NOTE: just got one from amazon 5-9-18 & thought i'd mention that after 24 hours of running in all positions incl. laid down, it is 2 seconds quick/24 hours. that's better than certified COSC swiss grade. just sayin.

i purchased a couple of these, different color bezels. they are really nice, but of course for the price, have a few minor cons. but remarkably, this little invicta stands up quality and functionwise to auto divers 4 times their price.

first off, i'm not a newbie watch purchaser for whom this is my first mechanical watch. i've been collecting, buying, selling for 20 years, having owned rolex submariners, heurs (prior to tag), WW2 military watches, etc, etc.

i know a good watch. i also know this is an inexpensive little submariner homage watch. but it really kix *ss. pros & cons below to make this easy:

PROS
1. very solidly built with a full 316L steel case & screwback that legit can handle 200 meters of H20 resist...not that i know anyone who would buy one of these to do that kind of diving.
2. has a solid mineral crystal with pretty decent cyclops window. people whine about wanting a sapphire crystal, but i've never banged a watch to the point of marking any mineral crystal. and while higher grade watches use sapphire, a diver really should have mineral crystal which will not shatter like sapphire will...in case you hit that rock under water it's goodbye the diver watch.
3. really nice 120 click super on the mark bezel with very decently glowing pip. not seiko super bright, but decent. the action on the bezel when you first get it is reaLLLLy hard to turn. but it is super smooth. you literally may need an evening of holding in one hand and turning the bezel with the other hand to break it in. good news is that after some use, you can decently turn it with one hand while it is on the opposite wrist.
4. very nice and smoothly working screwdown crown. a must for any water sports watch, and this has a nicely working one.
5. ok, here's a BiG one...the movement. it is seiko's 4R36, a hacking and winding movement, 2 features even seiko's SKX divers costing over $200 discounted don't have (theirs will not hack or wind). here, the 4R36 is called the NH35...or 38 depending on how recent you buy this. it is just seiko's caliber name for the 4R36 when they are sold to other manufacturers. as a note, the NH35 thru NH38 can be found in many excellent microbrand divers that sell for $300 to $600. i have found this movement to be as accurate as new rolex watches i've owned...usually coming in at 6 to 10 seconds a day fast. these are not regulated from when they leave seiko to go into most other brands and on your wrist, whereas a rolex is extensively regulated and tested...so even tho the processing is less than a higher end swiss movement, you get a darn good caliber here. WHAT is the downside of this movement? snobbery really, which i admit to possessing....the beats per hour are 21,000+ vs the 28,000+ in a higher caliber swiss movement. in fact the lower beats are generally accepted to add to movement life, but the higher beat movements are a bit smoother and have a glide. to praise this NH35 or 38, i will say for a 21,000 bph movement it is one of the smoothest lower beat movement i've seen or worn.

CONS
1. well, the invicta name, to be frank. invicta has a lot of detractors, and you'll never impress anyone saying you have an invicta on your wrist. back in the day invicta was an excellent swiss manufacturer, but in the 70s i believe the brand was sold. they made a huge name on this style submariner homage watches, and then took off to making lots of what are often derided as garish quartz pieces. if you have enough confidence in yourself (i do) you won't give a concern what watch snobs say. this particular piece is excellent for the money. i wear it even tho i have a number of $1000 swiss divers. i just love the looks...not to pretend it's a rolex (many non-watch people will ask you if it is), but just to appreciate it for itself. it looks superb on the wrist and functions pretty darn well...except for..CON number 2...
2. sadly, invicta could have done a bit better with their lume. the bezel pip is acceptable at best, and the hour/minute hands are almost acceptable, but the hour markers and seconds hand simply cannot be read well in the dark. even the pip and hour/min hands lose glow pretty fast. i'd have been happy for invicta to have charged $10 more and put a bit better glow into this piece. it would seriously hit virtually all cylinders it that had been done.
3. NOT something to critique on this particular watch is the band. this is a really great and comfie band, easy to change with a springbar tool if you want to for a combat strap or leather. if you get this watch with an invicta steel band, the band is pretty good but it does have hollow end links, which install by clamping onto the back of the watch lugs and scratching them up with deep marks when you ever remove the band. that's not something specific to invicta, sadly seiko even does this with its lower cost automatics all the way up to the $200 price level. but on this piece, you don't have that issue. you can purchase this and buy a really quality solid endlink bracelet here on amazon or elsewhere, and have a very nice little watch. i put mine on 2-piece german style military bund bands and it looks amazing.

for the price, this is a simply amazing little piece. the 40mm width is not really little, but in this day of gargantuan watches, many people prefer this more moderate size.

aside from the lume issue, and watch snobbery about the invicta name, this is one of the great watches of all time for under $100 or therabouts. i'd give that accolade all the way up to the $150 price, and say it would be a value (except for the deficient lume) going on $200.