In the 1990s Omega’s popularity with the Seamaster 300M in large part hard to do with the collection’s very accessible pricing. With that said, competition in the high-end dive watch space is extremely fierce and consumers today spending upwards of $4,000 on a sports dive watch are mostly seeking status and prestige as opposed to utility and style. The retail price of this specific steel Seamaster 300M is under $5,000 and about $3,500 less than the Rolex Submariner. The watch also has pricing on its side if judged alongside the Rolex Submariner.

Now about 25 years later I think many people will agree that the distinctive hand set along with hour markers continues to help the Seamaster 300M stand apart from the competition. Originally released in 1993 when Jean-Claude Biver was at Omega, the Seamaster 300M sought to be a competitive alternative to the Rolex Submariner… that didn’t immediately look like a Rolex Submariner. I chose to review this reference 210.30.42.20.01.001 “steel on steel” model with the black ceramic dial and bezel because in my opinion is represents the original, core look of the what the Seamaster 300M is to me. At the time of writing this watch review article, Omega has 15 different versions of the Seamaster 300M Co-Axial Master Chronometer on its website. Omega further has no shortage of Diver Seamaster 300M Co-Axial Master Chronometer 42mm (the official name of the watch) versions which includes this standard all-steel with black dial model to more exotic models with gold and ceramic.

This is the first Seamaster 300M watch collection to include a “Master Chronometer” certified in-house made Omega movement, which to me is a big part of keeping the “Professional” nature of this sports watch intact. The updated Seamaster 300M was intended to retain the core look and feel of the popular Omega diver’s watch while bringing the product’s technology and materials into the 21st century. 2018 saw Swiss Omega release an entirely updated Seamaster 300M diver watch collection (aBlogtoWatch hands-on here).

Omega 300 seamaster