A Deep Dive Into the Sinn U50

 

Founded in 1961, Sinn is a relatively young brand when it comes to watchmaking. However, they have certainly left an impression in their short history, specifically on the world of tool watches. This is a sub-section of horology that has been dominated by certain legacy brands over the decades (you know the ones). What started life as a company producing navigational clocks and pilots chronographs gradually evolved into forward-focused innovative watches harnessing unique materials and technology. The results of this approach are practical watches intended to excel land, sea and air. 

Being an advocate for boundary-pushing has enabled them to stay ahead and maintain a level of memorable traits to this day, a vital approach when looking to produce watches at hyper-competitive price points.

The Sinn U50 is one of the latest creations for the German-based watchmaker, which, like many Sinn watches, received a prevalent reaction from the public. But why is that? What’s so special about this diving watch versus the endless stream of competition? Let’s take a deeper dive into the Sinn U50 to find out why.

How the Sinn U50 came to be

To fully understand the U50, we really need to scale things up, take a step back and dive even deeper to the Sinn U1. Initially released in 2005, the Sinn U1 provided an opportunity to own a larger than life diving watch with 1000m of water resistance. Cased in the same stainless steel found on German submarines, this technically advanced watch was submitted to the Germanischer Lloyd, who, in between conducting safety surveys on ships, pressure tested the watch for one hour at 100 bars. The watch passed the test, enabling it to proudly carry this achievement in its name (U1 = 1000m).

The U1’s design was also overtly Germanic in styling with a keen fondness for legibility through contrast and a sensible application of colour. Its distinctive design is made up of a few key ingredients:

• Supersized, large, and distinctive hour markers

• A similar design for its matching handset

• A well-framed and positioned 3 o’clock date window

• Its large, steel bezel with bold printing and an easy to operate action, even while wearing gloves

 

 

This is a design that very much stands on its own two feet, without any recognisable inspiration from other popular diving watches. It’s a watch that doesn’t look back towards the past of historical watch design to give it its character and appeal. The design is as rock-solid as the watch and is distinctively Sinn. This strong identity has paid dividends for the watch, which probably explains why it hasn’t changed at all since ‘05. 

The watch also takes advantage of the company’s proprietary Tegiment treatment technology, which hardens the case's base material, increasing scratch resistance tenfold.  Combined with its high water resistance rating it’s clear to see the U1 delivers from a technical perspective with a design that also pulls it out of the bag. The result is a watch with a reputation for being the ultimate, practical diving watch with a robust balance of form, function, practicality and price tag.

But for all of its positives, there is one drawback to the U1. At 44mm wide, it’s quite the beast on the wrist. Although the slight tapering lugs measuring 50.5mm from top to bottom are compact, the proportions do alienate a lot of wrists. And so, as the market preference began shifting to smaller sizes, the demand for a smaller U1 from fans of Sinn increased.

In 2020, Sinn responded.

 

The Sinn U50

Through a digital-only announcement (#ripbaselworld) back in April 2020, Sinn revealed its younger, smaller and arguably more contemporary brother to the U1. With a new 500m water resistance rating, a new 41mm case, and a new name, the U50 represents an important moment for Sinn’s U series of watches. What was once a watch that praised itself predominantly for its superior statistics now had added greater versatility, increased appeal to new markets, and subsequently, more Sinn watches on wrists to its wheelhouse. A 3mm reduction in case width might not sound like much, but when it comes to the U50, it’s a perfect reduction that allows the model to still maintain heaps of personality.

For those out there who love their sub 40mm watches, don’t be disheartened by the 41mm width. Much like the U1, the lug to lug measurement of 47mm is compact for its size, comfortably wearing more like a 40mm than a 42mm; positive news all round here.

On launch, several versions of the Sinn U50 were available with the added ability to make your Sinn watch even more ‘Sinn’ by opting for the full Tegiment treatment. Last year in 2021, the range grew further thanks to a very special version of the U50 (more on that in a moment). Although naturally similar in their aesthetic, there are some key differences between each U50 that are worth wrapping your head around before adding a U50 to your watch box. 

 

The U50

Kicking off the U50 lineup is the bead-blasted U50 in stainless steel with Tegiment hardening on the matching steel bezel. If you want your U50 to look like it means serious business this configuration is, quite literally, a hard one to knock. Thanks to its stripped back and barebones appeal, a steel bezel on a blasted steel watch is a combination that is hard to resist. This version of the U50 is also available with additional tegimenting to the case matching the bezel to create the U50-T.

On the wrist, this option emphasises the principal purpose of the Sinn U family. It captures the essence of a high scratch-resistant watch with undeniable legibility in a neat package that is remarkably casual and understated.

To reflect the ethos of Sinn in a wearable and unique fashion, the U50 is a fantastic way to do it.

The U50 SDR

If you’re looking to step your U50 up to the next level, the SDR delivers the goods. Effectively carrying over all of the benefits of the standard U50, including its tegimented bezel. But instead of keeping it steel, the bezel has been treated with Sinn's Black Hard Coating technology. This may sound like a minor tweak to an already fantastic watch, but suddenly, everything changes with just a straightforward modification. What was previously a stripped back pure tool watch now has an injection of attitude and a little more recognisable character.

On wrist, the black bezel plays a massive part in framing the U50 and allowing the eye to distinguish the blasted bracelet and case. It also continues the narrative started by the dial, with a colour scheme to match and legibility turned up to 11. Much like the standard U50, you can grab the SDR with tegimenting to the case as well as the bezel (the U50-T SDR) which increases scratch resistance even further.

The SDR is one of the most appealing configurations for the U50, and as such, one that graces a lot of wrists. 

 

The U50 S

Now things have suddenly become a whole lot more serious as the U50 S goes for it. Previous models came with tegimented bezels and the additional option to tegiment the complete case of the watch as an extra. In contrast, the U50 S provides Black Hard Coating as standard and coats the entire watch. From the case to crown, to the bezel, and complete bracelet, the U50 S has engaged full stealth mode. One of the strongest ways the U50 S differs from other black watches out there on the market is thanks to its blasted steel finish. When this is combined with the black coating stands out incredibly well in a positive manner, and here’s why. 

Often completely blacked out watches are made from materials such as ceramic or carbon fibre. Commonly these materials have a certain level of eye-catching properties either thanks to a high polish finish or a mixture of patterns that alter the watch's look as the light changes. However, an all-black and brushed finish is incredibly suppressed in the real world. It's toned down, muted, and remarkably wearable.

This U50 variation is all business and always ready for everything life throws at it.

 

The Sinn U50 S Mother-Of-Pearl

Until now, the U50 models have been relatively measured in their appearance. Nevertheless, they all offer an air of coherence that you’d expect from watches launched as a family. Well, for the final U50 to date, Sinn was laser-focused on flipping the script entirely. Released in 2021 as a numbered limited edition of 500 pieces in conjunction with the brand’s 70th-anniversary celebrations, the  Sinn U50 S Mother-Of-Pearl is unlike any other diving watch from the German watchmaker.

The complete black coating of the U50 S remains; however, the bezel accents have been tweaked slightly to a blue-grey tone to align more closely with its mother-of-pearl dial (yes, you read that correctly).

Generally associated with jewellery and more delicate petit watches, mother of pearl is a fascinating choice from Sinn and might be the best example of their commitment to working with a plethora of materials. Mother-of-pearl plays with the light beautifully, with genuinely unique tones of colour and shimmers of light appearing and disappearing from even the slightest movement. 

To tie in the dial and ensure it doesn’t look out of place, Sinn overhauled the dial furniture to match the whole ethos of the watch. Wave goodbye to the much loved red touches and the white on black contrast as the hands, hour & seconds markers, and all the font is now black. 

Let’s take a moment to be honest with each other, shall we? So, between you and me, this use of mother-of-pearl is a bit of a wild choice for the U50, isn’t it? 

After all, this is a 500m water-resistant German submarine stainless steel diving watch that is as tough as they get. It’s a bit left-field to have fitted a delicate, mother of pearl dial, right? In some ways yes, but in others, I find this dial and, therefore, this watch to be the most authentically aquatic U50 in the line up. It conveys the connection to the ocean unlike any other U50 with a completely different, individual approach. This unconventional approach works remarkably well in practice. Sure, it’s not going to be everyone’s cup of tea, but I can’t help but smile every time I look at this limited edition gem.

Which Sinn U50 should you get?

At the time of writing this, there are four main approaches to consider when adding a U50 to your collection. The ‘standard’ U50 with its matching steel bezel provides an excellent practical look that arguably aligns to Sinn DNA. The U50 SDR delivers a more traditional diving watch aesthetic thanks to its black bezel with the bonus of being subjectively more versatile. If engaging stealth mode is your jam then the U50 S goes all in and really means business. And then there’s the U50 S Mother-Of-Pearl, with its complex and very pragmatic approach combined with its more profound connection to the ocean.

The reality is each U50 has character, attitude and outright individuality in abundance. You cannot go wrong with any models because Sinn focused on delivering the goods with its core DNA. Versatility is always an appealing trait with watches. It’s often sought after when looking to add a watch to the collection. But in all honesty, the U50 isn’t the most versatile diving watch at this price point; and that’s its greatest strength.

It undeniably makes up for what it lacks in versatility in its ability to completely nail the brief. The U50 is a tough as nails, rock-solid tool watch that is hyper legible. This is an unapologetic thoroughbred diver from a brand that approaches watchmaking seriously.