By James Phang
Introduced in 1994, the Bulgari Diagono Scuba was one of the first luxury dive watches with a classic yet versatile design, making it one of the most fashionable hits of the 90’s. The 2015 relaunch of the Diagono Scuba took the brand to greater heights, brought about by improved features such as the introduction of its in-house Solotempo self-winding movement, while retaining much of its former attributes to preserve the spirit of the Scuba first-generation – the quality, comfort, style, and legibility of these fashionable dive timepieces.
The original Diagono Scuba from 1994
Paying homage to its Roman roots, Bulgari had incorporated design elements from the architectural codes of Roman columns and arches within the watch’s dial, bezel, hands and hour-markers in its first Diagona Scuba model. The relaunch is no different, sporting the same notched diver’s bezel along with similarly styled dial and hands. The case diameter is slightly bigger now at 41mm, appealing to the trends of sporting larger wristwatches. The dial itself is also cleaner compared to its predecessor, removing elements such as the COSC-certification on its dial as a result of the BVL191 movement not being COSC-certified. The water resistance rating of Bulgari dive watches has varied over the years, and for 2015, the Bulgari Diagono Scuba has improved to a solid 300 meters.
Movement wise, its new in-house made caliber BVL 191 automatic movement is honestly not much different than the base Swiss ETA used for its predecessor, given that such simple time and date automatic movements have no complex patent technologies to boast about, but rather just to boost the street credibility of the watch.
In summary, I think that the Diagono Scuba in this current day and age would swing both ways, as while some would find these Swiss-made Italian designs visually appealing and tasteful, similarly another group of people would think otherwise. For me, unfortunately, I belong to the 2nd group of people and would very much prefer saving up my money for something else instead.
The new Bulgari Diagono Scuba comes in a few versions with black and white dial options:
Steel case with black dial and rubber strap, priced at US$6,750
Steel case with black dial and metal bracelet, priced at S$8,810
18 carat pink gold case with black dial and rubber strap, priced at US$25,200
18 carat pink gold and steel case with white dial and 18 carat pink gold and steel bracelet, priced at S$32,900
For more info, please visit bulgari.com
JAMES PHANG – CONTRIBUTING WRITER
James Phang is a young watch enthusiast from Singapore and is a self-professed fanatic of independent brands for their unique avant-garde designs. Some of his favorite brands include MB&F, Urwerk, Romain Jerome, Sarpaneva, Peter Speake-Marin and Azimuth. His love for art extends out to all things handmade, and he has made it his personal mission to find the best handmade straps and buckles worldwide for his humble collection. Read his articles here.
