We’re a few years on now since Bell & Ross revamped their image with the introduction of the Urban collection, replacing their round Vintage style watches with something a bit more on-trend. As the brand continues to find its footing there, the classic square designs that used to comprise the Instrument collection are still present in what is now called the Professional collection. These somewhat polarizing watches serve as the foundation of the brand, and have hosted a multitude of creative limited editions over the years. From the BR-03 Multimeter, to the more recent BR-03 Astro, these often unexpected watches show a different side of the brand, and when they hit, they really hit. Earlier this month, they dropped a new LE within their Professional collection in the form of a more conventional dive watch called the BR-03 Lum.
Making an original dive watch in 2025 is no small feat, but that’s kind of what Bell & Ross have with their subset of divers within the Professional family of watches. At a glance, that is. A closer look reveals a relatively traditional approach to the dial design, even if it is placed in the confines of a square, rather than a circle. That said, the BR-03 Lum provides a twist on the formula by defining the constituent components with a luminescent outline. The result is a monochromatic base, with only lume defining the vital components to provide maximum contrast where it’s needed most. Plus, it just looks really cool.
The BR-03 Lum boasts a 42mm square case constructed from black ceramic, with a total thickness of 11.2mm. The shape means it wears a bit different than you might imagine, filling out the wrist horizontally more than vertically. Since it’s a square, the lug to lug distance is quite short, but it still wears with plenty of presence thanks to its shape. Inside sits the BR-CAL.302-1 automatic movement, which is a Sellita base. The watch ships on a rubber strap but also comes with a two piece nylon option that leans into the muscular presence of the square shape. The whole thing gets a 300 meter depth rating, and hits ISO 6425 standards in the process.
This one check all the boxes you’d expect of a diver these days, though its use of black ceramic at the case and bezel certainly make it unique in ways that go beyond their shape. The uniform matte black appearance goes pretty hard, and with the mint green lume filling in the pertinent details we’re left with a pretty interesting, hyper focused design. Bell & Ross have been doing interesting things with lume in recent years, and while this doesn’t use it in the case or anything crazy like that, it might just be the most cohesive example yet.
The BR-03 Lum is a standout example in their existing collection of divers, which struggle to stand out in a crowded section of the market, especially around the $5,000 price point. This is a brand that has a rather interesting past when it comes to the genre, and I’d love to see them explore some of those older concepts in new references, this use of Lum is enough to keep my interest piqued until we get there. Bell & Ross
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