The Good (and Bad) About Zenith's NEW Defy Divers... 

Hot Take: The A3648 was my favourite unveiling from W&W 2024. Not only is it cool to see Zenith taking on the Dive watch again BUT the sheer impracticality of the original Defy diver is something I enjoy so much. What are your thoughts of this new series and of the Extreme Diver? 🥃

I was in Watches and Wonders and I got to try on all of Zenith’s new watches. The revival one was really nice. I think what a lot of publications missed out on is the lume. Putting it through a black light highlights another unique quality of the revival piece. As for the extreme driver, it was the surprise hit for me in Watches and Wonders. I was initially put off by the press photos, but actually wearing it and seeing it in person really made the difference. I told my AD to put me on the list - I just can’t decide the final color however. It’s wearable due to the titanium case and the strap changes are really fun. The only slight gripe I had was the bezel action especially compared to a Submariner or Pelagos FXD. The thickness is not a Great Wall of Tudor slab - the helium escape valve breaks up the thickness and the rest of the thickness comes from the clear caseback and top glass. Funnily enough, I did get Doxa and Zodiac designs too as I was shopping around Doxa’s new releases. Alpina also released a diver similar to this as well. My thoughts, after being around Rolex Submariners, Seadwellers, GO SeaQs, JLC Polaris, Tudor Black Bays, Pelagos these last couple of years - I’ve been after a fun new diver design. And Zenith delivered. I think it caters more to that crowd - I actually see this being used in the water instead of just wearing in the office. It’s too wacky in an office setting and wants to be near the water.

In my view, Zenith has done everything right here. Tastes differ... If you want to dive back into the diver's watch segment after so many years of absence and want to be noticed, then I would have done the same. The alternatives you have shown are not daring enough, far too adapted to the mainstream, they would have simply sunk and drowned, figuratively speaking. You have to have had the watch on your wrist and preferably compare it 1:1 with others... After that, I think you'll see it less as a possible thematic mistake…

The new Defy Extreme Diver is on my shopping list. Can't wait to try it on.

Totally agree. The revival A3648 would be even more attractive if it were thinner. They could even do the titanium formula and make it ultralight. Your redesigned minute hand resembles the SeaQ hand from Glashütte Original though.

huge Zenith fan, saw the A3648 and Defy Extreme Diver in person and I couldn't take the Defy Extreme Diver Blue off my wrist!

It refreshing to see a watch company take some risks - sometimes they dont work out , zenith have done a great job in my opinion

Damn, your videos just keep getting better! I love what you chose to focus on as well as your insight and commentary. I've learned a lot from your videos. I'm and ID fanboy!

I was under the impression orange was one of the last recognizable color as you go down in depth.

Great video with good points. Personally, I think these are Epic-Cool and I prefer interesting, weird watches like these over mass-appealing, boring watches any day. Just my opinion:)

Great video my friend, I think Zenith is doing great in the past 5 years. Zenith could use some designers and executives from Tudor to perfect their diver watches 😁

Thank you for the video. The only thing I would change is the hands. You can still be bold without a club.

My internal clock (no pun intended) woke me up to catch this video!

I love this revival watch, I will almost certainly be buying one

Thank you for the review. I agree that the new release looks similar to the Zodiac. With all of that said, Zenith has revitalized the brand. I was lucky to get the Aaron Rodgers Chronomaster. It’s a limited edition. The pictures do not do it justice. You need to see this piece on your wrist. It’s absolutely stunning.

Yes the orange Doxa's always puzzled me. They said orange could be seen more easily through the murk, and as you said that only makes sense at shallow depths, so what they say is then probably only partly correct as it only applies to shallow dives in mirky water or at the shallower depths where you may be decompressing. Deeper down you'll be seeing black hands on a grey face, which is not bad. I believe Cousteau used the black version, the shark hunter, not the orange.

I waited patiently for my A384 chrono and was finally able to pick one up at 40% I'm not immediately taken with this model but if I were I wouldn't rush in. Good as they are Zenith are a relatively expensive niche brand. Most models end up discounted at some time.

I love the new Orange and black defy def going to wait for the hype to die down and add one to the collection I used to have the blue dial el primero chrono 38mm and it wore a bit bigger than the 38 size i bet this 37 mm wears the same way

I like these watches although I feel like I shouldn’t. In fact I like the whole defy range, it leans into the defiance name. I own a skyline with its tenth of a second sub dial, which is utterly pointless, but equally fun. Maybe Zenith are in a subtle way poking fun at the watch industry, recognising that people who can’t swim walk around with planet oceans and subs, so why not make an impractical diver that’s fun. I’m a big Zenith fan Also a big fan of your channel, fantastic commentary as always. Looking forward to the next one! 🙏

excellent writing love the retro design of these divers clearly inspired by doxa and zodiac which I love too.

Great critique and thank you for covering these releases. We heard nothing of these from pretty much any other channel. I agree that the diver is a swing and a miss and I do think your suggested adjustments would have made it much more successful. They went a little too crazy with this one.

The revival is easily my favourite watch of w&w 2024

I'm spewing! I love the Revival so much, but bought the orange bezel Planet Ocean and couldn't possibly justify two orange watches.

Got to admire the efforts Zenith are making 👏

As a general rule, I'm tuned into most anything Zenith offers with the word Revival on the end. I own an A385 Revival, it's one of my top two watches I own. The Defy Revival took me some time to warm up to upon arrival, but it's a stunner. once you know how to look at it. I prefer the more muted colorways. This Revival Diver is great, though I'm not particularly interested in dive watches and extreme divers even less. That the Revival is impractical as an actual diver, that's irrelevant, its not why anyone is ever going to buy it. The same goes for the extreme diver and most any mechanical diver in the sense that they've largely been replaced by dive computers, so why kid ourselves? That said, the closer to the original, the better. The Skyline chronographs are stellar. I'm not a white dial guy, the white dial variant is stunning. Had they introduced the tri calendar El Primero at W&W, they would've been listed among the winners of the show rather than seen as a bit of a sleeper.

Agreed, I do think the extreme diver is over-designed. In addition to your valid points I would say that it looks like the bezel markers are separated from the hands by 3 or 4 elements (the orange ring, the crystal edge distortion, the polygonal fixed bezel, the circle surrounding the fixed bezel). When the minute hand is that THICC as well it makes it trickier to read elapsed time than it ought to be. We all know this isn’t supposed to be an ultra-readable tool but it’s just slightly too compromised for me. But then I’d be complaining if they went with something too generic as well!

Nice one mate. Love those tweaks to the extreme, I would have looked more than twice at that one! The elite rainbow diver line is also a hidden gem and whilst not perfect could have been uselful in terms of platform. Not to mention the EL PRIMERO rainbow. An updated mango?! Now that would be something else

I thought you were talking about me for a minute, "A novelty, a curiosity that leaves people scratching their heads." Like the watch I've somehow managed to make it this far ;)

I like the orange look, but then to contemplate the price and Id rather pick up a Zodiac Super Seawolf for a fraction (reminds me of that with a one colour bezel)

what blows my mind that designers at those bigger brands, even though getting paid quite well, fail to dive deep enough (no pun intended) into the topic to produce something coherent and desirable. Not all the time, but most of the time I would say. It's for sure a symptom of being too big to fail.

This watch looks identical to Blancpain Fifty Fathoms 1000 Barakuda. Yours truly happened to have one! 🙂

You know what, I was about to say something great about Zenith but I waited for you to talk and bam! I got hit in the face with the el primero moonphase chrono, it is so reminiscent of Universal Geneve, not sure if they supplied the calibre to UG. However. the new divers look like what we'd see today until you dig into the details, it is for a very accomplished watch collector that would wear something incognito, orange is loud but as I said, the engineering put into these watches have to be appreciated. It is such an under rated brand.

I have several issues with these divers. First the case reminds me of a Grand Seiko with all of the edges. Second the chapter ring seems off on this design. Lastly is the price. For me, I like the tooliness of divers. Tudor for me gets it right, especially the Pelagos 42mm. Lastly if I want an Orange Diver I would go for the Doxa. On a side note, I really look forward to your content.

I love Alexander I'm rooting for him to be the next James Bond !

Funny you say that it has some DOXA vibe as that was the first thing that came to my mind. I owned the Doxa Sub 600 😊 I think that this new Zenith watch would have looked better if they would have went with a circular inner bezel rather then the Decagon

Whoa, Mr IDGuy, these things are out there. I like though. Zenith do cop a flogging from the watch community elite though. Although I have watches with crown at 4 I can’t see me buying another with it. But then, you only live once… Stay cool mate. ❤

these new divers are gorgeous 😊

Oh, that Zenith is amazing!

Yeeah, true; not my bag. As often with Z, too Hublot lite. BUT have you seen the Ollech and Wajs Rallychron..!? Black n' yellow, racing, 39mm..!

I think something contemporary should not be frowned upon, look, as a collector, you have to look into the future; What would that watch look like many years from now after those sharp edges soften up a little bit, the bezel gains little wear and tear and so on. What did people say when the first octagon defy was brought to market? Probably the same thing we are saying now. The past few years has given me and I am sure many others a bitter taste with all the vintage inspired releases and the over load of faux patina, this should be applauded and encouraged. The defy line is very contemporary to begin with.

Your small changes make a big difference and big improvement but does it then encroach on the heritage diver?

Couldn’t agree more; the template for a modern dive watch should have been that reference preceding the Defy: Zenith has missed a world of opportunities with this quirky iteration. The other model would yield a Smaller, thinner, more elemental and superbly versatile and elegant watch and it would have been in line with the descending case size trend. I find myself watching your videos even on watches I would skip because they are the most rewarding 10-15 minutes a watch enthusiast may spend and I thank you for that!

Man, pun away, more puns the better! Also this watch looks funky! I love it!

Hey! Its a Revelot Admiral homage!

I had hoped for another Zenith "Mango" Diver.

Amazing breakdown of this piece. I do think many companies would be better served to consult enthusiasts to create pieces that don't fall just short of what you really wanted. There are a lot of quality watches out there that just miss the mark. Perhaps I'm fussy, who knows

I liked your version much better. Do like the idea of a bold design by Zenith though. And that chrono… 👌🏻

Reminds me a bit of the glycine combat sub with that orange inner ring.

Have you thought of making a video on Casio and their daily life application? E.g. can I wear a Casio MRG Square in a suit in super formal dressy situation?

I like the watch, but prefer your interpretation. Although I think the crown is better at 3pm.

I love these watches. Would I buy them? I don't know if I have big enough balls.

That pun at the beginning was very PUNchy 😂 as for the watch , it looked weird to me at first but after about a week, I have to admit it’s starting to grow on me. I guess it’s safe to say that It has been succesful at DEFYing my initial prejudices about it 😅

I'm being tortured.. I have limited funds and want a watch and with so many choices out there and love so many I don't know where the funds are going to go. But, I keep coming back to Zenith website and video's.

Nice old vintage look,only regret the price,i will probably choose in other brand for this price..

I thought orange held its colour deeper than any other? And that’s why Doxa’s famously use bright orange? Maybe I’m confused

thoughts on the 2023 Zenith Pilot 40mm????

Most people would look at Zenith and think it’s some micro brand since it doesn’t have a crown on the dial..lol

Isnt orange actually the best color for diver? There is a Doxa video somewhere filming all their divers going under water and orange stays the most legible for the whole time

It's the official watch of "Logans Run"

This brand should be much more popular…..what holds Zenith back …lack of awareness? advertising? Should they just do a Cartier and focus solely on the El Primero ?

It's a sure statement piece from Zenith without any doubt at all. With some refinement it could be a great contender but for £10k personally I'm not feeling it much. One Question would you swap your Tudor Fxd for this ?

Him: knocks on watch Also him: you can't knock on the watch 😂

I think they should have consulted you. I love your design much better. This one is just too busy for me.

“Prescribed watches to follow” 😂

I'm sorry I don't do impressions

Man this, and Cartier Tortue... these watches are gorgeous...I love the zenith... much rather have this than any sub

I see a big identity branding gap here, but I like the daring element of it . Sentiments aside, I see it as a miss. When I get a zenith it will be “el primero” . Pun intended.

Nice Doxa….I mean Zenith

Doxa and Grand Seiko had a bastard child.

I do not desire any of these. Why does the second hand move so fast in some examples in your clips?

Concur. Overly ambitious. The hands are the biggest issue- maybe when lumed they work but unattractive when not. And just like IWC last yr with the Ingenieur the pricing is a missed opportunity to attract new customers.

Zenith is a favorite brand of mine, I own a 1973 El Primero and it is pure quality. For some reason I don’t resonate with this new diver. Too much in your face, not refined enough, too much orange indeed. Nice video as always.

I see absolutely zero resemblance between the Zodiac and the Zenith DED, other than the fact that they are both watches with hour and minute hands.

Its a very unique but divisive design. I personally dont like it at all. The sharp case angles with the orange is too screamy for me

For the non-orange version, whats with the design choice of thats phands (pans/hands). 🤢

I love Zenith, but this one isn’t for me. It’s F-ing ridiculous, which is awesome, but not one I’d buy.

That orange one is pretty...bad.

How much....!? 😂 My Seiko Orange Samurai looks better than that .

I dont own and am never likely yo own a zenith bit ive always seen ita charm in sublte elegance. This thing is awful to look at.

Bad idea….Crown at 4 o’clock is wack! 👎 ugly …

Bloody ugly. Your design render was way better. There's daring to be different and there's losing the plot...😢

Win: A modern diver. Lose: The design looks like a cheesy microbrand

The new Zenith watches are the ugliest watches ever made. In my humble opinion lol

No good !!!

Defy more ugly day after day...zenith expensive and very ugly

Looks like a Doxa sub 600, nothing to do with the colour either, haha just watched the vid and you have said the same thing