For those of us who are Audemars Piguet watch fans, we are already aware of their 2019 iteration of the Royal Oak 15500 . It included three variants with the options of a stainless steel in a blue, black, or gray dial. The watchmaker has expanded on this in 2020 by offering a silver toned dial variant.
Audemars Piguet, in the past, had a pretty rigid policy where you could not order their watches online or by phone call. However, due to the global pandemic we face these days, they have introduced this service where you can have the watch shipped directly to your doorstep. I’m glad to see that the company seems to be adapting to the current times.
Dial Design and Dimensions
The 2020 iteration, the Royal Oak 15500 is available in a 41mm wide X 10.4mm thick stainless-steel case. The first thing that catches the eye about this watch is the silvery-white tone of the dial which the watch makers describe as “Grande Tapisserie”. This tone extends to the date wheel as well which blends in seamlessly with the new theme.
The dial features a skeletonized counter-weighted seconds hand, along with short and wide applied white gold indices. The date window is at the 3 o’clock position which means, that there is no marker at that position. Additionally, we see the Audemars Piguet logo under the 12 o’clock marker and the words “Swiss Made” inscribed near the 6 o’clock marker.
A Revised Movement Design and Pricing
The Royal Oak 15500 features a 32 mm wide caliber 4302 movement, which operates at 4 Hz. The movement, featuring a 70-hour power reserve, is comprised of 257 components, including 32 jewels, and is beautifully displayed through a caseback window. A new feature incorporated into the design is a bat-shaped traversing balance bridge and a free-sprung balance wheel.
The stainless-steel case comes paired with an integrated stainless-steel bracelet with an AP shaped folding clasp. The structure is sturdy enough to resist water pressure up to 50m under water. The Royal Oak 15500 Silver dial retails as $20,400.
