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Omega Swatch Speedmaster

82 points by kwikiel 5y ago

scionthefly 5y ago
People get uptight about this, but from my point of view: 1. I really admire Omega watches, but have not had the income to pursue the high end mechanical watch hobby. I stick to the lower end. I have some career goals that I will celebrate with a Hamilton and a Speedmaster, but they are not coming up soon. 2. I have a long connection with Swatch, having had (still have, somewhere) several of their iconic line in the mid to late 80s. So to get a hybrid, combining one of my favorite watch style/designs with one of my favorite watch brands at a price point that I can afford on my current salary? Count me the heck in. I can buy one of each of this set and still not have spent as much as I would on a new Speedmaster. You know who this probably hurts the most? Corgeut, Phylidae, Pagani Design. I'll bet their Speedmaster homages are going to be far less popular now that we can get a legitimate watch with Omega Speedmaster on the dial.
Stampo00 5y ago
Sign me up for the mission to Uranus!
- pkulak 5y ago
  lol, I downvoted you before I actually scrolled down the product page and realized that yes, I 100% agree. Guess that just proves that I'm the juvenile here...
- Sporktacular 5y ago
  Juvenile is good. Upvoted.
jp0d 5y ago
Apparently there was a huge queue outside the Swatch store here in Melbourne and they sold out all of those "Omega" models in less than 7 minutes. As far as I can tell, this is just another Swatch with quartz movement. Does anyone know why this is so popular apart from the Omega branding?
- pkulak 5y ago
  Probably just because they are fucking gorgeous.
  - jp0d 5y ago
    Yes, but Swatch watches are beautiful without the Omega branding. :) I own an Irony model that I bought in 2007 and it's quite beautiful just with the Swatch logo.
    - chank 5y ago
      Swatch owns Omega.
      - jp0d 5y ago
        Yes, I know. :)
- chank 5y ago
  It's your typical Flippers (Already showing up on 2nd hand marketplaces for 10x the price), FOMO, Hypebeasts, See and be seen people, people who gotta have it first. It's not even a limited release and will be available online in a few weeks. An official quartz version of one of the most iconic watches of all time and super cheap comparatively. Though some serious collectors would still say overpriced for what it is (quartz/plastic).
  - jp0d 5y ago
    Yes, exactly my thoughts. You're right, a bunch of these appeared on Ebay the next day with 1000% mark up.
- benjamin-lee 5y ago
  I’m a huge fan of the moonwatch both for its beauty and history with the space program. Ever since I was 10 I’ve wanted one. However, I’m a PhD student and there’s no way I can afford to get a “real” one. The Swatch release is really attractive to me since it captures the spirit of the watch while making it accessible. For reference, there’s a very popular variant of the Speedmaster Professional that uses a sapphire crystal rather than a hesalite (basically plastic) crystal. Despite never having been used in space (since the shattering crystal is a risk) the sapphire model is still considered a “professional” edition and highly sought after. People who wear it enjoy the aesthetic of the spacefaring version with the earthly practicality of scratch-proof sapphire. The Swatch version’s desirability is just the same logic a taken a few more steps. It’s made by Omega, has the same basic design, and evokes the imagery of the space race. Alternatively, consider the popularity of the Tesla toy car for kids. It’s not anything like the real Tesla in terms of functionality but is still a cool electric vehicle, especially if you already have a Tesla.
maxclark 5y ago
I don’t get why Omega would do this - my initial reaction is it’s dilutive to their brand and I’m happy I’ve never bought one.
- pkulak 5y ago
  Huh. So you're glad you didn't buy a really expensive watch that people may no longer think is really expensive?
  - CydeWeys 5y ago
    There's no mistaking the Swatch for the Omega for anyone who has any clue about watches at all. The Swatch has a plastic case and comes on a Velcro strap, for starters. But even beyond that, many people who're into watches really don't care what other people think about them.
    - throwawaycities 5y ago
      > and comes on a Velcro strap Fun fact, the real Omega Moon watches given to the Apollo astronauts was also a Velcro band.
      - throw0101a 5y ago
        Plenty of folks also put their watches on NATO and Zulu straps if they think they'll be in 'rough and tumble' situations: * https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZVSWOkxrXjo https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZVSWOkxrXjo
    - serf 5y ago
      >But even beyond that, many people who're into watches really don't care what other people think about them. that's been precisely opposite of every interaction I've had with watch enthusiasts. in fact, that's been opposite of every interaction I've had with any luxury-goods enthusiast, cars/watches/planes/art , you name it; if it was expensive and rare you're likely going to hear about the purchase at lunch. people don't tend to want to bring up their new 9 dollar Casio or their 1997 Corolla, go figure.
ppod 5y ago
Makes you think, maybe Pluto lost the battle but won the war in the hearts and minds.
throwmeariver1 5y ago
Sold out and for 10x the price on ebay...
- LeoPanthera 5y ago
  They're not limited. Wait a few days and it will be back in stock everywhere.
  - ngngngng 5y ago
    Everything is limited if there are enough bots and scalpers.
    - anotherboffin 5y ago
      You have a point, but I don’t think Swatch is selling these online. All I’ve read is that they’re not a limited edition, but available in “select stores only”.
      - dagw 5y ago
        but available in “select stores only”. Only for the initial release. Swatch has said that they'll be available from the online store at some unspecified point in the future. edit: although I can't find that statement on their homepage any more.
- yourusername 5y ago
  For 10x the price you're getting close to a used 'real' speedmaster and well over the price of a speedmaster reduced.
buryat 5y ago
used to wear lots of automatic watches but switched to apple watch completely 4 years ago
- GrifMD 5y ago
  I have a two nice mechanical watches, one which used to be a daily wear. Once I got my Apple Watch I just never wear them anymore. The few times I'm at a black tie event and wear the nicer mechanical one I feel slightly limited. It's a dumb little problem, but I kinda feel like my Apple Watch ruined other watches for me. I've got a few bands I rotate on it to make it feel a little more special though.
  - tyxodiwktis 5y ago
    Interestingly, I went the other way. Once I found myself ‘addicted’ to screens I got a nice automatic to check time with, and found that it really helped wean me off screens (I can set down my phone now and not look at it all day, and my quality of life and sleep have improved)
  - sydthrowaway 5y ago
    Get the Hermes edition
  - lvturner 5y ago
    On the contrary, I've had a pebble and two Apple watches (You think I'd have learned after the Pebble, but no)... after few months of wear the smart watches languished in the back of a drawer until I eventually sold them. I'm connected enough without my watch being connected -- for me watches are jewellery and a mechanical marvel that I take personal pleasure out of wearing.
  - kenneth 5y ago
    Luckily for me, I have an Apple watch I wear on special occasions only (if I go somewhere too shady to wear the real Omega, or in rough waters since my butterfly clasp is a little loose and has a tendency to come undone in water), and every single time I hate it and can't wait to get back home and switch back to the real mechanical watch.
NKosmatos 5y ago
Beautiful looking, nice branding with nice colors and small details in the different models that make you want them all. In the age of NFTs, these Omega Swatch space themed watches are a nice investment.
- chank 5y ago
  Maybe if you keep one for 50 years it would be a good investment. It's not a limited release and swatch has said they're not going to artificially limit supply like other well known manufacturers do.
  - coredog64 5y ago
    I’ve got a 20 year old Swatch Irony chrono that has given up. I’m buying one of these, but given my (anecdotal) experience, I’d be shocked if it lasts longer than 10 years.
  - cmiles74 5y ago
    No joke, I see them for $1500 and up on eBay. Many have more than 10 bids. https://www.ebay.com/itm/OMEGA-x-SWATCH-Moonswatch-Mission-To-Jupiter-Ultra-man-BRAND-NEW-in-hand-/175216133566 https://www.ebay.com/itm/OMEGA-x-SWATCH-Moonswatch-Mission-T...
- CydeWeys 5y ago
  The best way to use these as an investment is to flip them immediately, when they're still going for a substantial premium. These are non-limited models, and the supply is eventually going to catch up to the demand. Swatch has a lot of available production capacity, and it's a no-brainer for them to use it on this model for as long as it continues to sell (as Swatches, generally, are not otherwise jumping off the shelves like this one is). The current aftermarket price of the Moonswatch is as high as it's ever going to be.
nimbius 5y ago
these watches are gorgeous, but so are "real" omega watches. unpopular opinion but crossing over these brands only makes sense if you think youre capable of targeting a lower income customer without risk of damaging your existing luxury brand, or if your existing luxury brand is floundering. I suspect its the latter, and i suspect its confirmation that the last decade of rennaisance for Rolex is starting to impact the bottom line at Swatch. younger customers are going to gravitate to a smart watch, older customers are going to look for the pedigree of the movement and its lineage so where does this even fit? Bioceramics and bioglasses are ceramic materials that are biocompatible, full stop. throwing this in is just a buzzword Swatch hopes its customer wont take the time to investigate too thoroughly. theres no real reason to have it on a timepiece. call me a cynic, but mark my words...in 10 years time youll see the same phenomenon with these watches as you saw with Timex. repair shops wont touch them, and they exist as a valueless testament to disposable faux luxury.
- CydeWeys 5y ago
  > unpopular opinion but crossing over these brands only makes sense if you think youre capable of targeting a lower income customer without risk of damaging your existing luxury brand, or if your existing luxury brand is floundering. [...] I suspect its the latter, and i suspect its confirmation that the last decade of rennaisance for Rolex is starting to impact the bottom line at Swatch. You've actually got it precisely backwards here. Omega, like most other Swiss luxury watch brands, has been absolutely killing it these past two years. Profits are up substantially. Omega is doing fantastic*. What isn't doing fantastic is Swatch -- their numbers are down substantially over the past decade. Smart watches are really killing them. An Apple Watch is not a replacement good for a $6k mechanical work of art, but it absolutely is a replacement good for a similarly priced quartz watch with fewer features, which is exactly what Swatch makes. So I view this as a successful attempt at leveraging the brand value of Omega to prop up their lower-end brand. > call me a cynic, but mark my words...in 10 years time youll see the same phenomenon with these watches as you saw with Timex. repair shops wont touch them, and they exist as a valueless testament to disposable faux luxury. You're being over-dramatic here. And you don't generally repair cheap quartz watches like a Swatch anyway; you replace the battery as needed, and eventually in some number of decades they stop working entirely and that's that. You could do a movement swap at that point if you really wanted. * See https://watchesbysjx.com/2022/03/morgan-stanley-watch-industry-report-2022.html https://watchesbysjx.com/2022/03/morgan-stanley-watch-indust...
inyorgroove 5y ago
Wish I had heard about this sooner. Are they going to produce more or is this it?
- chank 5y ago
  It's not a limited release.
- LeoPanthera 5y ago
  More are coming, and they've announced it will also be sold online. The in-store-only thing is just temporary.
russellbeattie 5y ago
In Spain, it's traditional for couples to give each other engagement presents, not just for the woman. The woman gets an expense ring and the man gets an expensive watch. (People will immediately ask you to show it off when they find out you're getting married, like they do with engagement rings, it's fun.) My ex-wife spent around 8,000€ like 20 years ago for my Omega Speedmaster because I grew up in the time when Astronaut moon watches were the pinnacle of cool. In fact the first thing I did when I got an Android Wear watch was create a custom face which looked like a Moonwatch (Omega is twitchy about it, so you can't just buy one, apparently.) Am I converting the price correctly? Are these less than $300!?! [Edit, Yep, $260] Wow. It sorta makes my watch - now owned by my son who has never worn a watch in his life - a little less special, but hey. If more people can own one, I'm all for it. Here's an article in Wired: https://www.wired.com/story/omega-and-swatch-moonswatch/ https://www.wired.com/story/omega-and-swatch-moonswatch/
- CydeWeys 5y ago
  > Am I converting the price correctly? Are these less than $300!?! [Edit, Yep, $260] Wow. It sorta makes my watch - now owned by my son who has never worn a watch in his life - a little less special, but hey. If anything, I think this makes your real moonwatch more special. This was the biggest watch release in many years, and its success redounds to the reputation of the real deal moonwatch. The two aren't remotely comparable. You have a hand-crafted luxury mechanical chronograph (which is a few steps up from your basic mechanical 3-hander). The Swatch is a plastic, quartz, mass-produced disposable consumer good. The only thing they have in common is they look similar. Even functionally, they aren't the same; the Omega beats at 6 ticks per second and can time up to 12 hours, whereas the Swatch only beats at 1 tick per second (thus making it look like a cheap quartz) and can only time up to 60 minutes. The only way I can see how this might've reduced the reputation of the real deal would've been if it had flopped.
  - russellbeattie 5y ago
    That's actually probably exactly right, thanks!
newaccount2021 5y ago
andrew_ 5y ago
Everyone here debating the speedmaster versus the swatch-speedmaster and there are those of us who have never spent north of $400 for a watch for various reasons, who think the designs are attractive and are considering if one would fit well into a pedestrian i-just-like-how-this-looks-on-my-arm collection. These are some really interesting color combos and an attractive chrono. I'm considering one having seen them.
- throwra620 5y ago
wdb 5y ago
Going to get one when I can buy them at the local Swatch store or online. I am happy to add it to my collection.
- t3rabytes 5y ago
  Sounds like these are in-store only :(
  - chank 5y ago
    Only the initial release.
jerkstate 5y ago
I have an old Speedmaster which I love but rarely wear (since having kids, I’m always picking them up and don’t want to scratch them with the band) and I think these are super cool. It will increase the exposure of the original brand to a new generation, and I can sell mine before they find out you have to wind it every day ;)
shimonabi 5y ago
I really don't get the appeal. It's not even mechanical. You're paying just for the branding.
- kenneth 5y ago
  I think the point is that you're not paying for the branding, you're getting a watch with an Omega logo for 5% of what it'd normally cost you.
thematrixturtle 5y ago
Whoever did the marketing on this is a genius, since the release created near-riots in Singapore: https://cnalifestyle.channelnewsasia.com/style-beauty/omega-swatch-moonswatch-launch-long-queues-308111 https://cnalifestyle.channelnewsasia.com/style-beauty/omega-... The craziest thing is that this is not a limited edition, since the planned production run is hundreds of thousands, and probably more now given the hype.
kelt 5y ago
It went a little crazy over in Singapore, crazy crowds form and reselling immediately, being non limited I wonder why people are rushing for it https://mothership.sg/2022/03/omega-swatch-carousell-scalpers/ https://mothership.sg/2022/03/omega-swatch-carousell-scalper...
- Hamuko 5y ago
  Everything is limited edition in 2022.
- teleforce 5y ago
  It's not only selling like crazy in Singapore, it's actually selling like crazy everywhere. This is the link I posted yesterday but somehow it did not pick up any interest [1]. [1] Low-Priced Omega Speedmaster Prompts Global Swatch Store Chaos: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=30816369 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=30816369
charles_f 5y ago
En-us link: https://www.swatch.com/en-us/bioceramic-moonswatch.html https://www.swatch.com/en-us/bioceramic-moonswatch.html
kenneth 5y ago
I'm a Seamaster guy (Aqua Terra 38mm w/ steel bracelet, blue dial, & date complication only). In my mind, this is _the_ perfect watch. It's classic and timeless, has the features you'd want with none of the over-the-top stuff watches tend to stack. I'm finding this Swatch x Omega craze to be highly ridiculous. The new watches look like cheap fakes. At least with the weird plastic (sorry, bioceramic) and funky colors nobody will try to pass them off as the real thing. Still, it cheapens the brand and the mark of quality the Omega logo used to represent when these plastic / quartz / velcro pieces flood the market and perform like a Swatch and not an Omega. People like Omega because it's the watch that first went to the moon, it's the watch of James Bond's wrist, and it's the watch that times the olympics. That's the classiness people want to be associated with. Not with the urban appeal of a bunch of people trying to scalp these like they're Supreme hats.
- cyansmoker 5y ago
  As someone who's not a marketing guy, this makes me feel dumb: there must be some genius thinking behind this thing, but I cannot figure out what it could be. I agree that this cheapens the brand. Fun fact: Bulova is the "other" moon watch, after an unfortunate mishap with David Scott's Speedmaster.
  - slim 5y ago
    I'm not a marketing guy. But my understanding is if you are a luxury brand (real luxury, very high quality, very expensive). You can allow your brand on very cheap objects (including counterfeit) and nobody will get confused.
  - hoseja 5y ago
    Maybe they want a slice of the sneakerhead market, somehow?
- nailer 5y ago
  The ‘Moon’ edition is coloured like an original Omega speedmaster.
deleted 5y ago
[deleted]
yread 5y ago
What I don't understand is if these fancy watches are so premium why don't they have longer warranty. I was gifted a fancy omega, didn't wear it much and in 3 years the motor died, cost of repair: 40% of the new price. 1.5 years later its dead again.
- nabla9 5y ago
  These are "almost Veblen goods" for middle-income people. Veblen good is a type of luxury good for which the demand increases as the price increases, The price for a brand must be high to create value and quality does not affect demand significantly. It's only the appearance and brand image that sells. The Swatch Group is the world’s largest watch company that owns over 10 brands. They sell mass produced brand where the value is almost 95% immaterial and non-functional (it's all in the mind of people). It's all about marketing.
GekkePrutser 5y ago
I like the yellow one... Though I don't think I'll ever want to wear a traditional watch again. I gave up on those in the 90s. And it's too expensive to buy just for the sake of it :) I didn't even spend more than 72 euro on my smartwatch (Amazfit GTS 2 Mini).. Together with the open-source gadgetbridge app (preserving privacy) smartwatches are a great option IMO.
baruchel 5y ago
Does someone remember the "1987 Rolex Air-King with Domino's Pizza Dial" (see https://www.hodinkee.com/articles/vintage-watches-oct-20-2021 https://www.hodinkee.com/articles/vintage-watches-oct-20-202... )? Does someone remember these Panasonic cameras with Leica's red dot on them (they where slightly more expensive that the native Panasonic models, which were identical except for the red dot)?
adenozine 5y ago
About a million years ago, I was a younger buck with an itch for sales. I got hired at the Times Square store as a floor rep. I had this grandiose design in my head that I'd just sell my you-know-what off and rise to the top. You needed to be bilingual to work there, and I had just moved to the city from a yeehaw nowhere-town, so I just claimed to be, got the job, and started hustling. I moved watches. Like you wouldn't believe, sometimes 2-3 in an hour! About six weeks go by, and I'm brought downstairs into the admin office area, several of the managers (there were like 7 levels of mgmt throughout the store) were waiting for me. The head lady at the time looked me dead in the eyes and spoke a whole Spanish paragraph. Of course, I had no idea, so I was speechless. She said: "That's what I thought, furtivo." I was no longer welcome in the store, and they even made me take off my store shirt and walk to the train in my undershirt. I didn't walk away thinking "I'll never lie again" but rather, I learned the difference between bs-ing a little, and outright lying. We all bs a little, particularly on the resume and in the interview, but I make a point not to outright lie anymore. I visited the store nearly a decade later, and only recognized one person there, someone I had never directly interacted with. Nobody stuck around, anyhow. Hope they all moved up somehow.
- unixhero 5y ago
  Great story. I have a friend that my wife met in language school. This girl was from New York and she had an insanely good CV, best uni education from Yale, investment bank and hedge fund experience. But do you know what, she kept getting fired on the corporate gigs she took here. The trouble was, she thought lying a little is okay. Which it clearly isn't in my Northern European country. Schmoozing while a great party lubricant very easily becomes lying and that is very heavily frowned upon in most Euro places.
  - adenozine 5y ago
    Oh wow, I've never had to consider the cultural implications abroad. That's fascinating. With hedge fund and investment experience and all, I find that particularly striking that they'd just cut her loose. I'll surely heed that lesson should I ever find myself with EU compadres. That makes me wonder how it happened. How America became the lie-on-your-resume place, and how those European countries became the tell-no-lies-you-heathen countries. I wonder how long it's been that way. I mainly stick to typical resume bs now. At my age, I don't generally have to do that bs-ing, and thankfully, I don't really have to do that much job searching. Still, I've always thought it was okay to exaggerate small things. Sat through a Hadoop workshop? Yeah, you know Hadoop. I once spent a year and a half or so in a cube next to someone who was a Powershell wizard. He'd always try and enchant me with his tricks and wizardry. I took some notes and maintained a mild interest in it. I put Powershell on my resume. As long as I don't claim too much expertise, seems counterproductive to just sniff out liars during the hiring process. Whenever I get too old to attract good work, I'll probably just retire.
jagermo 5y ago
Ha, Swatch still has its beat time (@beats) on its homepage, nice. That brings be back to the early, early, early internet days.
slybootz 5y ago
Who is going to wear the First Swatch on the Moon?

82 points by kwikiel 5y ago

People get uptight about this, but from my point of view: 1. I really admire Omega watches, but have not had the income to pursue the high end mechanical watch hobby. I stick to the lower end. I have some career goals that I will celebrate with a Hamilton and a Speedmaster, but they are not coming up soon. 2. I have a long connection with Swatch, having had (still have, somewhere) several of their iconic line in the mid to late 80s. So to get a hybrid, combining one of my favorite watch style/designs with one of my favorite watch brands at a price point that I can afford on my current salary? Count me the heck in. I can buy one of each of this set and still not have spent as much as I would on a new Speedmaster. You know who this probably hurts the most? Corgeut, Phylidae, Pagani Design. I'll bet their Speedmaster homages are going to be far less popular now that we can get a legitimate watch with Omega Speedmaster on the dial.

Stampo00 5y ago

Sign me up for the mission to Uranus!

pkulak 5y ago
lol, I downvoted you before I actually scrolled down the product page and realized that yes, I 100% agree. Guess that just proves that I'm the juvenile here...
Sporktacular 5y ago
Juvenile is good. Upvoted.

jp0d 5y ago

Apparently there was a huge queue outside the Swatch store here in Melbourne and they sold out all of those "Omega" models in less than 7 minutes. As far as I can tell, this is just another Swatch with quartz movement. Does anyone know why this is so popular apart from the Omega branding?

pkulak 5y ago
Probably just because they are fucking gorgeous.
- jp0d 5y ago
  Yes, but Swatch watches are beautiful without the Omega branding. :) I own an Irony model that I bought in 2007 and it's quite beautiful just with the Swatch logo.
  - chank 5y ago
    Swatch owns Omega.
    - jp0d 5y ago
      Yes, I know. :)
chank 5y ago
It's your typical Flippers (Already showing up on 2nd hand marketplaces for 10x the price), FOMO, Hypebeasts, See and be seen people, people who gotta have it first. It's not even a limited release and will be available online in a few weeks. An official quartz version of one of the most iconic watches of all time and super cheap comparatively. Though some serious collectors would still say overpriced for what it is (quartz/plastic).
- jp0d 5y ago
  Yes, exactly my thoughts. You're right, a bunch of these appeared on Ebay the next day with 1000% mark up.
benjamin-lee 5y ago
I’m a huge fan of the moonwatch both for its beauty and history with the space program. Ever since I was 10 I’ve wanted one. However, I’m a PhD student and there’s no way I can afford to get a “real” one. The Swatch release is really attractive to me since it captures the spirit of the watch while making it accessible. For reference, there’s a very popular variant of the Speedmaster Professional that uses a sapphire crystal rather than a hesalite (basically plastic) crystal. Despite never having been used in space (since the shattering crystal is a risk) the sapphire model is still considered a “professional” edition and highly sought after. People who wear it enjoy the aesthetic of the spacefaring version with the earthly practicality of scratch-proof sapphire. The Swatch version’s desirability is just the same logic a taken a few more steps. It’s made by Omega, has the same basic design, and evokes the imagery of the space race. Alternatively, consider the popularity of the Tesla toy car for kids. It’s not anything like the real Tesla in terms of functionality but is still a cool electric vehicle, especially if you already have a Tesla.

maxclark 5y ago

I don’t get why Omega would do this - my initial reaction is it’s dilutive to their brand and I’m happy I’ve never bought one.

pkulak 5y ago
Huh. So you're glad you didn't buy a really expensive watch that people may no longer think is really expensive?
- CydeWeys 5y ago
  There's no mistaking the Swatch for the Omega for anyone who has any clue about watches at all. The Swatch has a plastic case and comes on a Velcro strap, for starters. But even beyond that, many people who're into watches really don't care what other people think about them.
  - throwawaycities 5y ago
    > and comes on a Velcro strap Fun fact, the real Omega Moon watches given to the Apollo astronauts was also a Velcro band.
    - throw0101a 5y ago
      Plenty of folks also put their watches on NATO and Zulu straps if they think they'll be in 'rough and tumble' situations: * https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZVSWOkxrXjo https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZVSWOkxrXjo
  - serf 5y ago
    >But even beyond that, many people who're into watches really don't care what other people think about them. that's been precisely opposite of every interaction I've had with watch enthusiasts. in fact, that's been opposite of every interaction I've had with any luxury-goods enthusiast, cars/watches/planes/art , you name it; if it was expensive and rare you're likely going to hear about the purchase at lunch. people don't tend to want to bring up their new 9 dollar Casio or their 1997 Corolla, go figure.

ppod 5y ago

Makes you think, maybe Pluto lost the battle but won the war in the hearts and minds.

throwmeariver1 5y ago

Sold out and for 10x the price on ebay...

LeoPanthera 5y ago
They're not limited. Wait a few days and it will be back in stock everywhere.
- ngngngng 5y ago
  Everything is limited if there are enough bots and scalpers.
  - anotherboffin 5y ago
    You have a point, but I don’t think Swatch is selling these online. All I’ve read is that they’re not a limited edition, but available in “select stores only”.
    - dagw 5y ago
      but available in “select stores only”. Only for the initial release. Swatch has said that they'll be available from the online store at some unspecified point in the future. edit: although I can't find that statement on their homepage any more.
yourusername 5y ago
For 10x the price you're getting close to a used 'real' speedmaster and well over the price of a speedmaster reduced.

buryat 5y ago

used to wear lots of automatic watches but switched to apple watch completely 4 years ago

GrifMD 5y ago
I have a two nice mechanical watches, one which used to be a daily wear. Once I got my Apple Watch I just never wear them anymore. The few times I'm at a black tie event and wear the nicer mechanical one I feel slightly limited. It's a dumb little problem, but I kinda feel like my Apple Watch ruined other watches for me. I've got a few bands I rotate on it to make it feel a little more special though.
- tyxodiwktis 5y ago
  Interestingly, I went the other way. Once I found myself ‘addicted’ to screens I got a nice automatic to check time with, and found that it really helped wean me off screens (I can set down my phone now and not look at it all day, and my quality of life and sleep have improved)
- sydthrowaway 5y ago
  Get the Hermes edition
- lvturner 5y ago
  On the contrary, I've had a pebble and two Apple watches (You think I'd have learned after the Pebble, but no)... after few months of wear the smart watches languished in the back of a drawer until I eventually sold them. I'm connected enough without my watch being connected -- for me watches are jewellery and a mechanical marvel that I take personal pleasure out of wearing.
- kenneth 5y ago
  Luckily for me, I have an Apple watch I wear on special occasions only (if I go somewhere too shady to wear the real Omega, or in rough waters since my butterfly clasp is a little loose and has a tendency to come undone in water), and every single time I hate it and can't wait to get back home and switch back to the real mechanical watch.

NKosmatos 5y ago

Beautiful looking, nice branding with nice colors and small details in the different models that make you want them all. In the age of NFTs, these Omega Swatch space themed watches are a nice investment.

chank 5y ago
Maybe if you keep one for 50 years it would be a good investment. It's not a limited release and swatch has said they're not going to artificially limit supply like other well known manufacturers do.
- coredog64 5y ago
  I’ve got a 20 year old Swatch Irony chrono that has given up. I’m buying one of these, but given my (anecdotal) experience, I’d be shocked if it lasts longer than 10 years.
- cmiles74 5y ago
  No joke, I see them for $1500 and up on eBay. Many have more than 10 bids. https://www.ebay.com/itm/OMEGA-x-SWATCH-Moonswatch-Mission-To-Jupiter-Ultra-man-BRAND-NEW-in-hand-/175216133566 https://www.ebay.com/itm/OMEGA-x-SWATCH-Moonswatch-Mission-T...
CydeWeys 5y ago
The best way to use these as an investment is to flip them immediately, when they're still going for a substantial premium. These are non-limited models, and the supply is eventually going to catch up to the demand. Swatch has a lot of available production capacity, and it's a no-brainer for them to use it on this model for as long as it continues to sell (as Swatches, generally, are not otherwise jumping off the shelves like this one is). The current aftermarket price of the Moonswatch is as high as it's ever going to be.

nimbius 5y ago

these watches are gorgeous, but so are "real" omega watches. unpopular opinion but crossing over these brands only makes sense if you think youre capable of targeting a lower income customer without risk of damaging your existing luxury brand, or if your existing luxury brand is floundering. I suspect its the latter, and i suspect its confirmation that the last decade of rennaisance for Rolex is starting to impact the bottom line at Swatch. younger customers are going to gravitate to a smart watch, older customers are going to look for the pedigree of the movement and its lineage so where does this even fit? Bioceramics and bioglasses are ceramic materials that are biocompatible, full stop. throwing this in is just a buzzword Swatch hopes its customer wont take the time to investigate too thoroughly. theres no real reason to have it on a timepiece. call me a cynic, but mark my words...in 10 years time youll see the same phenomenon with these watches as you saw with Timex. repair shops wont touch them, and they exist as a valueless testament to disposable faux luxury.

CydeWeys 5y ago
> unpopular opinion but crossing over these brands only makes sense if you think youre capable of targeting a lower income customer without risk of damaging your existing luxury brand, or if your existing luxury brand is floundering. [...] I suspect its the latter, and i suspect its confirmation that the last decade of rennaisance for Rolex is starting to impact the bottom line at Swatch. You've actually got it precisely backwards here. Omega, like most other Swiss luxury watch brands, has been absolutely killing it these past two years. Profits are up substantially. Omega is doing fantastic*. What isn't doing fantastic is Swatch -- their numbers are down substantially over the past decade. Smart watches are really killing them. An Apple Watch is not a replacement good for a $6k mechanical work of art, but it absolutely is a replacement good for a similarly priced quartz watch with fewer features, which is exactly what Swatch makes. So I view this as a successful attempt at leveraging the brand value of Omega to prop up their lower-end brand. > call me a cynic, but mark my words...in 10 years time youll see the same phenomenon with these watches as you saw with Timex. repair shops wont touch them, and they exist as a valueless testament to disposable faux luxury. You're being over-dramatic here. And you don't generally repair cheap quartz watches like a Swatch anyway; you replace the battery as needed, and eventually in some number of decades they stop working entirely and that's that. You could do a movement swap at that point if you really wanted. * See https://watchesbysjx.com/2022/03/morgan-stanley-watch-industry-report-2022.html https://watchesbysjx.com/2022/03/morgan-stanley-watch-indust...

inyorgroove 5y ago

Wish I had heard about this sooner. Are they going to produce more or is this it?

chank 5y ago
It's not a limited release.
LeoPanthera 5y ago
More are coming, and they've announced it will also be sold online. The in-store-only thing is just temporary.

russellbeattie 5y ago

In Spain, it's traditional for couples to give each other engagement presents, not just for the woman. The woman gets an expense ring and the man gets an expensive watch. (People will immediately ask you to show it off when they find out you're getting married, like they do with engagement rings, it's fun.) My ex-wife spent around 8,000€ like 20 years ago for my Omega Speedmaster because I grew up in the time when Astronaut moon watches were the pinnacle of cool. In fact the first thing I did when I got an Android Wear watch was create a custom face which looked like a Moonwatch (Omega is twitchy about it, so you can't just buy one, apparently.) Am I converting the price correctly? Are these less than $300!?! [Edit, Yep, $260] Wow. It sorta makes my watch - now owned by my son who has never worn a watch in his life - a little less special, but hey. If more people can own one, I'm all for it. Here's an article in Wired: https://www.wired.com/story/omega-and-swatch-moonswatch/ https://www.wired.com/story/omega-and-swatch-moonswatch/

CydeWeys 5y ago
> Am I converting the price correctly? Are these less than $300!?! [Edit, Yep, $260] Wow. It sorta makes my watch - now owned by my son who has never worn a watch in his life - a little less special, but hey. If anything, I think this makes your real moonwatch more special. This was the biggest watch release in many years, and its success redounds to the reputation of the real deal moonwatch. The two aren't remotely comparable. You have a hand-crafted luxury mechanical chronograph (which is a few steps up from your basic mechanical 3-hander). The Swatch is a plastic, quartz, mass-produced disposable consumer good. The only thing they have in common is they look similar. Even functionally, they aren't the same; the Omega beats at 6 ticks per second and can time up to 12 hours, whereas the Swatch only beats at 1 tick per second (thus making it look like a cheap quartz) and can only time up to 60 minutes. The only way I can see how this might've reduced the reputation of the real deal would've been if it had flopped.
- russellbeattie 5y ago
  That's actually probably exactly right, thanks!

newaccount2021 5y ago

andrew_ 5y ago

Everyone here debating the speedmaster versus the swatch-speedmaster and there are those of us who have never spent north of $400 for a watch for various reasons, who think the designs are attractive and are considering if one would fit well into a pedestrian i-just-like-how-this-looks-on-my-arm collection. These are some really interesting color combos and an attractive chrono. I'm considering one having seen them.

throwra620 5y ago

wdb 5y ago

Going to get one when I can buy them at the local Swatch store or online. I am happy to add it to my collection.

t3rabytes 5y ago
Sounds like these are in-store only :(
- chank 5y ago
  Only the initial release.

jerkstate 5y ago

I have an old Speedmaster which I love but rarely wear (since having kids, I’m always picking them up and don’t want to scratch them with the band) and I think these are super cool. It will increase the exposure of the original brand to a new generation, and I can sell mine before they find out you have to wind it every day ;)

shimonabi 5y ago

I really don't get the appeal. It's not even mechanical. You're paying just for the branding.

kenneth 5y ago
I think the point is that you're not paying for the branding, you're getting a watch with an Omega logo for 5% of what it'd normally cost you.

thematrixturtle 5y ago

Whoever did the marketing on this is a genius, since the release created near-riots in Singapore: https://cnalifestyle.channelnewsasia.com/style-beauty/omega-swatch-moonswatch-launch-long-queues-308111 https://cnalifestyle.channelnewsasia.com/style-beauty/omega-... The craziest thing is that this is not a limited edition, since the planned production run is hundreds of thousands, and probably more now given the hype.

kelt 5y ago

It went a little crazy over in Singapore, crazy crowds form and reselling immediately, being non limited I wonder why people are rushing for it https://mothership.sg/2022/03/omega-swatch-carousell-scalpers/ https://mothership.sg/2022/03/omega-swatch-carousell-scalper...

Hamuko 5y ago
Everything is limited edition in 2022.
teleforce 5y ago
It's not only selling like crazy in Singapore, it's actually selling like crazy everywhere. This is the link I posted yesterday but somehow it did not pick up any interest [1]. [1] Low-Priced Omega Speedmaster Prompts Global Swatch Store Chaos: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=30816369 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=30816369

charles_f 5y ago

En-us link: https://www.swatch.com/en-us/bioceramic-moonswatch.html https://www.swatch.com/en-us/bioceramic-moonswatch.html

kenneth 5y ago

I'm a Seamaster guy (Aqua Terra 38mm w/ steel bracelet, blue dial, & date complication only). In my mind, this is _the_ perfect watch. It's classic and timeless, has the features you'd want with none of the over-the-top stuff watches tend to stack. I'm finding this Swatch x Omega craze to be highly ridiculous. The new watches look like cheap fakes. At least with the weird plastic (sorry, bioceramic) and funky colors nobody will try to pass them off as the real thing. Still, it cheapens the brand and the mark of quality the Omega logo used to represent when these plastic / quartz / velcro pieces flood the market and perform like a Swatch and not an Omega. People like Omega because it's the watch that first went to the moon, it's the watch of James Bond's wrist, and it's the watch that times the olympics. That's the classiness people want to be associated with. Not with the urban appeal of a bunch of people trying to scalp these like they're Supreme hats.

cyansmoker 5y ago
As someone who's not a marketing guy, this makes me feel dumb: there must be some genius thinking behind this thing, but I cannot figure out what it could be. I agree that this cheapens the brand. Fun fact: Bulova is the "other" moon watch, after an unfortunate mishap with David Scott's Speedmaster.
- slim 5y ago
  I'm not a marketing guy. But my understanding is if you are a luxury brand (real luxury, very high quality, very expensive). You can allow your brand on very cheap objects (including counterfeit) and nobody will get confused.
- hoseja 5y ago
  Maybe they want a slice of the sneakerhead market, somehow?
nailer 5y ago
The ‘Moon’ edition is coloured like an original Omega speedmaster.

deleted 5y ago

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yread 5y ago

What I don't understand is if these fancy watches are so premium why don't they have longer warranty. I was gifted a fancy omega, didn't wear it much and in 3 years the motor died, cost of repair: 40% of the new price. 1.5 years later its dead again.

nabla9 5y ago
These are "almost Veblen goods" for middle-income people. Veblen good is a type of luxury good for which the demand increases as the price increases, The price for a brand must be high to create value and quality does not affect demand significantly. It's only the appearance and brand image that sells. The Swatch Group is the world’s largest watch company that owns over 10 brands. They sell mass produced brand where the value is almost 95% immaterial and non-functional (it's all in the mind of people). It's all about marketing.

GekkePrutser 5y ago

I like the yellow one... Though I don't think I'll ever want to wear a traditional watch again. I gave up on those in the 90s. And it's too expensive to buy just for the sake of it :) I didn't even spend more than 72 euro on my smartwatch (Amazfit GTS 2 Mini).. Together with the open-source gadgetbridge app (preserving privacy) smartwatches are a great option IMO.

baruchel 5y ago

Does someone remember the "1987 Rolex Air-King with Domino's Pizza Dial" (see https://www.hodinkee.com/articles/vintage-watches-oct-20-2021 https://www.hodinkee.com/articles/vintage-watches-oct-20-202... )? Does someone remember these Panasonic cameras with Leica's red dot on them (they where slightly more expensive that the native Panasonic models, which were identical except for the red dot)?

adenozine 5y ago

About a million years ago, I was a younger buck with an itch for sales. I got hired at the Times Square store as a floor rep. I had this grandiose design in my head that I'd just sell my you-know-what off and rise to the top. You needed to be bilingual to work there, and I had just moved to the city from a yeehaw nowhere-town, so I just claimed to be, got the job, and started hustling. I moved watches. Like you wouldn't believe, sometimes 2-3 in an hour! About six weeks go by, and I'm brought downstairs into the admin office area, several of the managers (there were like 7 levels of mgmt throughout the store) were waiting for me. The head lady at the time looked me dead in the eyes and spoke a whole Spanish paragraph. Of course, I had no idea, so I was speechless. She said: "That's what I thought, furtivo." I was no longer welcome in the store, and they even made me take off my store shirt and walk to the train in my undershirt. I didn't walk away thinking "I'll never lie again" but rather, I learned the difference between bs-ing a little, and outright lying. We all bs a little, particularly on the resume and in the interview, but I make a point not to outright lie anymore. I visited the store nearly a decade later, and only recognized one person there, someone I had never directly interacted with. Nobody stuck around, anyhow. Hope they all moved up somehow.

unixhero 5y ago
Great story. I have a friend that my wife met in language school. This girl was from New York and she had an insanely good CV, best uni education from Yale, investment bank and hedge fund experience. But do you know what, she kept getting fired on the corporate gigs she took here. The trouble was, she thought lying a little is okay. Which it clearly isn't in my Northern European country. Schmoozing while a great party lubricant very easily becomes lying and that is very heavily frowned upon in most Euro places.
- adenozine 5y ago
  Oh wow, I've never had to consider the cultural implications abroad. That's fascinating. With hedge fund and investment experience and all, I find that particularly striking that they'd just cut her loose. I'll surely heed that lesson should I ever find myself with EU compadres. That makes me wonder how it happened. How America became the lie-on-your-resume place, and how those European countries became the tell-no-lies-you-heathen countries. I wonder how long it's been that way. I mainly stick to typical resume bs now. At my age, I don't generally have to do that bs-ing, and thankfully, I don't really have to do that much job searching. Still, I've always thought it was okay to exaggerate small things. Sat through a Hadoop workshop? Yeah, you know Hadoop. I once spent a year and a half or so in a cube next to someone who was a Powershell wizard. He'd always try and enchant me with his tricks and wizardry. I took some notes and maintained a mild interest in it. I put Powershell on my resume. As long as I don't claim too much expertise, seems counterproductive to just sniff out liars during the hiring process. Whenever I get too old to attract good work, I'll probably just retire.

jagermo 5y ago

Ha, Swatch still has its beat time (@beats) on its homepage, nice. That brings be back to the early, early, early internet days.

slybootz 5y ago

Who is going to wear the First Swatch on the Moon?