It’s been a hot few minutes since Omega released its last variant of its iconic Speedmaster watch, and now it’s back with another. Let’s skip any more fluff about Omega’s Speedmaster variants as there are approximately three billion currently. That might have been an exaggeration. The two new ones added to the collection are quite different, however, and they build on the Speedmaster Moonphase watches which I’ve always liked.
Perhaps the most obvious details of the new Speedmasters are their dials which are made of meteorite. This material formed in outer space and fell to earth to give us its beautiful randomised patterns. The straight lines compliment the curvature of the watch and its dial well and form a great basis for the rest of it.
These are the first watches Omega has made which feature a dual-hemisphere moonphase display. The moonphase display is a pretty rare feature on Omega’s watches anyway, and it’s fitted into the Speedmaster very well in the past. For this new model, not much has changed, but as I mentioned the moonphase now extends to the southern hemisphere .
Physically, it’s not a big change to display the southern hemisphere too, all Omega needed to do is cut away the bottom half of the display which usually obscures the rest of the moonphase. Indications on the moonphase also show you which half you should be reading based on whether you’re above or below the equator. The moon disks include pieces of lunar meteorite, meteorite which came from the moon, and the stars are aligned as they were when Apollo 11 landed on the moon in 1969. Specifically, they’re arranged as the stars were when viewed from where Omega’s HQ is in Bienne (or Biel, whichever you prefer). There’s also a date function hidden in the 9 O’clock subdial.
Powering all of this shimmering goodness is the manually-wound calibre 9914 which is similar to the 9908 found in the Speedmaster Chronoscope we reviewed a couple of years back. Being part of that small group of watches from Omega, which you have to wind yourself, makes these new watches a bit more special, and I like that they give the three-quarter plate some finishing for you to look at. As for the nerdy stuff, the 9914 has a 4Hz beat rate with Omega’s signature co-axial escapement and a column-wheel chronograph added on as well. It’s a METAS-certified chronometer, which means it’s very accurate and very resistant to magnetism, and the twin spring barrels give it a lengthy 60-hour power reserve.
In some ways these are quite similar models to the existing Speedmaster Moonphase watches, but as well as those special dials and moonphases and the hand-wound movement, they’ve got another ace up their sleeve. You see, the only criticism I had of the older Speedmaster Moonphase models was their size. They’re over 44m in diameter and nearly 17mm thick, pushing the edge of comfortably wearable for me.
These new ones are 43mm x 13.6mm so while they’re still sizeable compared to a classic Speedmaster, they are more approachable for most folks. They’re only water resistant to 50m, though, so as I said about this other watch we covered recently, it could be better.
The other thing to consider with these new models is their price. Before taxes, they’re $17,100, or £16,100 including VAT. That makes these, I believe, the priciest Speedmaster watches that aren’t made of a precious metal, and that also means that they will face stiffer competition than the Speedmaster is used to seeing. But, they will probably sell very quickly, as is this model’s reputation. Are they worth it? Let us know in the comments.
