Just picked up the new 2026 Planet Ocean

artorias · 2025-11-23T11:00:12-0600

cerberus63
It can look that way because it's a matte black, it has a tendency to absorb the light, rather than reflect it. The sub has a very glossy dial and reflects the light However, the Planet Ocean will only look like that when it is hit with very bright, direct light. All other times it looks dark black. I like the matte black ability to have different looks depending on the lighting. As you can see in this pic, the dial looks dark black, even though its in the afternoon and no clouds in the sky. When I get a chance I will take a few pics outside, side by side, with the sub.

Appreciate the reply, I'm aware that it won't look as washed out in all light conditions but will do in most scenarios with overhead light (including sunny weather when not in the shade). It's something I appreciate with lacquer dials/ceramic dials, they look proper black in all light conditions, regardless how harsh/strong the light is or direction it's coming from.

Looks good on your wrist though, glad you like it.

toolwatchguy · 2025-11-23T12:27:25-0600

Went to my local boutique to check these out. They had all 3 colorways in both bracelet & straps. Not a fan of the huge bracelet clasp and came home with the black one on rubber. The blue is nice but I already have a blue Fifty Fathoms. The orange is cool but I wouldn’t wear it nearly as much as the black.

toolwatchguy · 2025-11-23T12:45:44-0600

T toolwatchguy
Went to my local boutique to check these out. They had all 3 colorways in both bracelet & straps. Not a fan of the huge bracelet clasp and came home with the black one on rubber. The blue is nice but I already have a blue Fifty Fathoms. The orange is cool but I wouldn’t wear it nearly as much as the black.

The only bad news in my opinion is the bezel action - it is pretty coarse and loud. Not as good as my SMP's and definitely not in the Blancpain FF or GO SeaQ neighborhood. The rubber strap is quite comfy and the adjustment holes are closer together than usual, so excellent fit. The texture on the center section of the strap is quite attractive and an upgrade from the usual Omega rubber strap design.

The winding feel is stiffer than normal for my SMP's and similar in resistance to my Zenith Chronomaster.

artorias · 2025-11-23T13:52:17-0600

T toolwatchguy
The only bad news in my opinion is the bezel action - it is pretty coarse and loud. Not as good as my SMP's and definitely not in the Blancpain FF or GO SeaQ neighborhood. The rubber strap is quite comfy and the adjustment holes are closer together than usual, so excellent fit. The texture on the center section of the strap is quite attractive and an upgrade from the usual Omega rubber strap design.

The winding feel is stiffer than normal for my SMP's and similar in resistance to my Zenith Chronomaster.

Had a look today at the blue bezel and black bezel ones, as the orange is not really my thing.

They were fully stickered so couldn't really try out the bezel action, but I did give them a few winds. The blue bezel one for the first couple of turns was a bit stiffer than I would've expected, but after was very smooth, can't say if smoother than my SMPs, but definitely smooth. The black bezel was smooth from the get go.

I'm wondering if there's some variance between production models?

cerberus63 · 2025-11-23T15:22:53-0600

A artorias
Appreciate the reply, I'm aware that it won't look as washed out in all light conditions but will do in most scenarios with overhead light (including sunny weather when not in the shade). It's something I appreciate with lacquer dials/ceramic dials, they look proper black in all light conditions, regardless how harsh/strong the light is or direction it's coming from.

Looks good on your wrist though, glad you like it.

Thanks, and I do agree. A glossy dial will usually have a deeper black appearance than a matte dial. I like the look of both. I grabbed a few pics outside today, although it was overcast, to again show the difference between a matte and glossy dial. And having owned the watch for a few days, I believe in most situations, except for direct bright light, the dial will not look washed out. Although, as stated, it will definitely look different than the glossy dial. And I like your pic with the two Planet Oceans.
Side by side

On wrist, tried to take pic at same angle.