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Swatch releases a new Scuba Fifty Fathoms out of the blue

Swatch releases a new Scuba Fifty Fathoms out of the blue

Russell Sheldrake
  • Swatch x Blancpain quietly release the seventh Scuba Fifty Fathoms
  • Named the Blue Lagoon it draws its colour scheme from the Tambja mullineri nudibranch. 
  • With no marketing, this US$400 watch is a quiet release right before Christmas. 

I hope you can forgive the pun in the title, but this new Swatch x Blancpain Scuba Fifty Fathoms Blue Lagoon has come out of nowhere. While the sixth addition to this collaborative family, the black Oceans of Storms, was teased to the public before its release, this new Blue Lagoon model was just quietly uploaded to the Swatch website with not even a press release sent out, let alone a public campaign across socials and further.

swatch blancpain scuba fifty fathoms blue lagoon 2

So what are we looking at here with this new release and why do brands choose to quietly drop some watches, while they make plenty of noise about others? Well, let’s get into that last question first. Swatch releases a lot of watches every year, and while some in the community will decry that they don’t produce any marketing for the ones they are not proud of, I would retort that by saying that the designs they’re not proud of would not make it into production.

This all comes down to a marketing calendar, what the brand wants people to be focused on at what time of year and how they can achieve that. Given that we are mere days away from Christmas at this point, Swatch is pushing its festive collections hard, given that these watches make amazing stocking fillers being at the lower end of the price point. However, the Scuba Fifty Fathoms range is one of the more expensive Swatch watches, at US$400. So to market this as a quick, last-minute gift idea is a harder sell. So I can understand why they would want to push the festive feeling, rather than their more premium products right now.

swatch blancpain scuba fifty fathoms blue lagoon 1

So now, let’s get into what we are looking at. I’m sure most of you are aware of what the Swatch x Blancpain Scuba Fifty Fathoms is at this point. Drawing inspiration from the legendary Blancpain dive watch, the Fifty Fathoms, running off the nifty automatic Sistem51 calibre, and encased in coloured bioceramic. This is the seventh iteration of this watch we’ve had now, with each basing its colour scheme off a different nudibranchs, with the rich blues here being drawn from the Tambja mullineri nudibranch which has been recreated on the movement itself.

swatch blancpain scuba fifty fathoms blue lagoon sistem51 movement

The only other change to note here is that it now longer comes on a NATO-style strap, but rather a fabric strap that comes in two pieces attached to case via spring bars. This means the display caseback is now fully visible as soon as you take the watch off. Nothing else here has changed, the date window remains at 4:30, the dimensions are still 42.3mm across by 14.4mm thick, and it still have 91m of water resistance.

Swatch x Blancpain Scuba Fifty Fathoms Blue Lagoon pricing and availability

The Swatch x Blancpain Scuba Fifty Fathoms Blue Lagoon is available in select Swatch stores around the world. Price: US$400

Brand Swatch x Blancpain
Model Scuba Fifty Fathoms Blue Lagoon
Case Dimensions 42.3mm (D) x 14.4mm (T) x 48mm (LTL)
Case Material Bioceramic
Water Resistance 91 metres (50 fathoms)
Crystal(s) Bio-sourced glass with scratch-resistant coating
Dial Sun brushed blue
Lug Width 21mm
Strap Blue and white two part NATO-style made from recycled fishing nets
Movement Sistem51, in-house, automatic
Power Reserve 90 hours
Functions Hours, minutes, seconds, date
Availability Available in select Swatch boutiques only from January 11th
Price US$400