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Omega Dives Ultra Deep With 2022 Debuts

Omega’s Seamaster Planet Ocean Ultra Deep, with water resistance to 6,000 meters (20,000 feet), highlights a strong set of 2022 debuts for the Swiss watchmaker.

The 2022 Omega Seamaster Ultra Deep Family.

Omega will offer seven of the 45.5mm Ultra Deep models in a sandblasted, forged titanium case and an additional six models in O-MegaSteel, an extra-hard and highly corrosion-resistant alloy that appears somewhat brighter than traditional stainless steel.

The Omega Seamaster Ultra Deep, in steel case.

The titanium models will also each feature a brushed ceramic bezel with a Liquidmetal diving scale, Omega’s own “Manta Lugs” and a case that echoes the original Ultra Deep model from 2019.

The Omega Seamaster Ultra Deep, in titanium case with NATO strap.

Omega has domed the watch’s sapphire crystal to protect a black ceramic titanium dial with cyan numerals, white markers and a distinctive blue-gradient central seconds hand. The watch’s titanium caseback features a black laser-engraved Sonar emblem with Omega’s seahorse logo in the center.

To match the dial, the standard NATO strap on titanium models is cyan and black and is made from 100% recycled fishing nets.

Steel with colors

Omega offers a selection of dial colors for the six Ultra Deep watches cased in the new O-MegaSteel alloy. These include glossy white or gradient-effect dials that fade from grey-to-black or blue-to-black. Here, all hands and markers are 18-karat white gold and the bezel is polished ceramic with Omega’s Liquid Ceramic diving scale.

Omega has devised a new crown guard for the case and finishes the back with the same laser-engraved Sonar emblem and wording as the titanium model.

Echoing the choice of dial hues, there are several bracelet options for the steel model: Either a rubber diving-suit-style strap or an O-MegaSteel bracelet. Omega also includes an extendable fold-over clasp with a complementary length adjustment and an extra diver extension on the steel bracelet.

Omega’s excellent Co-Axial Master Chronometer Caliber 8912 powers all watches in the new Seamaster Planet Ocean Ultra Deep collection. In addition, all watches meet the ISO 6425 standard for saturation divers’ watches, certified by Switzerland’s independent testing body METAS.

Prices: $11,600 (steel with steel bracelet), $11,200 (steel with rubber strap) and $12,300 (titanium case, NATO strap)

 

Speedmaster and Constellation debuts

Within Speedmaster, Omega launched Speedmaster ’57, a thinner version of the original 2013 reboot, now with a manual-wind Master Chronometer inside. The new eye-catching collection consists of eight stainless steel models, all powered by Omega’s Co-Axial Master Chronometer Calibre 9906.

Two new Omega Speedmaster ’57, models.

Omega also introduces two models of the Speedmaster Moonwatch using its proprietary Moonshine Gold alloy. One of these features an 18-karat Moonshine Gold dial, black ceramic bezel ring and blackened subdials and indexes. The second offers an interesting PVD green-coated dial and a green ceramic bezel ring.

The Omega Speedmaster Moonwatch Moonshine Gold.

Finally, Omega also debuts a set of new colorful dials within its Seamaster AquaTerra collection and adds a colorful set of stone dials to models within the 29mm Constellation collection. In addition, look for new pastel hue dials within the 28mm Constellation collection.

Three new stone dial models in the Omega Constellation family.

Read more about all the new Omega 2022 debuts here.

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Breitling Teams with Triumph for Ice Blue Chronograph

Breitling has teamed with British motorcycle brand Triumph to launch the Top Time Triumph, a sporty 41mm steel-cased chronograph with an ice blue dial.

The new Breitling Top Time Triumph.

The new watch is characterized by a brushed blue dial finish in the bow-tie motif inspired by 1960s-era café racing culture. A solid steel caseback features an engraving of a sketch depicting a Triumph parallel twin engine.

To further reinforce the partnership, the Breitling and Triumph logos are prominently featured on the dial of the Top Time Triumph, framed by a retro-inspired high-contrast tachymeter scale.

Breitling Top Time Triumph

At the same time, Breitling will make 270 ‘owner’s’ versions of the Top Time Triumph watch that will be offered to buyers of a special motorcycle from Triumph called the Speed Twin Breitling Limited Edition.

These limited edition watches will feature engraved casebacks identical to the Top Time Triumph, but will add an engraving of the same unique serial number as the owner’s motorcycle. These owner’s limited edition models will also sport its ice blue dial with a sunray-pattern, which differs slightly from the brushed, bow-tie pattern dial of the Top Time Triumph.

The Breitling Top Time Triumph Speed Twin Owners’ Limited features a sunray pattern blue dial.

“Triumph’s heritage and modern-retro aesthetic are just two of the many things we have in common,” said Georges Kern, CEO of Breitling. “Their blending of tradition with technology is completely in sync with what we do.”

The blue color on dials is as retro as the watch’s case and mushroom pusher style. The color is inspired by a blue Triumph Thunderbird 6T from 1951, and a rare, blue-dialed Breitling Top Time Ref. 815 from the 1970s, according to Breitling.

The Breitling Caliber 23, a COSC-certified ETA Valjoux 7753-based chronograph movement, powers both watches. Prices: $5,500 and $5,700 (Owner’s Limited Edition).

 

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Vostok-Europe Recalls the Space Race

By Gary Girdvainis

Vostok-Europe launches into orbit with its new Space Race edition. Celebrating the years 1957 through 1975 (as etched on the case back), the watch touches both sides of the Cold War-era of the last century.

The Vostok-Europe Space-Race, quartz chronograph model.

The critical dates and the events in the challenge to get to the moon occurred in this eighteen-year window. From Sputnik to Gagarin to John Glenn and Neil Armstrong, all these events and related personalities made their marks within those fateful dates. This is all honored in the new Space Race watch.

The Vostok-Europe Space-Race, automatic model.

Vostok-Europe is a boutique watch brand based in Vilnius, Lithuania, with seventeen years on the market. They build mostly sport and recreational watches, particularly dive watches.

The Space Race won’t be the only watch in their collection with ties to space travel. The Lunokhod II is inspired by a series of lunar rovers the Russians put on the moon. The N1 Rocket and the Energia both celebrate two of the most complex and largest rocket systems ever built.

The Space Race series features two models. One is driven by a YN55 automatic movement and the other is powered by a Miyota quartz chronograph movement. The case size is 47mm by 17mm, so these are not small watches.  A K1 glass system protects the watch. With a 200-meter water resistant design, this is nearly a professional grade diver, save for the required rotating bezel.

The Space Race comes in eight different color dial options. The strap is an extra thick leather and there are also mesh and rubber bracelet options.

Prices range from $369 to $549 and are available at www.R2Awatches.com

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Hublot Golf Watch Now Available in Orange

Alongside its new 40mm Big Bang Integral and new Sang Bleu watches, Hublot last month also unveiled the Big Bang Unico Golf Orange Carbon, a mechanical golf watch dressed in a bright orange carbon case.

The new Hublot Big Bang Unico Golf Orange Carbon.

The watchmaker’s mechanical golf watch, which Hublot first debuted in 2017, is a rare non-quartz watch that will keep track of a golfer’s progress within a trio of dial displays. Hublot created the Unico MHUB1580 automatic movement to show golfers which hole they were on, how many shots they’d taken on that hole and their cumulative score for the round. Previous models framed the golf displays within either a black carbon or a silvery white carbon case.

Like the earlier models, the newest Big Bang Unico Golf watch also matches a high-tech fabric strap (with Hublot’s One Click change system) to the case. The resulting 45mm orange wristwatch is certain to draw attention while driving, putting – or relaxing at the clubhouse.

The new Hublot Big Bang Unico Golf Orange Carbon offers a power reserve of 72 hours, weighs less than 100 grams, and is water-resistant to 100 meters. Hublot will make 100 pieces.

Price: $32,500.

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Piaget Frames its Polo Skeleton with Diamonds

As one of the few top-tier watchmakers also well versed in jewelry making, Piaget has always been able to combine both creative realms when designing watches. We’re accustomed to seeing technically advanced horology while being assured that Piaget’s jewelers will inevitably frame – and enhance – its creative time displays with finely set gems.

The new Piaget Polo Skeleton Diamond Paved.

With its newest Polo Skeleton Diamond Paved, a highly jeweled 42mm white gold version of the famed cushion-shaped-bezel watch, Piaget introduces the first gem-set Polo model that utilizes its next generation skeleton movement, Caliber 1200S1, which builds on many years of openworked movement expertise.

Piaget designed the new movement, here colored slate-grey, to enhance the original 1200S, itself a skeletonized version of the famed Piaget 1200P ultra-thin automatic caliber. It maintains the 2.4mm thinness of the 1200P.

Piaget has enhanced the anti-magnetic properties of the caliber while maintaining the movement’s off-center oscillating weight. And the caliber still retains a strong forty-four hour power reserve and a thirty-meter water resistance rating.

The new gem-set Polo Skeleton, a 2022 Watches & Wonders preview, is still quite thin, measuring 7.35mm thick (compared to 6.5mm for the non-set Polo Skeleton model), despite now hosting 268 brilliant-cut diamonds.

The watch comes with a white gold polished and satin-finished ‘H’ design integrated bracelet that Piaget has set with an additional 1,478 diamonds. As befits a jewelry house that works within a horological legacy, Piaget finishes the setting with a ‘reverse’ diamond set into the crown.

Price: $228,000.

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