![\"bot-only-image\"](\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/images\/cleardot.gif\")
<\/a>The Sub 200 Professional is, without a doubt, one of the very best dive watches at its price point, if not the best overall. Coupled with that signature bright orange dial (which DOXA calls its \u201cProfessional\u201d color), it\u2019s a completely iconic watch that easily could be retailing for $2,000 more than its price.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Not interested? I don\u2019t believe you. So let\u2019s dive right into this spectacular affordable piece. It\u2019s not perfect, but it\u2019s pretty darn good, and I promise you won\u2019t be disappointed with what DOXA has to offer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
History<\/h2>\n\n\n\n![\"DOXA](\"https:\/\/www.exquisitetimepieces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/DOXA-Sub-200-History-1024x427.jpg\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\nThe DOXA Sub is part of a very long line of craftsmanship and innovation that goes back well beyond many other watch brands. The watchmaker Georges Ducommun founded DOXA in 1889, taking for its name the Greek word for \u201cglory,\u201d and that\u2019s exactly what the fledgling brand would attain with several award-winning watches, such as their 8-day caliber. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
This innovation provided a stunning power reserve to tools such as car dashboard timers that needed to be able to run for a long period of time during endurance races.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Sub itself was first developed in 1967 with the cooperation of the famous diver Jacques Cousteau, and from the start, it was created to be a powerful dive companion for sports divers. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The original collection was the Sub 300, with 300m of water resistance (naturally), and it was purpose-built from the ground up as a companion on dives. That characteristic orange dial, which DOXA calls the \u201cProfessional,\u201d was designed for maximum legibility underwater, and for this advantage, Cousteau required his entire company of divers to use the Sub 300. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
We should also note that Jacques Cousteau isn\u2019t the only famous underwater explorer to sport a DOXA Sub\u2014notably, the fictional action hero Dirk Pitt, who features in the 20th-century novels of Clive Cussler, is cited on several occasions to make use of his DOXA watch. Cussler himself wore a DOXA religiously, and it still captures the essence of adventure and daring to generations who grew up reading these books.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
DOXA would continue to innovate, however, and in 1969 released the first-ever commercially available watch with a helium escape valve, which allows a dive watch to go even deeper, with their Sub 300T Conquistador.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Today, the Sub collection spans a variety of models, including the Sub 200, 200T, 300T, 600T, and 1500T. As DOXA\u2019s flagship model, the 200 is a heritage-focused everyday companion that isn\u2019t quite as built up as some of their more professional divers. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
With \u201conly\u201d 200m of water resistance, it won\u2019t be following you into the bottom of the Mariana Trench, but it can more than handle a bit of rain or a quick swim in the pool, as well as recreational dives. It\u2019s a watch that builds on a strong foundation and executes on its heritage in a remarkably pleasing way.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Case<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
On paper, the 42mm stainless steel case sounds pretty big, which can justifiably raise some concerns that the Sub 200 is reserved for those of us with larger wrists. Thankfully, it\u2019s rescued by a surprisingly short lug-to-lug at 45mm, which makes it an astonishingly feasible wear for even the small-wristed among us.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The case is almost harshly brushed, creating an instantly utilitarian appearance at even just a first glance. Thankfully for those of us who are looking for an extra touch of class, the Sub 200 also sports polished bevels that are extremely fluid and have a lovely shine, which brings this watch out of the \u201cI\u2019m wearing a hunk of industrial-grade steel\u201d category and places it firmly in the \u201cyes, this is indeed an elegant watch, look at its polish\u201d one. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Jokes aside, I do find that the bevel contributes a lot to the overall fluidity and unity of the case structure. The juxtaposed polished and brushed surfaces provide some gorgeous visual contrast that\u2019s really hard to find fault with, especially in a category of watches which all too often are simply brushed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The lugs are extremely interesting and deserve a closer look. On first inspection, they look strongly reminiscent of another extremely iconic watch. Any guesses? Go on, I\u2019ll wait. Yes! They sure are awfully similar to that other twisted lug treasure of watchmaking, the Omega Speedmaster. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Now before you accuse DOXA of ripping off this iconic design, they actually have a legitimate claim to it: the case looks so similar because the vintage Sub 300 originally did have the same case. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
In both cases (sorry), these were produced by the manufacturer Huguenin Fr\u00e8res, so their similarity is easily permissible. Furthermore, the modern DOXA actually is different from the Speedmaster, although it captures a similar look. The Speedmaster has twisted lugs, physically bent around over each other. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Sub 200\u2019s lugs are straight as can be when viewed from the side: what creates the twisted appearance is actually the polished bevel, which sweeps out and around over the surface of the lug. This contributes to a very clean design that has proven time and time again to be immensely popular (just take a look at the iconic \u201cMoonwatch\u201d Speedmaster!) but in a fresh new way that I find incredibly compelling. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
With the bezel, unfortunately, the Sub 200 falls a little flat. While the bezel itself is clean and simple, with a glossy black sapphire insert and orange markers that match the dial, the lume is staggeringly disappointing. Its glow is extremely limited and nearly impossible to see in most lighting conditions. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
For a dive watch<\/a>, strong lume is absolutely essential for making sure your watch remains visible underwater. Based on my research, the other colorways have a stronger lume in the bezel, so it\u2019s likely that this weakness comes as a result of the pigment mixture needed to match the bezel markers to the orange dial. Regardless, it\u2019s a sad drawback to an otherwise amazing watch. <\/p>\n\n\n\nOf course, this is far from the end of the world: that orange color will still ensure that the watch remains visible in low-light conditions like underwater, but the limited lume means it will only really glow in near-total darkness after a hefty exposure to sunlight to charge. Don\u2019t even think about going on any night dives with this watch alone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Looking at the crown and crystal, we\u2019re once more back into the realm of DOXA home runs. The crown is perfectly simple, fluted for easy use, and engraved with the DOXA logo in orange, which honestly just looks really cool. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The crystal builds tremendously on the vintage inspiration of this Sub 200, as it is constructed in a \u201cbox crystal\u201d form so that even though it\u2019s strong sapphire, it looks structurally like vintage plexiglass crystals. This does add some considerable thickness, but you probably weren\u2019t trying to pair your Sub with a shirt cuff anyway. It\u2019s definitely a trade-off worth making for that vintage look.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Dial<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
As we\u2019ve noted a few times before already, the dial is in DOXA\u2019s signature \u201cProfessional\u201d color, the iconic orange tone that was designed by Jacques Cousteau and DOXA to be visible deep underwater. Important to note here, however, is that not all DOXA Professional colors are created equal. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Fascinatingly, the orange color on the Sub 200 is actually slightly duller than some of their more professionally oriented watches like the Sub 300. Personally, I find this to be a bit of a relief. That orange dial is already eye-catching in the Sub 200, and in this case, \u201cslightly duller\u201d still means practically radioactive orange (anyone else think of Cheeto dust? Or just me?). <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The slightly dulled color makes for an easier everyday wear than the Sub 300, while still getting a color that\u2019s well within the bounds of the signature DOXA style.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Sub 200 also features a date window, which is not color-matched to the dial. While I lament this missed chance to take this brilliant orange design a step further, I also understand the choice, as the vintage Sub would not have made this match. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The black frame around the date window is quirky, and I can\u2019t recall any other pieces off the top of my head that feature a similar outline to draw attention to it. It\u2019s a fun detail that I\u2019m fond of.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The text is simple and unobtrusive, thankfully. If you\u2019ve read any of my articles, you know I love to pay attention to typography as a fine detail that can really make or break a watch. In this case, DOXA uses a fantastic simple font, but I am disappointed by the kerning, or spacing, in their logo. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The D is clearly a little extra spaced out from the other letters, so it looks more like \u201cD OXA.\u201d Is this an extremely small detail? Of course. Is this extremely excusable for a watch of this price point? Absolutely. Should it make or break your opinion on this watch? Definitely not. It\u2019s just one of those small details that catches my eye.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The hands and indices are very simple and utilitarian in nature. The lume, an off-white color, could be met with cries of \u201cfauxtina!\u201d by some critical watch collectors, but I really think it\u2019s just part of the design and not intended to look like aged lume on a vintage watch. Here, I need to mention another gripe I have about the dial: the indices are silver, and the hands are matte black. It\u2019s a color scheme that just seems slightly off for me, and I\u2019m a little frustrated by it. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
It seems like it would have been a simple choice to coat the indices in black too, but I can only assume that there must be a reason for this design decision. I\u2019m perfectly happy with the hands, though, as they\u2019re very broad and carry a lot of bright lume, and greatly accentuate the utilitarian dive nature of the watch. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
But again, with the minute track, the frame around the date window, and the hands all in black, I do wonder why the indices are in gray. It leaves me slightly uncomfortable with the overall balance of the dial, but it\u2019s still a good-looking face to the Sub 200 overall.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Movement<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
DOXA is relatively quiet about the movement in the Sub 200, stating only on their website that they decorated it themselves, as well as that it\u2019s Swiss-made, has a 38-hour power reserve<\/a> with automatic winding, and beats at 4.0 Hz. <\/p>\n\n\n\nThese are pretty standard workhorse movement stats, and a quick Google search online reveals that originally the Sub 200 was powered by the ETA 2824-2, a very standard ETA movement. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Since the stats were removed from DOXA\u2019s website, most collectors concur that they have probably switched to a Sellita SW-200, an ETA clone that\u2019s still Swiss-made and performs about as well as the ETA. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
It\u2019s definitely not the type of movement to blow you away with its complications or performance, but the ETA 2824 and its variations have seen service in significantly more expensive watches than this one. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
It\u2019s a beater movement that can take a serious pounding (I disassembled one, tried to finish it, and put it back together, and it still runs!) and still give you accurate performance for a long time to come. The Sellita is virtually on par with the ETA, at a slightly reduced price.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Unfortunately, you won\u2019t be able to see whatever decoration DOXA has applied (likely an engraved rotor) without consulting your local watchmaker, since they\u2019ve used a solid caseback. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Thankfully, DOXA applied a lovely engraving to console our sorrows, with a cool wave pattern and their logo to adorn it. Likewise, this is probably a vintage-inspired choice, as the original Sub would have likewise featured a closed caseback.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Straps<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
<\/figure>\n\n\n\nThe DOXA Sub is part of a very long line of craftsmanship and innovation that goes back well beyond many other watch brands. The watchmaker Georges Ducommun founded DOXA in 1889, taking for its name the Greek word for \u201cglory,\u201d and that\u2019s exactly what the fledgling brand would attain with several award-winning watches, such as their 8-day caliber. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
This innovation provided a stunning power reserve to tools such as car dashboard timers that needed to be able to run for a long period of time during endurance races.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Sub itself was first developed in 1967 with the cooperation of the famous diver Jacques Cousteau, and from the start, it was created to be a powerful dive companion for sports divers. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The original collection was the Sub 300, with 300m of water resistance (naturally), and it was purpose-built from the ground up as a companion on dives. That characteristic orange dial, which DOXA calls the \u201cProfessional,\u201d was designed for maximum legibility underwater, and for this advantage, Cousteau required his entire company of divers to use the Sub 300. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
We should also note that Jacques Cousteau isn\u2019t the only famous underwater explorer to sport a DOXA Sub\u2014notably, the fictional action hero Dirk Pitt, who features in the 20th-century novels of Clive Cussler, is cited on several occasions to make use of his DOXA watch. Cussler himself wore a DOXA religiously, and it still captures the essence of adventure and daring to generations who grew up reading these books.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
DOXA would continue to innovate, however, and in 1969 released the first-ever commercially available watch with a helium escape valve, which allows a dive watch to go even deeper, with their Sub 300T Conquistador.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Today, the Sub collection spans a variety of models, including the Sub 200, 200T, 300T, 600T, and 1500T. As DOXA\u2019s flagship model, the 200 is a heritage-focused everyday companion that isn\u2019t quite as built up as some of their more professional divers. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
With \u201conly\u201d 200m of water resistance, it won\u2019t be following you into the bottom of the Mariana Trench, but it can more than handle a bit of rain or a quick swim in the pool, as well as recreational dives. It\u2019s a watch that builds on a strong foundation and executes on its heritage in a remarkably pleasing way.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Case<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
On paper, the 42mm stainless steel case sounds pretty big, which can justifiably raise some concerns that the Sub 200 is reserved for those of us with larger wrists. Thankfully, it\u2019s rescued by a surprisingly short lug-to-lug at 45mm, which makes it an astonishingly feasible wear for even the small-wristed among us.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The case is almost harshly brushed, creating an instantly utilitarian appearance at even just a first glance. Thankfully for those of us who are looking for an extra touch of class, the Sub 200 also sports polished bevels that are extremely fluid and have a lovely shine, which brings this watch out of the \u201cI\u2019m wearing a hunk of industrial-grade steel\u201d category and places it firmly in the \u201cyes, this is indeed an elegant watch, look at its polish\u201d one. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Jokes aside, I do find that the bevel contributes a lot to the overall fluidity and unity of the case structure. The juxtaposed polished and brushed surfaces provide some gorgeous visual contrast that\u2019s really hard to find fault with, especially in a category of watches which all too often are simply brushed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The lugs are extremely interesting and deserve a closer look. On first inspection, they look strongly reminiscent of another extremely iconic watch. Any guesses? Go on, I\u2019ll wait. Yes! They sure are awfully similar to that other twisted lug treasure of watchmaking, the Omega Speedmaster. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Now before you accuse DOXA of ripping off this iconic design, they actually have a legitimate claim to it: the case looks so similar because the vintage Sub 300 originally did have the same case. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
In both cases (sorry), these were produced by the manufacturer Huguenin Fr\u00e8res, so their similarity is easily permissible. Furthermore, the modern DOXA actually is different from the Speedmaster, although it captures a similar look. The Speedmaster has twisted lugs, physically bent around over each other. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Sub 200\u2019s lugs are straight as can be when viewed from the side: what creates the twisted appearance is actually the polished bevel, which sweeps out and around over the surface of the lug. This contributes to a very clean design that has proven time and time again to be immensely popular (just take a look at the iconic \u201cMoonwatch\u201d Speedmaster!) but in a fresh new way that I find incredibly compelling. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
With the bezel, unfortunately, the Sub 200 falls a little flat. While the bezel itself is clean and simple, with a glossy black sapphire insert and orange markers that match the dial, the lume is staggeringly disappointing. Its glow is extremely limited and nearly impossible to see in most lighting conditions. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
For a dive watch<\/a>, strong lume is absolutely essential for making sure your watch remains visible underwater. Based on my research, the other colorways have a stronger lume in the bezel, so it\u2019s likely that this weakness comes as a result of the pigment mixture needed to match the bezel markers to the orange dial. Regardless, it\u2019s a sad drawback to an otherwise amazing watch. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Of course, this is far from the end of the world: that orange color will still ensure that the watch remains visible in low-light conditions like underwater, but the limited lume means it will only really glow in near-total darkness after a hefty exposure to sunlight to charge. Don\u2019t even think about going on any night dives with this watch alone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Looking at the crown and crystal, we\u2019re once more back into the realm of DOXA home runs. The crown is perfectly simple, fluted for easy use, and engraved with the DOXA logo in orange, which honestly just looks really cool. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The crystal builds tremendously on the vintage inspiration of this Sub 200, as it is constructed in a \u201cbox crystal\u201d form so that even though it\u2019s strong sapphire, it looks structurally like vintage plexiglass crystals. This does add some considerable thickness, but you probably weren\u2019t trying to pair your Sub with a shirt cuff anyway. It\u2019s definitely a trade-off worth making for that vintage look.<\/p>\n\n\n\n As we\u2019ve noted a few times before already, the dial is in DOXA\u2019s signature \u201cProfessional\u201d color, the iconic orange tone that was designed by Jacques Cousteau and DOXA to be visible deep underwater. Important to note here, however, is that not all DOXA Professional colors are created equal. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Fascinatingly, the orange color on the Sub 200 is actually slightly duller than some of their more professionally oriented watches like the Sub 300. Personally, I find this to be a bit of a relief. That orange dial is already eye-catching in the Sub 200, and in this case, \u201cslightly duller\u201d still means practically radioactive orange (anyone else think of Cheeto dust? Or just me?). <\/p>\n\n\n\n The slightly dulled color makes for an easier everyday wear than the Sub 300, while still getting a color that\u2019s well within the bounds of the signature DOXA style.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Sub 200 also features a date window, which is not color-matched to the dial. While I lament this missed chance to take this brilliant orange design a step further, I also understand the choice, as the vintage Sub would not have made this match. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The black frame around the date window is quirky, and I can\u2019t recall any other pieces off the top of my head that feature a similar outline to draw attention to it. It\u2019s a fun detail that I\u2019m fond of.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The text is simple and unobtrusive, thankfully. If you\u2019ve read any of my articles, you know I love to pay attention to typography as a fine detail that can really make or break a watch. In this case, DOXA uses a fantastic simple font, but I am disappointed by the kerning, or spacing, in their logo. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The D is clearly a little extra spaced out from the other letters, so it looks more like \u201cD OXA.\u201d Is this an extremely small detail? Of course. Is this extremely excusable for a watch of this price point? Absolutely. Should it make or break your opinion on this watch? Definitely not. It\u2019s just one of those small details that catches my eye.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The hands and indices are very simple and utilitarian in nature. The lume, an off-white color, could be met with cries of \u201cfauxtina!\u201d by some critical watch collectors, but I really think it\u2019s just part of the design and not intended to look like aged lume on a vintage watch. Here, I need to mention another gripe I have about the dial: the indices are silver, and the hands are matte black. It\u2019s a color scheme that just seems slightly off for me, and I\u2019m a little frustrated by it. <\/p>\n\n\n\n It seems like it would have been a simple choice to coat the indices in black too, but I can only assume that there must be a reason for this design decision. I\u2019m perfectly happy with the hands, though, as they\u2019re very broad and carry a lot of bright lume, and greatly accentuate the utilitarian dive nature of the watch. <\/p>\n\n\n\n But again, with the minute track, the frame around the date window, and the hands all in black, I do wonder why the indices are in gray. It leaves me slightly uncomfortable with the overall balance of the dial, but it\u2019s still a good-looking face to the Sub 200 overall.<\/p>\n\n\n\n DOXA is relatively quiet about the movement in the Sub 200, stating only on their website that they decorated it themselves, as well as that it\u2019s Swiss-made, has a 38-hour power reserve<\/a> with automatic winding, and beats at 4.0 Hz. <\/p>\n\n\n\n These are pretty standard workhorse movement stats, and a quick Google search online reveals that originally the Sub 200 was powered by the ETA 2824-2, a very standard ETA movement. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Since the stats were removed from DOXA\u2019s website, most collectors concur that they have probably switched to a Sellita SW-200, an ETA clone that\u2019s still Swiss-made and performs about as well as the ETA. <\/p>\n\n\n\n It\u2019s definitely not the type of movement to blow you away with its complications or performance, but the ETA 2824 and its variations have seen service in significantly more expensive watches than this one. <\/p>\n\n\n\n It\u2019s a beater movement that can take a serious pounding (I disassembled one, tried to finish it, and put it back together, and it still runs!) and still give you accurate performance for a long time to come. The Sellita is virtually on par with the ETA, at a slightly reduced price.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Unfortunately, you won\u2019t be able to see whatever decoration DOXA has applied (likely an engraved rotor) without consulting your local watchmaker, since they\u2019ve used a solid caseback. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Thankfully, DOXA applied a lovely engraving to console our sorrows, with a cool wave pattern and their logo to adorn it. Likewise, this is probably a vintage-inspired choice, as the original Sub would have likewise featured a closed caseback.<\/p>\n\n\n\nDial<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Movement<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Straps<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
![\"DOXA](\"https:\/\/www.exquisitetimepieces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/DOXA-Sub-200-On-Wrist-Experience-1024x427.jpg\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\n