As we roll into June, the summer feels like it has well and truly started in the UK thanks to record temperatures. Audemars Piguet are ready to embrace the sunshine with a new series of Royal Oak Offshore Selfwinding Chronographs in vibrant summer colourways. This is the second expansion to the Offshore range this year with a range of chronographs and divers released back in February, making 2026 the year of the tool watch for Audemars Piguet.
Starting with the cases, they measure 42mm in diameter with the classic Royal Oak shape featuring its Gerald Genta-designed octagonal bezel with visible screws. There are three watches in the series and two of them feature stainless steel constructions while the third is presented in titanium. It’s an interesting decision from AP not to make all three from the same material when they could have, but it’s possible to follow the logic as to why they want to highlight both options.
Titanium makes a lot of practical sense because it has a better strength to weight ratio compared to steel. However, steel is the traditional material for the Royal Oak and is also a naturally brighter metal than titanium so aesthetically and conceptually supports the idea of a summer collection. Although the majority of the summer vibes are carried by the dial and colour details.
The titanium version features a dark grey Mega Tapisserie dial (that’s the large square pattern texture in layman’s terms) with turquoise hour numerals and subdial accents as well as yellow chronograph highlights across the hands, tachymeter and chronograph pusher at 2 o’clock. It’s one of the boldest, most colourful displays I’ve seen on a Royal Oak of any variety in a long time.
For the two steel models, the first version is the most restrained of the three designs. It has a black Mega Tapisserie dial with pink highlights for the chronograph functions and that’s it. Second is a light grey variant with black chronograph subdials and orange chronograph accents. As is well documented, my favourite colour is orange, so this is hands down my favourite of the three – it also feels like the version most at home at your local track day.
Powering all three variants is the calibre 4404, an automatic chronograph movement with a 70-hour power reserve making it nice and weekend-proof. It’s also equipped with a flyback chronograph mechanism, which means that once it is running it can be stopped, reset and restarted again with a single pusher press – ideal for rapid timing sequences such as race splits, lap times or even periods of navigation if you want to take it from the track into the sky as a pilot aid.
As for pricing, all three of them are £33,500 regardless of their materials. You might expect titanium to be a touch more but in recent years the gap between titanium and steel has been closing in terms of accessibility. This is one of my favourite AP releases so far this year, blending the traditional design elements of the collection with fun colours. As a final note, in addition to the 42mm collection, there’s a ladies 37mm collection with gem-set bezels.
Price and Specs:
More details at Audemars Piguet.
