Amid one of the most diverse, intriguing lineups in the brand’s recent history, the cheap replica TAG Heuer Aquaracer Solargraph watches line sits in a difficult position. Now that the more affordable, arguably more iconic Formula 1 collection offers the same movement, the Aquaracer needs something to differentiate itself. With more robust sporting capability and a refined, more premium look, the Aquaracer Solargraph should achieve this on paper, but sometimes a bit of color is needed to truly make an impact. The latest TAG Heuer Aquaracer Professional 200 Solargraph aims to solve this problem, adding a striking ice-blue dial and moody matte-blasted titanium to an already solid design brief.
At 40mm wide and approximately 10mm thick, the TAG Heuer Aquaracer Professional 200 Solargraph’s titanium case feels sleek and well-proportioned on the wrist, with a thinner profile than most of its rivals. Despite this svelte profile, the Swiss fake TAG Heuer watches still keeps an aggressive, industrial edge to its design through its fully matte-blasted finishing. This is a coarser, heavier-grained sort of matte look than most finishes of this type, which keeps the on-wrist feel firmly utilitarian and tool-like despite the remarkably lightweight construction. This has the added benefit of making the Aquaracer Professional 200 Solargraph remarkably comfortable on the wrist, as well. As for the design, this is shared with the rest of the Aquaracer family, with the same angular lugs and squared-off case side protrusion at 9 o’clock. The broad unidirectional bezel remains a highlight of this case, with a minimal engraved scale and a blunted dodecagonal silhouette that adds a touch of integrated sports watch inspiration to the formula. Of course, the unlumed, pared back 60-minute scale here does limit the top copy TAG Heuer Aquaracer Professional 200 Solargraph watches utility as a true diver, but this and several other design decisions push this model more toward general-purpose sports watch use than true underwater capability despite the 200 meters of water resistance. TAG Heuer finishes off the case with an attractively detailed solid caseback featuring a compass rose motif.
The main draw of the new best clone TAG Heuer Aquaracer Professional 200 Solargraph watches variant is, of course, its dial. While it’s markedly removed from the more turquoisey “Tiffany blue” dial trend that swept through watchmaking in recent years, this ice blue dial finish brings its own character to the design. It’s a less saturated, colder tone than many contemporary pale blues, and this more serious edge harmonizes well with the dark, grainy titanium of the case. Where this new hue really shines, however, is in its interplay with the dial surface itself. One of the great advancements in solar dial design over the years is the way brands have learned to work with the necessary transparent light-gathering layer, as opposed to simply putting photovoltaic surfaces out in the open. The Aquaracer Solargraph family is one of the best at creatively incorporating this element. The main, engraved horizontal “deck plank” dial surface is transparent, but lightly frosted, lending its own specific level of texture and sense of visual depth above the sunburst-finished lower dial surface. Especially in this color, it gives the impression of looking through thin ice to cold water below, and it also has the added effect of giving both the dial text and the tapering, faceted applied indices a floating effect and dramatic drop shadows at certain lighting angles. Swiss movement replica TAG Heuer watches thoughtful use of a pale turquoise hue for the (disappointingly unlumed) needle seconds hand, outer scale hour markers, and 6 o’clock “Solargraph” texts adds a welcome bit of levity to this colorway as well.
There’s been a fair amount of controversy surrounding the TH50-00 light-powered quartz movement inside the AAA fake TAG Heuer Aquaracer Professional 200 Solargraph watches lately. While the brand is open about its partnership with Citizen Group-owned La Joux-Perret to develop and source these powerplants, there’s a fair resemblance between these movements and the Citizen Eco-Drive E168 movement. While certain segments of the community are quick to pass judgement on TAG Heuer (in a repeat of the Cal. 1887 backlash of the early 2010s), the facts are more nuanced. While the two movements employ similar technologies and architectures, both the TH50-00 and the E168 have different strengths. The great benefit of the TH50-00 is its larger photovoltaic cells, allowing for a full, hefty 10-month charge in under 20 hours of sunlight. Without sunlight, the TH50-00 still offers a respectable six months of power reserve in complete darkness. A solid +15/-15 seconds per month accuracy rating completes the spec sheet.
Rendered in case-matching matte-blasted titanium, the 1:1 knock off TAG Heuer Aquaracer Professional 200 Solargraph watches three-link bracelet is a solid capstone to this design. With angular facets softened by blunted edges, it’s a twist on the classic oyster design that interacts well with the case geometry, but its real strength is its flexibility. Light and impressively supple (particularly around the female end links), this bracelet makes the Aquaracer Professional 200 one of the most comfortable dive watches on the current market.
As many of the brand’s product lines are evolving into true standouts, the TAG Heuer Aquaracer family needs a way to set itself apart from both its competitors and (increasingly) its stablemates. While a new colorway doesn’t completely solve this, the new ice blue-dial TAG Heuer Aquaracer Professional 200 Solargraph does offer the line’s most distinctive, eye-catching option thus far, utilizing the light-gathering dial’s greatest visual strengths and crafting a charismatic, easy-to-wear dive watch in the process. This new variant of the TAG Heuer Aquaracer Professional 200 Solargraph is available now through authorized dealers. MSRP for the best-selling TAG Heuer reproduction watches stands at a not-insignificant $3,350 USD as of press time. For more information, please visit the brand’s website.