Hands-on review of the Omega Seamaster Aqua Terra Worldtimer "Summer Blue" with a lot of live photographs. Price and impressions.
The latest interpretation of this model, enabling instant reading of the time in 24 time zones, was released last June as part of the Seamaster Summer Blue line. This collection includes eleven new Seamaster timepieces with different shades of blue designed to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the Seamaster, which was launched in 1948 to mark the brand's 100th anniversary.
We recently had the opportunity to go hands-on with the Seamaster Aqua Terra Worldtimer "Summer Blue" and we are now delighted to share our impressions and live photographs.
When you first handle this wristwatch, the eye is immediately drawn to the centre of the dial with its representation of the Earth, offering a view down over the North Pole. This is achieved by laser-ablating a Grade 5 titanium plate to create the blue ocean and leave a relief of the continents. The contrasting colours of the Earth’s surface are achieved naturally through the laser’s chemical reaction.
Circling the slightly domed topographic map is a 24-hour glass ring divided into night and day sections, with light blue to indicate daytime and dark blue to indicate night.
This rotating ring works in combination with the outer fixed circles showing the silvery-printed global destinations, including the city of Bienne at GMT+1, Omega's home in Switzerland.
The rest of the dial is sun-brushed in Omega’s own Summer Blue with a gradient finish, vertical teak stripes, and rhodium-plated hands and indexes filled with a unique light blue Super-LumiNova that glows in blue in darker environments.
The watch comes in a 43 mm x 14.3 mm stainless steel case whose lines are highlighted by alternating brushed and polished surfaces.
The scratch‑resistant sapphire crystal protecting the dial is slightly domed and features an anti‑reflective treatment on both sides.
The case can be paired with either a stainless steel bracelet with butterfly clasp or a rubber strap integrated with the watch through a solid polished link, and secured to the wrist by a double folding clasp.
For our review, we used the reference with rubber strap. The lug width is 21 mm while the lug-to lug distance is 50.3 mm.
Even with its diameter of 43 mm, the watch sits nicely on the wrist, thanks to curved lugs. The light-blue structured rubber strap with white stitching is not only beautifully designed, but also very comfortable. The wrist in our pictures measure 18 cm / 7 in.
All functions can be adjusted using the crown, which has four positions:
0 - The crown is screwed-in to ensure water resistance (150 metres / 500 feet).
1 - The crown is unscrewed, and the watch can be wound manually in case it has not been worn for 60 hours or more.
2 - Setting the time zone and correcting the date: pull the crown out to position 2. Turn the crown forwards or backwards, and only the hour hand will move forwards or backwards by 1-hour intervals. By passing the hour hand over midnight, the date can be changed forwards or backwards.
3 - Time setting: 24 hours – hours – minutes – seconds. In this position, the seconds hand will stop. Turn the crown forwards or backwards. Synchronise the seconds by pushing the crown back to position 1 to coincide with a given time signal.
Unlike the other Worldtimer references, this "Summer Blue" model is not fitted with a sapphire crystal caseback but with a commemorative stamped caseback representing the Seamaster logo. It depicts a trident-bearing Poseidon and two seahorses: Omega’s 1956 original and the brand’s current design.
Behind it, the self-winding Master Chronometer Calibre 8938 with Co-Axial escapement operates at a frequency of 25,200 vibrations per hour. It features a free sprung-balance with silicon balance spring and offers a power reserve of 60 hours.
Movement and watch are tested according to the Master Chronometer certification process approved by the Swiss Federal Institute of Metrology (METAS) whose testing criteria include: the average daily precision of the whole watch, precision of the movement when it is not yet cased (like COSC), precision when the movement is fully wound or near to the end of the power reserve, water resistance, and anti-magnetic resistance of the movement alone as well as of the entire watch to magnetic fields reaching 15,000 gauss.
Offering a striking look combined with practical functionality and a state-of-the art manufacture movement, the Omega Seamaster Aqua Terra Worldtimer "Summer Blue" retails for Euro 11,100 / US$ 9,900 on rubber strap (ref. 220.12.43.22.03.002) or Euro 11,300 / US$ 10,100 on steel bracelet (ref. 220.10.43.22.03.002). Euro prices include VAT, US$ prices do not include local sales taxes.
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omegawatches.com
Excellent shots and write-up. An amazing watch!
ReplyDeleteThanks a lot!
DeleteI think you confused Euros with Dollars
ReplyDeleteWe confirm that prices are correct. Please, note that Euro prices include VAT, while US$ prices do not include local sales taxes.
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