Are smart watches going to have the same disruptive impact on the mechanical watch industry like the quartz technology did in the 1970s?

No. They cater to a different market.

No, because they serve very different interests. Mechanical watches are bought by nerds, collectors, speculators, people who like luxury or simply merchants looking to make a profit. The rest, except people over 70 years old, don't even know they exist. That is why the industry, year after year, manufactures less, sells less, but at much higher prices seeking adjustment. The boom in cheap and easy money left by the pandemic is behind us and is strongly reflected in the fall in secondary market prices. IMHO.

Don t think so. Imho Smart- Watches are more seen as tools for screening all sorts of health- statistics, to get phonecalls, write emails and what not. To show the time is not their main purpose imho. A 'watch' on the other hand is (mostly) a piece of art, showing the actual time and means more to an owner like a smartwatch ever will (because of their tooliness). Plus, some sort of watches will be symbols of status, a thing a smartwatch like a fitbit, applewatch and the lot never will be

I think those are totally different . Smart watches are small pcs nothing else.

As @MWC2020 says comparing a smart watch to a proper watch is like comparing a smart phone to a pocket watch...

Two completely different markets.

Nope.

There will always be career fields that will need some type of dumb watch. Or will have people who work in them who prefer dumb analog/Digi watches.

Not just taking military/tac types either. Nurses, Docs, offshore divers/welders, roughnecks, ranchers, etc.

Believe it or not, I rarely see smart watches on hotshot drivers, and other oilfield jobs. Lots of no watches. Sometimes it's even a Tag, Tudor, or Rolex in their wrist 🤯😆. And when those dudes get off work, it isn't a smart watch either, usually some type of nice metal bracelet watch. Might be more fashion oriented, or could straight up be a luxury timepiece.

Same goes for a lot of the rancher/cowboy types out where I live. Your phone might not work, much less a smart watch. Again from what I've observed, some type of basic field or digital. Occasionally a datejust. 😂

I'll also add, I have seen a small but growing resurgence of non smart watches, in particular analog, in the military/tactical community.

For the most part the rise due to the internet, and my peer group is a little older now, settled down, and has more disposable income. So we want those nice tool watches we always saw on the wrists of team guys and other bearded vikings deployed. In turn younger dudes see the #wruw on Instagram from my peers, and they also think it's cool and want to join the real watch club.

Look at the quite RABID success of Sangin Instruments, Watches of Espionage, Anti-Watch Watch Club, etc. (fan of all of them btws 🤏🏻😅😂)

And for awhile now almost all of DJ and crew's (GBRS Group) videos have shown them wearing watches. And many operator types interviewed on the Shawn Ryan Podcast have legit timepieces on their wrists. Some also have smart watches too tho.

I'll also be the first to say, not necessarily a huge fan of how some of the GBRS guys have handled themselves in their private lives, IFYKYK. But no one is perfect, and what's more some of those guys went through so much literal hell, I am thankful they are sharing their knowledge, experience, and starting the dialog about mental health and preparedness for those who wish to do what they did.

I think it's the wrong crowd to ask this question. We're all fond of mechanical watches here so due to inherent bias most people here will answer no.

But if I'm honest, the average person does wear a smartwatch or fitnesstracker and that absolutely replaced the "real" watch for the majority of people. Most non enthusiasts that will buy a traditional watch seem to do so later in life or for use as a status symbol. In my opinion watch brands should invest more in reaching the fashion conscious teens/influencers because they are the stepping stone towards future customers. There was a really interesting hodinkee? series on YouTube that also addressed this.

Although some of us might not like this I do believe it's the way forward. That is if we want to be able to aquire new pieces for relatively affordable prices. Do the math, how many price increases can you handle before it becomes out of your reach?

So the TLDR for me is that they need to change course because the ever increasing price hiking that's been their strategy cannot be sustained and will result in less popular brands failing. I also think they interpreted the Covid boom wrong and instead chose to see it as validation for this doomed strategy.

They are cheap disposable electronics with ZERO resale or sentimental value. Look at smartphones, outside of the original iPhone 1, there is no market for iPhone 6 or something.

Quartz revolutionized the act of timekeeping. A smartwatch is a smartphone extension.

*Speaking from the affordable/microbrand side of things.

They already have. All we can do is teach the future generation. I tried with my 13 year old daughter, she don’t care. My 5 year old son, all about it regular watches. Also, hope smart watches introduce those that didn’t care about watches before, possibly getting into it etc. ..

No, mechanical and quartz watches are now more jewelry, status marker, and/or hobby product - while smart watches are more an integrated piece of tech for "productivity" - although Apple watch is a prob a status marker in some circles.

Judging by how many new brands tend to enter the market all the time and stay, while at the same time the Big boys are all okay, I’d say that the market for mechanical watches seems to be expanding. I’ve ordered a cheap smart watch for health reasons and I think a lot of people seem to be doing the same while ar the same time appreciating the kind of watches you see here.