Today we are comparing two 31mm Lady Rolex Datejust (178384) Watches.  We are comparing the one on the left which has the original factory diamond dial and bezel, with the one on the right which has an after market custom diamond dial and bezel. You can already see that the difference is hard to spot but as you can imagine the difference in price is HUGE!

Comparison Transcript: Original Factory Bezel vs Custom Aftermarket Bezel

Today we’ll be doing a comparison between two Rolex Datejust Watches. The Datejust reference number is 178384. We’ll be going over the price and the general aesthetics of the watch, mainly because everything about the watch, everything about the watch besides the bezel and the dials are going to be different. So the movement, the case, the bracelet, the crown, everything else is going to be the exact same. The one on my left here is the factory original Datejust with the reference number 178384.

Original Rolex Diamond Pricing vs Aftermarket Diamond Pricing

The price of the factory original you’re looking at $15,950 from a Rolex retailer. You can still get it from us for as low as $13,000. With the aftermarket what we’ve done is we’ve taken the base model, the Datejust, which is the 178240, and we’ve added the aftermarket diamond bezel and diamond dial, and all that added up together you’re looking at as low as $7,100 for this almost replica of the manufacturer one. All the parts are still the same, bracelets are still the same, crown, case, movement, everything is factory original. The only difference is the bezel and the dial. That’s all we’ve changed. So now you have to ask yourself, “Is $6,000 a difference “from that $13,000 versus $7,100, “is that really worth, “is it really worth it to get the factory original?” Well, I’ll leave that up to you.

Original Rolex Diamonds vs Aftermarket Diamonds

So here are some differences. The Rolex bezel has in total 48 diamonds. You’re looking at diamonds that are at least IF in clarity, meaning internally flawless, so you’ll need a magnification above times 10 to see any mishaps with the diamonds. Additionally, the diamonds are D to G in color, which means the diamonds are almost colorless, which is one of the four highest grades of color. So very high quality diamonds on the Rolex. Unfortunately, the one thing they don’t release is the carat weight of it. They only put the pricing on their price list on their website.

For the aftermarket diamonds, however, you’re looking at a diamond bezel with 42 set diamonds looking at under one carat in carat weight for the diamonds. The diamond dials, just very simple, very similar. The diamond hour markers are fashioned in 18 carat white gold to prevent any tarnishing. As you can kind of tell, a little bit of difference there that the diamonds in the factory Rolex are a little bit larger as you can see the settings in the aftermarket are larger, the white gold is larger in the aftermarket opposed to the factory. So those are the real differences between the two, the bezels and the dials.

Original Rolex Dial Colors vs Aftermarket Dial Colors

The color, in reference to the color, there are multiple choices, a huge amount of choices for the dial color. It’s really up to you. We can do all sorts of colors for the aftermarket, whereas the Rolex factory for specifically diamond hour markers and diamond bezel you can only get it in the pink, black, blue, white or brown mother of pearl, or silver. Our two most popular ones for aftermarket is white mother of pearl and a meteorite. So very beautiful two different types of dials. Rather the meteorite you cannot purchase at Rolex, so that’s another choice that’s a good option to explore as well.

Original Factory Rolex Or Custom Aftermarket: Conclusion

Alright, so it’s up to you if you want to decide if that $6,000, almost $6,000 in difference is really worth it to you to get the factory versus the aftermarket. With $6,000 you can get the aftermarket for your wife and you can buy yourself a used  Rolex Submariner and you’ll both be happy. Whereas only your wife will be happy if you buy her just the Datejust factory, right? Once again, everything about the two Datejust are the same; the movement, case, bracelet, crown, everything is the same except for the bezel and the dial. We have the lowest prices guaranteed. We offer free shipping and a one year warranty.