Featuring a very clean design that successfully combines the legibility of a classic pilot’s timekeeper with the ruggedness of a modern diving tool, the 2011 Dievas Vortex Professional 500M may be a bit too expensive for a person graduating from something like a Seiko Monster, but, in my humble opinion, easily compensates the price differential with the build quality, impeccable styling, and, of course, tons of German-style mojo.
Established only in 2006, the German brand has almost immediately got popular among collectors looking for original-looking, high-quality, and reliable watches.
Their design language is fresh, but not extravagant; their cases are skillfully designed and built adhering to the toughest quality standards, and their movements are made in Switzerland by the great and terrible ETA S.A.
The German company even contemplates setting up a shop for in-house refinishing of the imported movements. Way to go!
Rated for depths of down to 500 meters, the new Dievas Vortex Professional diver is presented in a bulky-looking titanium case that has undergone its signature plasma treatment.
Thanks to this technological process, the Vortex Professional has not only finally acquired a menacing matte black color for all its metallic parts but also became virtually scratch-proof. The black coating also protects titanium from corrosion (although it must be noted that titanium is regarded as one of the most corrosion-free materials on Earth.)
To further underline its “tactical watch” theme, the timepiece is equipped with an off-white matte dial, which is fully covered in Superluminova luminescent substance.
Combined with the matte-black diamond-shaped hour and minute hands, Arabic numerals, and hour markers, the Vortex Professional offers extremely good readability in any lighting conditions.
The Vortex Professional is equipped with the well-known ETA 2824-2 automatic movement. Modified to their own specs, the movement features rhodium plating on its bridges and is equipped with a DLC-treated branded oscillating weight.
What somehow puzzles me here is the choice of the strap. While one could justly expect a black rubbers strap or a plasma-treated titanium bracelet, the Vortex is in fact equipped with a black waterproof calf leather strap, which is available either with black-on-black or red-on-black stitching.
Well, considering the gadget’s price of only $1130 USD, you can always change the default strap for something more appealing to your own tastes.
See also: TMI: Fortis F-43 Flieger Chronograph Alarm GMT
Photos: Dievas Watches
Dievas Vortex Professional 500M specification
Price: $1130 (MSRP)
Movement: Automatic, Caliber ETA 2824-2, 25 jewels, 28,800 vph, Swiss Made
Movement decoration: Rhodium-plated; Dievas DLC-treated winding rotor
Functions: Hours, minutes, seconds
Power reserve: 42 hours
Case: Titanium with Scratch-resistant Plasma treatment
Shape: Round
Size: 44.00 mm
Lug width: 22.00 mm
Case height: 14.00 mm
Dial: Off-white, fully covered in Superluminova
Numerals: Arabic
Hands: Matte-black, diamond-shaped
Water resistance: 500 meters
Strap: Waterproof calf leather strap (Black with black stitching or Black with red stitching) with 22 mm black tang buckle
Crystal: Sapphire, antireflective
Back: Screwed down, engraved