Rolex Perpetual 1908 Platinum

Last year, Rolex introduced the Perpetual 1908, an entire new collection of dress watches that replaced the long-running Cellini. It was a solid, if slightly plain, take on a dress watch by Rolex.

This year, Rolex is introducing the 1908 Perpetual in platinum, adding a “rice-grain” guilloché pattern to an icy-blue dial. It’s enough to turn the 1908 into a compelling proposition, and while Rolex had a quieter slate of releases this year, the 1908 feels like a standout.
Like last year’s gold 1908 models, the 950 platinum measures 39×9.5mm. As is typical with Rolex, it pairs the platinum case with an icy blue dial. But it also features what the brand calls a “rice-grain” guilloché pattern, along with a second, different pattern outside of the minute track. Rolex says the dial uses traditional guilloché engine-turning machinery and technique, but – as you might imagine – it’s not exactly like a single craftsperson is operating a lathe nowadays. To me, the texture looks more subtle in person than it appeared in the first press images we saw from Rolex.

While I appreciated last year’s 1908, a 39mm dress watch that’s mostly dial felt a bit empty. Now, the guilloché fills out the dial in a way that feels more interesting than last year’s iterations. The pattern radiates from the center, and Rolex uses a different, crimped, guilloché to finish off the dial around the minute track. https://www.highluxurystore.ru
Inside and visible through the nude caseback is the same Rolex caliber 7140 introduced in last year’s 1908. As I mentioned in last year’s review, the cal. 7140 uses Rolex’s Syloxi silicon hairspring, something that, until last year, had been reserved for smaller models like the 31mm Datejust. As Danny has explored, it’s notable to see Rolex continue down the path of using two different kinds of hairsprings across its models. Oh, and it’s the first time Rolex is pairing a Syloxi hairspring with its Chronergy escapement. Other than that, the caliber 7140 has everything you might expect from Rolex: Superlative chronometer, 66-hour power reserve, gold automatic rotor, beating at 4 Hz. https://www.highluxurystore.ru
Rolex pairs the platinum 1908 with a matte brown or black alligator strap and a platinum deployant clasp, lined green on the inside. Rolex calls the collection 1908 in reference to the year in which Hans Wisdorf trademarked the term “Rolex,” but it actually takes inspiration from later vintage Bubblebacks. In 2023, Rolex displayed this vintage Bubbleback at Watches & Wonders, implying that it took inspiration from models like it for the 1908. The influence is clear in the dial layout and numerals, even if there’s no denying the superior charm of a vintage Bubbleback.

The 1908 is a large and modern platinum dress watch, but I continue to find the profile quite wearable. It’s thin and the partially fluted bezel isn’t as loud as going full flute. While it’s a dress watch with a sapphire caseback, it’s still got 50 meters of water resistance. Having had a year with the 1908 now, my biggest design choice to quibble with is probably the hands. Of course, the hour hand makes reference to vintage observatory-style hands, but I’m not sure it works on the 1908. https://www.highluxurystore.ru
The platinum 1908 is a fine dress watch that costs $30,900. I won’t necessarily claim that it’s the best watch at its price point or even the best dress watch at its price.

Perhaps most interesting to me is how Rolex has positioned its growing Perpetual 1908 as “a tribute to the classic art of watchmaking.” This is exactly the right way to think about the collection, something that’s not in opposition, but complementary to, its “Professional” sports watches. For me, the “classic art of watchmaking” should mean exploring things like craftsmanship and complications. Rolex doing guilloché certainly feels like the former, but I hope there’s more of both in the future of the 1908.
For $30,000, you can get a lot of nice watches from a lot of great brands. Head on over to Tudor, for example, and you can get one of those new 18k gold Black Bay 58s for a cool $32,000 (!). Not that the two are competitive with each other, but if Tudor’s going to make a dive watch that costs 30 grand, we have to mention it, right? If a dressy Cartier is more your vibe, that new platinum Tortue is just about the same price. We could go on. The point isn’t that any of these watches is better (or worse) than the others, but that Rolex doesn’t have the same differentiation in this space that its built over the last few decades with its sports watches. But, the platinum 1908 is a solid new dress watch, which is more than good enough.