This new dive watch collection is as comfortable underwater as it is at high altitudes. 

Shortly after its launch, comparisons were rife between the new Seamaster Planet Ocean Deep Black and the hugely successful Speedmaster ‘Dark Side of the Moon’ that was introduced in 2014, which not only became one of the hottest selling Speedys in recent memory, but spawned an entire family of watches – ‘Grey Side of the Moon’, ‘White Side of the Moon’… you get the drift. Yes, the Deep Black harbours hopes of reaching the astronomic heights of success as the Dark Side (perceptibly by way of being cloaked in the same sexy raven hue), but the former bears both similarities that run deeper than a mere cosmetic shade, as well as important differences that make it a winner in its own right.

Like the Dark Side watches, a key feature of the Deep Black is its ceramic construction. But here, the latter goes a step further. The case, crafted from a single block of ceramic, is accompanied by a ceramic unidirectional bezel and dial. More impressively, Omega devised a new locking system christened ‘Naiad’, which ensures that the ceramic caseback is perfectly aligned and locked with the main chassis to guarantee up to 600m water resistance. The result is a watch that not only looks quite swanky, but is also rather robust and extremely light, given ceramic’s hardy and lightweight properties.

Being a dive watch, the Deep Black has several requirements to fulfill and it ticks all the boxes. The watches are endowed with features that include the aforementioned water resistance, helium escape valve, unidirectional bezel to measure elapsed dive times, high legibility with luminescent displays, and tough and scratch-resistant case -- essential for a safe exploration of ocean depths. 

The collection takes things up a notch, however, by being equipped with GMT functionality and anti-magnetic resistance of up to 15,000 gauss, powered by the Master Chronometer Calibre 8906 automatic movement, which passed the stringent tests set by METAS, the Swiss Federal Institute of Metrology. Four models are available – full-black ceramic case, ceramic case with 18K Sedna gold bezel, ceramic case with blue or red rubber blended ceramic bezels.

Like any luxury brand dive watch, the Deep Black is likely to get brandished more often on land – or in this case, on airplanes – that at actual diving expeditions. But given its full suite of underwater-ready features, the watch is more than ready to dive into action should the occasion demand it.

Case	45.50mm, black ceramic
Dial	Polished black ceramic with applied white gold indexes, white Super-LumiNova with blue emission
Movement	Self-winding Omega Co-Axial Master Chronometer Calibre 8906
Strap	Water-resistant leather for Sedna gold model, black rubber on the others. All with ceramic fold-over clasp
Functions	GMT, hours, minutes, seconds, date
Power reserve	60 hours
Prices	S$16,150 for ceramic cases, S$21,500 for ceramic case with Sedna gold