Omega Launch 75th Anniversary Seamaster Aqua Terra Sunray, Teak-Pattern and Worldtimer Editions

We’ve now touched on the majority of the Seamaster 75^th Anniversary watches, the Diver 300m & Seamaster 300, Planet Ocean 600m, Ploprof, Ultra-Deep. All that’s left to cover are the trio of new Omega Aqua Terra 75^th Anniversary models that complete the celebration. There’s the sunray version, the teak-pattern edition and the World Timer.

Omega Seamaster Aqua Terra 150m 38mm Ref. 220.10.38.20.03.004

The first of the new Aqua Terras is perhaps the most understated. It’s a 41mm model in stainless steel with a summer blue dial featuring sun-brushed finishing and a slight fumé gradient. By now you’ll likely have noticed that all of the anniversary models are blue but that each has slight differences in their shades.

That’s because the colour corresponds to their water resistance ratings. The Aqua Terras are the lightest at 150m and getting darker as you descend through 300m, 600m, 1,200m and lastly the very dark 6,000m Ultra-Deep. It’s a reference to the amount of light that filters through the water as you descend beneath the waves.

Powering this watch is the Omega Calibre 8800, the same one as features in the new Diver 300m. It has a 55-hour power reserve and all the trappings we expect from Omega, such as the co-axial escapement and master chronometer certification. Oddly, despite having the same movement and a lower water resistance, the Aqua Terra is actually more expensive than the Diver 300m at £6,400 compared to £5,800.

Omega Seamaster Aqua Terra 150m 41mm Ref. 220.12.41.21.03.005/008

Second up is the Seamaster Aqua Terra 75^th Anniversary with teak-pattern dial. It has the same 41mm steel case as the sunray version above but there are a few notable differences elsewhere. The most obvious difference is that dial, which has horizontal engraved lines that make it look like the decking of a yacht, hence the term teak-pattern. It really works for the Aqua Terra because with its 150m water resistance it’s a watch that likes to be near the water but rarely in it – short dips off the prow of a luxury yacht are the order of the day.

However, the game of spot the difference between the two anniversary watches doesn’t stop there. At 6 o’clock you’ll spot that the date windows are different shapes, circular for the sunray, wedge for the teak. The hour markers are different too (bath tub or triangular) and the teak-edition is the only one with a peripheral minute track. I think these differences are really well executed to make the watches feel like they have different personalities while being so similar in broad terms. The sunray is as gentle as a warm tropical reef while the teak is sharper, like a ship cutting through the surface.

Visual differences aside, the biggest change between the two Aqua Terras is actually inside because the teak-pattern one houses a different movement. It’s the Calibre 8900 as opposed to the 8800, which brings with it all the same certification etc. but has a 60-hour power reserve instead. Only on closely reading the tech sheets of the two movements do you notice that the 8900 also has an additional function in the form of the time-zone feature, which allows you to jump the hour hand forward in increments of one hour – like a true GMT without the GMT part.

The price of £6,100 just highlights again that £6,400 for the sunray version is a little questionable considering both watches have the same case and the more accessible of the two has higher specs. In fact, £6,100 is the price on steel bracelet and the difference becomes even more noticeable on rubber strap at £5,900.

Omega Seamaster Aqua Terra 150m GMT Worldtimer 43mm

Last but by no means least we have the Seamaster Aqua Terra GMT Worldtimer 75^th Anniversary. It’s a bit larger than its cousins at 43mm, which makes sense since there’s substantially more information on display. That’s because of the inclusion of the titular GMT and worldtimer complications consisting of a 24-hour scale in the middle of the dial and the cities of the world around the periphery.

Well, when I say that the 24-hour scale is in the middle of the dial it’s not actually in the very centre because that’s where you’ll find a depiction of the Earth as seen from the North Pole. I like how they’ve kept the display in line with the theme of the anniversary watches by only colouring the blue of the seas and leaving the land a clean silver tone.

Beneath the dial and hidden by the commemorative caseback is the Omega Calibre 8938 automatic movement. Like the vast majority of Omega calibres, it’s a co-axial escapement piece with master chronometer certification. It has a 60-hour power reserve and features hours, minutes, date, GMT and worldtimer functions. As part of being a GMT it has the same time zone function as the teak-pattern model above, which essentially means it’s a true GMT.

It’s available on steel bracelet or rubber strap costing £9,400 or £9,200 respectively. At this price and with these complications, this is the Aqua Terra firmly leaning into the more refined side of its dive-dress hybrid identity. I think it’s a solid entry into the collection but given the choice of the three watches here, I’d go for the teak-pattern edition.

More details at Omega.