After years and years of people telling Blancpain their marquee dive watch was too big (45 mm) in diameter, last year, they released (42 mm) diameter standard production versions of the Fifty Fathom.

Seemingly, Blancpain finally listened to at least some things consumers were saying, instead of dogmatically ignoring public feedback.

For 2025, Blancpain continues to listen and has introduced an even smaller case size (38 mm) to broaden the audience. The Fifty Fathoms lineup now comes in three sizes: 38 mm, 42 mm, and 45 mm. All with depth ratings of 300 meters.

At 38 mm x 12 mm, the Fifty Fathoms 38 (Ref. 5007) is attractively thin. Bear in mind, for some large wrists, the 45 mm might still make sense, but overall, 38 mm and 42 mm should appeal to a wider segment of the sophisticated collecting audience that Blancpain should be courting.

Inside the new Fifty Fathoms 38 (Ref. 5007) is Blancpain’s 3Hz, 28-jewel, automatic in-house manufactured caliber 1150 movement, which features a silicon balance spring, and an impressive 100-hour (4-day) power reserve, driven by series-mounted, twin mainspring barrels.

Starting at $16,700 in stainless steel with a black sunburst dial, on a strap, the watch quickly climbs to $19,500 on a stainless steel bracelet. In grade 23 titanium, with a blue sunburst dial, the watch rises to $17,900 on a strap and $21,100 with a matching bracelet. In 18K red gold, the Fifty Fathoms 38 hits $30,600 on a strap, and $34,000 with a solid gold bracelet.

Blancpain’s Fifty Fathoms 38 extends the legacy of a pioneering watch in the field of diving. Unfortunately, it also continues the tradition of charging far above the Rolex Submariner (an industry benchmark), which in 2025 starts at $9,500 without a date, and $10,650 with a date.

Hodinkee’s coverage of the Fifty Fathoms 38 launch has a comments section dominated by conversations about how overpriced the watch is. That does not in and of itself mean it won’t sell. It does, however, give a good idea of the general sentiment around the launch, and is likely an indication that Blancpain still needs to make some strategic marketing adjustments to markedly grow sales — simply because the price is hard to fathom.

 

Photos by Blancpain.