We have long spoken of our love for simple and easy to read dive watches. In fact, many dive watches have built a cult following by offering a no-nonsense approach to accuracy and legibility. Perhaps most famously, watches like the Panerai Luminor, Rolex Sea-Dweller, and even brands like Marathon have developed their tool divers into an entire brand image.

I have always liked Panerai divers but the entry cost is very high and one could easily purchase an entire collection of great watches for the cost of a new Luminor. Nevertheless, the style is timeless and has endured, remaining largely unchanged since the 1930's. That simple dial and wide case is distinct, and it represents one of the most beautiful (and copied) dive watch designs seen in modern timepieces. For the past couple of years, I have been searching for a watch that shared that similar ethos, but did so in a unique and distinctive way.

This search led to Benarus; a small indie brand based out of Germany. I first came across Benarus while reading a forum post about their very popular Sea Devil model, and upon checking their site, I found the Moray -- an italian styled classic dive watch. Much of Benarus's lineup is available in limited quantities, and this was the case with the black dialed Moray (limited to 50 pieces). I had to go to the second hand market to find one, and after a couple months of patience I came across, a well priced example. Now that it is on-wrist, here are the details:

• 44mm stainless steel case.
• 500m water resistance (about 1,600 feet).
• 24mm lugs.
• 120-click unidirectional dive bezel.
• Miyota 8215 automatic movement.
• Domed sapphire crystal with internal AR coating.
• Solid end link bracelet with screwed links and lugs.
• Date window between the 4 and 5 positions.
• C3 Superluminova on dial and hands.
• Limited to 50 pieces per dial color.

One thing you can always count on is for Casio to introduce new and interesting features and products in the G-Shock line. Today let's look at the G-Rescue G7900A-7, introduced in May of 2009:

• Inspired by search and rescue teams (thus the name).
• Bigger buttons for gloved use -- largest ever on a g-shock.
• Back case shock absorbers (pictured below).
• Low temperature rated display (-4°F/-20°C).

And of course the long list of normal g-shock features:

• Water resistant to 200m (660ft).
• Auto and manual electroluminescent backlight.
• Flash alert (backlight flashes with the alarm).
• World time.
• Five alarms.
• Two stopwatches.
• Moon and tide graph.

Please read on for the full review.

Today, we bring you a treat. The beast in the flesh, the internet forum darling, the Citizen Ecozilla. The model for review is the BJ8040-01E, a large dive watch that makes you feel like an old-school diver from the minute it is strapped to your wrist. Lets review the stats:

• Dive watch rated to 300 meters (almost 1,000 feet).
• Titanium case.
• 6mm thick mineral crystal.
• Helium release valve.
• Uni-directional dive time bezel.
• 180 day power reserve.
• Citizen Eco-Drive solar quartz movement.
• Movement caliber: B873.
• 46mm wide and 18mm thick.
• MSRP: $595.

Up for review today is the Timex WS4, their new entry into the field of 'ABC' watches, which stands for Altimeter/Barometer/Compass. Actually, this one also has temperature, but that's getting ahead a bit. Here are some quick stats:

• Widescreen shape - unlike the Casio Pathfinder or Suunto Core, this one is shaped to add display via width. The wide screen enables the display of more information, as you'll see below.
• Waterproof to 50m (165ft)
• Temperature rated from -10 to 50C (14 to 122F)
• Composite case, stainless steel bezel.
• Available in six color combinations; our review unit was the militaristic green and matte black.
• Also available with a fabric strap.
• Sophisticated alarm - daily, weekly, weekend-only, and five minute backup alarm.
• 100-hour countdown timer.
• 100-hour stopwatch, customizable to show lap or split times in large digits.
• Compass with 'virtual needle' that always points north.
• Indiglo night light
• Graphical display of altitude and barometric pressure.
• Weather forecast based on recent barometric trend.
• A screen inspired by the Land Rover!

Read on for the full review.

Timex is launching the new Expedition WS4 this month with a planned limited availability and full release by May 2009.  List price is $199. Available in  black, orange, yellow, blue, and white, the WS4 is an interesting re-think of the outdoor watch, using a much larger screen with a wide aspect ratio. Here are the specs from Timex PR:

• Composite case, stainless steel bezel, rubber or 'expandable elastic' strap.
• Altimeter, barometer, thermometer and compass.
• Altitude alarms.
• Graphical display of altitude and barometer.
• Weather forecast with alerts.
• Digital compass.
• Dual timezones.
• 100 hour stopwatch.
• 100 hour countdown timer.
• 99 lap count.
• Daily, weekday, weekend, and weekly alarms -- nice!
• Backlit with Indiglo, as well as 'night mode.' By that, I think they mean a system like Casios, where the correct wrist movement lights up the screen without pressing a button.
• Water resistant to 50m (150ft), which actually is pretty minimal for an outdoor watch.

The Casio Riseman GW-9200 is a bit tricky to review, mostly because Christian already wrote a pretty complete post about it already. It's also a bit of a hybrid watch, something of a merger between the worlds of the G-Shock and Pathfinder lines. I'll dive into feature lists after the break, but a short summary is this: Metric units only, and no compass.

Like many of Casio's recent models, this Riseman is solar-powered and radio-set. As Christian noted, it ups the ante by adding the ability to sync to the Chinese radio signal, an excellent addition. Until GPS chipsets drop another order of magnitude in power consumption, radio-set (Often marketed slightly misleadingly as "atomic time") is the best available technology for automatically setting a wristwatch. There are still big portions of the world where signals are not yet available (Australia, Africa, South America) so know that this Casio will remain accurate within 15 seconds per month even if no signal arrives.

There aren't a lot of women's outdoor watches on the market. Geeky multifunction tools like the Casio Pathfinder and the Suunto X9i are large even for men, and tend to be functionally styled. The size of the watch case required to accommodate the type of technology found in modern hiking watches, combined with the fact that marketing departments tend to link technology more with men, have kept these types of adventure watches off the wrists of women.

The problem is that plenty of women are obviously into hiking, rock climbing, kayaking, skiing, etc. and have just as much of a need for helpful instruments as men.The answer, therefore, is not to ignore women, but to design something both functional and feminine. The answer is something like the new Suunto Lumi.

The Suunto Lumi is the only ladies' ABC (Altimeter/Barometer/Compass) watch that we're aware of. While not as small and dainty as a formal ladies' watch, it still manages to look stylish while packing in a very impressive set of features:

The Tissot Seastar 1000 is an entry-level Swiss automatic in the diver segment. The most current version dates back to 2004, but the Seastar name has been around for more than 30 years. Currently, the Seastar is offered in the following versions:

1. Silver dial with a stainless steel bracelet.
2. Blue dial with a stainless steel bracelet.
3. Black dial on a rubber strap.

The review model is a custom combination of the black dial with an upgrade to the stainless bracelet.

View the MTM Black Seal photo gallery.

I did my first review of an MTM Special Ops watch almost exactly two years ago. If I remember correctly, it was the only MTM model available at the time. MTM is now up to no fewer than eight different models with a very impressive selection of materials, finishes, and features. Although each MTM model is interesting in its own right, the new MTM Black Seal Xtreme Dive Watch stands out as an unusual and impressive feat of engineering.

You may remember the MTM Black Seal from an article we did last month on extreme dive watches. The most notable feature is the fact that it's completely waterproof. What's the difference between being waterproof and water resistant? The easiest way to explain it is that the MTM Black Seal is completely unambiguous in its claims regarding water and pressure resistance: the Black Seal has been proven in a Swiss laboratory to remain fully intact at the deepest known point on earth, the Mariana Trench, which is about 12,000 meters, or about 39,370 feet.

MTM's secret is the silicon oil filled case which is designed to equalize the pressure exerted on the watch in a way which makes it virtually compression-proof. There are a few other watches out there which make the same claim, but none with quite the unique feature set of the MTM Black Seal:

View the Seiko Orange Monster photo gallery.

After James' review of extreme dive watches, I'd like to bring you back to Earth with a review of a modern classic: the Seiko Orange Monster.

Introduced in early 2001, and officially called the SKX781, this bold diver from Seiko quickly inherited its nickname from its older sibling, the "Black Monster" (SKX779). There are also more expensive limited editions available in blue, yellow, PVD black, and red.

Let's start with some specifications: