Invicta Pro Diver Review - Shockingly...Good Value
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There are always going to be watches that split opinions. This brand…well they’re adept at it. But this watch…maybe this one is different.
Invicta’s history dates to the 19th Century, and they have a surprising horological history, which includes producing timepieces for the Soviet Navy at one point. Nevertheless, in recent years, their deviation towards gigantic and elaborate watches have led many people to lose faith in the brand; and I can absolutely see why. I’ll save my full thoughts on Invicta for its own dedicated review.
Today we’ll be looking at their most popular model, the Invicta Pro Diver automatic, which bucks many of the recent design trends, and potentially offers great value for money.
Price
Introduced in the 1990’s, the Invicta 8900 series Pro Diver is one of many Rolex Submariner homage watches that you can get your hands on. The Invicta Pro Diver automatic version normally comes in at around, or just under, the £100 mark on Amazon in the UK. As the company is US based, you can normally get them even cheaper from Amazon US. They also make a lower priced quartz version, but personally, I wouldn’t recommend that one.
If you like the sound of this watch, I’ll have a link to it at the end of this article. Purchases made through the link also help to support me and are always highly appreciated.
Invicta pro diver specs
Spec-wise, the Pro Diver comes in with:
Diameter: 40mm
Depth: 14mm
Lug To Lug: 48mm
Band width: 20mm
Stainless steel construction
Movement: Seiko NH35A automatic
Glass: Mineral crystal
Water Resistance: 200m
Check it out on Amazon here
The watch arrived in this surprisingly good yellow box. While the loud colour may not appeal to everyone, it’s of unexpectedly good quality. The materials used are soft and plush…I’ve seen far worse packaging provided with watches at double this price point; so, it’s certainly a nice touch.
Design Overview
Clearly the design of this watch is far from unique. This Invicta Pro Diver takes massive inspiration from the Rolex Submariner, with many aspects of the watch looking virtually identical; this has led to people rightly calling this Invicta’s ‘cheap copy’ of that Rolex model. There are several variants and colours of this watch available, with the coin-edge bezel versions being the ones that closest resemble the submariner look.
invicta 8926OB Case
The case is constructed of stainless steel, with a mixture of brushed and polished surfaces; both of which are done to an impressive standard considering the price. This is built with near-identical proportions to the submariner, whose size is often touted as being fantastically versatile for many wrists. Due to the fractionally larger lug to lug size, I think the Pro Diver does wear slightly larger than the size indicates; however, on my skinny 6 ¼ inch wrists, it still looks quite good.
Still, Invicta have left their mark on this watch, both figuratively and literally. A frustration that many people have with this watch is the Invicta logo engraved into the left side of the case. This is something I thought had the potential to ruin the watch, however, it’s been less of a factor than I anticipated. The engraving itself is very accurately done, but more importantly, tends to be concealed by my sleeve during wear. As a result, I usually forget it’s even there. Thankfully, this engraving isn’t placed on the right flank of the watch, as on its much larger Invicta Grand Diver counterpart, whose markings are far more visible.
To aid with the diving capability of this watch, it also features a signed screw down crown. I’ve found this one to be really grippy and easy to operate. It allows you to set the time and hand wind the watch with no issues. The crown guards, which cover a portion of the crown, will also provide some protection from glancing blows.
Inside this watch is the venerable Seiko NH35A automatic movement, which is viewable through the exhibition case-back. This is a quality, accurate movement, which you’ll often find in many microbrand watches many times the price of this Invicta. This one even features a yellow, custom Invicta rotor, which I think is a nice touch and is a welcome addition in a watch that otherwise lacks personality.
Given the watch has a stated 200m of water resistance, you should have no issues when swimming or during daily tasks; which is a bonus. The bezel on this model has adequate grip and is easy to turn, with a satisfying click. If this feature matters to you, I’d certainly recommend the crown bezel version, as the alternative scalloped bezels tend to lack grip. There is some back-play though, when compared to higher quality dive watches.
Dial
The dial is covered by mineral crystal glass, which, whilst not as scratch-resistant as sapphire, is absolutely expected at this price point; so, I have no complaints. While it is quite reflective, I find myself still able to read the dial in most situations.
As you can imagine, as a homage watch, the design is essentially the same as the submariner. You’ve got a near-identical set of hands, with a very similarly designed bezel. Aside from the obvious difference when it comes to the logo, there are a few things to note with the Pro Diver. Firstly, the hour markers are smaller than some other submariner homages and feature a slight yellowy green tinge. Additionally, the dial sits slightly deeper in the watch than pictures indicate, resulting in a relatively thick chapter ring; which whilst not necessarily bad, isn’t really to my preference. I prefer something slightly slimmer like that in the Ginault Ocean Rover.
While it’s far from unique, the Pro Diver 8926OB is still an attractive watch to look at. There’s a reason the submariner design is copied so often, it’s because it just works.
This watch does feature lume on the hands, hour markers and at the 12 o’clock position on the bezel. Its performance is very average and it does fade quite quickly, however, once again, it’s hard to expect more at this price point.
Bracelet
The bracelet is both good and bad. Outside of the hollow end-links, the bracelet comprises of solid, stainless steel links, with alternating brushed and polished finishes. Whilst slightly jangly, these are of fantastic quality for the price; they’re weighty and work well with the aesthetic of the watch. Unfortunately, the fold-over clasp is nothing special. It functionally serves its purpose but is a step down in quality from the rest of the bracelet.
Pros and cons
Pros:
Solid movement
High quality case and bracelet
Versatile size
Looks like a more expensive watch
Price
Cons:
Unoriginal design
Invicta engraving
Polishing may divide opinions
Should you buy one?
This Invicta Pro Diver review has covered all aspects of the watch, but…should you buy one?
If you’re after a low-cost watch that looks like a Rolex, that still retains a decent amount of quality, then this Pro Diver Invicta could be exactly what you’re looking for. The slowly rising prices of the Pro Diver 8926 are indicative that this model offers good value for money and it’s certainly increasing in popularity online. While this brand does offer some truly bizarre timepieces, with its Seiko movement and great built quality for the cost, its unsurprising that the Pro Diver is still selling well. It’s a watch I’d definitely recommend considering.
