UnderWarter watches by OVD ( Origin, Vision & Design) brings forth very creative designs to the watch world. I noticed the AEQUOREA from their Kickstarter campaign and their other model called the Whale Diver from various social media platforms. The layered dial, great lume, red date display was very eye catching to me so I decided to give it shot. After spending a few weeks with this unique diver here are my thoughts.
Specs:
Case: 42mm, 49mm, 316L Stainless Steel
Movement: Seiko NH35
Case Thickness: 13.7mm
Water Resistance: 200 m (650ft) / 20 ATM.
Lug Width: 13mm.
Crown: Screw-down crown with lume on the narrow pits and top
Dial: Multi-Layered Dial with BGW9
Hands: Hands filled with BGW9
Lens: sapphire crystal with Anti-Reflective coating.
Bracelet: 316L Stainless Steel with ratchet buckle clasp, sand blasted
Caseback: 316L Sandblasted Caseback with Etched Logo
The watch takes many of its design elements from the Jellyfish according to OVD. The Dial on the Aequroea is is probably the watches best quality and the most eye catching. The way the multilayered dial with its colors pops really well day and night.
The markers around the dial are cut very well and line up with the bottom portion of the lower dial. The lume is also done evenly and glows bright. There were some small particles of debris around the dial but nothing big or noticeable with the naked eye.
The text is done decently with some minor blotchy areas here and there, but is rather crisp.
The date wheel in red and white is a nice touch. It's very crisp and easy to read. I personally like this as it is different and seems to work well with the colors.
The hands are done nicely, better than expected. The Orange and Silver are are clean and goes well with the colors of the watch.
The bezel is very easy to turn although a bit hollow sounding. The bezel does need to be moved forward 1 click more then turned back to line up on the correct marker. Other than that the lume is applied nicely and easy to use.
The caseback is sandblasted like the rest of the watch no real issues here. Its also important to note that with the lug width being only 13mm you will most likely be using the bracelet that comes with the watch. O hope in their newer designs that they switch to female endlinks with a larger lug width.
The case itself is smooth and round. The crown I have a slight issue with the lume being set within the grooves and somewhat poorly done on the top of the crown. I would imagine that over time the lume will begin to break and fall off depending on how active you with the watch, especially if you swim or dive with it.
The bracelet has a nice weight to it and that same smooth finish to it.
The diver extension clasp is finished well. The 3 micro adjustments are nice feature.
One issue I found was the brushing between the links, wishing they would have done the same finish as the rest of the watch.
Another issue would be the how the links flare up upwards from the male end links as shown below. Its not the worst but can be a bit off putting for some.
The AEQUOREA currently retails for $360. I think with its minor faults as mentioned above the watch still has such a unique coolness to it that it would be hard to pass up for some. I really appreciate the fact that they come up with some crazy designs and not just another cookie cutter watch design.
Comments