The most common trope of fashion is probably that "what's old will be new again." We have been witness to this time after time in the watch industry, whether it be the new craze for 70's-style integrated sports watches, or even the post-quartz-crisis mechanical watch industry as a whole. Some argue, then, that the dress watches of old are bound for a return to the mainstream. Some argue that we're even in the midst of the return! Addiesdive is attempting to capture that audience with their brand-new AD2037, which borrows design elements from classic ultra-luxury chronographs from the 40's, and manages to deliver it at a great price.
Brand
Addiesdive is, as its name suggests, focused mostly on homage dive watches at the lower end of the market. Known for their faithful homages, the brand often delivers a product with insane value. With specs that often exceed their inspirations, and prices that are usually under $100, it’s easy to see why the brand is popular. As with most brands in its category, don’t expect any customer service or warranty with your purchase.
Value
At a shocking $99, this piece is well priced. Given its looks, materials, and movement, you'd expect a higher price. For comparison, this watch is in direct competition with watches like Dan Henry's 1937. That watch has a very similar design, the same exact movement, and it also has mineral glass on it. The difference is that that watch costs almost triple the price. Now, there is some competition from other Chinese brands, like Mysterious Code. They are producing a similar product for around $65, but Addiesdive is a more trusted brand, so it doesn't take away from the value of the product. Sapphire would have made this a slam-dunk, but the mineral glass is more than acceptable.
Case
The case on the AD2037 is what you'd want it to be. Cases on dress watches are generally supposed to be simple and polished, which is just what you get here. The case here is a simple circular design, with relatively short, down turned lugs. The lugs are also drilled, so strap changes are easy. The top surfaces, including the tops of the lugs, are polished, and the sides and back are both brushed. Both finishes are done relatively well, and the separation is crisp.
The only logos you'll find are on the case back and on the end of the crown, which keeps everything clean, and it looks great. Speaking of the crown, it is a push-pull, and is very smooth in operation. Despite being a push-pull crown, Addiesdive claims 100m water resistance, which is better than expected for its segment, where the norm is 50m. The chronograph pushers are polished and have a unique sunburst texture on their sides that play with the light and look great.
Less fantastic is the use of mineral glass. At this price point, and especially for this style of watch, it isn't much of a bummer, though. Sapphire is always welcome, but affordable dress watches are the models that benefit from it the least. Adorning the mineral glass is an extremely strong coating of blue anti-reflective undercoating. In certain lights, it really doesn't even look like a black!
Dial and Hands
The dial and handset are both classic and elegant. The handsets for all of the displays are silver leafs, bar the chronograph seconds, which is a silver needle hand.
The dial is a matte black, with silver sundials at 3 and 9, both done in concentric silver rings. There are applied baton indices, and applied roman numerals at 12 and 6, also done in silver. Around the border is a train track style minute track, and a tachymeter done in a clean white print. The whole setup is very legible, and executed well. There aren't any blemishes or printing issues to be seen on the dial. The whole package is cohesive and works well.
Lume
There is no lume on this watch. This is a negative for our scoring system, which aims to rate watches for "everyday" wear. This is a dress watch, though, and so like isn't an important factor for that environment.
Movement
To get a chronograph under ~$500 (or ~$150 if you include the ST1901) is to forfeit the chance of a mechanical movement. There simply aren't any mechanical movements available for the price. That being said, the next best option is a mecha-quartz movement, which is featured here in the form of a Seiko VK64. Featuring a 60 min chronograph time display at 9, a 24 hr display at 3, the chronograph functionality has a smooth sweep, and there are no running seconds, so it is hard to tell it is even quartz. The battery should last 3 years between swaps.
Unfortunately, the VK64 has no way to adjust alignment, which was an issue with my model. When in the "0" position, the chronograph seconds hand misses 12 by a hair. To fix it, I would need to open up the case! Luckily, it isn't horribly misaligned, so I can live with my model, but it is definitely worth noting.
Bracelet or Strap
The included bracelet is a 20mm black, alligator-style strap with a butterfly clasp deployment. Perhaps my biggest complaint with the entire watch is the strap quality.
The leather used here is stiff and thin, and doesn't feel particularly well made. It does look the part, and the black leather matches the dial well. The clasp has some play in it, but is easy to operate and adjust. All around, the strap is a bit of a let down on such an otherwise well done watch. The saving grace here is that 20mm lug width. The most common width, most people will have an extra strap that would compliment the watch. Personally, I think it looks great on a Milanese!
Fit
Dress watches are supposed to be small and thin enough to fit under a cuff. At 38mm in diameter, 46mm lug to lug, and under 13mm thick, this is right on the money for size. One benefit of the segment's smaller fit means that larger wrists actually can pull this off as well as smaller wrists.
Taking it back a couple steps is, once again, the strap. The leather isn't very supple, and detracts a bit from the experience. It doesn't ruin it by any means, though, it still wears and fits how you'd want it to.
Versatility
Clearly at home in any formal scenario, the AD2037 could also be worn elsewhere. The crocodile strap holds the watch to dressy environments, but a simple strap change to a suede or Milanese instantly makes this watch able to be worn in more casual environments as well. Especially with the 100m of water resistance, I think that this watch is actually quite versatile.
Originality
If you're familiar with vintage swiss chronographs, modern reissues of them, or even retro-styled brands like Furlan Marri, then this watch should be familiar. Very familiar. Perhaps more of an homage to the idea of vintage chronographs more so than to a specific vintage model, this isn't an original design. This watch does look almost identical to the Furlan Marri chronograph, which is actually itself a budget homage that combined aspects of various swiss models.
So this is an homage of an homage to an assortment of watches that all look pretty similar themselves. That's quite a mouthful, so where does it leave Addiesdive? If it wasn't basically a 1:1 of a Furlan Marri, it would get a little originality credit for combining models, but it is. It's a wonderful, but completely borrowed, design.
Diameter: 38 mm
Lug-to-Lug: 46 mm
Lug width: 20mm
Case Material: 316L Stainless Steel
Strap: Black Leather with Butterfly Clasp
Crystal Material: Mineral Crystal
Movement: Seiko VK64
Water Resistance: 100m
Lume: No
Crown: Push-Pull
Color Options: Black
Brand: 2/10
Value: 9/10
Case: 4/10
Dial and Hands: 9/10
Lume: 0/10
Movement: 5/10
Bracelet or Strap: 4/10
Fit: 8/10
Versatility: 8/10
Originality: 1/10
WatchScore: 50/100
So what’s the verdict? For less than $100, The AD2037 delivers a product that people clamor over at 3 or 4 times the price. Its looks are reminiscent of vintage watches that are simply unattainable, and the only thing holding back the wearing experience is the easily swapped band. The WatchScore here is a bit misleading- almost all of the deductions come from the Brand's lack of history/ originality, and the omission of lume- the scores are actually quite high besides those three. It's a surprisingly wearable, well-built, and amazing priced piece that gets our recommendation.
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