VS Omega Seamaster Planet Ocean GMT 232.30.44.22.03.001 Blue Dial Blue Bezel Super Clone

VS Factory Omega Seamaster Planet Ocean 600M GMT 232.30.44.22.03.001 — Hands-On Review

So VS Factory finally dropped their take on the Planet Ocean GMT, and honestly? It's been a long time coming.

KW Factory had this ref a while back. I actually pushed the blue dial version pretty hard because the colorway is just stunning. But that was a different era. Now VS has their full 8500-series clone movement in play, and it changes everything about how this watch hits.

The 8500 Clone Movement — Why This Rep Stands Apart

Let's get into the movement first because that's the whole story here.

VS Factory has cloned the entire Omega 8500 caliber family at this point. The movement looks like gen on the outside. Functions like gen too. And the big one — the hour hand jumps independently. That's real GMT functionality right there, not the fake GMT stuff where everything moves together. Previous reps of this ref couldn't pull that off.

Flip it over and look through the caseback. Black balance wheel sitting at 6 o'clock, all the bridges and gear trains in the right places. These aren't decorative plates slapped on top of a basic movement. It's a fully functional clone that mirrors the gen architecture. This is exactly why VS owns the 8500 series space right now. Nobody else is even close.

43.5mm On the Wrist

Not 42. Not 45. It's 43.5mm and that in-between size actually works really well. Wears with presence but doesn't eat your wrist. Same dimensions as the gen Planet Ocean 600M.

The blue dial on the 232.30.44.22.03.001 is deep. Like, really deep. Almost has that underwater feel to it. Ceramic bezel insert with orange indices, orange seconds hand — the whole thing pops. Omega has always had a thing for orange accents on their Planet Ocean line, anniversary editions especially, and it just works here.

Crystal is clear, case finishing is mature at this point. VS has been refining these cases for a while now and it shows.

Black dial variant is more of a classic look. Still sharp. They kept the orange GMT text on this one too which gives it that little bit of personality.

Actually Using the GMT Function

Bezel rotates both ways. Smooth action, not too loud. Pretty much what you'd expect from a bi-directional ceramic insert.

Now here's where it gets good. Pull the crown to the first position and the hour hand clicks forward independently — one hour per jump. You can go forward or backward. Date quickset works in reverse too. Pull to the second position for standard timekeeping and the GMT hand tracks along with everything else.

Every function matches gen. That's not marketing talk, that's just what it does.

The GoodPlanet Detail

Worth mentioning — this particular ref is the Omega "GoodPlanet" special edition. You can see the GoodPlanet text on the dial. The regular silver version doesn't carry this marking. Small detail but it matters if you care about matching the correct gen spec for this reference number.

Clasp, Price, Final Thoughts

Clasp is the standard folding style. Nothing groundbreaking, nothing wrong with it either. Same approach they've been using and it works fine.

Price is higher than what KW charged back in the day. No way around that. But you're paying for the 8500 clone movement — that's where the cost sits. This isn't just a shell that looks right. The GMT function actually works the way it's supposed to, hour hand independence and all.

If you're into the Planet Ocean line and want a GMT that does more than just look the part, the VS Factory 232.30.44.22.03.001 is the one to look at right now. Hit me up if you have questions.