The New Black and Bronze Versions of the Cool Maurice Lacroix Pontos S Diver

While most have the highly successful and appealing Aikon collection in mind, the brand’s vision of an accessible luxury sports watch with an integrated bracelet, Maurice Lacroix has more items on the menu. Specifically, there’s a watch that we’ve long appreciated here at MONOCHROME, a rather unique take on the diver with a bit of a modern compressor vibe, the Pontos S Diver. First presented in 2013 and slightly overlooked since the introduction of Aikon, ML brought its dive watch back last year in a cool, refreshed version. The collection expands once more with the introduction of two new versions of the Maurice Lacroix Pontos S Diver, in black DLC or bronze.

The Maurice Lacroix Pontos S Diver was and still is a modern, relaxed take on the classic 1960s-1970s compressor-style dive watch. Developed in the late 1950s by Ervin Piquerez SA (EPSA), a (Super)compressor dive watch has a patented spring mechanism between the case and the caseback. This system made the watch more water-resistant the deeper it went. In addition, the main visual element to recognize a compressor watch was the presence of two crowns, the top one actuating an inner rotating diving bezel. With modern construction techniques, the compressor watch was somewhat forgotten until the trend for vintage-inspired watches reintroduced its distinctive looks – but rarely with the original spring-equipped construction. Still, the two-crown compressor design with an inner bezel was key in the creation of many modern models, such as the Maurice Lacroix Pontos S Diver.

First released in 2013, the Pontos S Diver was a highly modernized take on this concept, with a large case, solid aquatic credentials and a winding crown at 3 o’clock, next to an additional crown for the bezel at 2 o’clock (instead of the classic 2 and 4 o’clock design). Yet, the Pontos S Diver was a collateral victim of the Aikon collection’s success and was discontinued. Over subsequent years, Maurice Lacroix received numerous requests to reinstate its original dive watch, which was done last year.

While maintaining the overall design of the original 2013 collection, the new Pontos S Diver became slightly smaller (42mm vs. 43mm) and slimmer, opting for a fresh set of colours. More wearable, it retained solid diving capacities with a 300m water-resistance (vs. 600m in the past) and got rid of the helium escape valve. Surely, hardcore divers would find it slightly problematic but for most watch enthusiasts, this set of specifications would be more than sufficient.

Before we dig into the details of these new editions, let’s talk specs. As said, this 42mm original, compressor-like dive watch is now less hardcore, more wearable but still a capable aquatic tool… but it was also designed to look good on shores. The angled lugs are sleeker and the watch retains the nice, oversized crown at 2 o’clock for the inner bezel, with a coloured ring. A sapphire crystal protects the dial, while the caseback is solid steel and secured by six screws. The 13mm thickness is acceptable too. Inside is the calibre ML115, also known as a Sellita SW 200-1, a solid and easy-to-service automatic Swiss movement.

For 2024, we have two new versions of the Maurice Lacroix Pontos S Diver. The first model, a limited edition of 888 pieces, is housed in a bronze case and comes with a grained black dial (last year’s limited bronze edition featured a blue dial). The hands and applied markers are executed in 4N gold PVD to match the tones of bronze and all elements of the display are picked up in beige-toned Super-LumiNova. Completing the vintage, urban style of this edition is a brown leather strap paired with a bronze pin buckle.

The second version for this year is a special edition (not limited) with an all-black theme. The sandblasted stainless steel case of this nocturnal edition is coated with black DLC and paired with a black rubber strap secured to the wrist with a sandblasted black DLC pin buckle. The dial plays on modern tones, combining a black-grained background with white and yellow accents. The markers and hands are blackened and filled with white SLN, save for the large minute hand that is bright yellow. This colour is also used on the seconds hand and the hour markers. Note that the white date disc found on the prototype photographed here will be replaced by a black date on the final version.

Now available from the brand, these new Maurice Lacroix Pontos S Diver in black DLC or bronze are (attractively) priced respectively at EUR 2,200 or CHF 2,100 and EUR 2,650 or CHF 2,500, with the latter being limited to 888 pieces. For more details, please visit www.mauricelacroix.com.