For everyone leaving a good dive watch on the shore (or in the drawer) and taking only the dive computer: have mercy on the watch! If you listen carefully you’ll hear your dive watch crying, accompanied with muttering: “but I’ve been trained to dive right from my mechanical birth, why isn’t s/he taking me?!?” 😢 Seriously now, a good dive watch can simply be used as backup to the computer, allowing you “at a glance” to see when to start ascending, assuming you adjust the “triangle” to the planned bottom-time, rather than to the start of the dive.

Met a guy with a rolex submariner in komodo about a decade back. At the safety stop, he was messing with buoyancy and he got the watch caught in his BCD and it subsequently floated down. He tried going after it, but DM caught him and checked his psi, it was low enough that he had to hang on to him and stop him from diving down to grab it. They got into a punch up on the boat. That was our 3rd dive, and there were no spare tanks to make a rescue search. Went back out the next day to search for it at first light, but no luck. Guy was inconsolable, plus was banned from any further dives due to him attacking the DM. Don't dive with your luxury dive watches friends.

I'm not a diver, but I wear my Citizen Promasters (auto and Eco-Drive) almost every day, for gardening, swimming, everything, because I don't feel like worrying about my watch. It does everything and is reliable. That's what I expect from my divers.

9:54 "Do not pour running water directly from the faucet" - Every time after swimming in salt water in my Casio AE1500WH I thoroughly rinse it under tap water to remove salt water. Been running perfectly for years now.

I started working as a commercial diver in early '99. I've only ever used a watch as a backup, and as a actual piece of equipment I've always chosen ISO rated watches - I did buy a Sub, a Sinn, a Rado Captain Cook, a Squale etc - however my working watches were (I rarely dive for work now) always ISO rated. My 2c - avoid the hype. Citizen and Seiko's ISO rated divers are more than you will ever need.

99% of people who purchase dive watches are not certified divers and will take them off when they wash their hands. That being said, no one today who is a certified diver depends solely upon a dive watch and very few people even wear them diving.

I was a Dive instructor with over 1200 dives in my free time. I use a Seiko and Citizen Dive Watch without any problems. In my time in the 80ths they had only pro-dive watches later, they became mainstream.

Thank you! I’m a diving instructor for many many years and I tell people you can’t dive with a certain watch and they argue about WR. I do use a dive watch as my second device and have had some fail on me. I learned the hard way that 200 WR means nothing. In my early life I was a saturation diver, as I moved away from that job due to having a family I turned to being an instructor of recreational diving, I like the simplicity of using a watch to dive with but you have to have the right watch. I wear a sub, but there are plenty of nice watches out there that qualify as a diving watch, just do your research. P.s. some watches do not have “divers 300m” on them but are still divers watch’s such as the sub.

My first dive watch was a $45 Casio Duro(the "Marlin") and I wore it on over 800 dives. Mostly as a backup to the computer, or simply force of habit. I still have it but it's long since been retired. It has withstood a horrendous beating and it shows. I have an Omega Seamaster as well, but it's far too pretty(and expensive) to subject to that kind of torture. My current active diver is a Citizen Promaster but it's getting older every year and I'll soon be looking for a replacement for it. p.s. at 3:45 that's a GMT bezel, which is bi-directional, and serves a completely different function.

Took my Casio Duro for a swim during a visit to a swimming pool. The Duro is a thing of beauty. I'm wearing it right now as I type this.

I have a few ISO watches, but when I hit the water, I will use either a Citizen ProMaster EcoDrive ($180), or a Casio Duro ($50). There's no way I'd risk taking a multi-thousand dollar watch into an environment where anything can happen, and a breakage or a loss, could be a huge hit to the wallet.

I am using $70 Vostok Amphibia for snorkeling from the year 2016. Couldn't care for the "certification" less. It is perfect diver watch.

Thanks for that thorough explanation. I’d no idea so much involved.

What’s funny odd that the Vostok he showed is probably the most water resistant and best for salt water scuba diving yet it’s the most affordable.lol

The timing bezel feature isn't for timing the dive - although it can. It is for timing the duration - at depth - for the purpose of informing the diver to resurface before the necessity to decompress. Hence the reason Doxa, for example, provides the additional track of numerals on their bezels. That is one of the most common misperceptions of the rotating bezel's purpose.

When in doubt, a G-Shock is your best friend.

Fascinating - thank you (and I now have yet another way to try to organise my collection!!)

Very useful information and well explained. Thank you, your videos never disappoint.

Thank you for clarifying. I haven't gone into the ocean since watching Jaws but it's good to know. My watches are mollycoddled like a Beverly Hills Pomeranian-- they are kept in their boxes and handled with kid gloves. A mallet doesn't go within 50 miles of them.

thanks, you've rekindled my love for my Citizen Promaster auto.

Divers haven't used watches for 20 years. They use a dive computer. Why isn't anyone talking about this?

Why do i have a diver, i get asked this from time to time specially because we’re 1000 miles from any ocean, i tell them I use it for timing my burritos in the microwave, checking on the parking meter and occasionally sneaking into my neighbors swimming pool when they’re not home and I forget to remove my divers watch.

You’re the best watch channel! Thank you for the explanation.

Extremely informative video! Well done! Than you

Appreciate taking the effort to explain them. Being a lazy KZfaq subscriber that I am, may ask for your clarification (You can also ignore mine for being lazy to look for it elsewhere 😆) 1. I came across message that not all watches need to be tested individually to be certified? Only randomly or some portion of the production unit will be tested? 2. When the watch is certified and it stated 200m water resistance, it means it must pass 300m static water pressure test, which is 50% more than the WR declaration on the watch? Thank you!

I dive with all of my watches pretty frequently and most are not ISO certified. My Sinn U50, Omega Seamaster 300 and CWC are all more than capable, despite not meeting some of the requirements. Funny enough I have had a ISO diver bracelet fail during a dive and it was a Seiko Tuna. Thankfully I was at the bottom anyway and felt it as soon as it detached from my wrist.

Thank you for a great video.

Very informative 👌! Thanks!

great video that fully explains what makes a divers watch a diver. My everyday watch is the Orient Triton/Neptune Divers shown near the end of the video, it takes a lot of punishment and just doesn't show it, a true tool watch.

My cheapo Invicta ProDiver ($59.95 when I bought it years ago on Amazon) is a great dive watch :D I'm not afraid to take it in the water, that's for sure.

always love your videos, the effort you put into your content is incredibly impressive and inspiring

Welcome back boss!

Fine sand and waves will turn a lot of dive watches into coffee grinders for a week. I learned that the hard way.

Very interesting. Thanks

Thanks for the instructive video. Although I was aware of nearly everything you said, I enjoyed the vid nevertheless.

Excellent class! 🌟

Seiko turtle had got to be one of the greatest bang for your buck watches ever. Looks great and does exactly what it says on the tin.

Very informative video! I love my King Turtle (though the cyclops on my model is unnecessary). Will have to test it in a hot tub in the near future.

"...over 100 meters or more..." that's a great clarification lmao 🤣

Casi Frogman has an interesting way around the timing bezel. A dive mode where both hands go to12,and the minutes elapsed past 12 is your dive time,with a subdial changing into your clock. Pretty neat.

Good video my man 🙌 I'll use one of my Citizen Promasters if i ever leave the house 😋

Great video. Thanks.

Good video! I am not a diver but I like my Citizen diver watch (ISO certified). I also have a Vostok Amphibia. Not perfect but cool. 🕐⚙️🍸🙃

Very informative video different from the norm

Thanks for this great information ! I bought a Duro for all the craze around it (and I’m a Casio fanboy) and I’m not planning to use it for diving anyway 😄

Using a GMT bezel when explaining a dive time bezel.🤦‍♂️ I’m being overly critical, overall this was a very good explanation.

Thanks for your... deep dive... on this topic.

Nice summary of the standards and the markings that differentiate those standards! Your explanation of the reason for the one-way rotating bezel was seemingly a little contradictory and I think it could be stated more clearly. All products are a compromise between features and cost. I understand that the Chinese watches I favor are not true "diver's" watches because it is much more likely that my budget will be limited than I will have money to blow on dive trips and true Diver's Watches.

In the ninties I worked as a member of a NSW team. Funnily enough, we were issued a Timex Ironman for diving (and everything else). I think they were $45. I drooled over Subs, but the digital features of the Ironman were actually better for our use case.

Enjoy your travels, the pool in your open clip looks familiar…Sheraton Grande Sukhumvit Hotel Bangkok. Very nice!

4:00 that's not a dive bezel, it's a GMT. And it's worth pointing out ND limits for sport divers is just over 50M. And thermal shock test isn't relevant if you are diving in the caribbean- nor will a corrosion test be a big deal, open circuit dives are generally limited to around 90 minutes max and then your watch is going in the rinse tank- you can get a lot of dives in before the equivant of 80 hours, and I have never had anything corrode except the springs in spring bars. I have been sport diving with most of the dive watches I own- from a Chris Ward Makaira Pro to a Tissot - BTW that Vostok is a super compressor case, it can handle something like 800M, there is a hydro test of one under insane pressure here on KZfaq somewhere. Unless you are diving for COMEX, certification means very little. About the only watches you show that I wouldnt dive with are the Casio (buttons will push in, LCD can blank out) and the Invicta (quality concerns). People that wear around Submariners but have never even been diving in a resort course or anything deeper than a swimming pool are way overpaying for what they need in terms of capability.

Im sorry , but you are wrong .The first fully waterproof watch with a screw down back and bezel fitted with gaskets and a screw down crown with a gasket seal was commissioned by and designed for the Royal Navy for use on submarines in 1915 , it was made by the Swiss watch company Tavannes ,and was sold through Brook & Son Jewellers of Edinburgh , it was a black faced watch with a seconds dial at the '6' position and was called the 'Submarine".

I've bought a Seiko PADI and used it while scuba diving many times

Vostok is awesome. I saw some channel that tested actual water resistance and it went to something ridiculous like 800 meters before it popped. To think it is "just" Soviet tech and costs like 70 bucks is quite a thought. Love mine.

How does my Orient Mako 2 stack up? (I don’t even swim often.)

Swum in the sea daily to temps of 3C for 3 years with a casio f91. Unbelievably, it still works perfectly. Cost £10. Good watch if your budget is lower and it looks retro cool if you like that.

I once brought my Invicta watch near a picture of a glass of water. It flooded immediately 😂

Everyone always says my use of a DeepSea is overkill for what I do with it (Spearfishing, Jetskiing, Surfing, Cliffdiving) because i’m so close to the surface. Then i remind them of the rapid pressure changes involved with those sports. I feel like wearing something less capable is just asking for trouble.

Nice video. 😎

Great video

I work in water, so cheers for that topic 👌🏻👍🏻

Am a diver who dives with 2 computers but i also wear one of my dive watches and also take an analog depth guage as backups

10:08 this is a common misconception. There is no ISO certification for 6425. ISO does not provide certification for any of their standards. ISO certification can be provided by independent certification body, but no one certifies 6425. We can only assume companies are compliant if they're marking their watches as "driver's". If anyone is skeptical, just email the manufacturer and ask them for a copy of their ISO 6425 accreditation. I've done this years ago and not a single company had any.

4:05 - 4:12 You’ve got it backwards. If bumped or moved, you would read a shorter dive time, not a longer one, prompting you to surface sooner for safety purposes

Great video. Not sure why you were using a watch with a 24 hour bezel to illustrate how an elapsed time bezel works though. I have not dived for a few years, but i used to wear a Seiko Turtle quite similar to that one (gilt hands, indices and bezel markings).

Can I take my kamasu watch snorkelling wothout risking rust? I have put the watch in salt water before but i made sure as soon as I got back home, to soak the watch in bottled water in order to dissolved any salts left on the watch. I had no vissible issue with rush but i know the watch is not ISO certified. Can you give me some info regarding using the watch or not for snorkelling?

I have Casio W168 and it is the perfect watch for me. Swimming and snorkling for few hours or anything like that was never a problem.

Modern GMT Master II considered a dive watch, or certified? I assume the sub is?

I like and own dive watch bcuz the versatility it possesses; formal, casual, sport, etc.

Hobby divers no longer use traditional diving watches. I have never ever seen anyone using those but me ... For some reason I still have mine on my wrist (a cheap Citizen automatic watch) and I turn the bezel to show the time I jumped into the water. The watch has been on my wrist over 100 feet. I don't think we'll ever go 100 meters deep. Actually, I use the watch more to measure parking time... Sometimes I have tried to calculate the used diving time with the help of a watch, but when diving you have to take several things into account, so a diving watch is useless and only brings problems. The dive computer shows everything essential on one screen, and when you look at it, you immediately see what is important.

thank you

I’m confused as to why you would show a GMT bezel when talking about the details of a dive bezel.

You hinted china watches are from lower grade stainless steel and corrode in salt water. Does that mean Invicta corrodes? I can't find any info on them

I use my Nixon collection to do swimming, adventures & surfing.. they are superb for it.. and use my other “branded” watches just for normal activity 😅😂

Worn at citizen eco dive for years. Before that citizen promaster..never had a drama..never been past 12/15 metres.

Brilliant video I don't dive but I love dive watches as for Chinees knock off I picked up the Cronos simply because its a Deep Sea Knock off and it was on the Hydraulic press channel going down to its maximum without issue. A lot of people shame these watches as cheap knock offs but their build quality on the better brands will shame some of these so called quality Swiss makes.

One thing you forgot to mention is that Omega uses Metas and now, so does Tudor! Therefore, along with its own testing methods, this is a ‘second’ certification, certifying the watches reliability, durability, waterproofness and ‘accuracy’ during these testing methods. I can assure you that Omega’s ‘twice’ tested certifications are ‘more’ than what ISO requires. I had to point that out because you said that Omega and Rolex are so well made, it’s well known and they don’t bother with ISO testing. It’s misleading to people watching this video who may not know! Rolex and Omega go ‘way’ beyond ISO testing. Diving is in their heritage, they take great pride in their divers watches and these watches are their bread-and-butter! Also, as you pointed out, Omega was the ‘first’ commercially available ‘dive’ watch that could be used for saturation diving and maintain the watches functionalities accurately and durably! That was 1929. Most Rolex enthusiasts are mistaken that Rolex invented the dive watch! Hans Wilsdorf, founder of Rolex, purchased ‘oyster’ technology from two inventors in I believe, 1926. It was the first waterproof watch but was only worn around an English swimmers neck as she swam the English Channel. It was not ‘submerged!’ In 1929 as I mentioned, Omega ‘invented’ the ‘first’ ‘fully’ submersible saturation watch! Period! As you pointed out, there is ‘water-resistant’ and ‘saturation’ watches! There is a difference and people should know! Your video was very good and informative. I just wanted to add this.

My iso dive watch will come with me on diving trips, but it will stay in my hotels drawer 😂 I only ever wore dive computer on my dives which has suffered a lot of dings and scratches, precisely the reason im not wearing my beloved dive watches.

Sometimes I dive in the sea even with an Hamilton Khaki field I've since I was a child, it always managed to reach 15 meters with no problem. To say nothing about eterna 200m cosc or stuff like that. You can dive, you must, If you do not, please by different watches :)

I have sort of given up on getting a Seiko Turtle because I struggle to justify the price even though I do need some of the toughness for my job which has some lung diving and a lot of manual work. I even found a nice Vostok Amphibia I could settle for. But damn the Turtle is a good looking watch….

All of my watches have "DIVERS 200m" on them. Not only do I not dive, but I really don't like them getting wet when it rains.

Best watchtuber out there

I go with Certina for affordable ISO6425 certified divers. Great history, rock solid build quality, anti-magnetic movements, can't go wrong with them. 🐢✌️

Big point here as stated in the video is you can take whatever you want diving. Only a certfied Diver's watch should be 100% expected to survive (as long as all gaskets and seals are up to date). All others aren't guaranteed by the company and they don't want a lawsuit saying their watch broke while diving so they just don't recommend it.

I still love my Vostok watches. Campy cheep fun and virtually bomb proof.

Just wanted to know is the Rolex Deep Sea Challenge diver’s watch rated 12,800ft(3900m) WR that James Cameron used during his Mariana Trench dive a true diver’s watch?

I want loom so I can read the time when I wake up in the night. I want a rotating bezel to time my chips in the oven... I dont want to go diving!!!

10:42 have a vostock, it took water had to repair it twice

Does this count for the Apple Watch Ultra 2? Watch works perfectly underwater,despite the 100M WR rating.

Watch : I am not a dive watch but I identified as one 😂

I dove with my omega seamaster down to 120feet, no issues ;-)

You'll never catch me diving the Challenger Deep without my Invicta Subaqua Noma V!

WR100 doesn't necessarily mean it will withstand 100 meters as not all WR watches are tested. They test a certain percentage in a batch. "Diver's" means EVERY watch has been tested individually

Great video as always

In 2024 if you do any serious diving then you would use a dive computer. If you feel you need a backup then use another dive computer. Dive watches I would suggest are based on designs from the 50s 60s and 70s and are rarely used for actual diving if at all. Dive watch certification is not a legal requirement!

A lot of drivers watches are only Diver style but you can still swim with them on because they have passed the water Resistance test and you we will be mostly on the surface of the swimming pool the diver style watch I have probably wouldn't pass most of the official tests as it is a £20 casino and the only people who need a certified dive watch are navy seals and professional divers and recreational divers but for most people a Diver style is fine if they are into that sort of look

I own 15 or so dive watches, or as I call them, vacation walk on the beach jump in the swimming pool watches

The Orient Ray ii is 200m. It is not certified ISO but it is only $150. So you take your chance.

My iso certified helm miyako serves me well

I'm not sure if every single certified watch is tested like this, or whether they just test a single example from the watch's model.