Rolex Gets Complicated: The Three New Perpetual Padellone Models

Photos, including cover: Hodinkee.

Rolex has given collectors something substantial to discuss with the Perpetual Padellone. The story is a calendar, a moonphase, and a dressier design language presented in three very different configurations. The family feels like an invitation to look beyond the usual sports-watch shortlist.

All three deserve to be considered together. The bracelet changes the personality of the Everose version, while platinum gives the same overall design a cooler, quieter appearance. Choosing between them is as much about how you want the watch to feel as it is about the metal.

What the Padellone actually does

The key complication is a complete annual calendar. The watch displays the day and month in two windows at 12, with a pointer date around the edge of the dial. Rolex’s Haplos mechanism distinguishes 30-day months from 31-day months, so the calendar needs an annual correction at the end of February. The day, date and month change together at midnight. A moonphase adds a second visual focus below.

That annual-calendar distinction is worth understanding. “Perpetual” is part of the model’s name; the calendar still requires that February adjustment. Rolex explains the mechanism on its official launch page.

The shared dimensions are 39 mm in diameter and 12.2 mm thick, with a 66-hour power reserve from the automatic Calibre 7190. Revolution’s launch coverage lists the specifications and Swiss prices used below.

Everose gold on the Settimo bracelet

Reference M53505-0003 is the full Everose configuration, with a matching Settimo bracelet. Its converted dollar price is $74,262.

This is the most overtly luxurious of the three in the supplied photographs. The bracelet carries the warm metal around the wrist and gives the watch more visual weight. If you want the Padellone to feel like a precious-metal statement, this is the clearest expression of that idea.

The interesting tension is between a traditionally arranged calendar dial and a bracelet that makes the watch feel more contemporary. It has enough detail to reward a close look without needing a bright dial color to do the work.

Platinum on black alligator

Reference M53506-0002 pairs platinum with a black alligator strap. Its converted dollar price is $67,177.

The pale blue dial is the defining visual difference here. Against the dark strap and white metal, it feels crisp and understated. This would be the one to look at if you want the complication to draw attention before the case material does.

It is also the configuration that makes the moonphase feel most integrated with the overall palette. The blue elements have room to stand out, while the black strap frames the dial rather than extending its color.

Everose gold on brown alligator

Reference M53505-0002 places the Everose case on a brown alligator strap. Its converted dollar price is $59,238.

This is the most traditional-looking choice of the group. Removing the gold bracelet lets the case and dial take the lead, and the brown strap keeps the warm palette intact. In photographs, it is the configuration that most naturally suggests a dress watch with a useful complication.

There is a practical buying question here: do you want the extra presence of a gold bracelet, or is the dial the whole point? The leather version makes a convincing case for the latter.

How to read the prices

The three figures above convert the reported Swiss prices at $1.2214 per Swiss franc, the rate used for our September 15 roundup, and round up to a whole dollar. They are currency conversions, not confirmed U.S. MSRP or secondary-market quotations.

The Padellone’s appeal will ultimately depend on whether this is the kind of Rolex you want to wear. For collectors interested in the brand’s more formal side, the calendar and moonphase give this family a reason to exist beyond a new dial. The three configurations make that same idea available in three distinct moods.