[Video] Review: the Seiko Prospex SPB451 And SPB453 Divers

There are a few different ways to approach reviewing the newest dive watches from Seiko. The SPB453, SPB451, and SPB455 were announced earlier this year and were immediately dissected across Instagram, watch forums, and private group chats throughout the watch spectrum. That’s what you’d expect, right? These follow ups to the incredibly popular SPB143 and its many, many siblings represent the core version of the core watch within Seiko’s core collection. At least to enthusiasts, these watches are quintessential, like a white cotton t-shirt, a Bic pen, or even an iPhone. They’re staples, they’re for everyone, but there’s also a deep interest in them as aesthetic objects, tools, collectibles, and everything else that drives our hobby. 

Writing about these watches poses a challenge. One tactic is to compare and contrast with the prior version, something Zach Weiss does a great job of in the video linked below. Another option is to attempt to evaluate these new watches as if they exist in a vacuum, without taking into account how they relate to the many versions that came before it. This includes, don’t forget, not only the SPB143 (and, as we’ll always point out, the many derivatives that came out of that release) but also, if you’re so inclined, the entire breadth of the 62MAS family tree. This extends all the way back to 1966 and includes a great many re-issues and re-interpretations. Even massive Seiko fans, I think (I expect), must feel fatigue in considering all of these watches. There are just so many that look so much like one another – it’s more than a little overwhelming. 

A third option, then, and the only one I really know how to write, is to look at these watches from a personal perspective. This is what I did when I reviewed my own SPB143 a few years ago. In that review, I wrote that the SPB143 is “an easy wearing and capable sports watch, and more than suitable for my needs as a summertime beater that allows for easy laundry timing, can be worn worry free to the bar or on a trip, and just kind of exists in my life.” I also noted that even two years ago, these watches have been discussed so much it’s hard to find interesting new takes on them. They are perhaps the most well understood sports watch in the watch enthusiast community, and I suspect no review is going to dramatically shift any individual’s opinion on them. 

Approaching the new divers (I spent the most time with the blue dialed SPB451, so that’s what I’ll be focusing on) I think it’s worth starting off by admitting that I sold my aforementioned SPB143 and haven’t regretted it, a signal, I believe, to how I’ve come to think about Seiko divers writ large. These watches, for me, were once a cornerstone of my collecting. Like a lot of other enthusiasts, affordable Seiko divers were a flavor of sports watch that I cut my teeth on, and for a very long time if you examined my watch box you’d find something along these lines in it. The Seiko Monsters were always a favorite, but in addition to that somewhat brief dalliance with the SPB143 I’ve had a variety of Seiko 5s and other affordable pieces in and out of the collection. By the time I was wearing the SPB143, though, I could tell that my tastes were shifting and these watches were just no longer for me. 

The SPB451 feels almost like a nail in the coffin for my personal interest in Seiko divers, not because I find any particular fault with it, but the opposite: it’s probably the best example yet of the “affordable” and classic 62MAS derived diver, and if this one didn’t do it for me, it’s hard to imagine anything will. This isn’t a spec by spec comparison to any previous version of the watch, but on the whole, as a package, it feels more refined and generally better than any similar Seiko in its category that I can recall. The bracelet is nicer, the tone of blue on the dial and bezel is lush and vibrant, and they’ve somehow made what’s always felt like a pleasantly chunky thing on the wrist just a little airier (but only a little). 

The most discussed aspect of these new divers is the date window placement, and I admit that part of the reason I wanted to write about these watches in the first place is discuss the supposedly controversial decision Seiko has made here. In putting a date window at 4:30, Seiko is ceding the conversation among watch lovers entirely to the angriest forum posters, who admittedly don’t really post on forums anymore, but live in Instagram comments, and are somehow always highlighted for your viewing pleasure. 

Let me say in no uncertain terms: this is a great window placement. Maybe the best date window placement on a watch like this that I can recall. It is completely unobtrusive and easy to ignore if you choose to (thanks to color matching), but of course it’s also right there if you find yourself suddenly writing a check and just need a reminder. 

I don’t quite understand the concern that many seem to have about the 4:30 date placement leaving the dial out of “balance.” As is, the date window disappears, and because there isn’t a large window at 3:00, we instead get a classically chunky and lume filled hour marker that brings a sense of symmetry to the dial, date window notwithstanding. 

The watch wears very similarly to its predecessor but I think many who have spent time with the prior generation will notice the slightly tighter proportions. The SPB451 is 40mm in diameter, a mere half millimeter smaller than its predecessors, and a fraction of a millimeter thinner. Combined with a bracelet that has shorter links and articulates a bit better, it’s an improved but not dramatically different experience on the wrist. The character of the watch is very much the same: it’s still a chunky tool, but it’s one that has cut out the carbs.

The way Seiko has gone about updating this new series of SPBs says something about how they view this diver in their catalog. To me, the small updates to the case and dial indicate that Seiko sees this watch as the center of their Prospex universe. They’ve effectively given it the Rolex treatment, meaning that instead of a dramatic facelift or the introduction of an entirely new produce line, they’ve made little improvements that many casual watch shoppers who happen upon an SPB at a department store of watch shop might not even notice. Honestly, even some of the most hardcore dive watch fans could miss the small adjustments to the case. 

Seiko absolutely should have a watch like this in their collection, one that stays virtually the same year to year, an iconic piece that they’re comfortable allowing to be the face of the brand, at least as it relates to their divers. If you think about virtually any other brand that makes more than one nice dive watch, they all tend to have a marquee piece that everyone just sort of knows. The Submariner, of course, is the prime example, but Omega, Oris, Zodiac, Blancpain, and many more all have a core diver that doesn’t really get tinkered with too much year to year, and when it does, it becomes a huge industry story. It’s fitting that this watch should be it for Seiko, given its ties to the brand’s historic references and the general good will for this case design across the enthusiast spectrum. 

That said, the lack of major changes to the SPBs design underscores what I think is a potential problem for Seiko in the enthusiast space that’s been bubbling under the surface for a few years now. While the new SPBs are very nice watches and have an edge on the competition in the $1,000-$1,500 category, they have all but abandoned the sub $1,000 mechanical dive watch market, which used to be alive with seemingly endless variety coming out of Seiko. The Monster, Turtle, and Samurai all still exist, of course, but those watches honestly feel like they need the types of updates the SPBs got this year. More than that, they are ultra familiar at this point, and new releases from Seiko’s competitors in the microband space and elsewhere are offering new, inventive, and fun designs under $1,000. To put it another way, there was a time not too long when if someone asked me for a sports watch recommendation under $1,000, I’d have offered any number of interesting Seikos without giving much thought to other brands. Now, there are lots of alternatives, and many watches that outpace Seikos under $1,000 (and even a little above) in terms of quality. 

And that brings us to the movement, a point of consternation for some that rivals or exceeds the matter of the date window. The poor accuracy of some watches in the SPB family using 6R series movements has become a bit of a meme in the watch world. My own SPB143 kept time well enough that I didn’t notice any serious issues day to day, but friends with other Seiko divers made around the same time and using the same movement have reported timekeeping that falls outside of spec, which is just not something you want to see on a movement that is already giving you -15 to +25 seconds of grace per day. The new SPBs run on the 6R55 caliber, a newer and slightly thinner version of the 6R35. In case you forget what the power reserve is, Seiko helps you out by including text on the dial reading “AUTOMATIC 3 DAYS.” 

In my brief time testing the SPB451 I didn’t notice any issues with timekeeping, but I want to stress that this was a short (less than a week) test period. I don’t have any problem with Seiko’s continued use of the 6R movements as they tend to be ultra reliable in that they’ll run nearly forever in a consistent way, but the accuracy, for some at least, is a legitimate problem and it’s worth acknowledging. A 15 to 25 second spread in expected rate stability is not generally in line with many other watches that sell for the cost of the SPB451 or less, and if timekeeping precision matters to you a great deal in a watch like this, Seiko seems prepared to disappoint you. I’m personally not a stickler, and would be completely fine with a watch I love operating within spec, even if that spec is not particularly impressive. 

Yet another complicating factor when considering the SPB451 and its ilk is that it hasn’t exactly replaced the previous generation of SPBs. As we reported a few weeks ago, Seiko has just launched a new regional release, the SPB473, made for the European market. This watch is built on the old platform, with a larger and thicker case and that 3:00 date window. The earlier SPBs are still listed as current models on the Seiko website, so it’s an open question as to when or if the brand will entirely transition to the newer references. This is one aspect of the Rolex comparison that truly doesn’t hold up, because as we’re all very well aware, when a new Submariner or Daytona is launched, the old ones are immediately memory-holed from the official website. Because the changes to the new watch are all attempts to make the watch at least marginally better, I think it’s probably incorrect to think of these as two product lines meant to co-exist. The new ones are offering improvements, not merely an alternative. 

The SPB473 falls into a category of watch that exists for all of us in one way or another: a watch that we recognize is well made, and can and should be quite popular, but for one reason or another leaves us cold. For me, seeing this design so many times over the years has had a numbing effect. It’s become kind of generic for me, I think. But there are many, many collectors and enthusiasts who will happily own this and I’m sure many future variants of this watch, and get a ton of joy out of collecting, using, and wearing them in every possible context. Those folks have a watch in the SPB473 and others in this product cycle that are better than the one before it, and it’s a good sign for Seiko that they’re able to continuously and incrementally improve on their flagship. My hope is that at some point in the future, Seiko decides that along with gradual iteration, they can also do something wholly new at a price point that warrants an impulse purchase, a recommendation for a first watch, or genuinely surprises. They’ve done it before. Seiko