The Apple Watch Ultra Just Took a Page From Omega and Breitling

Despite the rumors, Apple did not announce the Apple Watch Ultra 3 at yesterday’s “Glowtime” keynote. But that doesn’t mean the brand completely ignored its most capable smartwatch.

The existing Apple Watch Ultra 2 received a couple of updates. One was the addition of a black colorway for the Grade 5 titanium case to go alongside the existing natural gray version. The other update was the debut of a Titanium Milanese Loop as a strap option.

Photo by Tucker Bowe for Gear Patrol

This marks the first time a mesh band — or any metal band, for that matter — has made its way to the Apple Watch Ultra. The standard Apple Watch, however, has had a Milanese strap option since the device’s introduction in 2014, and most people probably associate this type of strap with the Apple Watch more than any other watch.

Although Apple has historically pitched its Milanese Loop as a dressier, upscale strap option for the Apple Watch, similar mesh straps have long been paired with traditional dive watches, making it a natural fit for Apple’s hardcore sports watch.

Apple

Apple Titanium Milanese Loop

• $199 at Apple

Mesh Dive Watch Straps Go Back a Long Way

Milanese mesh bracelets, named for Milan, where their fine weave pattern originated, have been used on many styles of watches since at least the mid-twentieth century.

Dive watches began using Milanese straps in the 1950s, and while no brand claims to be the first to have done so, I don’t know of any company that did it earlier than Breitling. The brand’s SuperOcean diver came with a fine mesh strap in 1957, which is just four years after the invention of the modern dive watch with the Blancpain Fifty Fathoms and Rolex Submariner.

Breitling

Later in the mid-century, larger and more rugged “Shark Mesh” bracelets became more common on dive watches. Perhaps the first of this style was the one that Omega introduced on its 600-meter capable Seamaster Ploprof diver and Seamaster 1000 in the mid-1970s.

Shark mesh has larger loops and a looser weave compared to traditional Milanese mesh straps, and Omega allegedly advertised theirs as being “shark-proof.”

Omega

You Can Thank James Bond for Milanese’s Comeback

Today, shark mesh bracelets are utilized by a number of brands (Squale comes to mind) and third-party strap producers, and they’re exclusively associated with dive watches thanks to their rugged, toolish construction and alleged resistance to toothy marine life.

But in recent years, the original finer Milanese-style mesh bands have once again come into fashion on dive watches, particularly vintage-styled divers.

In 2007, Breitling recreated its 1950s-era SuperOcean diver as the SuperOcean Heritage, and it was complete with a Milanese strap, just like the original. Longines resurrected its 1960s Super Compressor diver that same year as the Longines Legend Diver, and it, too, came with a Milanese bracelet.

Photo by Johnny Brayson for Gear Patrol

Both watches were fairly popular, but neither really ignited a Milanese mesh revival among dive watches. They were more niche, appealing mainly to enthusiasts and collectors in search of a diver with an authentic vintage feel.

James Bond, however, did kick off an ongoing Milanese mesh dive watch trend. In the last 007 movie, 2021’s No Time to Die, Daniel Craig’s Bond wears a special Omega Seamaster designed specifically for the movie.

The watch has vintage styling, a Grade 5 titanium case and — notably — a matching Grade 5 titanium Milanese mesh bracelet. The watch has proven to be extremely popular, ranking as a modern icon for Omega, and its popularity has spurred a Milanese mesh revival at the brand (and among copycats).

Photo by Johnny Brayson for Gear Patrol

When Omega launched with the Seamaster James Bond 60th-Anniversary Edition in 2022, it came on a stainless steel Milanese mesh strap. Omega later released this steel version as a standalone strap to purchase, and the 20mm size — the one needed to fit the standard Seamaster Diver 300M — is frequently sold out online.

Then, just last month, Daniel Craig created a buzz at the Olympics when he showed up wearing a mysterious unreleased Seamaster, and you guessed it, the watch was on a Milanese strap.

Photo by Tucker Bowe for Gear Patrol

Photo by Johnny Brayson for Gear Patrol

Suddenly, Milanese mesh straps are the hottest thing in dive watches — so it makes perfect sense that Apple would add the option to its own techie version of a diver now.

If you’d like to add the Titanium Milanese Loop to your Apple Watch Ultra, it’s available in natural gray or black in three different lengths on Apple’s website for $199.

Apple

Apple Titanium Milanese Loop

• $199 at Apple

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