not standard in this price shelf. It glows green and very intense, after which it weakens, but so that there is no problem reading the time in the morning in a darkened room. The only downside associated with the bezel insert, which I noticed after a few days is the rather uneven number “5” at “50” on the bezel. Its upper part is as if too narrow relative to the rest of the font.
I was positively surprised by the finish of the case. It’s almost completely satin, but the upper edges, led from the lugs, have been gently rounded and polished, which is in my opinion a nice idea – breaking the homogeneous structure -.
At three o’clock there is a screw down crown with a characteristic dolphin, embedded in a metal crown guard, which protects against mechanical damage that could result from hitting this part of the case. The crown is operated comfortably, it is influenced by the size of the crown, as well as properly shaped cutters. On the opposite side we will find an automatic helium valve, which is slowly becoming the standard in watches above 300M.
The case back is full, steel, screwed and described. In the middle is the company logo we already know.
The watch is not overly thick if we consider its water resistance of 500M. The case height is 14.5 mm, which is an acceptable result for me. It doesn’t stick out far from the wrist.
Movement
The heart of the watch is the Seiko NH-35 movement. It is a movement quite often found in microbrands, because it is relatively cheap, with a fairly simple structure and at the same time extremely durable. It has features that every modern movement should have – the stop second, date stamp, hand winding from the crown. In the previous review you can read the note about the accuracy of this verse, mounted by Aquatico. My copy confirms that it has been well regulated at the factory; daily deviation is approx. + 5 seconds per day.
Dial
I look at the dial through flat sapphire glass with a very good double layer of anti-reflection. The manufacturer called this model Nautilus II Blue White, which may suggest that the watch face is white. This is not exactly the true. The only white element of the dial is a ring with a minute scale, where for contrast every 5 minutes there are numbers in red.
I would describe the color of the dial as pearly. It is definitely not white. Its structure resembles a delicate radial cut, which is an advantage for me, because it shimmers nicely when we look at the watch from different angles. The applied indices are evenly spaced relative to bezel and minute scale. The indices have been filled with green Superlumin C3, so we can be calm about the quality of light. It may not be as strong as in my Steelfish Breitling, but Aquatico is nothing to be ashamed of (compare luma with Eterna Kontiki below). Sword hands have been matted and are also filled with the same type of luma.
The disproportion between the minute and hour hands looks interesting. For some, the hour hand may seem too small, although not the slightest difficulty reading the time. At the end of the second hand, there is a red arrowhead (filled with luma), which, together with the above-mentioned numbers on the outer ring and the inscription 500M, introduces some “life” into the reception of the dial.
At three o’clock there is a date window with a frame. The date background is white, which seems a sensible move, given the shade of the dial. Next to the date stamp, the manufacturer tried to push the index. I will honestly say that as a luminous fan and looking for flavors, I felt very much about it. I enjoy such ideas when I see them on my watch that cost $ 299.
Bracelet
Most of you probably know that I am a typical “bracelet man”, so I can speak quite professionally about these. The surface is satin, and the structure is identical to that in the case. The bracelet itself seems to be light, compared to the case, and it crossed my mind that it may be of some other alloy than steel. However, I compared it with the bracelets Eterna and Breitling, after which it turned out that this was just an impression 🙂
The width of the masks at the case is 24 mm. The endlinks sit very tightly in lugs, which is a big plus, because this is not obvious in the models of other manufacturers, whose watches are several times more expensive.
The links are full, shortened by a screw-out pin – a small screwdriver is enough. The bracelet narrows to 22 mm with a logged clasp. The clasp has double protection, and its elements are quite massive, similar to those found in Deep Blue watches. The fastener has micro-adjustment of up to 5 holes, which somewhat compensates for the lack of optional expansion for diving foam. Could use a slightly more convenient fastener, for example a “butterfly” type. The bracelet is comfortable to wear and should not pose a problem in everyday use. It is a pity that the manufacturer did not provide a shortening screwdriver in the set. On the other hand, as soon as I think how much it costs, a note about additional gadgets turns into a smile under my nose 🙂
Summary
Nautilus second generation is another watch that the manufacturer sent to us for test. After Konrad’s very positive opinions, I decided to try to find a weak spot in my copy. I searched, watched under a magnifying glass and … Well, can you accuse the watch for less than $ 300 that the manufacturer does not give a screwdriver to adjust the bracelet? Each of us must answer the question of whether we are ready at the expense of the device or a beautiful box, for example, sacrificing a sapphire crystal for the benefit of a mineral;) Another watch from the Aquatico stable proves that they are quite pushed in the market, offering very good quality for decent money and in this case we get what we paid for. It’s nice that the guys are slowly moving away from copying models of famous brands, and are starting to implement their own ideas.
If you want to buy this watch on the Aquatico website, you can also use the discount code reducing the price by $ 20 – the code is “KMZIZ”.
Tomek
