Wrist Watches & Accessories

Yema watches recently went through a re-brand and a model lineup overhaul. With a history that dates back to the late 40's in France, there are many watches in their past. In fact, at one time, I even owned a Yema Seaspider Auto. It was a rugged yet slim diver powered by a Seiko automatic movement, and was one of the few watches I regret selling.

The new Yema expands on its past with series of new collections (Diver, Land, Pilot, Racing, and Limited Editions) based largely on quartz movements. In this review, we will take an in-depth look at the YMHF0310 300m Diver: an all digital divers watch that focuses on practical features and a simple user interface.

Let's start with the details:

• 47x15.5mm.
• 22mm lugs.
• Chrono, temperature, countdown timer, time zone, and depth meter.
• EL Backlight.
• Stainless steel case and bracelet.
• Digital display.
• Mineral glass crystal.
• Bidirectional bezel.
• High-gloss black PVD.
• MSRP of $695 (Watch Report readers can use the coupon code "watchreport25" for 25% off).

My last Yema would be best described as awesome; it was a treat to wear, and definitely designed with a keen attention to detail. So how does a newer Yema compare?

The Yema 310 diver is a thoughtful and throughly useful interpretation of the modern digital dive watch. As with most dive watches these days, the Yema is large -- 47mm across, and 15.5mm tall. It's not especially heavy (I wore it on the included rubber strap), but it will block most sleeves and cuffs. The screen is divided into a large area at the top and a lower area for additional info and current menu selection. There are four pushers enabling the feature select, stop/start/reset, and the EL backlight.

The screen is a reverse LCD with a slight greenish hue. The screen's contrast is very good, but not at all angles as sometimes it appears washed out. Feature controls are dead simple; the screen tells you what function you are dealing with, and buttons on the right side of the case handle starting and stopping the measure. On the main time screen, you can view the date, running seconds, and even the current temperature (this feature is likely more accurate while submerged as the temp of my wrist seemed to add a few degrees to the reading -- a common problem with digital thermometers built into watches). The countdown timer, chronograph and second time zone work beautifully, and the EL backlight is very bright.

The Yema 310 Diver comes fitted to the steel bracelet, and Yema includes a very nice fitted rubber strap in the box. After having a fair amount of trouble sizing the folded steel bracelet, I moved the Yema to the included rubber strap, which is excellent. I highly recommend the rubber strap over the bracelet which is very comparable to the bracelets included with some entry level G-Shocks; its not solid steel, so it rattles, and it uses folded steel end-links as opposed to the far superior solid variety.

I should mention that while this Yema diver includes a dive recorder, I was unable to test it as I had no opportunity to dive with the watch.

Yema is selling these direct from their website for $695 before any discounts, however they have been kind enough to create a custom WatchReport.com coupon code, so no need to pay full price. If you are interested in this or any of the other models Yema makes, use the coupon code "watchreport25" to get a full 25% discount. In the case of the Yema YMHF0310 Diver, you get a very nicely built and thoughtfully designed digital dive watch that is easy to use and includes a very comfortable rubber strap. I really enjoyed wearing this watch, and found the feature set completely useful and totally practical.

We would like to thank Yema Watches for the review sample and discount code for our readers.

By James Stacey

Today's review is of the Red Burn Out 7060 from the Bianci Pro Racing line. A mens watch with a racing theme, this one is designed to really stand out. Let's start with the specifications:

• Stainless steel case and bracelet with screwdown caseback and non-screwed crown.
• Sapphire crystal.
• Swiss quartz 30-minute chronograph movement with date.
• 120-click unidirectional bezel.
• 49mm by 15.3mm thick, 52.6mm at the crown, 260g with all links.
• Bracelet is 5-link, solid links and endlinks, 24mm non-tapering, fliplock with pushbutton release and signed clasp with screws rather than pins.
• Water resistant to 100m (330ft).
• Blued hands and indices; mother-of-pearl subdials.
• Lume on hands and indices.
• List price $599; $329 on the Bianci website. (Watch Report readers can get an additional 20% off with the discount code "watchreppr7060".)

Please read on for the full review and pictures.

As with the H262LWS, the 7060 impresses as soon as you open the outer packaging. The presentation box is the same cherry-finished wood: quite elegant and very unusual at these prices. Once you open the box, the next thing you realize is that this is a watch meant to be noticed, full stop. At 49mm across by 15.3mm thick, the size is quite imposing, and at 260g, it is not a light timepiece.

The face and bezel have some very unusual design cues for the racing theme. Notice that all of the hour markers except 12 are canted toward the inside, matched by the same design on the bezel. To me, it looks a bit like a turbine blade or propellor, and conveys a sense of motion.

The hands are the broadarrow style: nicely blue in color, and painted with enough lume to be quite readable at night. The seconds are the rightmost subdial; one of the tradeoffs of a 3-register chronograph is that the constant seconds are a bit harder to read at a glance.

If you look a bit closer, you'll see another unusual feature: the subdials are mother of pearl, which has a nice iridescence as the angle changes. As I noted earlier, this combined with a deep red background makes for a watch that gets noticed.

The bracelet is very good. Solid links and end links, nicely made with the more expensive screwed links, its heft is a good counterbalance to the weight of the watch. The signed clasp has two of my favorite bracelet features: pushbuttons and micro-adjustments to get the fit right. Details matter!

On the wrist, the 7060 is somewhere between massive and epic. 260g is 9.2oz, making this the heaviest I've reviewed by 10 grams. It's a big chunk of steel.

The Bianci page is not clear, but from the off-axis color tint, I think the sapphire crystal has an inner anti-reflective coating; a good thing.

Here you can see that on my 7.25" wrist, it actually fits pretty well. The lugs wrap nicely, and the profile is beveled a bit at the bezel. It works with loose cuffs but would have problems with tailored ones.

The Swiss quartz movement (not specified, but probably ISA or Rhonda) is conventionally battery powered and simple in function: date, H/M/S, and 30-minute chronograph with fractional seconds at six o'clock. You can read within a tenth of a second accuracy, making the watch useful for racing or cooking (my main use for a chronograph). The bezel is also useful for timing, and has a diver-style unidirectional ratchet with a nice firm feel. Chronograph buttons have a definite snap to them are easy to use with no mushiness.

One correction: the Bianci site lists a screw-down crown; it's not, but for a non-dive-watch, that's usually preferred.

Fit and finish are quite good. Note the evenly brushed surface and conformal fit of the end links. Excellent work -- especially for a $329 price.

This is more of a fashion watch then we usually review here on Watch Report, but from a functional point of view, it does very well. It's well made from excellent materials (steel and sapphire), it has a very legible dial, and it represents an excellent value. The style part is subjective, but if you want something better made than Fossil and its ilk, then the Pro Racing is an excellent choice.

Our thanks to Bianci for the review watches; always appreciated.

By Paul Hubbard

With the 300m diver, Artego Watches has officially joined the nearly endless mass of indie or boutique dive watch manufacturers available to the web-savvy buyer. But the question is, do they stand out?

As many indie brands have enjoyed a vogue spotlight, competition is fierce, yet the 300m Diver has been enjoying a steady stream of positive reviews in the online collector space. Artego was kind enough to send us a review unit so we could take a closer look for ourselves.

Here are the details:

• 316L stainless steel case.
• Miyota 8215 movement (40 hr reserve).
• 45x15.5mm.
• Sapphire Crystal with internal AR.
• 120 click unidirectional bezel.
• Stainless steel bracelet.
• 300m/990ft water resistant.
• Available with PVD coating (not shown).
• Options for black, blue or orange dials.
• Retail price of $350 - $400 USD.

In terms of design, the Artego 300m is all vintage, somehow incorporating a Doxa-like style without sacrificing original design. The Artego 300m is large and heavy, and feels like a tool watch as soon as its on-wrist.

The cushion style case is smooth, well finished, and slightly contoured so it sits comfortably on your wrist. The closed lugs suit the bracelet well, but the Artego 300m Diver looks great on a strap as well. On the bracelet, I can confirm it is heavy, solid, and very tool-diver in stature. The old-school hands and inky black high gloss dial are displayed behind a sapphire crystal with an internal layer of anti-reflective coating.

The screw-down crown is very nice with a confident feel not often see at this price point. The bracelet is very similar to the ones found on the Halios Bluering and Holotype: nicely finished, screwed together, and without rattle. It has a push-button fold over clasp that is made of very thick metal.

The overall construction of the Artego 300m would best be described as solid. The unidirectional dive bezel is light, but very "clicky" and easy to set on a specific point. The hands and markers are painted with luminous paint and function very well; they glow very brightly and can last most of the night from my tests (please see the video). Timekeeping comes by way of the trusty Miyota 8215 seen in many other watches, and this example was running within the normal range at about ±12-15 seconds over 24 hours (it's actually closer to ±10 seconds when it never leaves your wrist).

The Artego 300m Diver embodies much of what we like about dive watches, and the quality was more than I was expecting given the reasonable entry price of $350. The chunky case, solid crown, and excellent bracelet make this a viable watch for any owner accepting of the size. When you stack this small brand against a large competitor like Seiko, its easy to see the appeal: vintage styling, reliable movement, and a better price point makes the Artego 300m Diver a great choice in a dive watch.

We would like to thank Artego for providing a review sample.

By James Stacey