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In Need of a Watch

I am in need of a new watch. I have worn my invicta watch for ever, and would like a new piece. Is it worth getting a swiss timepiece? If so what do you recommend?

These are three watches I have been looking at, but not sure which is a good fit for me, burburry, nixon, fossil etc.. I would like to spend about $300 or so. Not really sure what to look for. I went into the local jewelery store and looked around and the jewler had some watches with all Swiss automatic movement for $300 with his logo on it. What are your thoughts?

I would graciously appreciate your help.

Best,
Jerry

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I'd stick to the brands that actually make watches like Seiko and avoid the "fashion" brands like Fossil etc. A brand to look out for is Orient. They make a decent watch at a very good price.
 
I'd stick to the brands that actually make watches like Seiko and avoid the "fashion" brands like Fossil etc. A brand to look out for is Orient. They make a decent watch at a very good price.
+1. I would avoid fashion watches. Personally I prefer watches having in-house movements.
 
I am a big fan of Seiko... unfortunately, just not the ones you showed. I had a Kinetic watch that dies. And I am afraid the Seikos you generally find in places like Macys are just fashion watches.

I'd suggest looking on-line for the Seiko 5 line or maybe a Seiko Monster. The Orient suggestion was a very good one... again, found on-line. The Hamilton was a very good suggestion but you probably will need to look on-line for aggressively discounted prices or consider buying a previously owned watch... here are a few places to look:

http://forums.watchuseek.com/f29/

http://forums.timezone.com/index.php?t=threadt&frm_id=32
 
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I was just in your position a few days ago, but for a diver. My choices were
only limited to my budget of under $400 shipped. I was able to find a watch I've been looking for or several weeks at an amazing deal on Watchuseek.com (Helson Shark Diver 2)

If your budget is a firm $300 it's hard to beat any of the Seikos with the skx007 movement. The Orient watches are very nice also. I would seriously consider shopping the pre-owner market. Check out Steinhart, Orient, Hamilton
 
I can highly recommend creation watches (do a web search) their prices are great and postage is around 4 days from payment to your door. They regularly have upto and over 50% price drops on genuine brands.
As for Seiko just ask if it has glow in the dark. My kinetic is new but has no like at all.
 
Stepping back from actual recommendations, I would consider a few things first:

1. Do you want quartz or automatic? Quartz watches are usually cheaper and more accurate and don't require regular wearing and winding, but they do require a new battery every so often (unless you go solar powered).

2. Are you planning to wear just watch every day for the foreseeable future, or are you looking to start a watch collection?

3. What watches have caught your eye so far? There are a bunch of different styles of watches, from divers, pilot watches, chronos, dress watches, etc.

If I were going to get just one watch to wear every day, it would be a stainless steel dive watch. Mine is a Bulova Marine Star ($150) because I'm a quartz guy. Otherwise the new Orient Mako USA would be an EXCELLENT choice (< $250).
 
Unless you are hungering for a very specific movement or complication, selecting a watch is a pretty personal choice.


The reality is that aside from a couple of notorious or obviously-bad options, pretty much anything that costs more than $20 will be "good enough" as far as keeping time is concerned. Making a reasonably effective timepiece simply isn't that hard these days. So unless accuracy or mechanical complexity is something that really gets you excited, paying for a premium movement (e.g. swiss) or name (e.g. Omega) may not leave you feeling satisfied in the long run. Note: This is not to say that swiss movements aren't excellent, or that Omega doesn't make a really nice watch. Just that the 'bang-for-buck" ratio may vary based on personal taste.

Personally, I own far more mechanical watches than quartz ones, because the idea of a mechanical movement tickles my fancy. I have a number of watches made in places like India, Belarus, Russia, China, France, and Japan, and most of them cost less than $100CAD... some of them a lot less. A few of them cost a fair bit more.

Anyways, the point that I'm working towards is that buying a number of less expensive (note I didn't say 'cheap') watches has been far more satisfying than just buying one or two premium watches would have been. Now I have a broad selection of watches to match to my outfit and mood, and I've learned a lot about what I think I like and what I actually like.

Anyways, if you just want to buy a watch, put it on your wrist, and then forget about it - well, my advice is to buy something that appeals to you. Don't worry overmuch about the brand or the history, just buy something that you're happy looking at.

If you want to explore the world of watches and/or your taste in watches, consider some options like Poljot, Citizen Eco-Drive, Vostok, hmt, Shaghai, Seiko 5, Luch, or Sea-Gull. Don't be afraid to consider second-hand watches... as long as you're buying unusual or 'foreign' brands, they can be had very cheaply, which offsets the rare lemon.

And don't forget - You can always change the watch band if you don't like it!
 
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