Over the past few years Omega have introduced quite a few different variations of their ceramic Speedmaster timepieces. Since 2013, Omega have introduced at least one ceramic timepiece each year and this year, albeit pretty much COVID-19 ridden, Omega have released yet another ceramic piece. While Omega may have over indulged us over the past years, I think it is safe to say this year’s introduction has grabbed the headlines for all the right reasons. Admittedly, when we first saw pictures of this new DSotM edition, we weren’t overly excited, which says something with us being fans of the Speedmaster. That said, this new piece was definitely worth having a closer look at.
Omega didn’t make too much of a huge fuss about this new Dark Side of the Moon as they’ve done in previous years but when you look closely you’ll notice there are quite big differences between this model and all other previous iterations. Like its predecessors, the DSotM ALINGHI is practically the same in every shape and form. It uses the same movement and 44.25mm case dimensions – which may sound rather large but, in all honesty, fits really well on the wrist and doesn’t really have a sense of heftiness to it, this is mainly due to the materials used and curvature of the lugs.
This new Speedmaster has been created because of the partnership between Omega and ALINGHI, which brought Swiss precision, innovation and pioneering spirit together. Like the previous Dark Side of the Moon Apollo 8, this release houses a specially decorated version of the revered Moonwatch movement and the treat that it has undergone deserves to be seen.
As mentioned in previous years, the Dark, Grey and White Side of the Moon start out life as one solid block of white ceramic but then go through a plasma technology treatment, which gives the case its colour (in this case black). The plasma treatment isn’t just superficial but in fact penetrates the ceramic, so even if you were to slice it in half that same (black) colour is present.
Obviously, the most eye-catching detail of this new DSotM ALINGHI is its open dial and the combination of red accents. This is only the second time that Omega have offered a DSotM piece with an open dial. The main feature of this Speedmaster is the incredible skeletisation, which incorporates the more commonly seen 3 register layouts, as opposed to two register layouts adopted by the Ceramic models that came before this. The outer minute track is also reminiscent of those from the Racing model, all of which seemingly hover above a decorated 1865 calibre.
The 1865 movement has been made to look this via way of laser ablation, which has been used to precisely decorate the bridges and main plate of the blackened movement, with a honeycomb effect, similar to the interior of the ALINGHI boat’s carbon hull. The same laser ablation technology has then been employed to decorate all other bridges with a black carbon pattern, also inspired by the carbon that is used for ALINGHI’s catamaran boat hull.
To balance out the dark tone of this Speedmaster, the Omega chose the red and white colour coding of team ALINGHI. At 3 o’clock, a 4-minute or 5-minute tactical time display has been included in red, helping with precision on the water. At 6 o’clock, the traditional sub dial design has been replaced with a sandblasted and anodized aluminium disc, which features the ALINGHI logo transferred in red. The team’s logo represents the letter “a” and is inspired by two boats churning the seas before the start of a match race. The logo rotates on the watch when the chronograph function is used.
The chronograph hands are varnished red, while the watch’s tachymeter scale and crown are filled with Super-LumiNova. Furthermore, on the exterior, the ALINGHI logo on the stop/start pusher, which has been created in red varnish. The black, red and white theme extends to the leather strap, which contains a section of red rubber through the middle. A milling tool has then been used to create micro perforations through the constructed strap to reveal the red rubber inside.
The new Speedmaster Dark Side of the Moon ALINGHI will retail for £8,700. For more information on this new piece, visit omegawatches.com.
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