It was a lively week for watch collectors, with releases that ranged from serious cinematic tie-ins to a quartz chronograph with a sense of humor.
Omega put James Bond and Spectre on opposing sides of the Seamaster Diver 300M, Jacob & Co. marked 40 years with a grand complication, and Seiko decided the panda dial nickname deserved a very literal interpretation.
There was also room for compact manual chronographs, a practical world-timer, a full-ceramic dive watch and another radar-themed Bell & Ross.
At a glance
- Omega has introduced a six-watch Seamaster Diver 300M family themed around James Bond and Spectre.
- Seiko’s Power Design Project Collection 2 turns the panda dial into an actual panda-inspired chronograph design.
- Prices span from USD 540 for Seiko’s limited quartz chronographs to USD 390,000 for Jacob & Co.’s minute repeater.
Omega puts Bond and Spectre on the same Seamaster stage
Omega’s latest Bond-linked release is less a single commemorative model than a miniature universe of heroes and villains.
The Seamaster Diver 300M James Bond and Spectre collection includes two individually available steel watches and two boxed limited editions, with each set pairing a steel watch and a platinum-gold model.
Both sides use 42mm cases and the automatic Co-Axial Master Chronometer Caliber 8806, a no-date movement with a 55-hour power reserve.
The Bond watches carry gun-barrel decoration on the rotor, while the Spectre editions switch to the organization’s octopus emblem.
On the dial side, the steel Bond model uses blue aluminum with the Seamaster wave pattern, while the steel Spectre version goes darker with a black grained dial.
The platinum-gold Bond edition receives an 18K white gold dial with a gradient-blue gun-barrel pattern, while the platinum-gold Spectre version uses a gradient-gray octopus motif.
The steel models are non-limited and priced at CHF 6,700 each, while the Bond and Spectre boxed editions are limited to 77 sets apiece at CHF 70,000 per set.
High complications and old-school chronographs sharpen the mood
Jacob & Co. used its 40th anniversary to revisit the Palatial Flying Tourbillon Minute Repeater, now housed in a 43mm 18K rose-gold case.
The watch combines a one-minute flying tourbillon, a cathedral-gong minute repeater and a silent centrifugal governor, all driven by the manually wound JCCM04 caliber with a 90-hour power reserve.
Its translucent red mineral dial gives the piece a more theatrical personality than many traditional repeaters, which feels entirely in character for the brand.
The Palatial Flying Tourbillon Minute Repeater is limited to 12 pieces and priced at USD 390,000.
Angelus took a more restrained route with the Chronographe Tachymètre, a trio of 37mm manual-wind chronographs measuring just 9.25mm thick.
The collection leans on the brand’s chronograph history, using the A5000 caliber with a column wheel, horizontal clutch and 42 hours of power reserve.
The yellow-gold model with British racing green accents is limited to 15 pieces, while the steel coral-pink and pearl-gray with petrol-blue versions are limited to 30 and 50 pieces respectively.
Steel models are priced at CHF 18,500, while the yellow-gold edition is CHF 34,600, including VAT.
Travel tools and dive watches stay grounded
Raymond Weil’s Freelancer World-Traveller arrives during a meaningful moment for the family-owned brand.
Created for the founder’s birth centenary and the company’s 50th anniversary celebrations, the 260-piece edition combines a GMT hand, rotating 24-city bezel and day-night indication.
The 40mm steel watch has a relief-style world map dial with champagne-colored continents set against midnight-blue oceans.
Inside, the automatic RW3230 caliber offers a 56-hour power reserve, while the price is set at CHF 3,995.
Bremont moved deeper into tool-watch territory with the Supermarine Full Ceramic Deep Blue.
The watch uses a 43mm blue ceramic monobloc case with a titanium inner case, a black wave-pattern dial and a titanium bezel fitted with a blue ceramic insert.
It is rated to 500 meters, includes a helium escape valve and is powered by the automatic BB64AH caliber with a 56-hour power reserve.
Limited to 250 pieces, the Supermarine Full Ceramic Deep Blue is priced at USD 7,400.
Bell & Ross also extended its radar-inspired line with the BR-03 Green Radar Ceramic, a 999-piece edition that continues one of the brand’s more distinctive cockpit-instrument themes.
Seiko makes the panda dial impossible to miss
Seiko’s Power Design Project Collection 2 takes one of watch culture’s most familiar nicknames and turns it into the entire brief.
The HHK001 uses a black-and-white layout, while the HHK002 shifts into a pink-and-black palette.
In both watches, the subdials become panda eyes, the chronograph pushers read as ears and the hands are shaped after bamboo leaves.
The watches use 43mm stainless steel cases and the quartz Seiko 8T61 caliber, with hours, minutes, small seconds and a 60-minute chronograph.
Seiko also adds a SASAMETER tachymeter scale, a playful detail that keeps the design from feeling like a simple novelty dial.
The HHK001 is limited to 3,000 pieces, the HHK002 to 2,000 pieces, and both are priced at USD 540.
Details & Specifications
| Omega Seamaster Diver 300M James Bond and Spectre | 42mm steel or platinum-gold cases, automatic Co-Axial Master Chronometer Caliber 8806, 55-hour power reserve, 300m water resistance. Steel models priced at CHF 6,700, boxed editions at CHF 70,000 and limited to 77 sets each. |
|---|---|
| Jacob & Co. Palatial Flying Tourbillon Minute Repeater | 43mm 18K rose-gold case, manually wound JCCM04 caliber, flying tourbillon, cathedral-gong minute repeater, 90-hour power reserve. Limited to 12 pieces and priced at USD 390,000. |
| Angelus Chronographe Tachymètre | 37mm stainless steel or 18K yellow-gold case, manually wound A5000 caliber, monopusher chronograph, tachymeter, 42-hour power reserve. Limited to 15, 30 or 50 pieces depending on version. |
| Raymond Weil Freelancer World-Traveller | 40mm stainless steel case, automatic RW3230 caliber, GMT hand, rotating 24-city bezel, day-night indication, 56-hour power reserve. Limited to 260 pieces and priced at CHF 3,995. |
| Seiko Power Design Project Collection 2 | 43mm stainless steel case, quartz Seiko 8T61 caliber, 60-minute chronograph, panda-inspired dial details and SASAMETER tachymeter scale. HHK001 limited to 3,000 pieces and HHK002 to 2,000 pieces, each priced at USD 540. |
| Bremont Supermarine Full Ceramic Deep Blue | 43mm blue ceramic case with titanium inner case, automatic BB64AH caliber, 500m water resistance, helium escape valve and 56-hour power reserve. Limited to 250 pieces and priced at USD 7,400. |
| Bell & Ross BR-03 Green Radar Ceramic | Radar-inspired ceramic edition limited to 999 pieces. |
The week’s strongest releases were not united by price or complication, but by clarity of intent.
Omega and Seiko worked from pop-cultural shorthand in very different ways, while Jacob & Co., Angelus, Raymond Weil and Bremont each stayed close to a specific lane, which is often where the most convincing watches are made.
