One of the Best Chronograph Watches Under $1,000 Just Got Better

British microbrand Studio Underd0g is one of the hottest brands in the watch industry at the moment, and it just released a new-and-improved version of its flagship watch.

Fresh off the heels of its surprising $65,000 collab with luxury brand H. Moser & Cie., Studio Underd0g is returning to the ultra-affordable watch that put it on the map — the 01Series Chronograph — with a third generation incorporating some subtle but important improvements.

Best of all, the chrono is still extremely affordable, easily ranking among the best watches available under $1,000. These things are in high demand and will only be available for a few hours today before going away, so let’s quickly go over what you need to know before buying.

Photo by Johnny Brayson for Gear Patrol

Third Time’s a Charm

The biggest change Studio Underd0g has made for the third generation of its 01Series Chronograph is the movement. Previous generations of the manual-wind chronograph were powered by the Chinese-made Seagull ST-1901, but Seagull recently announced that they would be limiting distribution of said movement to orders of 10,000 units or more.

That’s a lot of movements for a microbrand, but luckily for us, Studio Underd0g is apparently doing quite well. Not only has the brand brought back the affordable integrated column-wheel chronograph for the 01Series (Gen3) watch, but the brand worked directly with Seagull for a custom take on the movement that’s exclusive to Studio Underd0g.

Photo by Johnny Brayson for Gear Patrol

The exclusive new Seagull ST-1901B calibre features some notable improvements. Namely, there’s an improved swan neck regulator that’s slightly more precise, and there’s a new black mainplate that gives the bridges more visual pop. The movement is also now regulated in Great Britain to -10/+15 seconds per day, an increase in accuracy over the previous version’s -15/+35 spd rating.

In addition to the upgraded movement, the third generation of the 01Series features a few other small changes that, when taken together, make for some big improvements. Most notable is the thickness of the case, which has been reduced by more than half a millimeter from 13.6mm down to 12.9mm. The crown has also been increased in size to make winding more comfortable, an important feature for a hand-wound watch.

Studio Underd0g

These increases in comfort are accompanied by a couple of increases in quality. The watches are now able to boast an “Assembled in Great Britain” label on the dial at 6 o’clock, and the size of the sapphire display on the caseback has been increased to give an even better view of the new, prettier movement.

Pricing and Availability

The Studio Underd0g 01Series (Gen3) is priced at $675, which is a $75 increase over last year’s (Gen2) release. Given the improvements made to the watch, the increase seems more than fair, and the watch remains a tremendous bargain overall for a mechanical chronograph.

Studio Underd0g

I had the opportunity to handle the new generation of the 01Series at Intersect Austin over the weekend and I was very impressed. The watches feel, look and wear like they cost a lot more than they do, and that new movement with the black mainplate is really attractive.

All four of the 01Series’ classic colorways have returned for this generation: The blue and cream Desert Sky, black and gray Go0fy Panda, green and brown Mint Ch0c Chip and, of course, the viral Watermel0n. All are available to purchase right now at Studio Underd0g’s website, but only for a few hours. Once the sale window closes at 7 pm EST today, that’s it for this drop. Happy hunting.

Studio Underd0g

Studio Underd0g 01Series Chronograph (Gen3)

Specs

Case Size	38.5mm
Movement	Seagull ST-1901B
Water Resistance	50m

• $675 at Studio Underd0g

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