L'Aqua Terra

Omega has been around since 1848 and have been producing classic, functional and highly reliable watches ever since. With over 170 years experience in watchmaking, you can expect that they have learnt and mastered the art of watchmaking. The Omega Aqua Terra proves exactly that.Making its first debut to the Omega Seamaster line in 2002, the aqua terra was designed as a perfect balance between elegant looks and practicality with its screw down crown and 150 metres of water resistance. It was introduced under the Seamaster line as a mix of both dressy and sporty elements from their previous Seamasters. 

Omega Aqua terra

 Many consider this Omega’ response to the Rolex Datejust with its similar looks and design but with slightly more water resistance. Since 2002, the Aqua Terra has been a huge success and we have seen many new and improved models with several limited editions released. 

First generation of Aqua Terra

The first model back in 2002 was only available on a leather strap with a choice between either a 36mm or 42mm. The movement ticking away inside was the Co-Axial calibre 2500 which was based on an ETA movement. 


Being chronometer certified, Omega claimed you would only need to have your watch serviced once every 8 years which is three years more than Rolex! Omega also offered a quartz option although this was not as popular and was discontinued in 2008. 


The dial was very plain and had a matt finish regardless of whether you choose the white or black. The indices were crips triangles with a high polished finish to match the high polished hands. The Aqua Terra also had a date function which was displayed at the 3 o’clock position. 

A subtle evolution for Aqua Terra

Omega Aqua terraOmega Aqua terra

Source : Xupes

In 2008, they revised the Omega Aqua Terra and gave it a new dial. This was the first step to making the Aqua Terra the version we know and love today. 

They got rid of the plain matt dial and introduced a dial with vertical grooves designed to evoke the feeling of being on a luxury yacht deck. The date window remained the same at the 3 o’clock position and introduced another colour option. You could now choose between a blue, white and black sunburst dial. This was the first step in the Omega Aqua Terra line to introducing more colour.


Then, in 2013 Omega made its biggest update to the Aqua Terra line. The movement was upgraded and developed to the calibre 8505 which was METAS and COSC certified. This meant that the Aqua Terra could now boast a magnetic resistance of 15,000 gauss. 

It’s worth pointing out that the Rolex Milgauss (116400GV), Rolex’ ‘scientific’ watch only has 1000 gauss resistance. The new calibre 8505 in the Omega Aqua Terra now had an extremely high performing and durable movement.


This was a watch that you truly could wear anywhere anytime with its new durability and performance upgrades. 


The dommed sapphire crystal provides high resistance to scratches which are inevitable when wearing the watch. However, it was still only offered on an all brushed three link bracelet with a butterfly clasp. 


Whilst this was great for casual and more dressy wear, the butterfly clasp system meant that there was no micro adjustment. For a watch like the Aqua Terra, built for sportive use, it lacked the sporty bracelet to accompany it. 

Zealande Rubber Strap Omega Aqua terra

Source : ZEALANDE

The ZEALANDE solution

Zealande Rubber Strap Omega Aqua terra

Source : ZEALANDE

Thankfully, here at ZEALANDE we can help you with this problem. With the highly capable Omega Aqua Terra combined with our high quality durable straps to reflect the quality of Omega, you can now truly wear your watch in any situation. 


With the lack of adjustment from the Omega bracelet, the ZEALANDE rubber strap offers not only a perfect fit for both the Aqua Terra’ case and your wrist, it gives you the ability to wear it everywhere. From rock climbing to skiing or diving, the ZEALANDE strap will help you out!

All of these new combinations made the Aqua Terra a very popular model within not just the Seamaster line but the whole of the Omega Catalogue. This was demonstrated by the famous English Spy, James Bond choosing to wear the ‘Skyfall’ Aqua Terra for the film Skyfall. This was a 41mm blue dial with the three link link bracelet, perfect for holding up against all the strenuous activities Mr Bond finds himself doing and also looking at home when he’s in his suit at a classy bar drinking his cocktails!

Skyfall Aqua terra

Source : Xupes

This version of the Aqua Terra (calibre 8505) is ideal if you fancy a change of straps since here at ZEALANDE we can offer you multiple colours for our straps so you can choose to match or compliment the strap colour with your dial colour.

The third generation of Aqua Terra

Source : Mamic

Omega once again updated the Seamaster Aqua Terra line again in 2017. This time round most of the differences were visual changes with only a few internal changes. The most noticeable update they did to the Aqua Terra was with the dial. The date window was no longer at the 3 o’clock position, but was now moved down to the 6 o’clock position to keep a perfect symmetry on the dial. 


They changed from vertical grooves on the dial to horizontal grooves, resembling the deck of a yacht and sharing a similar style to the Patek Philippe Nautilus range as well. The new horizontal groves just worked so well and you could now get it in a sunburst blue, royal blue, white, black and smoky blue colour. You now could spend hours looking at all the different models. 


There were that many choices compared to before where you only had a few options. You could now choose between a 38mmm or 41mm case size with new lugs with high polished finishing. The old three link full brushed bracelet was now replaced with a much more sturdy three link bracelet with the centre polished links. 

The new Aqua Terra could now be dressed up even more thanks to its polished centre links. You could also opt to purchase one of Omega’ rubber straps they offer with the watch which includes an end link to make a perfect transition from case to rubber strap. On the inside, very little was changed. Omega performed another minor update to the calibre 8005 which they now updated to the calibre 8800 which boasted a power reserve of 70 hours of power reserve. The sapphire crystal now had an anti-reflective (AR) coating on it which gave the watch better legibility, without the AR coating, the dial would act like a mirror and reflect the light back at you.

Source : Mamic

Given that this is a sports watch, being able to quickly glance down at your wrist to tell the time is important so the AR coating was a huge upgrade. It also means you can always admire the details of the dial regardless of whether your sitting in the shade or walking in bright daylight. However, one thing to note, the AR coating is not scratch resistant so it is possible for scratches to appear which may look like the crystal is scratched but its just the AR coating. There isn’t a quick-and-easy fix to this but you can always send it back to Omega for a crystal replacement if you like.

Source : Mamic

Visiting our English spy again, James Bond (Daniel Craig), never wore the Omega Aqua Terra again in any of his other Bond films but he did at the premiere of his last film, No Time To Die. For his last film working as James Bond, Daniel Craig knew he had to choose a very special watch to commemorate this special moment. Daniel Craig chose to go with the Aqua Terra line which shocked many since he helped Omega design the James Bond Seamaster (click here to read our article in the James Bond Seamaster piece!). 

The one he chose was no ordinary Aqua Terra, this one was with a white dial with a full rose gold case and bracelet. Whilst the Omega Seamaster is a fantastic diver watch, the polished finishing and precious metal options for the Aqua Terra are hard to ignore, even for Daniel Craig.

The Futur of Aqua Terra

Source : Bob's Watches

2021 was a huge year within the watch community as there were many new and updated watches across all the brands from Rolex to Patek Philippe, and Omega was no exception. They released yet another new model, but they did not discontinue the previous one.

 

The new one no longer had a large seconds hand like on most watches, it now had a vintage inspired small seconds hand with its own sub dial incorporating the date window as well at the 6 o’clock position. 

The new movement, the 8900 remained largely the same as the previous one, the 8800. The only difference being the power reserve agin which now boasts 80 hours. The hands and hour markers are still filled with superluminova which has a long lasting glow making it still a practical and durable wrist watch.


With all the updates the Omega Aqua Terra has gone through, you can now find the perfect model to accompany you no matter where or what the dress code.  

Source : World Tempus

Source : Bob's Watches

Unlike previous models where they would normally discontinue the older model as soon as the new one comes out, they have not done this this time…yet! For those who maybe need a bit more time to get used to the new Aqua Terra you can still get the previous generation with the calibre 8800.


This is a fantastic choice on behalf of Omega because it also means their Aqua Terra has a huge amount of options for both men and Women. 


You can choose between a 38mm or 41mm case size or a choice of more than 6 dial colours. 

If that is still not enough you can choose to have precious metal on your Aqua Terra and you now have a truly enormous variety of straps, bracelets and rubber straps to choose from directly from Omega. 


You do not even have to live near a boutique or have a relationship with your local AD because you can buy online or instore from Omega. Omega is a watch brand that has huge amounts of heritage and history within the world of watches and they continue to make exceptional timepieces and the Aqua Terra is just that, exceptional.

Source : World Tempus

With all the updates the Omega Aqua Terra has gone through, you can now find the perfect model to accompany you no matter where or what the dress code. The Aqua Terra is much like the Rolex DateJust in that the new models today still share the look of theri original selves.

This is always a good sign because it shows that it has been a timeless watch since its birth, which in the case of the Omega Aqua Terra was back in 2002. If paying retail prices is not for you and you prefer to save a bit of money, then you can easily find thousands of options on chrono24 or a variety of other watch marketplaces. 


This timeless, classic and sporty piece will continue to grow within the Seamaster Line as we have seen it do over the past couple decades. Omega have heavily invested into the Aqua Terra line so we can definitely expect new and improved versions from Omega over the next few years so keep your eyes out for what they will bring us in the future!

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