In addition to the 41mm Royal Oak chronograph in white frosted gold that we just showed you, Audemars Piguet is launching another model today that might be more significant than you imagine. Indeed, AP has just released a new black ceramic Royal Oak in its collection... You might argue that this isn't the first time for the brand, but in fact, these are the first watches where black ceramic is used without high-end complications and in a women's size. And this new Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Selfwinding 34mm Black Ceramic could pave the way for more such models with a "time and date" function in black ceramic in the future (at least, we hope so).
The fully black ceramic Royal Oak was first introduced in early 2017 with model 26579CE, a highly coveted watch, combining an ultra-thin perpetual calendar movement with an RO case and bracelet entirely crafted from black ceramic. Despite using this technical material, the watch retained everything it's known for, including the combination of matte and polished surfaces, sharp angles, and dimensions. Of course, Audemars Piguet had used ceramic before, but in this case, the bracelet was also made from this lightweight yet strong material. As Xavier explained when he got his hands on the watch, it was a true technical challenge, and the result was absolutely stunning.
The all-ceramic Royal Oak was later presented in various iterations, such as the all-white perpetual calendar, the stunning skeletonized perpetual calendar, the skeletonized chronograph with tourbillon, the ultra-thin tourbillon, and recently, the skeletonized double balance wheel. These were exclusively about elite and complicated watches. But from today, the fully ceramic Royal Oak is also available in a classic "time and date" model, though for now, it's the women who will have the opportunity to enjoy this first.
This new 34mm black ceramic version of the Royal Oak is based on the recently released edition we discussed in this article. The 34mm watch with a very reasonable height of 8.8mm was released in an already complete range of models, including watches with diameters of 44, 41, 39, 38, 37, and 33mm. One could argue about the rationale for having both 33mm and 34mm watches, but there is a very important difference between these two watches, as the new model also features an automatic movement, making the women's offering more interesting than ever before.
These watches were released in steel, pink gold, and two-tone cases, with and without diamonds, and are now available in AP's superb black ceramic configuration, for the first time for a model with a "time and date" function (meaning without complications, skeleton movement, and double balance wheel), and also for the first time for a women's version. Aside from the new material present on the case everywhere except the titanium caseback, the watch is identical in every respect to the steel model, with vertically brushed flat surfaces and polished bevels on the case, bezel, and bracelet edges.
Another small detail... The screws on the bezel, unusually, are made of 18k pink gold instead of the usual 18k white gold found in most Royal Oak models. Continuing the all-black theme, the Grande Tapisserie dial is executed in black with applied markers, logo, and hands in pink gold matching the bezel screws. The date wheel is also black.
Under the sapphire caseback is caliber 5800, made not in-house but by Vaucher. Caliber 5800, displaying hours, minutes, seconds, and date, with a power reserve of up to 50 hours, measures 23.30mm x 3.9mm, operates at a frequency of 28,800 beats/hour (4Hz), and is adorned with Geneva stripes, polished bevels, and a gold rotor.
Thoughts for the Future...
While I personally have little interest in these watches - don't get me wrong, they look gorgeous, but they're too small for my wrist, obviously - their presentation opens some doors that I thought were closed until now. For me, fully ceramic Royal Oaks were unattainable watches, a concept reserved for the most exclusive movements produced by Audemars Piguet. But today, the brand demonstrates that it's ready to allow the fully ceramic case/bracelet to find its place in more classic collections...
And now that we know about it, we can only dream that the replacement for model 15202, the watches to be unveiled next year, will be released in such a ceramic case/bracelet configuration. Just imagine, black ceramic Royal Oak Jumbo Extra-Thin… How desirable would that be!
Availability and Price
The Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Selfwinding 34mm Black Ceramic (ref. 77350CE.OO.1266CE.01) is released as part of the permanent collection. However, despite the number of pieces not being limited, we know that Audemars Piguet has low production figures for its fully ceramic watches. The price is also quite exclusive - 45,600 euros, compared to the approximately 20,000 euros required for the steel version of these 34mm watches.
More information can be found on the website www.audemarspiguet.com.
TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS – AUDEMARS PIGUET ROYAL OAK SELFWINDING 34MM BLACK CERAMIC
Case: 34mm diameter x 8.8mm height – black ceramic case, matte and polished – screws in 18k pink gold – titanium caseback – screw-down crown – sapphire crystals front and back – water-resistant to 50 meters
Dial: Black Grande Tapisserie dial, applied hour markers in pink gold and Royal Oak hands with luminescent coating
Movement: Caliber 5800, Vaucher base VMF 3000 – automatic – 23.3mm x 3.9mm – 189 components, including 28 jewels – 28,800 vibrations/hour – power reserve 50 hours – hours, minutes, seconds, date
Bracelet: Black ceramic bracelet, polished and matte, titanium folding clasp
Reference: 77350CE.OO.1266CE.01
Price: 45,600 EUROS