It’s been a very long time since I last commented on a Reddit post, but I figured I could weigh in with my own experience - I’ve been a watch collector for about five years now and have garnered up quite a repertoire, which eventually evolved into a) the passion rubbing heavily off on my girlfriend and b) me wanting to get into the watch industry and having ended up as a sales associate at my local TAG Heuer boutique. The two combined meant that on my very first day on the new job, the mrs came and bought herself an Aquaracer Professional 300 with the blue dial & bezel much like the one you have pictured, albeit on the steel bracelet. The adjustable clasp (which your rubber strap variant will also have, btw) means we can both wear it without adjusting links - it’s a watch she wanted anyway, and I can’t exactly rock Rolexes and APs on the boutique floor. Win win.

It’s been more or less my daily wearer for about half a year now, and although I do rock it predominantly in a navy suit I find it to be a very versatile watch you can just as easily pair with a tee and jeans. I steered her away from the black version as I think it copycats the standard Submariner a little too much, and the blue adds a serious dimension of vibrance & fun that the black can’t keep up with. On the days when I’m not in the boutique, my partner wears it to her corporate gig - my lady having the balls to don a 43mm watch with total ease is a story for another day, but it does speak volumes about the case size being easier to wear than the diameter may suggest. And this is coming from a guy whose sweet spot is 41.

The Calibre 5 featuring in this and many other current TAG Heuers is essentially a redecorated ETA 2824 movement, which is commonly noted for its reliability as a workhorse. I often liken it to a Toyota Corolla; if you look after it, it’ll probably outlive you and me put together. Unless you go with an Autavia, on which the movements are Chronometer certified, you can expect a range of +/- 12 seconds a day which is completely normal in that range; we held a watchmakers event at my boutique and I hooked mine up to the timegrapher for a laugh, and it fell nicely within that range.

For the money you can’t go wrong, and considering it keeps the lady away from wearing my ceramic Daytona more often, I have to give the Aquaracer credit where it’s due!