“Oh, boy! It’s a new limited edition Seiko Prospex Sumo for our region!”
Yeap! You’re looking at the new Seiko Prospex SPB344J1 ‘Blue Coral’ or better known as a new Sumo. What’s even better (or worse depending on how you look at it) is that it’s a Thong Sia exclusive variant. Which means it’s limited to 1,000 units for Malaysia, Brunei, Hong Kong, Macau and Singapore only.
So then, what’s so eXcLusiVe about this one? Aside from the obvious production numbers, it’s mainly the colour scheme as internals remain largely unchanged.
“Okay then, let’s do the tech specs first!”
The Seiko Prospex SPB344J1 ‘Blue Coral’ has a 45 mm steel case that stands at 13.4 mm with a lug to lug of 52.6 mm. Lug width is a decent 20 mm so you shouldn’t have any issues looking for aftermarket straps. And speaking of bracelets, the three-link unit has ‘Super-Hard coating’ along with the case and comes with a tri-fold clasp with push-button release and a dive suit extension.
Inside the watch beats the familiar Calibre 6R35. The 24-jeweled automatic movement beats at 3 Hz, has a power reserve of 70 hours and an accuracy of +25/-15 seconds per day. Being a dive watch, water resistance stands at a more than adequate 200 m and there’s a solid, screwed down caseback.
“So, what’s so special about this Prospex Sumo then?”
As mentioned, it’s mostly the aesthetics that are different. We get a dark blue “studded” dial that is inspired by marine life, hence its name. Seiko has drawn ideas from the “individual polyps found in a coral reef.” Other changes extend to the hands, which are now in a shade of copper or rose gold.
The same colour combination extends outwards to the bezel (with ceramic insert) and crown at four o’clock.
Elsewhere, it’s pretty much the same as the other Sumo models that have recently been refreshed. I’m talking about the SPB321J1 and the SPB323J1. That means we still get the split triangular marker at 12 o’clock, broad hands and applied hour markers with Seiko’s LumiBrite. The latter is also found on a small marker next to the date window and on the lume pip on the bezel.
“Finally, how much?”
The Seiko Prospex SPB344J1 ‘Blue Coral’ carries a price tag of RM4,600 and goes on sale in November 2022. Once again, it’s limited to just 1,000 units in Malaysia, Brunei, Hong Kong, Macau and Singapore.