Aesthetically, the Diver shares much with the rest of the broad-shouldered Calibre de Cartier family. Most noticeable is the dial, with its oversized Roman numeral XII, the snailed marker track, prominent seconds subdial and bolted-on crown guards surrounding a crown sporting the trademark blue sapphire. This casual elegance, equally at home in the office or on a beach, is what happens when a dress watch company builds a sports watch. What is new with the Diver is the rotating timing bezel, a steel ratcheting ring with a thin serrated edge for optimal grip and topped with an engraved insert. The bezel, the defining characteristic of any self-proclaimed dive watch, goes beyond the ordinary. Its inky black timing ring is rendered in Amorphous Diamond-Like Coating (ADLC) that makes it extremely scratch-resistant and adds a glossy sheen; its engraved numbers are painted a luminous white.
ISO 6425 says nothing specific about the kind of movement that a dive watch should have, but that didn’t stop Cartier from endowing the Calibre Diver with a superb motor. The calibre 1904 MC is entirely engineered and manufactured in-house, and that’s a particularly good thing in this case; there are few watch maisons these days as capable as Cartier, a company that has prolifically produced some of the most innovative and complicated timepieces of the past decade. A dive watch movement doesn’t require much in the way of complications or expert finishing, but what it does need is accuracy and reliability. The 1904 MC delivers, with twin barrels that ensure a consistent torque curve for chronometric stability across the watch’s entire 48-hour power reserve. The self-winding movement is hidden away behind a rather workmanlike solid steel caseback, entirely appropriate for a dive watch.
When the news broke this past January that Cartier was releasing its own diver, we’ll admit to a healthy dose of skepticism. Even the early photos didn’t convince us. But to see and wear the watch was revelatory. The 42-millimeter size, curved lugs and slim profile make it easy to wear yet big enough to hold its own as a sports watch. The Roman numeral dial, while entirely unconventional in a field of watches that more typically sport hashes and dots, somehow works without impairing readability. Turn off the lights and its dial — including the ring around the seconds subdial — and the sword hands glow like torches, even beyond 9.8 inches away. The textured rubber strap, while a bit short, is supple and comfortable and integrates nicely into the case. The overall look is seamlessly and flawlessly executed.
While the Calibre Diver’s ISO 6425 compliance is impressive, the real beauty of this watch is that it exists at all. It’s as if an exotic supercar company suddenly built an off-road vehicle that’s prettier than every rock-crawling 4×4 on the trail and outperforms them, too. Cartier’s watch retains the refinement and panache of the brand while holding its own in a field of brutish tool watches. This is a watch that could be worn diving the Andrea Doria by day and then paired with a dinner jacket for cocktails by night. The Calibre de Cartier Diver handles both situations with equal aplomb, an accomplishment nowhere to be found in ISO 6425. Maybe it’s time for a new dive watch standard.
