After a few months of speculation over a watch spotted on the wrist of actor Daniel Craig, Omega has officially revealed a pair of new Seamaster 300M divers that join a burgeoning collection. While no major structural changes are present, they do take the dial in a new direction first seen on the 60th Anniversary James Bond reference released in 2022, and just as importantly, both new models ditch their date complications. One of these watches was expected pretty exactly as is, but the other represents a surprise, and takes things in yet another direction with a vertically brushed dial. Both are welcome additions to one of the great modern dive watch collections.
At Baselworld 2018, Omega released the latest generation of their Seamaster 300M dive watch, continuing a lineage that began in 1993. The new generation received a beefier, 42mm case, and a ceramic dial with a wave pattern laser etched into the surface, a callback to the original worn by Pierce Brosnan’s James Bond. The new direction was a polarizing one, with the wave pattern not quite evoking the same vibe as the original, but there’s no denying it had presence. Nearly seven years later, Omega is still iterating on this generation, and when they released the 60th anniversary James Bond reference, they brought back the original, much tighter wave pattern to the dial.
This new dial is no longer ceramic, but aluminum, and it still welcomes laser engraved waves, but in a much more cohesive design that doesn’t become entirely apparent until you view it at an angle. With the new Seamaster 300M, Omega is using the same dial in black, paired with a black aluminum bezel for a decidedly old-school feel. Alongside the black dial, we’re also getting another, more surprising execution that brings a very different kind of dial into the mix, setting a new precedent in the process.
The other Seamster 300M also uses a steel case, but it gets a vertically brushed PVD steel dial, and a titanium bezel insert. This is a tone on tone execution that brings a chic vibe to the platform with a bezel lifted straight off the Nekton edition released in 2020. Both watches use a co-axial master chronometer caliber 8806 which is visible through the caseback, and leaves the date out of the equation. This is a very welcome move for a watch that has generally featured a date window throughout its history.
This is not a new generation of the Seamaster 300M, so the case and dimensions remain unchanged at 42mm in diameter, and roughly 13.5mm in thickness. And yes, the helium release valve is still present at 10 o’clock along the case. My hope is that they return to dimensions closer to the first generation released in the ‘90s, with a much trimmer case and less intrusive helium release valve, but until then, these two might just be the sharpest examples of the modern Seamster 300M to be released.
Both of these watches are offered on either the brand’s excellent steel mesh bracelet, or a molded rubber strap. Prices on the rubber strap are $5,900, while opting for the mesh pushes the price to $6,500. All things considered, pretty reasonable prices in an era where anything under $10k feels refreshing. These are regular production models available from Omega now. Omega
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