Dive watches are a special kind of sports watch made specifically for scuba diving or deep sea diving and are a crucial piece of equipment for any frequent diver. They are usually analog although many are now digital and have many more features than just a uni-directional bezel in 5 minute increments and luminous hands and numbers. They must be rugged enough to withstand both the harsh environment of sea water and water preasure up to a minimum of 10 atm at 100m/330ft.
The international standard ISO 6425 test certifies that the word "DIVER'S" may printed on the watch case. It requires several rigorous tests to ensure that the watch is able to withstand normal underwater activity.
Casio dive watches prove that they don't have to cost a lot of money, at around -150, but they are attractive yet rugged, and they are every bit as functional as the more expensive ones. They will keep precise time of day, elapsed dive time, and remaining dive time. Casio watches will readily handle the stress of different environments and keep time as well. They come packed with a similar array of features as other, more expensive luxury dive watches. The bezel is packed with information and a curved glass front gives the wearer the appearance of a flat sunken face when beneath the water.
The Casio dive watch illumination system features green hands and blue hour markers to allow the diver to the readouts even in dim lighting conditions. The luminous paint has a limited lifespan compared with higher priced watches but the battery powered LED sufficiently illuminates the watch face at both 6 o'clock and 12 o'clock positions when you press the button located at the 2 o'clock position and the entire watch face lights up for 3 seconds.
With a wide variety of designs and styles to reflect your individual tastes and diving needs the more expensive Casio dive watches are an impressively inexpensive option that rivals those that are more expensive. All dive watches are water resistant to between 100-200m (330-660 feet) which is perfectly fine for recreational diving, snorkeling and swimming. As with all dive watches you do need to be careful about activities around hot water such as taking a hot tub, bath, a shower or even doing the dishes as warm or hot water can cause problems with their watertight seals.
Overall, a Casio dive watch is remarkably well built. They are solid and rugged and they are as easy to read as they are to look at. They feature a screw-down crown that operates as smoothly as one you would expect on a high-end watch as well as a screw-down case back - a feature rarely found on cheaper watches. If it were not for the poor quality band, Casio could easily justify selling this watch for 0 and over. Fortunately they have marketed them as a great value choice for the novice diver, for the more experienced diver looking for a backup watch, or to anyone on a budget.
