Thanks, ReticulatingSplines!
Are automatic (self-winding) watches significantly less accurate than quartz movements that I’d notice in day-to-day use?
I’ll second the suggestion for Eco Drive. I have one and paid about 100 for it on a cruise. I like that it doesn’t need batteries. Originally, I was looking at the self-winding watches, but they are all to bulky. I found out that it is necessary for the self-winding technology.
I was looking at Amazon for an Eco Drive watch for my husband and the cheapest there is 90.00 (One example). We were on a cruise last week and they were selling them duty free and they were slightly cheaper than on Amazon.
I think the extra cost for not needing new batteries is worth it.
How precise do you need to be with your timekeeping? If you need to be to the minute accurate at all times, I wouldn’t get most automatic watches. If you can stand potentially being a minute or two off then I think that automatic watches are way cooler.
My everyday watch is an automatic skeleton watch by Kenneth Cole that is really nice and keeps time that is just fine. If I do a lot of deskwork on a particular day and don’t move around much then it might lose a minute or two. If I have a week where I am doing that sort of thing I might lose up to 5, but I tend to wind and set my watch every morning as I leave the house so I don’t exactly know how far off it will get.
No problem! The short answer to your question is no, you wouldn’t notice on a day-to-day basis. On average, an automatic watch that is built well and functioning normally should only gain or lose about 5-7 seconds, max. Over a month it can add up to a couple of minutes, but since you’ll have to adjust the date at the beginning of most months anyway, it’s not a big deal to fix the time then.
The caveat with an automatic is that you have to wear it consistently. If you just want an occasional wearer, it’s going to be a royal pain in the ass because after two days of not wearing it, it’ll stop and you’ll have to set the time and date again the next time you want to use it.
Also, automatic watches need periodic servicing. Service is expensive enough that for a sub-$100 watch, I wouldn’t bother servicing at all, unless it has sentimental value. You can easily go 5 years without a service, and probably even longer.
A minute or two is really a lot of time to lose in one day…have you taken the watch to a jeweler?
I have the exact opposite impression. I find metal banded watches to be far more fashionable and elegant than leather banded watches. Metal bands, especially high end ones, are much more like pieces of jewelery than a leather band watch. Leather watches are perhaps more understated and are more “old school” but a nice non-gold metal band feels much more appropriate for a black tie event.
I’m utterly appalled by the suggestions that Dopers have given when the OP asked for advice for wearing with a suit. Casios and Swatches?!?! Ugh, as always never look for fashion advice with this crowd of geeks and know-it-alls. This is a place with a secret cabal of JNCO fans for gods sake.
I’m a big fan of the Caravelle brand watches and I’ve had lots of success with Kenneth Cole and Guess watches. The designer brands tend to make very fashionable watches that have passable internals, and based on your OP that seems like a good fit. I might suggest you up your budget a bit though, I feel that there’s a real gap in quality and style between $50 and $75-100. For $50 you’re scraping the bottom of the barrel and looking for clearance items and outdated models. For $100 the options abound.
Oh, do you have a preference for a face shape? Round vs. rectangular?
I might be exaggerating a bit. I only really lose time when I spend all day at a desk. I work in accounting so when I am doing deskwork the watch might as well be not being worn for all the movement it gets.
Can you show an example of the kind of watches you’re recommending?
e.g., is this Swatch
http://store.swatch.com/casual/watches/page/5/SVCK4035G
inappropriate for wearing with a suit? Why?
Hey don’t look at me. I’ve been trying to impart some style and sophistication into these troglodytes for years.
If the OP wants to go a bit more pricey, you can get a Swiss Tissotwatch for around $200.
That’s the problem with watches. Once you start getting into them, you keep finding one just a bit nicer for just a bit more money.
Just out of curiosity, what is it in the $200 Tissot watch that makes it more elegant than the Swatch link in my previous post?
Someday I will own an Omega watch, and on that day I will stop buying new watches. But right now I can’t afford to pay over $1000 (and probably closer to $2000) for a watch.
I do have one of these and love it, though my wife gets mad at me when I go out in public with her while wearing it.
It’s plastic! Absolutely not! Good god man.
http://www.allamericanwatches.com/site/626101/product/43B100
http://www.allamericanwatches.com/site/626101/product/43B011
http://www.allamericanwatches.com/site/626101/product/43B43
http://www.kennethcole.com/product/index.jsp?productId=3579841&cp=3075289
http://www.kennethcole.com/product/index.jsp?productId=4341474&cp=3075289
http://www.kennethcole.com/product/index.jsp?productId=3212803&cp=3075289
http://www.kennethcole.com/product/index.jsp?productId=3114149&cp=3075289
http://shop.guess.com/Catalog/View/95374G/
http://shop.guess.com/Catalog/View/Men's%20Accessories/Watches/Guess%20Watches/Stainless%20Steel__Black%20Leather%20Boxed%20Watch%20Set/U11036G1
Just a quick sampling, by no means exhaustive.
I like the Swiss Army watches.
I suggest Sierra Trading post:
http://www.sierratradingpost.com/home/23240_d-watches/all/?page=2
or Orvis
http://www.orvis.com/store/product_directory_showcase3.aspx?dir_id=1137&group_id=23308&cat_id=23309&subcat_id=23310
Truth to this. But as you noted, you’re not going to find any “status” watches under fifty dollars. You’re better off going with a Casio or a Swatch and hope people will figure you don’t care about status. Trying for status and failing ends up looking worse than not having tried at all.
Can anyone explain their reasons – beyond aesthetics – for some of the choices above?
I’ve been considering a new watch, but I’m not decided on price. I was hoping for sub-$200, because even that’s more than I’ve ever spent on a watch. I do believe in getting what you pay for, and as such I have a drawer full of broken, sub-$50 watches. In fact, my only working watch right now is a Pulsar that was given to me as a Christmas gift in 1987. My wants:
[ul]
[li]Metal stretch band, not a clasping metal band.[/li][li]Extra links available at point of sale for said band (big wrists, watch bands never fit retail).[/li][li]Analogue[/li][li]Not all blacked-out or blingy or whatever they call the ghetto look these days[/li][li]Something that I can expect to not break for years and years and years[/li][li]Legible. Sure, I can read tiny, Roman numerals, but I don’t want to.[/li][li]Local retailers, either in Mexico or Michigan. (Michigan’s better; everything’s overpriced in Mexico except for beans and tomatoes.)[/li][li]Edit: don’t care about status.[/li][/ul]
A lot of the watches you guys all linked to are gorgeous, but not knowing anything about watch companies makes me hesitant to spend significantly more than $200. Although that was my initial budget, for the right watch, I’d go higher. Maybe significantly. I think it’s easier to buy a car at this point!
Ah OK, I thought that was one of the Swatch stainless steel ones. I assume it’s the plastic you’re objecting to?
This is a stainless steel one, would you accept this one?
http://store.swatch.com/casual/watches/page/8/YOS439
or this one?
http://store.swatch.com/chronographs/watches/page/1/YCS536G
Seiko and Citizen make great watches in that price point. Invicta does too, but all the Invicta watches I have ever owned have had something cosmetic go wrong with them in about 2 years time.
You can find an Omega or a Cartier on the streets of Bangkok for under $50.
I’m still wearing a basic stainless steel Kenneth Cole that retailed for under $100 nearly 10 years ago. For a $100 your watch will essentially last forever if you buy something with any history at all. That decreases dramatically when you shoot for $50. The Caravelle brand is made by Bulova and should be very very reliable. I still own a Guess watch from 1990 that would probably work like a charm if I popped a fresh battery in it. For a $100-150 you’d have to try hard to find a watch that would fail you.
My biggest bit of advice is no metal stretch band. They fail and are extremely tacky. You will never find one on a decent watch. Rubber is more fashionable.
All decent watches with metal bands come with plenty of spare links. If it’s in a jewelry case at the store you’ll be fine. Obviously try it on first, the salesperson will fit it for you, but this shouldn’t be a real concern for a real watch.
Go to the Mall and hit either Macy’s or one of the little kiosks in the middle of the mall that sells sunglasses and watches. Try some on, and ask for the brands that have been mentioned. It’s pretty easy. Stay out of Radio Shack or Target.
Wear what you want. The white leather band is a no-no on the first one. The second would be fine, but for $170 you can do SO MUCH better. Swatch is just a very dated brand and their aesthetic is very immature. Their non-plastic watches like the ones you found look like gussied up plastic Swatches if you get my meaning. Swatch is inherently casual, like Levis and Doc Maarten.