Are entry level automatic watches worth it?

[captp]

Depends on your definition of entry level. I find that the lower priced Hamilton Field watches are well worth it. I have several Hamiltons (not their Field watches) that are in the under $1,000 range; they keep excellent time, on the order of 2-4 seconds per day. Not even COSC certified, but they keep the time.

 

[TinyTim]

For a practical, no-hassles watch with countless style and price options, you can't beat solar watches. I've bought only solar -powered watches for two decades and haven't regretted it.

 

[LuckyR]

For a practical, no-hassles watch with countless style and price options, you can't beat solar watches. I've bought only solar -powered watches for two decades and haven't regretted it.

I agree, I use a Citizen Eco Drive sailing watch as my travel/vacation watch as I don't care if it gets beat up, it is water resistant, I don't have to look my best on vacation and it has a world function to change time zones easily.

But at home it's automatics for me. Life's too short.

 

[noodles hovar]

For a practical, no-hassles watch with countless style and price options, you can't beat solar watches. I've bought only solar -powered watches for two decades and haven't regretted it.

Your advice was exactly the balance that I had been searching for. Picked this up from Amazon: (~ $32)

 

[TinyTim]

Your advice was exactly the balance that I had been searching for. Picked this up from Amazon: (~ $32)

Nice!

 

[hairless wonder]

Looks like I'm late to the party. FWIW, what initially attracted me to automatic watches was the smooth sweep of the second hand. After that, I fell into the Seiko and Orient rabbit hole for a little while. I managed to shake free of that bug, but I still love the watches I bought during that time, which include dive watches and simple 3-hand dress watches (all with the date complication, if not day-date complications).

I never bought my watches with the intention to flip them, though based on a quick look on the secondhand market, most (if not all) of my watches have managed to retain (if not increase) their value. Of course, adjusted for inflation, I may be looking at a loss with each watch.

Fortunately, for me, there's a local Seiko AD who also services Seikos and Orients for not much money. This means when it's time for me to service one of my watches, it costs much less than paying for a new watch (or even a new movement). Admittedly, it is still more expensive to service an automatic watch than to replace a quartz watch's battery. Yet, if I store a watch for years, it essentially tolls the time between servicing. With a quartz watch, OTOH, even in storage, the battery will run down and need to be replaced.

But most importantly, my watches still bring a sense of happiness to me when I wear them. I never quite got the same satisfaction with the quartz watches I wore before (and I grew up pretty much always wearing a quartz watch). For that reason, I'm happy with my automatic watches and find wearing them more worthwhile than wearing similar quartz watches.

(That said, I've often drooled over Citizen Eco-Drive dive watches.)

 

[TinyTim]

Here's my Citizen E510 Eco-Drive

 

[Climb14er]

Been following this thread closely, is prompting me to make some decisions, could use some solid thoughts from the group here.

Crime here in Denver is quite frankly, exploding. Wearing my circa 1985-86 Rolex Submariner with Date out in the open, frankly, is not something I do often, even with my carry permit and EDC pistol. Survived an armed robbery at my house sixteen years ago, I trust you can understand my concerns.

Went to the leading Rolex dealer in town and they gave me a very attractive cash price for the Rolex. It will need a new band and an overhaul but they were very impressed with the condition and movement. The watch keeps great time!

My climbing watch was always a Suunto, went through three Observers over the years. I enjoy a watch that can take a possible beating and still look good. Sapphire crystals, luminous dials for nighttime, a watch that even has some class going out for dinner. I don’t wear a watch to impress! I wear one for function!

I bought my Rolex for a pittance years ago. Going to another local watch jeweler later, will get the serial number and look at other watches.

I like the Seiko Alpinist Series and the steel G Shock Solar watches. If you have any thoughts about these or any recommendations, please continue the thread and share. I don’t want another 10K to 15K dollar watch, due to security concerns. Spending $750 to $1250 is fine. I could go higher but again, I don’t want to attract and problems. Function is what I look for. Comfort on the wrist as well.

That’s it as far as what I’m looking for. Have read a lot on the internet, reviews, etc. Been a member at watch seek for years, but there’s too much extraneous bandwidth there. If the Seiko Prospex Alpinist line of watches is recommended, I might move in this direction. Appreciate your thoughts.

 

[ByMyBeard]

@Climb14er I believe the correct response is - "Get both".

Though being serious, if your budget is high enough, I would consider both. The G-shock for casual, as I doubt anyone is going to target you over a G-shock. Then the Alpinist for when you want something a bit more upscale/classy. I also like that both seem to fit your personality/interests, so there's a good connection for you there.

Note that I don't have any experience with either watch - but do know they have good reputations.

 

[Multum in parvo]

Been following this thread closely, is prompting me to make some decisions, could use some solid thoughts from the group here.

Crime here in Denver is quite frankly, exploding. Wearing my circa 1985-86 Rolex Submariner with Date out in the open, frankly, is not something I do often, even with my carry permit and EDC pistol. Survived an armed robbery at my house sixteen years ago, I trust you can understand my concerns.

Went to the leading Rolex dealer in town and they gave me a very attractive cash price for the Rolex. It will need a new band and an overhaul but they were very impressed with the condition and movement. The watch keeps great time!

My climbing watch was always a Suunto, went through three Observers over the years. I enjoy a watch that can take a possible beating and still look good. Sapphire crystals, luminous dials for nighttime, a watch that even has some class going out for dinner. I don’t wear a watch to impress! I wear one for function!

I bought my Rolex for a pittance years ago. Going to another local watch jeweler later, will get the serial number and look at other watches.

I like the Seiko Alpinist Series and the steel G Shock Solar watches. If you have any thoughts about these or any recommendations, please continue the thread and share. I don’t want another 10K to 15K dollar watch, due to security concerns. Spending $750 to $1250 is fine. I could go higher but again, I don’t want to attract and problems. Function is what I look for. Comfort on the wrist as well.

That’s it as far as what I’m looking for. Have read a lot on the internet, reviews, etc. Been a member at watch seek for years, but there’s too much extraneous bandwidth there. If the Seiko Prospex Alpinist line of watches is recommended, I might move in this direction. Appreciate your thoughts.

I’m very happy with my 1959 Alpinist. Medium size, great Lume and 200m WR. I got mine in green which is a bit niche but there is also a version with Anthrazit dial and metal bracelet.

Got mine new for 599.00

 

[MarkM10431]

it just depends. my everyday wear watches bounce between the 2 moonswatches, my tissot-mathey diver and my bulova astronaut. If I know i won't be knocking around where I may damage it, i will wear one of my Omegas

 

[MarkM10431]

it just depends. my everyday wear watches bounce between the 2 moonswatches, my tissot-mathey diver and my bulova astronaut. If I know i won't be knocking around where I may damage it, i will wear one of my Omegas.

people do notice if you have a nice watch. you can get a vintage Omega for sub 1K

 

[dojpros]

RE the Rolex- it is highly unlikely that you will ever be able to replace it at retail (10k ) anytime soon. I fear you will regret selling that watch. I would buy something I was more comfortable wearing out and not sell the Rolex.

I am super high on Mido right now. Swatch Group, Swiss 80 hour movement. Adjust on the fly bracelets. The linked below is titanium and 1000ish retail. A stainless GMT model is not much more.
Ocean Star 200 - https://www.midowatches.com/us/ocean-star-200-m0264304406100.html

The Seiko Alpine Series is a lot of watch for the money as are the automatic offerings of Tissot (another Swatch group brand with 80 hour movements.

Finally in quartz, the Casio Oceanus series in titanium at sub 500 ish is simply dynamite.

Solar
Atomic
Sapphire Chrystal
Applied Indices
AR Coated
Sallaz Polished
Shifts time zones/dates automatically

 

[hairless wonder]

Been following this thread closely, is prompting me to make some decisions, could use some solid thoughts from the group here.

Crime here in Denver is quite frankly, exploding. Wearing my circa 1985-86 Rolex Submariner with Date out in the open, frankly, is not something I do often, even with my carry permit and EDC pistol. Survived an armed robbery at my house sixteen years ago, I trust you can understand my concerns.

Went to the leading Rolex dealer in town and they gave me a very attractive cash price for the Rolex. It will need a new band and an overhaul but they were very impressed with the condition and movement. The watch keeps great time!

My climbing watch was always a Suunto, went through three Observers over the years. I enjoy a watch that can take a possible beating and still look good. Sapphire crystals, luminous dials for nighttime, a watch that even has some class going out for dinner. I don’t wear a watch to impress! I wear one for function!

I bought my Rolex for a pittance years ago. Going to another local watch jeweler later, will get the serial number and look at other watches.

I like the Seiko Alpinist Series and the steel G Shock Solar watches. If you have any thoughts about these or any recommendations, please continue the thread and share. I don’t want another 10K to 15K dollar watch, due to security concerns. Spending $750 to $1250 is fine. I could go higher but again, I don’t want to attract and problems. Function is what I look for. Comfort on the wrist as well.

That’s it as far as what I’m looking for. Have read a lot on the internet, reviews, etc. Been a member at watch seek for years, but there’s too much extraneous bandwidth there. If the Seiko Prospex Alpinist line of watches is recommended, I might move in this direction. Appreciate your thoughts.

You can't go wrong with a G-Shock for a beater watch. It should easily handle your needs for climbing (though, I've never climbed anything besides stairs--and even then only grudgingly!--so take that for what it's worth).

I regret not buying a Seiko SARB017 when I had a chance. That was an absolutely beautiful watch and was known as the Seiko Alpinist. (I'm not as fond of the watches in the new Alpinist series. I really dislike the giant X on the Seiko Prospex line. In fact, I thank the ugly X for getting me out of the Seiko rabbit hole.)

If the new Alpinist watches speak to you and you're comfortable with the outlay, go ahead and pull the trigger. The watch should serve your needs well. But if you can, I'd recommend you get a SARB017, instead.

One other note, unless you need the money, you may regret selling the Rolex. It'll be hard to replace down the road. If you don't want to pay to service or maintain it now, just put it in storage for the time being (you can always put it in a safe deposit box if you fear having it stolen from a break-in at your home). It can be a piece you leave to your children or grandchildren. As much as I love my Seikos and Orients, I realize they really aren't heirloom pieces (in part because of the plastic parts in their movements). That said, the watches you wear may ultimately have more sentimental value for your offspring than any watch you put in storage.

 

[StillShaving]

Been following this thread closely, is prompting me to make some decisions, could use some solid thoughts from the group here.

Crime here in Denver is quite frankly, exploding. Wearing my circa 1985-86 Rolex Submariner with Date out in the open, frankly, is not something I do often, even with my carry permit and EDC pistol. Survived an armed robbery at my house sixteen years ago, I trust you can understand my concerns.

Went to the leading Rolex dealer in town and they gave me a very attractive cash price for the Rolex. It will need a new band and an overhaul but they were very impressed with the condition and movement. The watch keeps great time!

My climbing watch was always a Suunto, went through three Observers over the years. I enjoy a watch that can take a possible beating and still look good. Sapphire crystals, luminous dials for nighttime, a watch that even has some class going out for dinner. I don’t wear a watch to impress! I wear one for function!

I bought my Rolex for a pittance years ago. Going to another local watch jeweler later, will get the serial number and look at other watches.

I like the Seiko Alpinist Series and the steel G Shock Solar watches. If you have any thoughts about these or any recommendations, please continue the thread and share. I don’t want another 10K to 15K dollar watch, due to security concerns. Spending $750 to $1250 is fine. I could go higher but again, I don’t want to attract and problems. Function is what I look for. Comfort on the wrist as well.

That’s it as far as what I’m looking for. Have read a lot on the internet, reviews, etc. Been a member at watch seek for years, but there’s too much extraneous bandwidth there. If the Seiko Prospex Alpinist line of watches is recommended, I might move in this direction. Appreciate your thoughts.

Agree that watchUseek is too intense with too many threads and posts to be very helpful a lot of the time.

I think you would be happy with the Alpinish or G-shock, though they are so different from each other that you would probably enjoy having them both. I have a few lower end Seiko automatics and like them for their styling but none of them have a well regulated movement which is a negative and has kept me from seriously considering their recent Prospex lineup.

Personally, I would consider selling the Rolex and investing 3/4 of the funds in the market to fund future watch purchases , while also getting the Alphinst, G-shock, or whatever watch you like the most. But that is just my way of thinking as I would rather have a half dozen or many more of solid but inexpensive watches as compared to one Rolex.

 

[Climb14er]

OP… if there has been any thread drift on my part, this was not my intention.

So after putting things into perspective, having the Submariner for almost forty years and paying very little for it, and with the dealer making me a very generous offer… I figured that it would cost me upwards of $2500-$3000+ to get the watch in near new condition, if I wasn’t concerned about wearing it everyday out in public like I used to do, crime wise…I’d go ahead and rebuild the watch. However, I feel at this time of life, I’ve gotten great use of the Rolex, it very well might be time to move on and get simpler so to speak.

Here’s the question that I’d like some recommendation on….

I’ve narrowed down my choice to one of the more current Seiko Alpinist watches vs a Citizen Super Titanium Eco Drive… with the latter don’t know if I want to go atomic or not. I’m also not looking for all of the chronographs, speed timers, etc. Maybe one or two. Want to keep it simple so to speak once again.

Do you have any thoughts regarding the above Choice… Seiko vs Citizen, Atomic or not? My thought is this watch might take me ‘home’ so to speak. Btw, I have other watches to knock around with, Fitbits, etc.

Appreciate!

 

[dojpros]

Keeping it as simple as possible, I attached link to a Citizen, Eco Drive in Titanium with a simple strap ( that could be swapped out with ease re all manner of color/materials etc fabric/rubber/leather). 300USD from the Citizen mothership. Perhaps even cheaper elsewhere. An absolute grab and go watch. No need to set/wind etc.

Garrison Green Dial Leather Strap BM8560-02X | CITIZEN

Rekindle the past with this vintage-inspired men’s watch by Citizen. Paying homage to the golden age of travel, this timepiece features a green dial with a rich caramel brown leather strap with contrast stitching. This retro-styled men’s watch features a Super Titanium stainless steel case and...

www.citizenwatch.com

On the bracelet at an even better price

https://www.macys.com/shop/product/citizen-eco-drive-mens-garrison-stainless-steel-bracelet-watch-42mm?ID=13777854&pla_country=US&CAGPSPN=pla&trackingid=469x1054048324&m_sc=sem&m_sb=Google&m_tp=PLA&m_ac=Google_Watches_PLA&m_ag=Citizen&m_cn=GS_PLA_Watches&m_pi=go_cmp-17329594511_adg-137434896216_ad-599801049481_pla-1660400806485_dev-c_ext-_prd-13205152092USA&gclid=Cj0KCQjww4-hBhCtARIsAC9gR3adXUgv0LT2iAuvwqdBMAjNa6BghiE2_maiy3ogRFzbL8NxPm0yjjkaAgGiEALw_wcB

 

[ByMyBeard]

No real comments RE Seiko vs Citizen. I own a Citizen Eco Drive, and can certainly recommend those movements. To me, the questions are do you mind a ticking seconds hand and/or the occassional need to wind your watch.

 

[Multum in parvo]

OP… if there has been any thread drift on my part, this was not my intention.

So after putting things into perspective, having the Submariner for almost forty years and paying very little for it, and with the dealer making me a very generous offer… I figured that it would cost me upwards of $2500-$3000+ to get the watch in near new condition, if I wasn’t concerned about wearing it everyday out in public like I used to do, crime wise…I’d go ahead and rebuild the watch. However, I feel at this time of life, I’ve gotten great use of the Rolex, it very well might be time to move on and get simpler so to speak.

Here’s the question that I’d like some recommendation on….

I’ve narrowed down my choice to one of the more current Seiko Alpinist watches vs a Citizen Super Titanium Eco Drive… with the latter don’t know if I want to go atomic or not. I’m also not looking for all of the chronographs, speed timers, etc. Maybe one or two. Want to keep it simple so to speak once again.

Do you have any thoughts regarding the above Choice… Seiko vs Citizen, Atomic or not? My thought is this watch might take me ‘home’ so to speak. Btw, I have other watches to knock around with, Fitbits, etc.

Appreciate!

Beaming up our Citizen Expert in residence @Whilliam

Most of times I shake my head at "get both" suggestions but here I can heartily chime in GET BOTH
One more elegant, one more sporty - best of both worlds.

 

[hairless wonder]

OP… if there has been any thread drift on my part, this was not my intention.

So after putting things into perspective, having the Submariner for almost forty years and paying very little for it, and with the dealer making me a very generous offer… I figured that it would cost me upwards of $2500-$3000+ to get the watch in near new condition, if I wasn’t concerned about wearing it everyday out in public like I used to do, crime wise…I’d go ahead and rebuild the watch. However, I feel at this time of life, I’ve gotten great use of the Rolex, it very well might be time to move on and get simpler so to speak.

Here’s the question that I’d like some recommendation on….

I’ve narrowed down my choice to one of the more current Seiko Alpinist watches vs a Citizen Super Titanium Eco Drive… with the latter don’t know if I want to go atomic or not. I’m also not looking for all of the chronographs, speed timers, etc. Maybe one or two. Want to keep it simple so to speak once again.

Do you have any thoughts regarding the above Choice… Seiko vs Citizen, Atomic or not? My thought is this watch might take me ‘home’ so to speak. Btw, I have other watches to knock around with, Fitbits, etc.

Appreciate!

The main differences between the two are (1) movement type and (2) aesthetics. Since the latter is purely subjective, I'll not weigh in on that as my tastes may not be the same as yours.

The Seiko Alpinist is an automatic watch, which means it's a mechanical timepiece. It also has a second hand that "sweeps" more than jumps between seconds (this is due to the 21,600 bpm of the 6r35). While some quartz (i.e., battery-powered) watches can also have a smooth sweeping second hand, that tends to drain the battery faster, so they're pretty rare. Also, because it has a mechanical movement, the timekeeping is unlikely to be as accurate as a quartz watch. However, it does mean that you won't have to worry about having to replace the battery every three years or so. OTOH, you may need to have it serviced every five years or so (though previous generations of Seiko watches have been known to go for 10-20+ years of daily wear without a service). Also, because it's a mechanical movement, its timekeeping is subject to positional and other variances, which can be corrected by regulation and/or adjustment.

The Citizen Eco-Drive is a solar powered watch. That means the timekeeping tends to be more accurate (since it's regulated by the frequency at which the piece of quartz in it vibrates). Unlike the prototypical quartz watch, however, solar powered watches don't have standard watch batteries. Instead, their batteries use solar cells to power the watch. After about ten years, the solar-powered batteries will need to be replaced. However, if the solar cells are not charged for a period of time (IIRC, about 6 months), the solar battery will fail and will need to be replaced. The good news is that solar cells can be charged by pretty much any light source, including daylight and normal indoor lighting.

In terms of functionality, the Eco Drive beats mechanical watches. After all, the functional purpose of a watch is to keep time accurately. Most quartz watches tend to be accurate to about 2-5 seconds per month, whereas most mechanical watch owners would be ecstatic if their watches were accurate to between 2-5 seconds per day.

That said, for those who enjoy wearing a complicated precision machine on their wrist, mechanical watches tend to be preferred. As such, the difference between the two is really a matter of personal preference, so I'll not comment more on it.

As to the Seiko and Citizen brands, they're both respected Japanese watch companies with over 100 years of horological experience. While Seiko is better known for its entry level automatics*, Citizen is better known for its Eco Drive offerings. That said, Seiko does make solar powered watches and Citizen also makes automatic watches. One other difference between Seiko and Citizen is that Seiko also has a luxury brand, Grand Seiko, while Citizen (to the best of my knowledge) does not have a luxury brand.

As for atomic watches, they are generally the most accurate timepieces as they automatically update the time daily/nightly. That said, to do this, an atomic watch needs to be (1) within range of a radio station that broadcasts the proper time and (2) have its internal antenna be setup to receive broadcasts at the proper frequency for the local station. IIRC, it used to be (and may still be) the case that an international traveler with an atomic watch who flew, for instance, from the US to Japan would not be able to avail himself of the atomic accuracy of the local (Japanese) atomic clock because the local atomic radio station broadcast at a different frequency than his watch's antenna received or was set up to receive.

I hope this helps address your questions. While I'm not a watch expert by any stretch of the imagination, I do enjoy watches as a bit of a hobby. I may have been wrong on some points, if so, I apologize in advance and bow down to others who are more knowledgeable. In any case, good luck with your purchase!


*While the Presage isn't technically entry level for Seiko (the Seiko 5 line fills that role), it's about one step (or possibly just half a step) up from entry level.