Just last year, Longines expanded its vintage-inspired Legend Diver to include a 39mm case, initially with a black or blue dial. For 2024, we have three new earthy dial colors: green, terracotta, and anthracite gray. Although these contemporary new hues are far from something you would see in the collection’s inspiration, the 1959 Longines Super-Compressor dive watch, the shape of the hour markers and hands are similar. This bridges the gap between design elements old and new, and just in time to celebrate the original watch’s 65th anniversary.
Longines released the Legend Diver in 2007, just as neo-vintage watches were starting to become a thing. It was modeled after the 42mm Super Compressor Diver ref. 7042, featuring a similar internal bidirectional bezel with an accompanying crown at 2 o’clock, and initially a time-only dial with similar hour markers and hands. Longines has been expanding the collection since then, more recently with new 36mm and 42mm models with colorful fumé dials, and the new 39mm model.
The colorful 2024 novelties feature the new 39mm case released last year, with shorter and slightly curved lugs to accommodate a broader range of wrist sizes. The iconic cross-hatch double screw-in crowns are located on the right side of the case, with the top crown gaining the wearer access to the internal rotating bezel, a feature developed by Longines in 1936. These design elements and the box sapphire crystal harken to the watch’s vintage roots. The brand also made several thoughtful changes to the dial and bezel alongside the new 39mm case, which you can read more about in my colleague Sean Lorentzen’s in-depth, hands-on review. But it is worth mentioning again here that the dial no longer features a date display or vintage-colored lume, creating better balance and complementing the new dial colors.
That brings us to the colorful new dials, a departure from the previous fumé dials with the dramatic dark-to-light gradient. Instead, these newest Legend Divers feature solid lacquered dials in rich green, coppery terracotta, and sleek gray to round out the black and blue duo released last year. Each is punctuated by rhodium-plated hands and hour markers treated with Swiss Super-LumiNova. It appears from the initial images provided by Longines that the color of the lume varies depending on the dial color, which would be interesting to compare in the dark. Additionally, the seconds hand now sports a luminescent arrow tip, an upgrade made alongside the 39mm collection to become compliant with the ISO 6425 standard.
In addition to being ISO 6425 dive watch compliant, Longines has also taken steps to ensure that the movement powering the Legend diver, the ETA-based caliber L888.6, is chronometer rated and meets the ISO 764 magnetic-resistant watch standard. In fact, the silicon balance spring and various other components deliver ten times the amount of magnetic resistance required by the ISO 764 standard. Coupled with a substantial 72-hour power reserve, the 39mm Legend Diver has much to offer collectors at this price point.
The new dial colors are available on a matching stainless steel bracelet with polished grains-of-rice center links and a micro-adjustment clasp. The green, terracotta, and anthracite gray dials each retail for $3,400 USD and are available online now. For more information, please visit the Longines website.
