NOVE makes what is quite possibly the thinnest dive watch known to man, for some definitions of “dive watch”.
Let me explain.
What is a Dive Watch
A dive watch has to do a few things:
- have a rotating bezel to time minutes under water (so you don’t run out of oxygen!)
- have a second hand so you can be sure the watch is still functioning
- be water-resistant to a specific depth
- be luminous so you can see the time at depth.
- have a screw-down crown for water-resistance. (It’s possible to get 100m without this, but 200m almost always requires it.)
Why would you want this?
It’s no great secret that watches have transformed from tools to jewelry over the years. No one is diving without a dive computer. If there’s a dive watch at all, it’s a backup to the modern dive computer.
This is because, while the watch is beautiful, safety is more important than beauty.
NOVE instead makes a revolutionary rotating bezel with 3 springs, sawtooth ratchets, and in order to make it slim, exposes that to the world. It’s fantastic.
The second hand and lume aren’t anywhere to be found on the dial. Instead, hour markers are applied indices, little metal domed dots. To be clear, the hands are lumed.
The crown, like most dive watches, is a screw-down variety to increase water-tightness.
Is it a diver? Not exactly, but it’s not wrong, either.
What NOVE promises
NOVE would tell you this is the slimmest 200mm dive watch ever. And that’s true – at 6.8mm thin, it’s wonderfully slim.
It’s also quite large around. At 46mm, be prepared for it to attract attention.
NOVE makes the Trident collection stand out. Whether it’s a gold case and bracelet with a black crown, or blue case and bracelet with a gold crown, it’s almost impossible to get a watch that’s made of all the same colors.
The exception is, if you wanted one in all black with a gray dial. Then, you can have uniform colors. Everything else is a mix.
How does this differ from other NOVE products?
There’s a new NOVE Trident automatic, using the Ronda R150 movement. It’s one of the first watches we’ve seen use this new movement, and it’s good to see.
The new Trident automatic is 13mm thick over all, a big growth from the 6.8mm thin the quartz model provides.
Other NOVE watches are unique in case and bracelet design, but none quite capture the attention the way NOVE’s Trident bezel does.
The value proposition
Right now, NOVE quartz Trident watches are discounted from around $500 to as little as $350. For your $350, you get a unique watch with a distinctive bezel. Yes, it’s quartz. And you get a 6 year battery life because it’s unashamedly quartz.
The visible bezel springs are beautiful. The easy to turn bezel has almost no backplay, which is uncommon. You usually get easy to turn with backplay, or hard to turn with no backplay. This is just right.
The bracelet is unique. The crown is a design all its own, that is plenty grippy for the need. Even though the watch is as wide as a dinner plate, it wears comfortably because it’s so thin. To buy one, check out nove.com.
Watch Overview
- Brand & Model: NOVE Trident E008-02
- Price: Normally, $500, currently $350 USD
- Who we think it might be for: You like want a dive watch, but also want to look baller.
- Would I buy one for myself based on what I’ve seen?: I like the E009-02 and E010-02 – they’re blue with silver crown and blue bezel with silver numerals, or blue with black crown and back bezel. I would also have bought E001-02, a silver with gold crown and gold bezel springs model.
- If I could make one design suggestion, it would be: I wanted the seconds hand (available on the automatic model) and lume on the dial.
- What spoke to me the most about this watch: The visible bezel springs are beautiful. The easy to turn bezel has almost no backplay, which is uncommon.
Tech Specs from NOVE
- Case size: 46mm
- Height: 6.8mm
- Case material: Stainless Steel
- Crystal: sapphire
- Strap: Stainless Steel bracelet
- Movement: Swiss Quartz Ronda 1062
