Hands-On With The Bright And Colorful Swatch ScubAqua Collection

Summer means sunny blue skies, bright colors, and plenty of swimming in lakes, pools, or the sea. That’s precisely what the new Swatch ScubAqua collection stands for — summer fun. The semitransparent watches are big, bold, and colorful. They take inspiration from graceful fluorescent jellyfish swaying in the current. Options include daring blue, red, or yellow in combination with white Bioceramic or a more modest all-black or clear and white version. Which one would you go for?

Since Swatch introduced its Bioceramic Scuba Fifty Fathoms collection, there has been a greater focus on the brand’s more water-resistant watches. There used to be many of those in the collection, and the Scubas seem ready for a comeback. Let’s take a quick look at these colorful jellyfish.

The Swatch ScubAqua collection

The new Swatch ScubAqua collection is very on-brand with its bold 44mm cases and in-your-face colors. The watches have a 15.4mm thickness and a 51.5mm lug-to-lug length. Those dimensions might scare you a bit, especially if you like smaller watches, like I do. However, these watches, due to the mix of “biosourced material,” matte Bioceramic, and silicone, weigh no more than 37 grams, including the strap, so they’re still lovely and light on the wrist. The lugs also curve down quite a lot, and the silicone straps hug the wrist like a jellyfish’s tentacles.

Each version has a combination of transparent and non-transparent parts. You can opt for Egg Yolk yellow, Blue Fire, Lion’s Mane red, Black Sea Nettle, and Aurelia Aurita white. The unidirectional dive bezel features glow-in-the-dark printing, just like the raised hour markers and hands. Interestingly, the push-pull crown sits not at 3 or 4 o’clock but, instead, in a rather unconventional spot at 10.

Fully or semitransparent

The dial on the white ScubAqua is fully transparent, and the hands are red, yellow, and blue. That’s similar to other fully transparent watches in Swatch’s catalog, such as the Clearly Gent and the Clearly Skin. For the other colorways, the hands match the colors of the case, strap, and printing. I’m a fan of Swatch’s fully transparent Clearly models, so the white ScubAqua is very much my favorite.

The great thing about these new Swatch ScubAqua models is that they are water resistant to 10 bar, or roughly 100 meters. That means you won’t have to be careful around water and can easily take them for a swim. That makes them very suitable as summer watches. The bold colors will make you smile, and the featherweight case won’t get in the way of any of your plans.

Which is your favorite?

The Swatch ScubAqua models cost €155 / US$150 / £135 each and are available online and in any Swatch boutique around the world. I was indeed a bit afraid when I saw the dimensions on paper. But due to the limited weight and nicely curved lugs, the ScubAqua wears very comfortably on my 17cm wrist. As mentioned, the Aurelia Aurita is my favorite, hands down. However, if you’re a fan of big and bright watches, the Egg Yolk, Blue Fire, or Lion’s Mane might be perfect for you.

Which one of the Swatch ScubAqua models is your favorite? Let me know in the comments below.