Seiko SKX009 Diver (All Is Lost)

I enjoy looking out for watches in movies and  recently watched a film called All Is Lost starring Robert Redford. It's a survival story of a sailor stranded at sea and is unusual in that there is no dialogue as he's all alone. It didn't take long for me to notice the watch on his right hand and after a quick search online, found that it was in fact a Seiko SKX009. It's a classic diver from Seiko with 20 bar water resistance and the crown comfortably located between 3 and 4 o'clock. The movement is automatic and features day and date apertures at 3 o'clock. The bezel is the 'Pepsi' red and blue variety which has been familiar on Seiko watches for decades.

This watch is normally available for sale with a Jubilee steel bracelet or diver's strap but in the movie, Redford wears it on a black (or possibly dark blue) Nato strap. Prices in the UK range between £190 and £220 from online retailers at the time of writing, depending on the type of strap selected and the watch is widely available.

Seiko Kinetic 200m Divers

The first watch which I'm featuring is the Seiko Kinetic 200m Divers. I've owned the watch for four months and have loved every minute of wearing it. It was bought from an online retailer Yorkshire Watches for £196 which was the best price I could find, and very reasonable. Their service was fantastic and I ended up buying another watch from them a few weeks later. These watches are readily available at high street jewellers or online and are well worth a look at if you fancy an affordable divers watch.

The build quality is superb, Seiko haven't spared a penny in making this robust offering. The rubber strap (steel bracelet is also available) is of the finest quality and is comfortable compared to most other similar straps. The watch is reassuringly heavy but you might want to actually try one on in store first to see if the weigh suits you. The bezel is also of a very high quality and glides around smoothly on the ratchet. Luminescence is very impressive with the hands and hour markers glowing nice and green through the night.

The watch, like all other Seiko Kinetics, runs off power that's generated by your wrist movement. A rotor at the back of the movement charges a rechargeable battery which when fully charged, allows the watch to run for 4 to 6 months. A great feature is the power reserve indicator. This is activated by pressing the button at 2 o'clock. The battery charge is then indicated by the second hand.

The model I own has the black face and bezel but is also available with a 'Pepsi' bezel and blue face.