The Seiko Blue Monster

As far as I can tell, the primary differences between the newlimited edition Blue Monster and the Orange, Yellow, and Black Monstersare: The Blue Monster has a newermovement: the 7S36 rather thanthe 7S26. Both movements have the same features (quick-set day anddate, no hacking, and no manual winding), but the 7S36 has two morejewels, which leads me to believe it's slightly more refined. The Blue Monster has a domedsapphire crystal rather thanthe Hardlex crystal of the Orange, Yellow, and Black models. Hardlexis, well, harder, meaning it is less prone to cracking or shattering,but sapphire is far more scratch-resistant. Given the choice, I'dprobably go for the sapphire. The Blue Monster willprobably run you $100 to $200 morethan its more pedestrian siblings.If you're interested in one of these, you'll have to do somedigging around the Internet to find one, or take a buy Ulysse Nardin-buying trip toJapan. I would expect it to run you between $300and $400.Update: I was recently informed that the Yellow Monster actually can't be grouped together with the Orange and Black Monsters. The Yellow Monster is a limited edition, as well, and also has a sapphire crystal, a slightly different movement, a cyclops over the date, and a couple other unique features. For details, check out this thread on TimeZone.If you're a Seiko fan, then you've probably heard of the Seiko OrangeMonster. It's a must-have for all Seiko collectors. And if you're areal Seiko diver fanatic, you might even have the Seiko Yellow or BlackMonsters, as well. But now, there's a new monster to add toyour collect: the Seiko Blue Monster.The Seiko Blue Monster (Ref. SKZ213K1) is a beautiful, limitededition piece. Features include: Thick, brushed stainlesssteel case. Domed sapphire crystal. Uni-directional rotatingbezel. Screw-down caseback. Water-resistant to 200meters, or about 650 feet. Screw-down crown (at the fouro'clock position). Luminescent hands and hourmarkers. Automatic movement (23jewels). Double folding safety claspwith diver's extension (to fitover a wet suit).I have the Orange Monster myself, and it's a great Replica Ulysse Nardin witha very robust feel. They have a reputation for being high-qualityautomatic Ulysse Nardin gift sold at a reasonable price, and for having unusuallybright luminescent hands and hour markers. Seiko uses a material calledLumibrite which is very effective, especially on hands as wide as thosefound on the monster series.