In recent days, the new Royal Oak Perpetual Calendar 7138 launched by Audemars Piguet has aroused heated discussions among many watch enthusiasts. This watch not only breaks through the tradition in design, but also achieves revolutionary changes in the adjustment method. Do you know? This watch only needs one crown to complete all adjustments. It is simply a black technology in the perpetual calendar world! Want to know more exciting details about this watch? Read on!
The new Royal Oak Perpetual Calendar 7138: redefining luxury and craftsmanship
At the 2025 International Haute Horlogerie Exhibition in Geneva, Audemars Piguet launched a new generation of Royal Oak Perpetual Calendar 7138, with a diameter of 41 mm and a public price of 837,000 yuan for the steel case. The public price of the 18K sand gold case has not yet been announced. The overseas public price is about 130,000 Swiss francs, equivalent to about 1.06 million RMB.
The adjustment and protection function of the perpetual calendar: Audemars Piguet’s technical innovation
To be honest, before I learned about this watch, I always thought that the adjustment method of the perpetual calendar was the “one gear to adjust the calendar, two gears to adjust the time” mode. It wasn’t until I saw this 7138 that I realized that the perpetual calendar can be adjusted like this! This greatly reduces the risk of damage to the movement during adjustment.
The development process of Giulio Papi and Audemars Piguet’s ultra-thin automatic movement 7121
The developer of the 7138 perpetual calendar module is Giulio Papi, who has designed movements for Patek Philippe’s 5712, 5940, 5740 and other models. The advent of the 7138 perpetual calendar movement marks Audemars Piguet’s technological catch-up in the field of perpetual calendar watches and its surpassing in some aspects.
For example, this 7138 has a movement thickness of only 3.9 mm, and the entire watch is only 9.9 mm thick after it is installed. In addition to being ultra-thin, it also has a power reserve of 55 hours, which is considered a relatively high level among perpetual calendar watches. In order to achieve an ultra-thin body, Audemars Piguet made a lot of subtractions in the design of the movement, the most obvious of which is to make the moon phase disk hollow. In this way, it can not only achieve visual beauty, but also reduce the number of parts and improve the reliability of the movement.
Innovation in perpetual calendar regulation: the breakthrough of Audemars Piguet 7138
In addition to the ultra-thin body, the 7138 perpetual calendar has another biggest highlight, which is its adjustment method. 7138 cancels the previous design of perpetual calendar watches that required two crowns, and only one crown can be used to adjust all functions. This is an unprecedented design among perpetual calendars, which greatly simplifies the adjustment steps.
Specifically, this crown can complete four functions: first, it can be wound without pulling out; second, pull out the first gear to adjust the calendar and month; third, pull out the second gear to adjust the time; fourth, return from the second gear to the first gear to adjust the day and moon phase. In this way, even those who are new to a perpetual calendar can easily get started.
After the release of the 7138 perpetual calendar, its crown adjustment method also caused great response. Many watch enthusiasts believe that this adjustment method is likely to become the standard feature of perpetual calendars for famous watches in the future.
The design and historical significance of the Royal Oak Perpetual Calendar 7138
It is worth mentioning that Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Perpetual Calendar 7138 is not the first time to use this adjustment method. As early as 2021, Audemars Piguet launched a Royal Oak Offshore Perpetual Calendar, which also used an integrated adjustment method. However, because the overall shape of this watch is thicker and its practicality and aesthetics are not as good as 7138, so people don’t pay much attention to it.
As a new generation of Royal Oak, the 7138 perpetual calendar also redefines the perpetual calendar function. It not only continues the classic design of the previous perpetual calendar, but also makes new improvements in details.
For example, the calendar indication adopts an irregular tooth design, which ensures consistent spacing between numbers, making the entire calendar disk look more beautiful and harmonious.
At this point, we have to say that Audemars Piguet is actually the inventor of the modern perpetual calendar watch. In 1955, they added a leap year indication function to the perpetual calendar for the first time. This design is still widely used in perpetual calendar watches of major brands today.
Audemars Piguet’s emphasis on and innovation in the high-end market and watchmaking craftsmanship
The choice of color and material of the 7138 perpetual calendar also reflects Audemars Piguet’s emphasis on the high-end market and its unique understanding of its brand positioning. Although most high-end brands will launch a perpetual calendar, only Audemars Piguet really promotes it as a flagship model.
It is not difficult to understand why the new perpetual calendar watch will increase the waterproof capability to 50 meters instead of the previous 100 meters and 200 meters. Because if you want to ensure the accuracy of the movement, there cannot be too much external interference, and hidden buttons are one of the biggest interferences. In order to ensure the accuracy of the movement, Audemars Piguet ultimately chose to cancel this design.
Through the application of new technologies, Audemars Piguet has demonstrated its strength and innovation capabilities in watchmaking technology. The 7138 moon phase disk is restored and produced using moon photos taken by NASA. This level of lifelike detail is second to none in the entire industry.
The hollow design of the 7138 moon phase disc echoes the exquisite carvings on the back of the movement, which not only ensures practicality but also enhances the ornamental value of the entire watch.
Conclusion
The Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Perpetual Calendar 7138 undoubtedly pushes luxury and craftsmanship to a new peak. It is not only stunning in appearance, but also brings unprecedented convenience in technology. I think this innovative spirit is really worthy of appreciation! What do you think of this watch? Come to the comment area to chat about your opinions, or give me a like!
