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This One Means Business

Right off the bat, the 42mm stainless steel case makes it clear that the Planet Ocean is all business. Well, mostly business. It’s heavy, water resistant to 600m, and its Helium escape valve at 10 o’clock boasts its ability to go deeper than the Rolex Submariner. Its thickness clocks in at 16mm, which is about 15% thicker than its predecessor, the 2500. This translates to significant heft on the wrist and certain difficulty getting this piece under a shirt cuff. With a few links removed from the bracelet, it’s about 185 grams. Such tremendous wrist presence is either going to be a good or a bad thing for you depending on what you’re looking for in a diver.

An improvement over the prior model is the new matte ceramic bezel insert, the color of which is more anthracite than black like before. The font on the bezel, in addition to the material from which its constructed, reinforces the futuristic appeal of the Planet Ocean. Teeth on the bezel edge make for a sure grip throughout all 120 clicks.

But There’s Beauty in the Beast

I say mostly business because, aside from the chunky case and extraordinary depth rating, the Planet Ocean is a luxury watch. And it looks like it. The domed sapphire crystal is coated with anti-reflective treatment on both sides, making for a perfectly invisible glass with zero distortion at any angle.

The shape of the crystal and its AR coating are an advantage over the Rolex Submariner’s flat, untreated crystal, as the transparency of the lens really brings the dial more to life. Considering that Omega’s Planet Ocean carries more glint, a domed and treated crystal is optimal for showing off all the lovely details on the dial.

It’s what’s beneath the Planet Ocean’s crystal that differentiates this piece from other dive watches on the market but also cements the design as Omega–and it’s pleasantly updated from the previous release. The 8500 features a more luxurious dial, full of rich details and polish: thick, hand-set applied Arabic numerals and  Omega logo, bolder broad-arrow hands and a change in lume color from green to pale blue, except for the minutes hand which would aid a diver using this for underwater timing.

Omega closed the numerals on this updated model (the lines of the 6 and 9 on the 2500 never quite closed, a touch I really appreciated). The “Seamaster” signature and tip of the seconds hand add a couple of drops of orange to the otherwise classy and sober dial.

Omega Caliber 8500

Behind the sapphire display back is Omega’s caliber 8500, an automatic-winding movement with 60 hours of power reserve thanks to its dual barrel design. It’s not a completely in-house movement, although any assistance Omega received on developing the caliber came from other companies in the Swatch Group (e.g. ETA, Nivarox, Frederick Piguet). It’s a beautifully finished movement worthy of an exhibition case back, but it’s a luxurious detail I expect tool watch purists to find out of place on a watch that promises such adventure.

In contrast to caliber 2500, Omega designed the 8500 around the co-axial escapement rather than shoehorning it in to an existing design. The result is a significantly larger escapement and the overall increase in movement size is responsible for a chunkier case.

On the Wrist

The Planet Ocean comes on a number of OEM strap options, including a rubber strap and a steel bracelet. The stainless steel bracelet reviewed here is worthy of celebration once you achieve the proper fit, but some wrists out there are going to have to work a little harder than others to reach maximum comfort. Why? The Planet Ocean comes with only one half-link (although it’s more like a two-thirds link) and the clasp doesn’t feature any micro-adjustments. The right fit matters for the 8500 because it’s a heavy watch that can feel like a ball-and-chain strapped to your wrist if it’s too loose or a handcuff if it’s too tight. You may find yourself, like I did, popping into your local Authorized Dealer or Omega boutique to purchase an extra half-link for $47 USD, which will absolutely get the job done if you aren’t getting a perfect fit out of the box.

Once the fit is right, you’ll find a lot to appreciate about this bracelet. I love the depth and curvature of the links, which you can really see as the bracelet wraps around your wrist, lending a sort of three-dimensional, stegosaurus spine look. Without any polished accents on the bracelet, the Planet Ocean doesn’t appear gaudy and the brushed surface will conceal light scratching but, as I mentioned before, there are subtleties to the design of the dial that prove attention to detail and a healthy dose of glint. Anyone’s first impression is that you’re wearing a tool watch, but closer examination will reveal that it’s one of the finest mass-produced wristwatches at its price on the market today.

The Verdict

I’m not a big vintage watch collector, so what I find appealing about the Planet Ocean is how brazenly it stands for innovation. While, when marketing the watch, Omega likes to reference its importance in diving history and all the notable underwater explorers who wore Seamasters, the Planet Ocean is an exercise in modern watchmaking to me. Considering its original and futuristic aesthetics, its extreme water resistance and beautifully decorated in-house caliber, it’s the anti-vintage watch.

Retailing at $6,200 USD, the Planet Ocean competes with the Rolex Submariner, the 116610 in particular, but comes in at about $1,000 cheaper than the no-date 114060. The Rolex Submariner heritage and comfort, especially due to its GlideLock technology, may be critical advantages for some buyers and would sway them away from a Planet Ocean. However, painstaking detail of the Planet Ocean’s dial is second to none and the overall combination of form and function inherent in this Seamaster is why it’s such a popular watch with collectors.

Photo Gallery

That day was around three years ago. Since then, I read reviews and ogled at pictures but still determined it wasn’t a watch for me although I had begun to increasingly appreciate its unique looks and history. It’s too big. It’s quartz (Seiko does offer automatic variants but they’re even larger). It’s too distinct, so I’d never find the right occasion to wear it. Seiko’s OEM bracelets and straps are usually winners aesthetically but can be hit or miss when it comes to wearability, so what if it’s not comfortable and I have to embark on a journey to find an aftermarket strap? I had a lot of reasons not to buy a Tuna.

Seiko Prospex Marine Master Quartz Tuna SBBN035

  But I also had a lot of reasons to buy one. It’s distinct; only Seiko could make a watch like this. The watch is historically important. Seiko first introduced a shrouded diver in 1975, reference 6159-022. It was a 600m diver’s watch with a titanium anti-magnetic case that helium couldn’t penetrate, making it suitable for saturation diving. Three years later, Seiko introduced the quartz version of this shrouded diver from which the modern 300m Quartz Tunas originate. This watch means business in a way that most other divers could only dream of.

At BaselWorld 2015, Seiko introduced upgrades to their Marine Master lineup, including new hands and a stronger, greener luminous compound. Some models now have their surfaces treated with Diashield to further resist scratching and corrosion. They also introduced a whole new variant to the collection, reference SBBN035, which is the star of today’s review.

Seiko Marine Master 300m Quartz Tuna (SBBN035)

This Tuna Can model has already earned the nickname, “Ninja Tuna,” for its stealthy appearance. While this particular model is a new release for Seiko in 2015, it’s not an entirely new concept for Seiko to have a Tuna Can with a PVD-coated case. Seiko manufactured the SBBN013, dubbed the “Darth Tuna,” which is now replaced by SBBN025. From a conceptual point of view, it’s fair to look at the SBBN035 as the Darth Tuna’s little brother: same case silhouette, movement, dial design and strap. But the case diameter is reduced slightly from 49.5mm to 48mm, and the little brother also features a slightly slimmer case at 14.5mm. Despite what may seem like intimidating measurements–and this is a common theme with Quartz Tunas because looks deceive–the piece weighs in at only 125 grams with the silicon strap included and is suitable for a range of wrist sizes.

Seiko Tunas are regarded as tool watches at their cores, but there are moments of gloss and luxury that desk divers can appreciate, namely the polished unidirectional bezel but also the Hardlex crystal because it’s so reflective, which is something I’m not too thrilled with. The classic shroud, which protects the bezel and exposes it only at the upper right and bottom left positions for easy gripping, is brushed, setting the overall tone of the watch as an instrument first and foremost. The hex screws that hold the shroud in place have polished edges that you might not notice on first glance.

The crown is likely the most controversial aspect of the new Marine Masters. Whereas older models like the SBBN013 and SBBN017 had crowns signed with the deeply engraved Seiko “S,” newer models now bear the shallow etched “X” from the Prospex logo (fun fact: if you look closely, the X is formed by an S and a P woven together). While I can understand the heartache here, and squabbles over minor details is what separates serious collectors from casual buyers, it’s a non-issue on the Ninja. You’ve got to try really hard to see it. It might as well be unsigned.

The dial’s functional ambitions result in a design that’s not unlike many Seiko favorites including the SKX007, the Monster or the SBDB009 Spring Drive Tuna. Even if the dial were missing the polished and applied SEIKO logo (a welcome compensation for such an expensive quartz watch), you’d know who made the watch.

As the Prospex line expands, Seiko is manufacturing more shrouded divers that look like Tunas but, if you’re nitpicking (and collectors often are), aren’t exactly Tunas. All Tunas are shrouded divers; not all shrouded divers are Tunas. Even the Seiko Monster has a shrouded bezel, but it’s not a Tuna Can. Seiko added a couple of references featuring shrouded divers to their Prospex line that house a 4R36 automatic movement (SRP655K1 and SRP653K1), but they aren’t Tunas. The litmus test? Look for the “MARINEMASTER PROFESSIONAL” signature on the dial. These are the real deal.

Seiko’s new Marine Masters sport a new set of hour and minute hands. The new hour hand is a bold arrow like that of the Spring Drive Tuna while the minute hand resembles that on the Monster lineup. The newer, (very) greener lume, somehow, burns brighter than the luminous compound of former models; in the day time, it lends a greenish appearance to the hour markers that used to appear more white, and I attribute that to the nearly radioactive intensity of the new lume. It’s always burning bright, even in the daytime. Finally, the black day and date wheels are a winning characteristic of the dial.

Movement: 7C46

Inside the Tuna is a rugged 7-jewel quartz movement created by Seiko specifically for the Tuna. That’s one of the reasons collectors adore it in spite of it being quartz–its sole purpose for existence is to power a single watch. It’s rated to keep time within 15 seconds a month, which is great but short of incredible by quartz standards. Expect a five-year battery life on a fresh cell and you’ll get an End-of-Life indicator where the seconds hand will advance in two-second increments to warn you the battery is low. On this particular instance of the watch, the seconds hand hits every mark, often a critical consideration for expensive quartz watches.

Comfort & Wearability

With a 48mm case diameter, the first question on most minds is wearability. Can most wrists pull this off? The answer is yes. I have a 6.75-inch wrist and I have a maximum tolerance for 50mm lug-to-lug distances. Anything over that and the watch extends past both sides of my wrist, which doesn’t look tasteful. Tunas have miniature lugs that extend from underneath the case and barely, if at all, protrude from the case so your lug-to-lug measurements winds up at effectively 48mm. And a 14.5mm thickness isn’t bad at all for a dive watch, so despite the measurements the Tuna is deceivingly wearable for most adult male wrists.

This is the most comfortable watch I’ve worn in a long time owing in large part to a fantastic silicon strap. Seiko’s rubber straps are notoriously stiff and often the loose ends of their straps are long and unwieldy for folks with smaller wrists. That is not the case here. It looks like Seiko took the same silicon strap from the Spring Drive Tuna and used it for the SBBN035, resulting in a perfect fit and a elegantly finished but durable titanium floating keeper. The best part for me, given my smaller wrist size, is that the floating keeper moves far enough up the strap that it can keep the loose end of the strap close to my wrist, so I don’t have a rogue piece of rubber jutting out from my arm. And it stays in place all day without adjustment.

With a 14.5mm case thickness, the SBBN035 fits beneath most shirt sleeves without any fuss. While the Tuna can handle anything you can throw at it, it’s not the most versatile of watches, especially this blacked-out Ninja version. It’s a sporty watch way more appropriate for the beach than the boardroom, but if you don’t wear a suit or something similar to work then you can probably get away with enjoying this one as a daily wearer.

Price & Availability

The SBBN035 retails for $1,100 in the United States, but you can pick this up for much less (about $800 at the time of this writing) if you buy online from trusted sellers like SeiyaJapan.com. On a recent trip to the Seiko Boutique in New York City, they seemed to have all the Tunas available on display except for this one, and I even took a look through the catalog with the salesperson but we didn’t see the SBBN035, so it’s possible that if you’re looking for this particular version you’ll need to buy it online from Japan.

The Verdict

It’s pricey for a quartz watch. There’s no doubt about that. If you have strong preferences for mechanicals or have hard limits on what you’ll spend for a quartz piece, the SBBN035 is hard to swallow. Even if the movement isn’t a concern, the design is polarizing. It’s weird and big, but it’s attractive and comfortable. It’s an important watch, a serious tool for scuba divers, but also a fun piece for folks who never even go to the beach. You can dislike the watch, but eventually you may find that hating it is just the first step of falling in love with it. It’s the kind of watch that, once you do find yourself attracted to it, grows on you like a sickness–and those are my favorite kinds of watches.

Introducing the Longines Heritage Military COSD

Longines just announced a new heritage release that honors a watch the brand manufactured for British paratroopers in the 1940s. It’s a welcome and refreshing, if not somewhat sober, addition to the heritage lineup, which is dominated by aviation- and diving-inspired timepieces. Longines has a winning formula they execute on when it comes to heritage releases: pick a watch from the museum…