We often get asked, “what’s the best brand for someone just getting into luxury watch collecting” and every time it comes up, one brand always comes to mind. And that’s Oris. With an average price between £1,500 and £4,000 they’re more accessible than most of the bigger names out there while also having the quality and reliability of an established Swiss watchmaker. You can easily imagine someone starting with an Oris before buying an Omega or Rolex. But if you are going to start with an Oris, which model is right for you? Fortunately, we’re on hand with the complete guide to every Oris model.
Dive Watches
Aquis
The Aquis is Oris’ professional dive watch entry. The standard date model is made from steel with 300m water resistance and equipped with a bi-directional rotating dive timer bezel. It’s an incredibly versatile timepiece available in sizes from 36.5mm to 43.5mm. There’s also the recent Aquis Pro 4000m, which takes the design concepts of the Aquis and dials them up to 11 with 4,000m water resistance and a gigantic 49.5mm diameter case made from titanium.
Another important aspect of the Aquis collection is that it has the most comprehensive distribution of the Calibre 400 of any collection. The Calibre 400 was introduced in 2021 as a new flagship movement for the brand with an incredible 120-hour power reserve and 10-year service intervals.
Model: Oris Aquis Date Calibre 400
Ref: 01 400 7769 4154-07 8 22 09PEB
Case/Dial: 41.5mm stainless steel case, anthracite dial, with 300m (30 bar) water resistance
Movement: Oris calibre 400, automatic, 120h power reserve
Strap: Stainless steel bracelet
Price: £2,950
Divers Sixty-Five
Taking things in a retro direction is the Oris Divers Sixty-Five, which is inspired by skin diver design from the 1950s and 60s. “Skin diving” is a term that refers to the act of swimming or diving without assistance from a tank, which means activities such as free diving and snorkelling as opposed to scuba. Which is why the lower water resistance of 100m is acceptable as it’s designed for use exclusively around the surface of any water. We’d still recommend taking it off for any extended exposure to water though to be on the safe side.
Aesthetically, one of the most interesting sub-collections is the Cotton Candy range, consisting of watches like the Ref. 01 733 7771 4055-07 3 19 02S (Oris have some of the longest reference numbers around). It has a gorgeous pastel dial and steel case measuring a retro 38mm diameter.
Model: Divers Sixty-Five Cotton Candy
Ref: 01 733 7771 4055-07 3 19 02S
Case/Dial: 38mm stainless steel case, blue dial, with 100m (10 bar) water resistance
Movement: Oris calibre 733, automatic, 38h power reserve
Strap: Textile
Price: £1,800
Pilot’s Watches
Big Crown
Oris’ archetypal pilot’s watch is the Big Crown, so named because of its oversize crown which is designed to be easy to operate while wearing thick, leather pilot gloves. One of the characteristics of the collection is the pointer date complication, a separate hand that points to a peripheral date scale. It’s an unusual design element to have as a signature element, giving the watch a strong travel aesthetic while also removing any intrusive date windows from the display.
One of the most recent additions to the Big Crown range is the Big Crown Calibre 473, a new calibre that added the pointer date function to the Calibre 400, alongside a small seconds subdial. The watch also has a fabulous light blue colouration.
Model: Oris Big Crown Calibre 473
Ref: 01 473 7786 4065-07 5 19 22FC
Case/Dial: 38mm stainless steel case, blue dial, with 50m (5 bar) water resistance
Movement: Oris calibre 473, manual winding, 120h power reserve
Strap: Leather
Price: £3,600
ProPilot
Then we come to the ProPilot, which is technically a sub collection of the Big Crown that has grown so large that Oris have separated it out into its own range. The ProPilot is best described as Oris’ tool watch pilot, with a more pared down and stripped back design compared to the pointer date models above. They feature super clean dials with little embellishment and highly legible Arabic numerals.
Recently Oris launched the latest generation of the ProPilot GMT, which builds on the tool watch vibe of the piece by introducing a utility focussed complication. It has a lovely red fumé dial and peripheral pulsometer bezel to boot.
Model: Propilot GMT
Ref: 01 798 7773 4268-07 3 20 14GLC
Case/Dial: 41.5mm stainless steel case with grey PVD coating, red dial, with 100m (10 bar) water resistance
Movement: Oris calibre 798, automatic, 42h power reserve
Strap: Textile
Price: £2,550
ProPilot X
On a horological front, the ProPilot X is Oris’ most experimental collection, designed to push the boat out in terms of modern design and mechanics. In that vein, it’s not so much a pilot’s watch as it is a watch inspired by aviation. Thematically it’s the engine, the rivets in the body and the landing gear of the plane rather than the captain in charge of operations or the luxury onboard service. It’s utilitarian and tough.
One of the stand out models is the ProPilot X Calibre 400 Laser, which features an incredibly cool optical interference dial that looks like an oil slick. It leans heavily towards the industrial aesthetic of the ProPilot X, further emphasising how the collection has left behind its pilot’s watch origin.
Model: Propilot X Calibre 400 Laser
Ref: 01 400 7778 7150-07 7 20 01TLC
Case/Dial: 39mm stainless steel case, multicoloured dial, with 100m (10 bar) water resistance
Movement: Oris calibre 400, automatic, 120h power reserve
Strap: Titanium bracelet
Price: £4,050
Dress Watches
Rectangular
The Rectangular is a watch that I think even some diehard Oris collectors forget about. Which is a shame because it’s pretty cool Art Deco throwback collection. The dial has double rail track markings encompassing the simple hour markers. It’s a layout familiar to any fans of the Tank or Longines’ Dolce Vita. Oris have given a choice of four: blue, Bordeaux, white and anthracite. Each dial colour has a choice of matching leather straps, except the white one, which for some inexplicable reason comes on a yellow one.
Inside the rectangle case of the Rectangular is the Oris calibre 561, a base ETA 2671 automatic movement with a 38-hour power reserve. That’s been Oris’ go to movement for the Rectangular in a variety of its forms since its creation in the early 2000s.
Model: Rectangular
Ref: 01 561 7783 4063-07 5 19 16
Case/Dial: 25.5mm width x 38mm length stainless steel case, black dial, with 30m (3 bar) water resistance
Movement: Oris calibre 561, automatic, 38h power reserve
Strap: Leather
Price: £1,700
Artelier
Even more obscure than the Rectangular is the Artelier, a collection that is comprised of a handful of watches, some of which are rarely stocked. In realistic terms, when we talk about the Artelier we mean the Artelier S, Oris’ only recent addition to the collection. It has a very understated and elegant dial in either green or black with small hour and minute indicators.
It’s nice to see Oris tackle a different aesthetic for once, putting their usual tool watch vibe to one side and focussing on understated elegance. In that regard I really like the Artelier S as it’s something a bit different to what we’re used to and looks good.
Model: Artelier S
Ref: 01 733 7762 4057-07 5 20 70FC
Case/Dial: 38mm stainless steel case, green dial, with 300m (30 bar) water resistance
Movement: Oris calibre 733, automatic, 38h power reserve
Strap: Leather
Price: £1,600
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