Omega Seamaster Aqua Terra Worldtimer Review

When I first saw the Omega Aqua Terra Worldtimer model in a YouTube video 3 years ago, there was no question what my grail watch shall be. 2 years later I had a chance to get my hands on a brand-new one. After a year of almost daily use, both good and bad have come to the surface.

The Pros

Dial/Design: Without a doubt the Worldtimer complication’s marriage with the Aqua Terra’s blue dial was the main reason that hooked me in the first place and keeps me “entertained” ever since. The engraved Earth from the view of the north pole is a sight to behold on it’s own, besides it’s hard to ignore the practicality of the design. Easy to read, easy to set, I could not find any flaw or missing element regarding the dial at all.

I am an advocate of applied indexes, and yes, these are the same in every Aqua Terra, regardless deserve a praise for their brushed top and polished sides which are on the same level as the indexes of a Grand Seiko, who are (in my opinion) are the masters of finishing in this price category. 9000 EUR shall not be considered as inexpensive, but if you put this baby under micro lens or grab a loupe to perform a much-detailed visual inspection, you won’t be disappointed.

Movement/Accuracy: I got some OCD for accuracy, so I measure the watch’s accuracy quite often. I realized; the accuracy highly depends on how active you are while wearing the watch.

To give this some context, I brought my Omega to a summer vacation (where I did a lot of swimming and walking), after one week it showed only +1 second deviation which is quite an achievement as far as I’m concerned. Under more casual conditions (working from home office, taking beers in and out of the fridge), the deviation is usually around +1 or +2 sec per day. Let’s just say, the watch performs more than well within the (METAS) Master Chronometer requirements. Not sure whether it’s the result of Omega’s very advanced testing process or the ingenious creation of George Daniels, maybe both combined?   

Moreover, I cannot get bored of the open case back. At this price point, the movement is still machine finished, nevertheless a beauty to look at. Whenever I take a look at the movement itself, cannot help but feel like I am staring at a highly efficient factory functioning at maximum capacity.

Case finishing: As a member of the Aqua Terra family, the case does not hold any big surprises from a finishing standpoint but needs an honorable mention at least. The polished bezel is finished close to Zaratsu level, it feels and looks high quality. Brushed surfaces on both sides are subtle, more importantly serve as a great tactical choice against scratches. Despite Omega’s foresight and my best efforts, I still managed to obtain a few scratches on the sides as well.

The Cons

Size: I have a smaller wrist (16-16.5 cm), therefore the 43mm case diameter with 14.1 mm thickness is dancing on very thin ice in a Hawaiian shirt for me. Thankfully the lugs are short and curved down which is a tremendous help in avoiding the look of a potato cut in half on the wrist. However, if you have even smaller wrist than I do, you will probably suffer from platonic love for this piece, no matter how beautiful and appealing the Worldtimer is. I cannot emphasize enough the relevance of trying it on in person.  

Wearability: the watch originally came with a steel bracelet that looked beautiful, yet I struggled to find (without a micro adjustment) the sweet spot for my wrist. Adding a link made it too loose, removing one felt like handcuff. A bit later I switched to the blue rubber strap which proved to be way better in terms of wearability.

Regarding the weight, well, you won’t be forgetting that you are wearing an expensive watch for sure. With steel bracelet it weighs almost 170 grams, with the rubber strap it’s 120 grams. Titanium would be (is) a great improvement, but I find the newer models overall appearance lack harmony and vividness in colors, especially for the engraved globe.

Scratches: Since the bezel is polished (to a high level), it has simply become a huge scratch magnet over a very short period of time. No matter how careful you are, it’s impossible to avoid micro scratches and some more visible ones too. Surely it can be polished back to it’s former glory, however if you are especially allergic to scratches, this might drive you slightly mad on the long run.

Verdict: All in all, the positives surpass the negatives from all aspect. The Omega Worldtimer does live up to the expectation of being an (hate to write this) entry level luxury watch. It’s not small by any means and might need some time on the wrist to consider him as a friend, but overall it is surely a beautiful, reliable and sturdy timepiece that will hopefully last a lifetime or even more.