Omega Seamaster 300M ‘Black’ ref. 210.92.44.20.01.003

The Origins

Initially released in 1948 and based on watches used by airmen in WWII, the Omega Seamaster has become one of Omega’s best-known collections, and one of watchmaking’s most notable sports watches, specifically within the arena of dive watches. While it was initially a dress-style watch with thick lugs and a precious metal case, the Seamaster was designed to tackle casual daily wear while remaining functional for use in water with an impressive 62.5 meters of water resistance – which was by no means a slouch at the time. However, the modern Seamaster that we know and love today was born a short nine years later, in 1957, along with the Speedmaster and Railmaster, which complete Omega’s iconic ‘ 1957 trilogy’. 

Inspired to upgrade the Seamaster after they had 50 of the Seamaster’s original cases fitted with rubber O-ring gaskets and pressure-tested tested in 1955, Omega began to work with new materials and push their engineering boundaries. As a result, they created the Seamaster 300M, which featured a heavily luminescent dial and handset, a rotating bezel, a thick domed hesalite crystal, and double crown seals. Interestingly, while named the Seamaster 300M, the watch was originally only rated for 200m of water resistance, with Omega insisting that the watch could outperform the testing equipment. 

In the decades following, the Seamaster continued to evolve into one of watchmaking’s most impressive dive watches, with its debut in the 1995 James Bond movie ‘GoldenEye’ cementing its place in the world of iconic dive watches. Following several revamps since then, the Seamaster 300M is arguably one of the most capable dive watches on the market for the money. In typical Omega fashion, 2021 saw the brand experiment with a new design for the Seamaster 300M through the use of new materials for the collection and a new color scheme: black on black. Taking the watch into a more fashion forward direction, the new ref. 210.92.44.20.01.003 moved slightly further away from the Seamaster’s typical utilitarian design language and aimed to give the watch a new lease of life through the exploration of new materials in the collection to the chagrin of purists and delight of everyone else. 

The Case and Dial

Beginning with the largest of updates, the Seamaster 300M ‘Black’ ref. 210.92.44.20.01.003 swaps the Seamaster’s signature stainless steel case for a housing made completely from ceramic. Using the Seamaster’s iconic design, such as its twisting lyre lugs, undulating crown guards and love-or-hate-it helium escape valve at 11 o’clock, the Seamaster 300M ‘Black’ ref. 210.92.44.20.01.003 is unmistakable as a Seamaster. Additionally, its bezel ring and bezel insert are both made from the same material, just like its exhibition caseback. However, while the design looks the same beyond its obvious change to ceramic, another significant update is to the case’s diameter, which has been increased from 42mm to 43.5mm. Granted, thanks to its lightweightedness and stealthy aesthetic on the wrist, it doesn’t wear that much larger than other Seamaster 300M variants. 

Committed to the black-on-black look, the Seamaster 300M ‘Black’ ref. 210.92.44.20.01.003 also boasts a completely blacked-out display with a black zirconium ceramic dial, as indicated by the stealthy “[ZrO2]” inscription just below the center pinion, that features matching blacked-out hands, applied indices and wavy pattern. Perhaps to the detriment of the reference’s ability to perform as a dive watch, the ref. 210.92.44.20.01.003’s lume pip on its bezel has also been blacked out and is not luminous as a dive watch would require. Still, its cohesive design results in one of Omega’s most under-the-radar and unique offerings in a long time, especially within the Seamaster family of dive watches.

The Movement

Powered by the automatic no-date cal. 8806, the Seamaster 300M ‘Black’ boasts 55 hours of power reserve alongside Omega’s famed co-axial escapement and a bevvy of certifications such as its Master Chronometer certification awarded by METAS that states that it is resistant to magnetic fields reaching 15,000 gauss – an incredible feat. Additionally, the cal. 8806 also features a free-sprung balance with silicon balance spring, automatic winding in both directions and rhodium-plated finishing with Geneva waves which are proudly on display behind an exhibition caseback made of black ceramic an impressive technical feat due to the fact that exhibition casebacks create problems for watchmakers looking to create water tight seals at depths like the 300m that the Seamaster is rated to, especially when fitted to ceramic casebacks, which is why ceramic watches often feature stainless steel or titanium casebacks.

Exploring Materials and Aesthetics

Over the last number of years, Omegas has been dedicated to creating ceramic watches that offer the same level of real-world wearability and practical utility as their more traditionally-made watches that use more common materials like steel, gold, titanium and so on. However, the ref. 210.92.44.20.01.003 joined the Speedmaster ‘Dark Side of the Moon’ ref. 311.92.44.51.01.005 as Omega’s second-ever completely blacked-out watch, which enabled Omega to embrace a more style-focused aesthetic that traditional high-end watchmakers, especially big-name watchmakers, typically overlook in favour of maximizing utility. In the same way that Omega clearly wanted to experiment with materials, the ref. 210.92.44.20.01.003 demonstrates that Omega want to venture into new aesthetic territory, and so we are excited to see how this experiment will continue.

Market Performance

As stylish and fashion-forward as the ref. 210.92.44.20.01.003 is, it never managed to generate enough wide-spread hype that its market value would exceed its retail price. Likewise, Omega’s production was always able to meet demand, and so the ref. 210.92.44.20.01.003’s market value consistently traded below its MSRP. Upon its release, its market value traded at around $7600, roughly $1000 less than its $8650 MSRP in 2021, but this market value has steadily declined to where it sits today, at around $7200, a negative price premium of 24% from its current MSRP of $9500. 

While its performance is not exactly ideal, the ref. 210.92.44.20.01.003’s market value has only fallen roughly $400 since its debut over four years ago, so should you have bought the watch on the open market soon after its release, your cost of ownership will have been negligible. Likewise, should you buy the watch on the open market today, it is not hard to imagine that its market value will remain relatively consistent proportional to what you paid. Furthermore, given its rather unique aesthetic, should Omega discontinue the ref. 210.92.44.20.01.003, it could see its market performance pick up due to constrained supply. 

Check out the live performance of Omega Seamaster 300M ‘Black’ ref. 210.92.44.20.01.003 on The Wristcheck Index