Saudi Luxury / Watch basics
Dive watch essentials: bezel, crown and legibility
Learn the features that make a watch fit for diving, so you can tell a true diver from a sports watch that only looks like one.
A proper dive watch has three features an ordinary water-resistant sports watch may lack: a bezel that turns only anticlockwise, a crown that screws down, and hands and markers you can read in the dark. The dive-watch standard, ISO 6425, sets a minimum of 100 metres; most divers are rated to 200 metres or more, so look for that. A depth rating alone does not make a dive watch.
The bezel
At the start of a dive or any timed task, turn the bezel until its zero marker sits over the minute hand. Elapsed minutes then read straight off the scale. The one-way action is the safety feature: if the bezel is knocked, it can only move to show more time gone, never less, so any error means surfacing early.
When you try one, check that it clicks firmly and does not wobble. The Seiko Prospex SRPL53K1 has a unidirectional bezel and a 200-metre rating, enough for recreational diving.
The crown
A screw-down crown seals against the case. Unscrew it to set the time, then screw it back until it is snug, not forced. A crown left open is one of the commonest ways a dive watch floods. Many divers also have crown guards, raised shoulders on the case that shield the crown from knocks. The Omega Seamaster Diver 300M 210.90.42.20.01.001 pairs a screw-down crown with a unidirectional bezel and a 300-metre rating, as does the Rolex Submariner 16610.
Legibility
In the dark, you need to tell the minute hand from the hour hand at a glance. Good dive watches give the minute hand a distinct shape and put lume on the hands, markers and bezel zero. ISO 6425 requires the watch to be readable at 25 cm in darkness.
Strap and bracelet
Choose rubber, fabric or a metal bracelet over leather, which water and sweat ruin. Some dive bracelets have an extension that lets the clasp open out to fit over a wetsuit. After salt water or a chlorinated pool, rinse the watch in fresh water with the crown screwed down.
Spotting a sports watch sold as a diver
A watch that meets ISO 6425 may carry the word “Diver’s” with its depth, such as “Diver’s 200m”, on the dial or case back. A plain “200m” states water resistance only. The site’s list of dive watches in stock includes a few that do not qualify, such as models rated to only 50 metres or without a timing bezel. Before buying, check the spec table for all three features and a rating of 200 metres or more.
A helium escape valve is for professional saturation divers, so you are unlikely to need one. For a ranked shortlist, see our top 10 dive watches. For the full detail, Watch Codex explains what ISO 6425 requires of a dive watch.
Every day and on real dives
A dive watch makes a sound daily watch: it copes with sweat, rain and the pool. The trade-offs are size and weight, and the crown to unscrew each time you set it. If you dive in the Red Sea, use a dive computer to track depth and no-decompression limits. The watch times elapsed minutes and serves as a backup if the computer fails.