Customer Reviews

Zodiac Men's ZO8004 Oceanaire Diver Collection Automatic Stainless Steel Watch

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The Zodiac Oceanaire is a beautifully finished watch, with a sapphire crystal and stainless steel case and bracelet. The blue dial has a sunburst pattern from 12 to 3 o'clock. Potential buyers should note that this is a big, heavy watch. It's 46mm in diameter, not including the crown. The crown is the screw-down type, and it works very well. The bracelet is not particularly flexible. Potential buyers should also know that the movement starts out in China and is finished in Switzerland; enough work is done on the movement in Switzerland for it to qualify for the "Swiss Made" label. The movement is a Claro-Semag CL-888 that actually has 21 jewels, although 18 is usually given as the number of jewels. The one I bought from an authorized seller gains 20 seconds every day; some buyers have reported a deviation of only 3 - 4 seconds a day. However, no accuracy claim is made by Zodiac, so you would have to pay to get the watch regulated. The watch is rated to be water resistant down to 200 meters, and it appears to have the build quality and attention to detail that would back up this claim. The bezel is unidirectional and is well made. The dial is very easy to read and the luminosity of the hands and markers is very good. Now, for the kind of person who should wear this watch: if your wrists are skinny, say less than 8.5 inches in circumference, this watch will look like an dinner plate strapped to your arm. The case is higher than an Omega or Seiko "dive watch," so it's not going to fit under shirt sleeves that well. This is a watch for a big man. If this watch is intended for a big guy,it could fill the bill. Buyers should also know that they may get a watch that has a very large accuracy deviation, and that it would entail lots of trouble and expense to get the watch regulated. For what it costs, however, the watch is probably worth it--assuming you don't pay full retail. The people who buy them generally love them. Buyers should also know that other makers are "finishing" Chinese movements and calling them "Swiss Made," and the movement is a solid one. Interestingly enough, the case and bracelet are not covered under the two-year Zodiac warranty--which is strange, considering how beefy they are! If you are a big guy or are looking for a really handsome watch to give to a big guy, this watch is worth a look! Just don't give it to anyone expecting Omega or Rolex accuracy, because there seems to be a wide variation in the accuracy of the assembled watches!

My Zodiac Oceanaire is the ZO8002 model which has an orange dial and rubber strap. I purchased directly from Zodiac on special for about $275. Had read about the shortcomings of the Clareo-Semang "Swinese" made automatic movement on a few web forums. So far no trouble for me. I figured that by obtaining directly from Zodiac that for the price I would at least be covered from defects for two years. I wear this for a week or two, then rotate out of use while I wear another watch from my collection. To this point, whenever I break out the Oceanaire again it fires up and runs reliably regardless of how long it has been sitting idle. Really love the styling and build and wear it more than my pre-owned Doxa Sharkhunter that I paid 3 times the price for. If I had my choice, the Zodiac would be powered by the ultra reliable ETA 2824 25 jewel movement that is found in most quality Swiss made dive watches. Should Zodiac ever make the decision to produce a truly Swiss made Oceanaire, I would expect the retail price to potentially double.