Chopard Editorial G.r.r. Ladies Watches New Releases New Watches New Watches 2021

Watches & Wonders Shanghai 2021 – First Look At The New Chopard Happy Ocean

Ladies Sports Watches Rarely Get Better Than The New Chopard Happy Ocean.

Ladies Sports Watches Rarely Get Better Than The New Chopard Happy Ocean

Editor’s note: Watches & Wonders 2021 digital version may be over, but the ‘in-person’ W&W week is just starting. As we are slowly diving deep into the releases and going hands-on with as many of the novelties as the two of us here can, here’s our preview and the Gut Reaction Review (Grr…) of the new Chopard Happy Ocean. For our other detailed hands-on reviews, please head to our dedicated reviews section here

New Chopard Happy Ocean

Gut Reaction

Both Jacqui and I — so the entire team behind WYGDAI — have been going on for years about the lack of quality ladies sports watches. Sure some brands — read certain Rolex Yacht-Masters and certain Omega Aqua Terras — do an exceptional job of them on a semi-regular basis, but more or less, the industry keeps producing either boring, toned-down versions of men’s sports watches for women or just blinged out to the max watches for ladies. And the biggest pet peeve we have is when brands release ladies versions of men’s watches with quartz movements. The new Chopard Happy Ocean changes that. 

It is a happy medium, where a bit of bling marked by the famed floating diamonds of Chopard’s Happy Diamonds collection marry into the world of deep diving with a watch with a rotating diver’s bezel and a 300m water resistance. 

I would have been content with this.

New Chopard Happy Ocean

But the Chopard Happy Ocean takes it a notch further: it adds to the mix an in-house movement — yes, for a ladies watch — and an impressive 60-hour power reserve. I was already in awe of the brand’s work on ladies watches this year following the recent release of the new Chopard Imperiale Moonphase. But this, this is very, very welcome.

Suffice to say, we are happy. And it also doesn’t hurt that the timepiece is also beautiful, especially the presence of the galvanic-treated wave-patterned blue dial with five diamonds dancing to your heart’s merriment. 

Chopard 2021 31
The new Imperiale Moonphase

The Watch

Watches & Wonders Shanghai 2021 presents the new Happy Ocean ref. 278587-6001 in steel and 18-carat rose gold. This regular production release features the Chopard 01.01-C movement that is comprised of 31 jewels, beats at the frequency of 4Hz, and offers a good 60-hour power reserve. The movement helps display central hours, minutes and seconds, along with a  date display aperture at 4.30.

The 28.8mm diameter and 4.95mm thick movement is encased inside a 40mm diameter and 14.21mm thick case that is thankfully water-resistance to 300m. Matching the two-tone bezel and the stylised lugs, the case features a screw-lock crown bearing a Chopard “C” in 18-carat rose gold. 

New Chopard Happy Ocean

The steel and 18-carat rose gold case also features a glare-proofed sapphire crystal on top and an engraved steel screw-down caseback. 

Framing the wave-patterned blue dial is the 18-carat rose gold unidirectional rotating bezel with blue-grey aluminium insert and dot enhanced with Super-LumiNova®, along with a luminescent marker.

Completing the look is the blue-grey calfskin leather strap on a polished steel pin buckle. The watch also comes with a blue-grey NATO strap that can be used for aquatic activities.

New Chopard Happy Ocean

Landscape 

The Happy Ocean is a new collection for the brand, that I reckon fills a good void in the lineup as a whole. Chopard makes ladies watches, Happy Diamond watches, men’s watches, sports watches, integrated bracelet stainless steel watches — I can’t believe this is even a category with most brands these days — and Haute Horlogerie timepieces. The space for a ladies diver was there, and the new Happy Ocean fills that with style.

Quotable

“The seductively feminine and glamorous yet technical Happy Sport watch collection takes the plunge into the azure waters of the South Seas. Bedecked in blue-grey livery with waves rippling across it, the aptly named Happy Ocean asserts its vocation as an ultra-chic sports watch”.

The brand’s press release poetically describes this new release

Wish List

4.30 dates are another personal pet peeve of mine, and I don’t really appreciate them. But hey, if Blancpain can’t undo them, I guess Chopard is alright. Plus, to give credit where due, the aperture is pretty decently integrated into the dial layout. 

Also, the 14.21mm thickness seems a bit on the thicker side, especially for a ladies watch. In comparison, the Tudor Black Bay Fifty-Eight Navy Blue from last year was 39mm in diameter and less than 12mm thick and that was a more masculine watch. 

I guess without going hands-on with the new Chopard Happy Ocean, it would be hard to comment whether the thickness is in favour or not. 

New Chopard Happy Ocean

That’s All Folks! 

It’s the dance of waves and the diamond with the new Chopard Happy Ocean. The grey waves motif on the blue dial triggers a poetic moment, and the five diamonds swirl around the dial, creating a symphony of movement. 

If you are anything like us and have been feeling the need, the need for a ladies centric diver with actual diving capabilities, stellar looks, in-house movement, and a touch of bling, look no further. 

2020 has given a lot to be concerned about. It’s time to dive your worries away and be carefree with the new Chopard Happy Ocean on our wrists. 

To find out more about the new Chopard Happy Ocean and other Chopard watches, please head to their website here. All images unless otherwise specified are Copyright © Chopard, All rights reserved. Make sure to check out our reviews of other Watches & Wonders 2021 releases here.

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