A Week on the Wrist with the Panzera Aquamarine 45G – a GMT and a dive watch all in one

It's not all too common that different flavours of the best watches on the market mix themselves up. You'll find something for every occasion – dive watches for your summer holiday, GMT watches for your business trips and chronographs for when you want to pretend you're Jackie Stewart – but rarely a combination.

Enter the Panzera Aquamarine 45G. As a dive watch and a GMT in one, this serves as a hybrid of two styles, all wrapped up in a classically-styled case design.

Hailing from Australia, the brand offers a suite of customisation options allowing you to really tailor each model to your taste. Add in a decent spec sheet and good pricing and it's safe to say I was intrigued. Let's take a closer look.

Panzera Aquamarine 45G key specs

The Panzera Aquamarine 45G certainly isn't a watch for the feint-hearted. At 45mm across and 14mm thick, this sounds like a total beast right off the bat.

That case is crafted from 316L stainless steel, and – in the case of my review unit – PVD coated to give a sleek, black finish. Other models on offer utilise a regular steel finish if that's more your thing. The bezel is finished in a similar material, with neatly set markers on a 24 hour scale.

A screw-down crown ensures water resistance, while also controlling of the various functions of the watch. It's a chunky piece, too, with a knurled finish that makes it about as easy to use as humanly possible.

The dial sees Arabic numerals used at the 12 and six o'clock positions, while the abbreviated model name – A45G – sits at nine o'clock and a date window curves around at three. Hour and minute hands are large and hollow, with a slim, red-tipped seconds hand and a classic red arrow GMT hand.

Other indices are formed of simple sticks, and sit within the minute track. It's a remarkably simple dial given the sheer volume of different things going on, which is a real testament to the design.

All of that is powered by the Seiko NH34A movement. That's a solid calibre, which offers 41 hours of power reserve, to keep things ticking away even while it's not on your wrist.

What is the Panzera Aquamarine 45G like on the wrist?

Let's get one thing out of the way early doors – this watch isn't going to suit anyone with especially slim wrists. There are certainly some pieces where the wearing experience defies the dimensions, but this isn't one of them. It's a big, hulking wad of steel, and it's going to make an impression.

I have quite slim wrists, and realistically, this is bigger than I'd feel comfortable with. I can just about get away with it, but really only because big, oversized watches are starting to rear their heads again. The good news is, if you've got bigger arms, you'll probably get on well with this.

Sizing concerns addressed, I've actually been really impressed with this piece. There's a reassuring heft to the design which feels robust, but also gives an air of real quality.

The design of that dial is really quite remarkable in its simplicity. Given just how many hands are flying around and complications sit under the hood, it never feels too crowded. I'm not personally a fan of this style of date window – it complicates things unnecessarily with the added numbers – though it gets the job done in practice.

My review unit came on a rubber strap which is just as big and chunky as everything else about it. Don't think for one second that translates into being uncomfortable, though – it's soft and supple and makes for a great everyday wearing option.

There was also a black leather strap included with my sample, though that was less impressive. It's much skinnier than the rubber strap, and – combined with the weight of the head – caused a lot more movement around the wrist.

Is the Panzera Aquamarine 45G worth the money?

The model I've reviewed here retails for £665 / AU$1,473 (approx. €765 / US$910), though that will vary slightly depending on the colour and strap options you go for. It's pretty much in the middle of all options, though, so I'll use it as a yardstick.

For that cash, I think the Panzera offers pretty decent value for money. It's certainly not the most bang for the buck you'll find, but for something with decent styling and reassuringly good build quality, you could do a lot worse. It's also worth noting that the brand hosts regular sales events, so you could feasibly snag one for even less.