Men's Best Dive Watches for Summer

Waterproof to 500m, the Titanium Pelagos is, without question, one of the finest purpose built “Tool” watches we’ve seen coming out of Geneva in years. It’s simple, bulletproof, impossibly easy to read, and does exactly what it says it’s going to do: work extremely well at great depth. It also bears the distinction of holding Tudor’s first “In-House movement” inside its case, and comes with a rubber strap, which you can swap out for one of the more beautifully engineered dive bracelets on the market: It employs a unique technical system that allows the bracelet to be automatically adjusted during a dive. Essentially as you and your wetsuit compress at depth, it won’t slip off, and then when you rise and the pressure lessens, it expands. All of this adds up to an incredibly tight package.

To buy: $4,450, tudorwatch.com

Easily one of the highest depth certifications on the market at 1000 meters, the Superocean 44 is one beast of a timepiece. It’s also the second watch that Breitling’s ever released with a ceramic bezel, something that’s become de rigueur for competitive offerings from Rolex & Co. At a reasonably hefty 44mm, it’s approaching Panerai territory in terms of wrist feel. But for the man (or adventurous woman) who’s looking for a watch that would work well during a Seal Team Six mission and a Titanic site tour, you’d be hard pressed to find something more appropriate.

To buy: $4,850, breitling.com

The Aquatimer is a certified standard in the dive watch world. IWC’s had it on offer for nearly five decades, but this non-chronograph version pays special tribute to the ultimate dive master: Mr. Cousteau. It’s perhaps one of the most wearable on a day-to-day basis due to its muted black-and-blue aesthetic, which corresponds with its 300m dive certification and 14mm thickness. What we’ve always loved about this series is that beautifully executed internal rotating bezel, something that all of the previous offerings outsource to the outside of their case.

To buy: $7,710, iwc.com

With the introduction of the Royal Oak in 1972, Audemars Piguet rather controversially established the entire market for luxury watches produced in stainless steel. Some twenty years later, AP would turn heads yet again with the Royal Oak Offshore, a slightly larger and sportier interpretation of Gerald Genta’s original design, which they continue to produce in a number of vibrant and exciting variants. In 2016, the brand rolled out the Royal Oak Offshore Diver Chronograph, and as the name would suggest, they’ve built upon the success of the internal rotating bezel–equipped Offshore Diver, but incorporated a chronograph complication for additional underwater functionality. Available in bright blue, orange, yellow, and lime green, the Diver Chronograph presents a fun and highly functional alternative to other high-end dive watches, with some serious horological chops to boot.

To buy: $19,900; audemarspiguet.com

Belgian industrial designer Benoit Mintiens founded Ressence with no prior experience in the field of watchmaking, a fact that he used this to his advantage, as it allowed him to approach his designs with a fresh and innovative perspective. His first creation, the Type1001––notable for its lack of centrally fixed hands that orbit around the highly legible, and extremely flat appearing dial––ultimately set the tone for many of the Antwerp-based brand’s future pieces. This model, called the Type 5BB, has been noted as the most legible dive watch ever (thanks to the use of an oil filled display) thus eliminating any reflections in the crystal when in use underwater. Its bold dial is appropriately surrounded by a tactile, rotating bezel, which is finished with the same black DLC coating as seen on the 46mm case.

To buy: $29,500, ressencewatches.com

With the release of the first Calibre in 2010, Cartier’s first standard production model to use an in-house movement, the French watchmaker effectively ushered in a new era of fine watchmaking for the brand. Just as enthusiasts and collectors had expected, this manufacture calibre–bearing watch proved to be a hit, and to further evolve the brand’s image to suit collectors of the modern age, Cartier announced the Calibre Diver in 2014: a fully ISO-certified dive watch containing the in-house 1904 MC calibre, now offered in blue. Coming in at 42mm across and 11mm thick, the Diver has a noticeable presence on the wrist, which is counterbalanced by a host of sophisticated details that are quintessentially Cartier, including the use of roman numerals on the dial and the sapphire cabochon–decorated crown.

To buy: $27,000, cartier.us