Undone Watches has created watches in just about every market niche, (I’m particularly keen on the Basecamp line) but I remember when they had just one model, the Aqua. It was a big, burly diver that you could customize with a range of options unheard of at its modest price point. I tailored one for a review in 2015, and then went back in 2019 to do a full-boat Aqua Pro-Custom with my own dial and strap designs. Recently, I had the chance to try the brand’s latest dive beast, the Undone Aquadeep, and found it to be a fun watch and an interesting example of how the brand has, and has not, changed in the past 9 years.
The Aquadeep has similar proportions to that of the Aqua, measuring 43mm wide, 50mm long, and 16.5mm thick. That’s just 1mm narrower and 1.5mm thicker. Angular lugs and crown guards, and a large-number layout echo elements of the earlier watch. Its bezel sports a Yacht Master-style ceramic insert that was an option on the Aqua. From there, the Aquadeep’s design takes a tack into considerably deeper waters.
Undone outfitted this watch with almost all the dive watch trimmings. You get a grade 2 titanium case, double-domed sapphire crystals, screw-down crowns, a 120-click bezel, an insanely high 500m water resistance, and a helium release valve (HRV) at 10 o’clock. That HRV has a prominent crown that matches the primary at 3 o’clock in its size, knurled edge, and faceted guards. They are distinguished by an engraved “He” (for helium, of course) on the one and a raised “U” on the other.
You all should know I love titanium cases. For a tool watch, it really can’t be beat. It is strong, highly corrosion resistant, anti-magnetic, and hypoallergenic, and the dark grey, matte-blasted finish looks absolutely badass. It is not scratch resistant though. While it has high tensile strength, its surface is softer than most stainless steel, and unlike many titanium watches I have reviewed lately, Undone does not give the Aquadeep a hardening treatment, so you can expect it will pick up some character along the way.
The movement is a hale and hardy Seiko NH35A. You can see it through the display case back, but truth be told, it isn’t much to look at. That glass out back really exists to show off whatever image you care to ask Undone to print on it. I’ve availed myself of this $20 option before (see my old Undone Aqua review with an early Time Bum logo on the back), but as I am neither an artist nor a graphic designer, I skipped it this time.
I similarly passed on the opportunity to print up to 12 characters on the upper portion of the dial (also $20). Here, it was more a matter of the available typeface and size. Undone offers Roboto, Poiret One, and Georgia, none of which I felt would pair well with the existing text in the lower portion. Indeed, Undone did a particularly nice job on that, with “Aquadeep” in orange and rendered in a squared, modern typeface that complements the similarly styled numbers on this grainy sandwich dial. The water resistance and “self-winding” in white and lightly serifed. The Undone name is wrapped under the 6. It looks great, so I saw no reason the mess with it.
I particularly like the Aquadeep’s handset: the bent wire look of the black bases, the clipped tip on the hour hand, the white and orange frames, and the fat channels of lume. It’s a fun departure from the usual sword hands you might have expected.
Under that first layer is a healthy slathering of lume. If that’s not enough, you can choose the accurately named Aqualume model with a full-lume dial. If it’s too much, Undone has just released the Aquadeep Submerge, a triple-black model with grey lume, perfect for the goth diver.
Aside from dial and case back printing, the only other option on this watch is the strap, of which Undone offers rubber, leather, and Cordura. I went for the orange rubber. It has quick-release pins, tabs for the first keeper, and a signed buckle that matches the case. Check out the gills!
The Aquadeep wore very well. Granted, my 6.75″ wrist is a challenge for any large watch, but I thought it had the right tool watch presence and didn’t go overboard. Thanks to the titanium construction, it was also wonderfully light.
The Undone Aquadeep starts at $395, and you can knock 15% off of that with code Loren15. That is excellent for a titanium, 500m dive watch. The personalization options are fun, inexpensive, and would make the watch a nice memento or a special gift. Me? I was perfectly happy with the Aquadeep in its base guise. Its serious specs and rugged good looks were more than enough to win me over.
For more information or to order your own, head to Undone.com.
