Omega Just Launched the Seamaster Dive Watch Everyone Has Been Waiting For

Just a couple of days after Daniel Craig sneakily previewed an unreleased Omega Seamaster Diver 300M on his wrist at a Hollywood event, Omega has officially unveiled a pair of new Seamasters.

Surprisingly, the watch Craig was just seen wearing is not one of the new watches that Omega announced today. But that’s OK, as the brand actually unveiled an even more exciting diver that the former 007 actor wore to the Olympics back in August. (It’s hard to keep up with what’s on that guy’s wrist at any given time.)

Not only that, but this new Seamaster might just be the most perfect example of the iconic diver we’ve ever seen, and it’s one that fans have been dying for Omega to make for ages.

When Craig previewed this Seamaster at the Olympics, I theorized that we could finally be getting a black, no-date version of the diver that would properly compete against Rolex’s No-Date Submariner — something that had been missing from Omega’s catalog for years.

It turns out, that’s exactly what we’ve got.

The new Seamaster features a black no-date dial paired with a black aluminum bezel. The dial is also in aluminum and features laser-engraved waves in a finer pattern that resembles the original “Bond” Seamaster watches of the 1990s. All markings on the hands and bezel, as well as all dial text, are in white, giving the watch a classic monochrome look.

The movement powering the watch is the Omega Cal. 8806 Master Chronometer co-axial automatic. It’s effectively the same movement as the Cal. 8800 found in the current generation of Seamaster Diver 300M, just without the date.

In fact, the watch is mostly the same as the aforementioned Seamaster with the ceramic dial and bezel with which we’ve all grown familiar — that includes the 42mm case diameter — save for a few differences inspired by some recent special-edition Seamasters.

The domed crystal, aluminum bezel insert, no-date layout and mesh bracelet were all first introduced on the titanium “No Time to Die” Seamaster back in 2019. In 2022, all of those features, plus the introduction of the reinvented old-school wave dial, popped up on the limited-edition James Bond 60th Anniversary Seamaster.

The new monochrome Seamaster, by contrast, marks the first time we’ve seen all of these features — no-date dial, smaller waves, mesh bracelet, aluminum bezel and domed crystal — on a non-special edition watch.

The black no-date Seamaster is clearly the star here, and may go on to be the most popular diver in Omega’s entire lineup — it looks that good.

But it’s not the only new Seamaster the brand announced today.

There’s also an unexpected grayscale Seamaster Diver 300M that’s pretty unique and will be a lot more niche, but is still cool just the same. It features mostly the same makeup and features as the black version, with the exception of the dial and bezel.

Here, we have an unusual wave-free, vertically brushed PVD stainless steel dial along with a Grade 5 titanium bezel with its markings in relief. The bezel we’ve seen before on the Nekton Edition Seamaster, but the brushed dial is new to the line.

The pricing on the new Seamasters is a bit curious, as they’re more expensive than the standard Seamaster Diver 300M — this despite their use of aluminum, which is a cheaper material than ceramic, and their lack of a proper bracelet.

The black and gray Seamasters are both priced at $6,500 on the mesh bracelet, compared to the older ceramic Seamaster’s price of $5,900 on the tank tread bracelet. You can buy one of the new Seamasters for $5,900, but only on a fitted black rubber strap. An older Seamaster on rubber will set you back $5,600.

It’s worth noting that the rubber strap has received a welcome update here. Omega added its excellent deployant clasp in place of the pin buckle found on older Seamasters, which is a massive upgrade. However, I was also hoping Omega would implement the carbon fiber quick-release system seen on the rubber strap of the recent America’s Cup Seamaster release, but it looks like they’re still reserving that feature for special releases.

Still, it’s hard not to see the appeal of the black no-date Seamaster. This is something fans of the brand have been craving for a long, long time, and now it’s here — even if many were hoping the case size would shrink down to 40 or 39mm.

I believe it’s going to be incredibly popular, with its minimalist styling casting a wide net in terms of appeal. I also think the fact that it features some fan-loved details — the aluminum bezel and smaller waves like on the cult-favorite 1990s “Peter Blake” Seamaster, the mesh bracelet and domed crystal from the “No Time to Die” — only sweetens the pot.

Dive Watches, Tool Watches