A divers professional watch suitable for any situation, the new Panerai Luminor Submersible 1950 3 Days Oro Rosso PAM 684 is the first Panerai Submersible with a 42 mm red gold case and that is water resistant to a depth of 100 meters. Evoking the black and gold combo of the Rolex Everose Yachtmaster we featured here or the Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Offshore Rubber Clad here, this new Panerai is simply gorgeous and one of our favorite releases this year at the SIHH in Geneva. Perhaps the only thing that could've made the new Panerai Luminor Submersible 1950 3 Days Oro Rosso PAM 684 even better, would've been having an even more generous case size measuring 44 mm or 47 mm. Regardless, the combination of black ceramic on its bezel along with the 18K red gold case is just perfect.

The Case

Sporting a highly polished case in 18K red gold measuring 42 mm in diameter, the new Panerai Luminor Submersible 1950 3 Days Oro Rosso PAM 684 is a great addition to the vast number of references cased in red gold that Panerai offers. As it is the norm within the Luminor 1950 collection, the case features the prominent patented crown protecting device to ensure proper water resistance. Now, let's talk about the case material. Considering that most people can't tell the difference between the different gold alloys and tend to refer to pink gold, rose gold and red gold indistinctively —as if they were the same thing—, let's explain the composition of the different gold alloys and what the nuances are for each kind.

To begin with, any 18K gold watch case regardless of its color, needs to have at least 75% of gold in it, hence the 'Au750' stamping on the back of watch cases, where 'Au' refers to the chemical element 'Aurum' —gold in Latin— and '750' to the 75% of gold in the alloy. While there are different alloys for colored gold by manufacturer, the following, are the most commonly used in the precious metal industry: 18K White Gold is composed of 75% gold and then 25% of Nickel, Manganese, Palladium or Silver and typically finished with a rhodium plating; 18K Red Gold is 75% gold and 25% copper; 18K Rose Gold is 75% gold, 21-22% copper and 3-4% silver; lastly, 18K Pink Gold is 75% gold, 20% copper and 5% silver.

The Bezel

The new Panerai Luminor Submersible 1950 3 Days Oro Rosso PAM 684 is equipped with a matte black ceramic bezel. This unidirectional rotating bezel with a graduated scale for calculating the time of immersion is connected through a system —patented by Panerai— to ensure the extreme accuracy of each click. The bezel features red gold markers and dot with superluminova at 12 o'clock.

The Movement

The new Panerai Luminor Submersible 1950 3 Days Oro Rosso PAM 684 is fitted with a screw-down display case back and powered by the new Panerai in-house calibre P.9010 completely developed and produced at the Panerai Manufacture in Neuchâtel. This double-barrel movement composed of 200 parts and 31 jewels, provides a power reserve of 72 hours when fully wound, while beating at a frequency of 28,800 vph.

On the Wrist & Pricing

On the wrist, the new Panerai Luminor Submersible 1950 3 Days Oro Rosso PAM 684 wears true to its size and with great wrist presence. Even though this is a solid gold watch, the Panerai 18K red gold watches tend to be quite light when compared to other 18K gold watches in the market. While this time we missed putting the watch on our scale, we can tell you that the watch is not top heavy and quite comfortable on the wrist. The watch is delivered on a black rubber accordion strap.

Sticker Price $26,700 USD. For more info on Officine Panerai click here.