Rado has expanded the Captain Cook Chronograph line with a new high-tech ceramic model in navy blue, giving the brand’s vintage-inspired diver a more technical and contemporary presence.
The watch keeps the large 43mm chronograph format introduced to the Captain Cook family, but shifts the character with a plasma ceramic monobloc case, matching ceramic bracelet and polished blue ceramic bezel insert.
Plasma ceramic gives the 43mm case a lighter feel
At 43mm wide, 16.2mm thick and 49.8mm lug-to-lug, this is not a small watch, though Rado’s high-tech plasma ceramic construction helps keep the weight to 169 grams.
The material has a metallic grey tone with a smooth, almost liquid surface, while offering a hardness of 1,250 Vickers and strong scratch resistance.
Rado uses matte finishing across the exposed case and bracelet surfaces, then adds polished centre links for contrast.
The watch is rated to 300 metres and fitted with screw-down pushers and crown, both finished in rose-gold-coloured PVD to match the bezel hardware.
A blue ceramic bezel and vintage Captain Cook cues
The navy blue bezel insert is made from polished high-tech ceramic and carries engraved markings filled with white Super-LumiNova.
Its inward slope is one of the key Captain Cook signatures, linking this modern chronograph back to the original 1960s diver without turning the watch into a simple nostalgia exercise.
A box-shaped sapphire crystal reinforces that connection, while the dial itself is unmistakably modern in execution.
The applied indices and main hands have rose-gold-coloured borders and white luminous fill, with the Captain Cook’s familiar arrow hour hand and sword-shaped minute hand retained.
The three-register chronograph layout
Unlike earlier two-counter versions of the Captain Cook Chronograph, this ceramic model uses a three-register layout with a 12-hour totaliser at 6 o’clock, a 30-minute counter at 9 o’clock and small seconds at 3 o’clock.
The chronograph hands are gold-plated with red tips, a detail echoed by the red numerals in the date window at 6 o’clock.
The recessed sub-dials combine snailed outer frames with brushed centres, giving the dial more depth without making it feel overworked.
At noon, Rado’s pivoting anchor sits on a synthetic ruby background, one of the most distinctive small details in the Captain Cook design language.
R801 automatic chronograph movement and price
A titanium caseback with sapphire display window reveals elements of the Rado calibre R801, an automatic modular chronograph movement based on the ETA A31 platform.
The movement runs at 28,800 vibrations per hour, uses 37 jewels, includes a Nivachron anti-magnetic hairspring and offers a 59-hour power reserve.
The Rado Captain Cook High-Tech Ceramic Chronograph in navy blue is reference R32195202 and is priced at EUR 6,500.
It will appeal most to collectors who like the Captain Cook’s offbeat vintage-diver identity but want it in a larger, more technically driven form with ceramic construction and everyday durability.
