Panerai’s new Luminor Chronographs are as sophisticated as they are sporty

Premium watchmaker Panerai has long known that keeping time is a weighty responsibility in situations when every second counts. Say on a sports field, when a single second can mean the difference between breaking a world record or not, or when divers sync their watches before embarking on a heroic mission.

In fact, the Italian brand’s first chronograph was developed in the 1940s, when it started supplying the country’s navy, and most notably its specialist diving corps, with precision instruments.

So great were the innovations in these timepieces, that they were covered by the Italian Military Secrets Act until 1997, when Panerai was acquired by the Swiss Richemont Group.

Today, Panerai is celebrated for creating timepieces that meld Italian design flair with Swiss horological expertise, and legacy with innovation.

Case in point? The trio of sporty chronographs recently added to its expansive Luminor collection: the Luminor Chrono PAM01109, PAM01218 and PAM01110.

All three of these sophisticated stopwatches feature the brand’s latest mechanical innovation, Caliber P.9200, a high-performance automatic movement with a 42-hour power reserve, while their design draws on the Luminor legacy.

Like other models in the Luminor collection, they have a multilevel “sandwich” dial with a crown-protection bridge on the right-hand side of their stainless steel case — a signature design detail dating back to the 1960s.

The chronograph pushers are positioned on the left, creating a pleasing sense of balance, while blue hands denote these buttons’ function on the dial. Waterproof up to 10 bar (more than 100m deep), they also feature “base 1000” tachymeter scale, enabling the calculation of speed over a designated distance.

With matt black and white dials respectively, the Luminor Chrono PAM01109 and PAM01218 come with a duo of straps made of alligator leather and rubber. These are easily interchangeable depending on whether you plan on wearing your timepiece in the boardroom or while diving below the waves.

The Luminor Chrono PAM01110 has a blue dial with satiné soleil finishing and a brushed and polished steel bracelet which, too, can be switched out for straps in other materials should you desire.

This article was paid for by Panerai.