OMEGA Seamaster Professional
Underwater Wednesday is a series that focuses on one of the most popular choices of all mens watches; the diver. It doesn’t matter if you don’t dive, or don’t even shower very much, it’s still cool to have the versatility to plunge into water and know your watch will function perfectly.
The OMEGA Seamaster Professional affords you that luxury in spades. This watch is the current choice of James Bond, but with or without his endorsement, this is one of the best all round diver’s money can buy, whether for kudos or for some serious underwater time.
The Seamaster name was first introduced in 1947, but it wasn’t until 1958 that the Seamaster name was used on their divers. Today the Seamaster range comes in a host of options, some with water resistance of up to 1200 metres.
Note the second crown at 10 o’ clock, it’s a helium release valve to allow helium out of the watch after diving at great depths.
The OMEGA Seamaster can be considered as the other classic diver next to the legendary Rolex Submariner. There are a legion of loyal supporters for both watches, and the debate still rages on various forums as to which one is best. However, it was the OMEGA Seamaster which was chosen to land on the moon. And of course it depends upon your interpretation of best.
Rolex equip the Submariner with an in-house movement, but then technically speaking so do OMEGA, as they are fitted with an ETA movement, which, like OMEGA, is part of the mighty Swatch Group. Planet Ocean models from 2005 onwards come with the co-axial escapement technology developed by George Daniels.
Like the Rolex Submariner, there are many a tribute, copy or replica watch knocking around, some more authentic looking than others, so if you find one on the internet and it’s not from a reputable dealer, make sure it comes with the correct papers.
Omega Seamaster Planet Ocean Sochi 2014
There are many passionate collectors of the OMEGA Seamaster, and with good reason. They keep coming out with sexy limited editions such as one of the latest to celebrate the Winter Olympics in Russia in 2014.
OMEGA will travel to Russia in February 2014 as the official timekeeper during the Sochi 2014 Olympic and Paralympics Winter games. In preparation and commemoration of this occasion, OMEGA has launched two new Seamaster Planet Ocean models in a special men’s and women’s edition.
The gents’ edition comes with a 45.5 mm brushed and polished stainless steel case and a matching bracelet. Its unidirectional rotating diving bezel is fitted with a matt black ceramic ring with a chromium nitride divers’ scale.
The timepiece has a brushed screw-in case back embossed with the “Sochi 2014” Olympic logo and engraved with “Si14” with a helium escape valve located at 10 o’clock on the case. The applied indexes on the matt black dial are coated with white Super-Luminova emitting a blue light as are the polished, facetted rhodium-plated hands. The timepiece has central hour, minute and seconds hands and there is a date window at 3 o’clock.
The OMEGA Seamaster Planet Ocean 45.5 mm “Sochi 2014” Limited Edition is powered by the OMEGA Co-Axial calibre 8500 equipped with the brand’s exclusive Si14 silicon balance spring and the result is a timepiece so reliable that OMEGA delivers it with a full four-year warranty.
The OMEGA Seamaster, a great looking watch and a legendary diver.
