Doxa Introduce Sub 300β Sharkhunter with Urban Black and Gold Design

Doxa are no strangers to black colourways with their Sub 300 Carbon collection, however the new Doxa Sub 300β Sharkhunter takes the idea of a sleek black watch to a new level. It combines a black ceramic case with gold accents and a golden bezel, a first for Doxa, to create the most urban, street cool Doxa in a while. The idea behind it being that as the 300β or “300 Beta” it goes further beyond their traditional tool watch remit, it’s a tool watch+.

Structurally, it’s very similar to the existing Sub 300 range, which is no surprise. Although it is technically a slight bit slimmer with dimensions of 42.5 x 44.5 x 11.95mm compared to the Sub 300 Carbon at 42 x 45 x 13.4mm. The main alteration in size comes from the updated bezel on the Sub 300β, which has been redesigned to allow the watch to slip beneath a cuff easily, leaning into the idea that this is a Doxa for the city as much as the water. Worth pointing out that with 300m water resistance, it sacrifices none of its robustness for this new, sleeker appearance.

Speaking of appearance, it is incredibly sleek with the black ceramic case providing a perfectly smooth surface that contrasts to the matte grained dial. Plus, the text and numerals across the dial, bezel and date window are tone-on-tone black for that properly stealth, blacked out visual. Admittedly it does rather compromise the legibility of the piece, particularly for the dual depth and time scales of the bezel.

Of course, you can’t really describe this watch as genuinely stealth or full black because of the golden elements. The external bezel ring, crown and applied hour markers are all made from gold, giving a luxurious twist to a brand who are predominantly known for rugged utility such as the Doxa Army. I’m in two minds about whether I like it or not. On the one hand it feels like a fresh direction for the brand but on the other hand, is it the right direction?

With brands like Oris, Ralf Tech, Omega and Rolex all racing to the bottom of the ocean, it feels like Doxa are conspicuously absent from the ultra-deep conversation despite being well positioned to be a prominent player. I’d rather see a sub-3,000m Doxa than an urban one. Ultimately that’s a different issue than the one at hand, which is the Sub 300β Sharkhunter.

Priced at £6,950 it’s not exactly the most accessible Doxa around, being close to double the cost of the Sub 300 Carbon. That jump in price is almost entirely down to the materials and while ceramic and gold are prestigious, I’m not sure they’re double-price worthy. Especially when it houses the same movement as the rest of the Sub 300 collection, a 38-hour power reserve piece speculated to be an ETA 2824-2.

​Oracle Time 

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