This OMEGA Seamaster Diver 300M Chronograph needs little introduction as the Omega Seamaster is one of the most recognizable watches in the world. This model, the ref. 2531.80, was introduced in 1993, and really gained fame when it was used in the James Bond movies since ‘GoldenEye’ (1995). Pierce Brosnan first had the quartz model on this wrist and later on the automatic version in the Bond series. The 2531 was in production from rougly 1993 until 2006. This watch was a smash hit that really propelled Omega into the realm of a true luxury watch manufacturer.

This watch is powered by the Omega caliber caliber 1109, (and later on with their caliber 1120). This movement is based on an ETA ebauche and was replaced by the co-axial powered 2220.80, making this model the last of ETA base Omega Seamasters. While some prefer the co-axial because of it's ingenuity, I find them hard and expensive to service and prefer the simplicty of an ETA base.

One the wrist this watch wears true to it’s 41mm size, though it wears well since it's a relatively flat case. It's rare to see a watch this thin with a 300m depth rating. This is one of rare cases where a diver watch can be a comfortable every day wearer. The Blue Wave dial is large with beautiful print, delicious lume points, and is super legible, due to all these factors as well as the skeleton hands. II'm lukewarm about the look of the bracelet, but there's no deying how comfortable it is. This watch takes to straps very well and I find myself wearing this watch on a grey or black goat-skin leather strap more often than the bracelet. This is a really beautiful, but understated watch that can easily slide into anyones rotation as a daily wearer. I do prefer it over it's more modern, co-axial/ceramic bezel siblings, as I appreciate the patina that the aluminum bezel develops over time, and also find that the ETA based movement is very easy to service at your local watchmaker.