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The Certina DS First Ceramic is a quartz diver that packs a punch. Beveled edges on the lugs, a ceramic rotating bezel, a nicely finished caseback, and applied indices all come standard. The best part about a quartz dive watch is the fact that you can just pick it up and go. No winding it, or in the case of my trusty Seiko SKX, giving it the old “Seiko shuffle”. This particular Certina punches far above its weight class in the fit-and finish-department.
The Certina DS First Ceramic: A Dressier Dive Watch
Certina didn’t hold back on the features of this watch. The glossy dial and shiny, ceramic bezel give it a “dress diver” vibe. This is also accentuated by the alligator embossed leather strap. A nice double deployant-style clasp is also fitted to the strap. This is a higher-end feature usually found on higher-end watches. It’s definitely an upgrade from your run-of-the-mill tang buckle, and should allow the strap to last longer.
I think the watch would look equally as good on a tropic strap, especially given the cool 1960’s design cues of the watch. It’s also a true, dyed-in-the-wool diver, water resistant to 200 meters. The embossed turtle on the caseback makes you aware of the watch’s waterproofness and durability as well. It’s a nice nod to vintage Certina casebacks.
The ceramic bezel is gorgeous, and the bezel action is great, with little back-play. I believe it’s only 60 clicks, however. The applied indices are filled with lume and add to the overall legibility of the watch. A date at 6:00 is also a very thoughtful design touch, as it doesn’t break up the symmetry of the dial like a date window at 3:00 would.
A Slim Case, Coupled With Excellent Finishing
The case of the Certina DS First is visually interesting with nicely beveled edges. I always love this feature on a watch, which can also be found on the Tudor Black Bay, for instance.
Unlike the Black Bay dive watches, however, this Certina is not an overly thick watch. It wears nice and compact on wrist. The case is 42mm wide with a thickness of 12mm, and 22mm lug width.
For reference, I decided to take some shots side-by-side with my Speedmaster, which also sports a 42mm case size, but is a thicker watch at slightly over 13mm (although it wears much thinner than that, because some of that quoted thickness is because of the domed hesalite crystal).
The Speedmaster and Certina share similar dimensions, but the Certina definitely wears with more presence on the wrist. I chalk this up to the wider lug width (22mm for the Certina as previously mentioned and 20mm for the Omega) and the longer lug-to-lug length (roughly 50mm for the Certina and 48mm for the Omega).
The Certina is by no means overpowering on wrist, however. It wears nice and compact. I’d say it wears even slimmer than the Speedmaster. I found that I really enjoyed the Certina’s case and proportions, and I think as an overall package, it’s hard to beat. The watch has a really cool 1960’s-era vibe, just like the Speedmaster.
I think it would make a great companion to the Speedy Pro as a two watch collection, actually. I’m also admittedly biased towards watch designs from the 1960s. I’ll be the first to admit that I think this was the best era of watch design in general.
The Convenience Of Quartz
As someone who’s been collecting watches for roughly a decade now, I’ve learned a lot along the way. One thing that’s changed is my attitude towards quartz watches. I think the collecting community in general is highly-biased towards mechanical watches, whether it be at the entry level or at the higher end of the horological spectrum.
I think quartz watches have merit, too, and are unfairly looked down upon by many collectors – especially newer ones. Not sold on quartz? Check out the Grand Seiko 9F and tell me it’s not a work of art.
This particular Certina is powered by the reliable quartz caliber ETA 955.112. This same movement has been utilized from many other brands such as Hamilton and Tag Heuer. It’s a robust, worry-free movement that is very accurate.
There’s a certain freedom when wearing a quartz watch after being mostly obsessed with mechanical watches. I always find it annoying when I have to grab a watch that I haven’t worn for a few days and reset the time, as well as the date.
This led me to a phase at one point where I leaned towards “no date” watches. But then that gets annoying as well when I’m at work and want the date at a quick glance. A quartz watch doesn’t suffer from this conundrum – you just grab it and go.
Wrapping Things Up: The Certina DS First Ceramic
I really enjoyed my time with the Certina DS First Ceramic. It’s a great “grab and go” diver with a dressier side. I think Certina as a brand is underrated where I’m sitting at in the US, since it’s not readily available (unless you’re shopping online). Certina has a rich history as a watchmaker, and it was even a member of the iconic “Dirty Dozen” during WW2.
Certina watches almost always have a design language to them that I admire, and this particular model is no different. You get all the modern features you could ever want in a dive watch such as a ceramic bezel and 200 meters of water resistance, with classic 1960s good looks.