Rolex DEEPSEA vs Submariner & Omega Seamaster PO

[Igerswis]

Hi everyone, haven't posted here before but at least now I have plenty to share!

I collected one of my grails yesterday. It was supposed to be a 30th birthday present to myself but I wanted to avoid a potential price increase.

It's a brand new Rolex Sea-Dweller Deepsea (DSSD). Now I know this is a marmite watch, some love it and others loathe it, but I love this watch. For a very long time I've been into watches and only during the last couple of years have I been in a fortunate position to build up a great collection. I've steered clear of Rolex watches before as I found them too conservative for my taste and my brother has a Rolex Submariner date which I found too small and just couldn't love the bracelet. It's also a competitive thing, I had to have a better model than him! But ever since Rolex launched the DSSD in 2008 I instantly fell in love with it.

Just to clarify, I'm not a brand *****, more of an inverse badge snob. My last car was a diesel Skoda hot hatch and I loved the way people hated the brand, as the car was fantastic and it would genuinely surprise them how good it was. Perhaps this is why I've avoided a Rolex for so long. But one thing I love is technology and engineering. From my teenage years when I was into mountain biking, I loved reading up on the latest full suspension technology and the way components were being made stronger and lighter. This love of technology extended into computers (I've water cooled my computer!) and cars (my nephew can now explain the differences between FWD, RWD, 4WD and AWD!). Hence my love for the DSSD. As a watch, it's totally over engineered, uneccesary, huge, expensive and not very practical, but so are some of our dream cars. Look at Ferrari's, Lamborghini's, Zonda's etc.

As I had the opportunity to compare the watch against a 6-8 year old Sub I thought photos would do more than words ever could:

Rolex DSSD



Rolex Submariner Date



Some comparison shots:



















As you can see, the DSSD dwarf's the Submariner from all angles but the major difference is the thickness of the case. Many people complain about the writing inside the DSSD, but while it's on your wrist you don't really notice it. It's actually great when your bored and you take a closer look at the dial and the second hand sweeping away that you see the engravings on the inside. The lack of a cyclops on the crystal of the DSSD makes it look much tidier too.

Another major difference is the glide-lock mechanism. As far as I'm aware, Rolex have started introducing this new bracelet design in their newer models and IMO it was long overdue.

The old Submariner had micro adjustment in it's clasp and the diver's extention was released by pressing a link in and pulling the extension out:



The DSSD has micro adjustment in the clasp, however instead of messing with a springbar you just flip open the clasp and slide the bracelet extention in or out. This is great if your wrists expand and contract a lot during the day as you can alter the bracelet at your leisure. The diver's extention is also easier to use as you just unclip it and fold it out:

(clasp open)



(bracelet extended to the maximum)



(diver's extention unfolded)



I also took comparison shots of the Rolex DSSD against my Omega Seamaster PO Chrono:













As you can see, they are both large watches. However what makes the Rolex special is that the Omega has a depth rating of around 600 metres, whereas the Rolex is rated to 3,900 metres. Thats over six times the depth of the Omega, yet the case isn't that much larger. One thing that is is obvious is that the Omega has a much clearer crystal due to the internal and external AR coating. The Rolex is always full of reflections which takes some getting used to.

Finally a shot of the collection:



I think I'm done with further watch purchases now! It would be nice to have a white dialled Rolex Daytona (also a grail!) but if I wait a couple of decades they might update it as they have with the Submariner ;)

[alby.bda]

very nice collection congrats

[byeedo]

Nice collection and great comparison photos! Thanks.

[Igerswis]

Originally Posted by alby.bda

very nice collection congrats

Originally Posted by byeedo

Nice collection and great comparison photos! Thanks.

Thank you both :)

[Mecanico]

Very interesting comparison. And precious collection. Thank you.

[mjclark32]

[wardman]

Nice comparison!

The DSSD needs the Omega size face IMO :-) It's what kept it in the hunt vs my new Sub-c this past week. But in the 42 vs 40mm size, the Rolex won out (clasp and bracelet had a lot to do with it).

[Fai17]

Nice :)

[Bangel]

Great comparison and fantastic pics.

[Monte Cristo]

Great pics. Thanks for sharing.

[ev8296]

very nice collection.

[Hulubalang]

I just bought Sea-Dweller Deepsea (DSSD) yesterday 10 June 2012. Nice watch and checking on the new Sky-Dweller but its a huge waiting list and will be avaliable in August. Really out of my price range, £32K for the white gold.

[globalgold]

Great collection !

[Igerswis]

Originally Posted by Mecanico

Very interesting comparison. And precious collection. Thank you.

Originally Posted by mjclark32

Originally Posted by wardman

Nice comparison!

The DSSD needs the Omega size face IMO :-) It's what kept it in the hunt vs my new Sub-c this past week. But in the 42 vs 40mm size, the Rolex won out (clasp and bracelet had a lot to do with it).

The dial on the DSSD could do with being a fraction larger but there must be practical reasons why Rolex didn't do so.

Originally Posted by Fai17

Nice :)

Originally Posted by Bangel

Great comparison and fantastic pics.

Originally Posted by Monte Cristo

Great pics. Thanks for sharing.

Originally Posted by ev8296

very nice collection.

Originally Posted by Hulubalang

I just bought Sea-Dweller Deepsea (DSSD) yesterday 10 June 2012. Nice watch and checking on the new Sky-Dweller but its a huge waiting list and will be avaliable in August. Really out of my price range, £32K for the white gold.

Congratulations on the new addition. Does your have the mkII or mk III dial?

Originally Posted by globalgold

Great collection !

[MYK]

Gorgeous, all of them! I want a DSSD.

[sea-dweller]

Good comparison and nice photos!

[Adam Bryan]

Thanks for this sort and clear review! :) BTW, nice collection

[DCgator]

Great collection! My personal opinion only, DSSD is a step above the PO.

[witch watch]

Nice collection and pics. I'm a fan of the weight of the Deep Sea but it's too thick and top heavy for my wrist and i'm not keen on all the the writing on the dial. Subs are iconic for all the right reasons but are just too 'safe' a Rolex and thus common so for me a Sea Dweller would be my choice for a Rolex diver.

[Maxx]

Lovely pics and collection> Really like the Deepsea but I felt it was a little too big on my 6 1/2 inch wrist.
Definitely up there as arguably one of the best diver tools on the market though.

[Rolex Submariner]

thanks your great review

[jamesp7890]

OMEGA DOES NOT COMPARE WITH ROLEX!!!! I don't care how much they keep raising there prices to make people believe they are in competition with companies such as Rolex,
It will never b a Rolex or patek. IMHO The brand name just sounds cheap to me!!!

[jamesp7890]

Nice collection though indeed

[Rodentman]

I think the Omega is a lot of watch for about half the cost of the DSSD.

[Nairn1980]

Originally Posted by jamesp7890

OMEGA DOES NOT COMPARE WITH ROLEX!!!! I don't care how much they keep raising there prices to make people believe they are in competition with companies such as Rolex,
It will never b a Rolex or patek. IMHO The brand name just sounds cheap to me!!!

The brand name just sounds cheap? What an idiot!!!

[AmbSteve]

Love the comparison shots...and you reminded me that I definitely need to pick up an Omega. Great review and collection.

[HRV]

Thanks for sharing

[Blueinsert]

Thank you very much for this post. Shows very clearly that The SDDS is NOT that big, when compared to others. Very nice photos!

[Psmith]

Interesting comparison and great photos - thanks

[diamondsource]

lovely collections