While there is a proverbial sea of dive watches from brands large and small that largely all imitate the Rolex Submariner, the DOXA SUB, born in the late 1960s for professional use, stands out for its unique design: Housed in a thick, tonneau-shaped case, it features a special bezel insert inscribed with both 60-minute hash marks as well as a “no decompressions” scale, a type of chart that lets the diver know how long he can stay submerged at a given depth without the need for decompression stops during ascent.
This particular aesthetic — which married the aforementioned thick case and unique bezel with brightly colored dials and a jangly beads-of-rice bracelet — was never something that was going to appeal to the masses. Indeed, for decades it was largely serious SCUBA divers, explorers and enthusiasts who wore DOXA. These days, however, the brand has vastly expanded its operations in several key markets, including via Watches of Switzerland in the U.S.A. More people seem to know about DOXA than ever before, and the Swiss brand is taking this into account as it expands its product offerings.
Launched in 2019, the SUB 200 is DOXA’s entry-level diver. Priced around $1,000, it features a fairly compact (by DOXA standards, anyway!) 42mm stainless steel case with an automatic movement and a standard count-up bezel insert in sapphire — gone, in other words, is the famous “no deco” bezel. This omission serves to thin the bezel/dial profile somewhat and make for a more conventional/streamlined look without sacrificing too much functionality, while the inclusion of an optional beads-of-rice bracelet — a rubber strap is another option — and 200m of water resistance means that roughly $1,000 still gets you plenty of watch. While it might not be the choice of enthusiasts, for the casual watch buyer, the SUB 200 is a total no-brainer.
Now, DOXA is updating this handsome design with the addition of a steel bezel option. While this subtle update isn’t a change in functionality — the fresh bezel insert still provides a method for tracking elapsed time, either under water or topside — it’ll be welcome by many collectors who prefer this look over that of a colored aluminum or sapphire insert. And in true DOXA fashion, none of the myriad classic color options are being retired in their sapphire-insert form — rather, the brand is simply expanding the model family, offering no fewer than 46 variants of the SUB 200 across dials, bezel inserts and straps.
The bezel itself is of course unidirectional in order to conform to ISO dive watch standards — this ensures that a diver never overestimates the amount of air left in a tank, for example, or underestimates the amount of bottom time he’s spent during a dive. Regardless of dial color, each bezel features full 60-minute hash marks with thicker cardinal indices and 10-minute Arabic numerals, plus a luminous pip at the 0-minute mark. The bezel edge is also scalloped for easy purchase with or without gloves. As for the SUB 200 itself, it measures 42mm wide by 13.8mm thick and features a screw-down crown, screw-down caseback, sapphire crystal and a luminous dial in one of eight colors with sword hands, an open minute track and a date window at 3 o’clock. Power is provided by the automatic ETA 2824-2 movement.
Retailing for $1,050 on rubber or $1,090 on a steel beads-of-rice bracelet, the DOXA SUB 200 is still one of the best values in mechanical dive watches over six years following its debut at Baselworld 2019. Now that it’s available with a steel bezel insert, it’s surely guaranteed to make that many more friends in the collector community.
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