The IWC Aquatimer Deep Three is the latest in a series of cult-favorite dive watches by IWC that contain mechanical depth gauges. Not surprisingly, the IWC Aquatimer Deep Three ref. IW355701 follows the Deep One and the Deep Two. It has been a few years since the Deep Two came out, but with IWC releasing a brand new version of the Aquatimer for 2014, a new Deep Three was inevitable.

Compared to some of the more wild super deep diving watches we see, like IWC’s also new Aquatimer Automatic 2000, the Deep Three in its own way is a surprisingly straight-forward and practical dive watch. Of course, that is within the concept of being a high-end luxury watch with a price to match. What we mean is that the function and pleasure of using the IWC Aquatimer Deep Three are pretty simple to understand, and it doesn’t require you to imagine diving to a depth that would kill any mammal but a whale.

The IWC Aquatimer Deep Three contains IWC’s mechanical depth gauge system that does two things. It measures your current depth to a max of 50 meters, and it also indicates your max depth for a particular dive. 50 meters might not sound that deep, but it is more than OK for recreational dives. The system is easy to read and uses a red and blue indicator hand around the periphery of the dial. A pusher allows you to reset the max dive depth hand.

As a dive watch 100 meters of water resistance might not sounds like all that much, but it is actually more than enough for most divers. What I like is that in this case 100 meters of water resistance actually means “100 meters,” and not some other number. Most of you know what I am talking about, but there is of course an issue with watches being labeled “100 meters water resistant” when all you can do is light swimming with them. So what I like is that the depth rating and depth gauge represent what people actually do. There isn’t a depth gauge for 1000 meters where people would be long since dead going down that deep.

At 46mm wide the IWC Aquatimer Deep Three isn’t a small watch, but it is highly wearable. The diver’s style rubber strap is comfortable, and the overall design lends itself to large proportions. People who like larger watches (such as myself) know that IWC is one of those brands to go to when looking for something properly-sized for your tastes. Though, the new Aquatimer collection does have sizes down to 42mm wide – which look great, by the way.

IWC uses titanium for the case material of the IWC Aquatimer Deep Three. It of course has the cool new features of the Aquatimer collection that we love. Once again I will say that the “SafeDive” ratcheting rotating diver’s bezel system is amazing, and the quick release system for the strap is excellent.