As the younger and somewhat less serious sibling of the revered Nautilus, the Aquanaut is where Patek Philippe feels more comfortable trying out unexpected things on its sports watches. Every once in a while we see an off-the-cuff Aquanaut, whether decked out in rainbow regalia, dressed in snazzy orange, sporting an upside-down annual calendar dial layout, or benefiting from Patek’s advanced research tinkering. The new Patek Philippe Aquanaut Travel Time 5269R watch, which we recently went hands-on with for a review, falls into that unconventional camp thanks to its reliance on a quartz movement to power its dual-time functionality. To be clear, this certainly isn’t Patek’s first quartz Aquanaut (battery-operated calibers have long been a part of the collection) nor is it even Patek’s first quartz Aquanaut Travel Time — that award goes to the ref. 5269/200R from 2021, a reference that has quietly disappeared from the current catalog. However, this is the first non-Luce (a.k.a. non-diamond-set) version of the quartz Aquanaut Travel Time, and, I would imagine, not the last.

 

While the new Aquanaut Travel Time 5269R watch is not part of Patek’s denim mania that we witnessed this year, it is dad-jean adjacent, due to its blue-gray colorway. This lovely hue is found on both the checkerboard-style dial and the embossed rubber strap decorated with the same pattern. It works beautifully with the alternating brushed and polished rose gold components, creating a more overtly luxurious style than when the same shade is paired with Patek’s white metal models. Unlike the Luce edition, explicitly marketed as a ladies’ watch by Patek Philippe, the new 5269R-001 aims to have broader appeal.

Similar to its gem-set predecessor, the case of the Aquanaut Travel Time 5269R measures 38.8mm in diameter and 8.77mm thin — easy-to-wear proportions for a wide range of wrists. It is water-resistant to 30 meters, which sounds ridiculously low for a watch named after a diver, but this is in line with Patek Philippe’s new unified standards of water resistance.

Aquanauts are known to be comfortable watches due to their case shape and buttery rubber strap, and the quartz Aquanaut Travel Time is no exception. Plus, unlike the mechanical equivalent, the ref. 5164, this quartz 5269R does not include any protruding pushers on the left, resulting in a simpler, streamlined case.

The lack of pushers is attributable to the Patek Philippe Caliber E 23-250 S FUS 24H quartz movement, equipped with a practical setting system that’s all done through the non-screw-down winding crown. The movement features a dual time-zone mechanism similar to that of the mechanical Aquanaut Travel Time models, but in this quartz version, it is controlled via a clutch pinion instead of pushers. This is the same movement that debuted in the first quartz Aquanaut Travel Time in 2021, and according to Patek Philippe, its finishing is on par with the watchmaker’s mechanical movements.

We’ll have to take Patek’s word for it since the back of the watch is furnished with a solid rose gold caseback, preventing any view of the movement. This isn’t surprising given that it’s tradition to hide away quartz movements unless they’re super special — and this isn’t. Would it have been a bolder move to put a display caseback instead? Yes, but conservative Patek Philippe doesn’t have a reputation for making bold moves.

Though we can’t see the movement itself, we can witness its effects on the dial. There is the quartet of hands at the center, three of which are the traditional hour, minute, and seconds hands, and the fourth, skeletonized one, to indicate the second time zone. That hand is used in conjunction with the small day/night aperture below 6 o’clock. Everything works well up until now, but what doesn’t is the large “HOME’ label above said aperture; this is not only completely unnecessary but actually counterproductive to the overall look of the dial. It adds clutter to a dial that already has plenty of details. This silly addition wasn’t included in the previous 5269/200R, so I’m puzzled as to why Patek Philippe thought it would be a good idea to add it to the new Aquanaut Travel Time 5269R-001.

Aside from that, I do think the Aquanaut Travel Time 5269R-001 is a compelling package. It’s got striking looks, useful functionality, and great proportions. Although a quartz movement will automatically repel a segment of the watch-interested population, the practicality of a quartz movement remains appealing to many. And we can’t neglect the fact that that caliber choice has a significant impact on the price too; the Aquanaut Travel Time 5269R-001 is priced at $35,350 USD, which is almost half the price of the larger mechanical counterpart, the 5164R. For more information about the Patek Philippe Aquanaut Travel Time 5269R-001, please visit the brand’s website.