Question on dive watches

[Lorenzoid]

Yeah, to echo Sean and what I said earlier, all this great advice aside, what you REALLY need to do before anything else is ask the instructor who will be teaching your course what gear you will need for the course. The instructor may say that computers will be made available to students who need/want them. The instructor may say a dive watch is pointless for purposes of the course. Who knows. It's up to the individual instructor to a great extent.

Even if you think you're going to love diving and are jonesing for a dive computer, you still might want to rent one a few times to see how you like it. You may find that you have some preference for certain configurations or features.

So, as Sean said, make getting signed up for the class your priority--then worry about gear. Ask your instructor about the gear you will need.

 

[diver 85]

I really appreciate all of your comments. What I have observed is for the price of a good quality dive watch I can get a entry level dive computer so is it even worth getting a watch?

I'm sitting here trying to figure out where you're gunna find a dive computer for 25 bucks....

 

[fnfalman]

Let's face it, this ain't 1960 any more. Nobody needs a dive watch to dive, even those who don't use dive computers. A bottom timer costs as much as a dive watch or less and works more accurately.

HOWEVER, there is that mystique about wearing a dive watch.

 

[Texanguy]

Thank you for all your help. I think i will get certified first than make a decision.

 

[brianmcclure191]

Is there anyone go diving with an Orient Mako? is it dependable under water? I need some review about this piece. Thank you so much!

 

[GrandpaScuba]

I'm a bit of a watch "freak". Yes you should have a full-fledged diving computer. But, that doesn't mean you can't have a watch too. I have several and love taking them with me diving. Mostly while warm water diving.
That said, here is the minimum criteria for a watch for "scuba diving".

a) The watch must be water-resistant to a depth that is at least 2-1/2 times the maximum depth it will be used. If you assume the limit of recreational diving is 130ft, 2.5X is 325ft, or 99meter (round up to 100meters.)
b) The watch must have a rotating bezel, marked 0 to 60 minutes and that rotates ONLY in the counter-clock-wise direction.
c) The watch case, bezel and exposed metal parts must be made from a corrosion resistant metal. Stainless steel, titanium, gold plated, are all good choices.
d) It's up to you to decide if the watch is rugged enough for the environment in which it is to be used. That is part of what item a) is all about.

I didn't make these up. This list came from the OW Diver text I was given in my first scuba class. This was long ago when a diver's watch was considered a mandatory piece of equipment.

I have taken my Momentum M1 with me on dives all over the Caribbean and the Pacific Ocean. I can highly recommend this watch. I'd get a watch with a metal bracelet, but that's my preference. The Momentum M1 with a stainless steel bracelet is about $150. About what most of the watches that meet the above criteria cost.

 

[bmlbytes]

Texanguy, since you are not certified yet, I would wait until after certification to make a decision. My certification classes didn't even go over using the tables, so a watch would be nearly useless to me. I was able to pick up two dive computers after my certification fairly cheap. The first one was an old Oceanic Prodigy that I got on Craigslist for $30. The second was a Mares Puck that I got on Amazon for $200. I now use the Mares Puck as my dive computer, but I have the Oceanic Prodigy in my console in case something happens to my main computer.

Again, I would wait to see what your certification course teaches you. You can find pretty cheap dive computers out there, and they will be better/easier than using the dive tables and a watch.

 

[Dr. Lecter]

Over a year later, one hopes the OP is now certified.

That said, whether one buys a dive watch is sufficiently unrelated to diving that you need not wait to be certified to decide if you want one. My Planet Ocean has been on every dive with me as a reliable backup timer, from OW checkouts to down way past 100m. But really, it's less a piece of dive gear than it is a personal accessory that happens to be suitable and useful for diving.

Buying one *just* for diving would only make sense if you were inclined to do so as part of a vintage gear preference.

 

[creamer]

I love my G-Shock.
I am new to diving so take my opinion for what is it worth. I wear both my watch and computer and both on the same wrist.(Maybe I should treat it like a computer and wear the back up in a different location, ie right wrist, in case I lose an arm)
I primarily use the computer and have the watch as a backup. Additionally, my Zoop is bulky and when I am sitting out my SI or on the boat to the site I would rather not wear it since I catch it on everything. Also, my computer in dive mode does not display the time without pushing a button, which bothers me since I am used to wearing a watch 100% of the time and I feel naked without one.
Interestingly, the instructor I had on my OW course wore the exact same setup, Zoop and G shock, same wrist.

Also, I imagine it has been posted here before but there is a video of a G-Shock and depth meeting going to 200 m+ and still ticking away.

 

[Eric Sedletzky]

This is a real dive watch: