Omega revealed the long anticipated fourth generation of the Seamaster Planet Ocean this week, taking a big step in separating itself from the Seamaster 300 in the process. The watch features a highly angular, faceted case, a matte dial, no date, and perhaps most importantly, no helium release valve. The new watch is a meaningful departure from the Planet Ocean design language we’ve become accustomed to, all while retaining trace amounts of Seamaster DNA. This is very much a new foot forward for Omega, and one that pushes the hardened diver further from its tool-ish roots into more luxurious territory. Omega aren’t the only ones driving this trend, but the PO may just be the latest victim to fall into the clutches of the upmarket move.
We’ve all been eagerly awaiting a new generation of the Planet Ocean for what feels like many years now, but a clear picture of what that might look like has always been murky at best. The PO is of course the more robust Seamaster choice, offering a healthy 600 meter depth rating and a more modern aesthetic to go along with it. The original was released in 2005, afterall. This is the watch that housed Omega’s Ultra Deep concepts, and even welcomed a fixed lug design in the process. These extreme variations would show a path forward for future generations of the PO. Or at least, that’s what I would have been inclined to believe at one point.
The new Planet Ocean collection is launching with a trio of variations that set a base foundation upon which we will likely see a range of new references emerge. The watches feature a 42mm case design, chunky ceramic bezels in black, orange, or blue, a 600 meter depth rating, and a slick new bracelet. Absent from the situation are a date, and a helium release valve. The case itself features an entirely new design from Omega, with broad, flat surfaces connecting at sharp points, with no shortage of high polish applied at the bevel. The bracelet connects to the case between a 21mm lug span, and the end link gets a unique design that follows the same angularity found in the lugs themselves.
The case and bracelet offer something different, and I suspect this will be a rather polarizing design for enthusiasts to digest. On one hand, Omega certainly put some distance between this watch and the 300M, which is a good thing. On the other hand, it’s lost a bit of that magic that made it so compelling in the first place. It will take some time to come to terms with this new design, and of course, some real world use will help to contextualize it. To my eye, there are a few good decisions happening here when viewed in isolation, but when viewed as a whole, the proportions feel a bit… off. There is no real grace to the shape, and that results in a visual tension when taken as a whole.
I like the decision to skip the date, and to nix the helium release valve, though I do think it would make more sense to keep it here, and remove it on the 300M (though you could argue that it’s just a part of that watch’s identity). The matte dial feels right on point, and the bezel assembly itself looks robust. Additionally, the master chronometer caliber 8912 is a great choice, and I applaud them for keeping the simple closed caseback.
Stepping back a bit, and looking at this new PO for the $9,200 watch that it is, I find this to be a part of a broader trend by brands like Omega to lux-ify the dive watch genre in a manner that runs counter to what many of us find appealing about these watches in the first place. This is now a nice watch as much as it is a dive watch. It’s more dramatic visually, with more polished surfaces to catch the light, and it feels engineered to make a statement as much as it was to withstand the pressures of the deep.
When watches like this are released, it illustrates the distance between the world that birthed these tools in the ‘50s, and the world that uses them in 2025. A part of the appeal of the dive watch is that connection to the world it was developed for, and that connection feels as tenuous as ever when I see watches like this new PO, as capable as it is, no doubt. It places the diver in the realm of a status symbol and of personal expression, and as a result it just misses some of that magic. It’s the kind of watch that makes me want to put on an old 7002, and that says as much about Omega as it does about Seiko. Omega