There’s a lot to be said about a solid, reliable tool watch… and Alpina’s new Seastrong Diver manages to say it all. The sporting twin to Frederique Constant might have been focusing on its digital offering more in recent years, but the Seastrong takes Alpina firmly back to the 60s in a serious way.

The Seastrong has been part of the Alpina lineup for decades, but the latest edition pushes its performance further than ever before. For one, it can manage depths of up to 300m, worthy of professional divers. Secondly, it comes equipped with an in-house AL-525 automatic movement, an eminently reliable piece of watchmaking.

All of that is wrapped in a big, chunky, 44mm case available in stainless steel with either a titanium or bronze PVD coating. Both versions are available with grey, blue and beige dials and bezels, making for a surprising number of individual watches in the collection.

The grey titanium is cool if you want a more modern feel to your 60s diver, but if you want to lean into the retro vibe it has to be the bronze, especially with the warm brown to complement it. Either way, there are plenty of options to choose from. Of course, while those options might also include a rubber and a leather strap, there’s only one correct answer there; there’s no room for leather on a serious diver.

And this is a serious diver, not just for the 300m water resistance. Everything from the sword hands and easily legible dial to the unidirectional rotating bezel is geared towards being an instrument rather than a timepiece. It’s a fine distinction, but one that matters.

Now of course is the big question of price. Alpina are always phenomenal when it comes to value for money, more so perhaps than Frederique Constant. Priced at €1,295 – just over £1,000 – that’s not changing any time soon.

Price & Specs:

Model Name: Alpina Seastrong Diver 300m

Case: 44mm diameter x 13.06mm thickness, stainless steel with either titanium or bronze PVD coating, 60 minute unidirectional grey color bezel with beige color luminous markers

Water Resistance: 30 ATM/300M/1000FT

Movement: Caliber AL-525, automatic

Functions: Hours, minutes, seconds, date

Power Reserve: 38h

Frequency: 28,800/h

Strap: Light brown leather strap and extra rubber strap

Price: €1,295

More information at alpinawatches.com