Hands-On: The New Rolex Day-Date 36mm In Platinum Is All About The Bezel

By Danny Milton

Some Rolex releases present updates that are uniquely Rolex. It’s the sort of stuff that wouldn’t excite someone outside the watch world, and that would make those who pretend not to like Rolex roll their eyes. Take, for example, the new Deepsea Sea-Dweller which saw minor reductions to the bezel, and a change to the clasp. That constitutes a new 2022 release. And today, we’ll be focusing on a model that seemingly falls into that category … until you look closer. We’re going hands-on with the brand-new, for 2022, Rolex Day-Date in Platinum in its classic 36mm size.

Like every Rolex release this cycle, we have to start with the teaser video that landed in the days leading up to Watches & Wonders. Some keen-eyed observers likely noticed a little precious-metal-centric imagery and the hint of a fluted bezel. Theories began popping up online that the watch in question was, in fact, a Day-Date. And those theories proved to be spot-on.

It’s a platinum Day-Date with a fluted bezel … so what? Well, the Day-Date in platinum has only ever been presented with a smooth, polished platinum bezel with the signature powdery blue dial. And there’s a reason for that. Platinum is notoriously difficult to work with and tends to really muck up the machines that touch it. A fluted bezel is a fairly intricate cut of metal, producing a detailed and visually interesting alternative to standard polished or brushed fare. It’s become something of an iconic bezel design on Rolex models, both Day-Date and Datejust – heck, even the Sky-Dweller has been added to the mix.

So this year’s new platinum DD’s – both 36 and 40mm – are important because they represent yet another hurdle overcome for Rolex – a brand that relishes in such things and built its name on a whole host of them. Once we knew what changed it came time to see the watch in the metal, in Geneva at W&W.

We were seated in a room inside the Rolex mansion – er – I mean, booth in the Palexpo when the novelties began getting passed around. Sure, there was excitement over the new GMT, the Air King, and the Yacht-Master, but none were quite as heavy-hitting as the Day-Date. And I …read more