I just picked this watch up over the weekend while in Las Vegas. No other dealer on the West coast so, when opportunity knocks.. I was fortunate to be able to see the real Speedmaster at the Omega shop as well. Not sue I could stomach paying $6k for a watch and having to endure scratching it... This fills that Omega gap nicely without breaking the bank. Pros: It's a great looking watch and has the official Omega and Speedmaster text that make it stand out from other homages. Coloring is very nice on the case and watch face. I went with the Mercury because the Moon just looked weird in that light gray. The chronograph functions very well and the tachymeter is easy to read. 20mm lug width for strap variety. Cons: It's very plastic. The case I can live with, but I'm not sure how well the 'crystal' is going to hold up. I'm less afraid of scratches vs just out and out cracking it somehow. $270 for a plastic watch is really stretching it. Strap. It is very stiff, but will break in. The part I don't like is the pairing of the silver gray with the dark gray case. It just doesn't look the part to me. I've removed it and put on a black and sliver striped Ritchie NATO and it really works well. I miss the Speedmaster lettering, but can always 'mismatch' and get the moonswatch strap if I really feel the need. Obviously this is an appealing watch for the unwashed. However, I think Swatch really missed the mark by making this entirely out of plastic. A proper crystal would have gone a long way towards making this a watch that will last for a decade vs years. Even just mineral would have been a huge improvement and they could have easily charged another $50 for it. I understand that they couldn't do the whole thing correctly with a steel case and mineral glass without undercutting the Omega market, but just that one improvement would have been huge.
I just picked this watch up over the weekend while in Las Vegas. No other dealer on the West coast so, when opportunity knocks.. I was fortunate to be able to see the real Speedmaster at the Omega shop as well. Not sue I could stomach paying $6k for a watch and having to endure scratching it... This fills that Omega gap nicely without breaking the bank.
Pros:
It's a great looking watch and has the official Omega and Speedmaster text that make it stand out from other homages.
Coloring is very nice on the case and watch face. I went with the Mercury because the Moon just looked weird in that light gray.
The chronograph functions very well and the tachymeter is easy to read.
20mm lug width for strap variety.
Cons:
It's very plastic. The case I can live with, but I'm not sure how well the 'crystal' is going to hold up. I'm less afraid of scratches vs just out and out cracking it somehow.
$270 for a plastic watch is really stretching it.
Strap. It is very stiff, but will break in. The part I don't like is the pairing of the silver gray with the dark gray case. It just doesn't look the part to me. I've removed it and put on a black and sliver striped Ritchie NATO and it really works well. I miss the Speedmaster lettering, but can always 'mismatch' and get the moonswatch strap if I really feel the need.
Obviously this is an appealing watch for the unwashed. However, I think Swatch really missed the mark by making this entirely out of plastic. A proper crystal would have gone a long way towards making this a watch that will last for a decade vs years. Even just mineral would have been a huge improvement and they could have easily charged another $50 for it. I understand that they couldn't do the whole thing correctly with a steel case and mineral glass without undercutting the Omega market, but just that one improvement would have been huge.