When buying a watch, what are you actually paying for?
When starting out as a new hobby, specs was the number 1 thing that pops into my mind. How's the lume? What is the WR rating? Does the crown screw down? How does the bracelet feel? Is it sapphire with AR coating? And the list goes on..
Fast forward a few years later (and a couple of hundred bucks up the watch ladder), specifications has begun to mean less to me and the focus has shifted towards how that watch made me feel. Purchases become far and fewer in between as the "specs checklist" that served as a guideline towards pulling the trigger is gradually eroded.
Resulting in lesser time in that euphoric state of waiting for the watch(es) to arrive but at the same time learning to appreciate what I already have.
It's amazing how this hobby evolves and create moments of enjoyment that comes in different forms.
I forget to check the time when I look at my watch(es) every single time. 🥲
A bit mix of abc, but c is prominent.
Agreed on all fronts! I’ve gone from insisting that I need lume and 300m of water resistance (for the pool, really?) to loving dress watches and weird colours.
“It's amazing how this hobby evolves and create moments of enjoyment that comes in different forms.”
Love this sentence. Part of the joy indeed! It changes and so do we 😄
Depends on the watch. Some for style, some for category, some for complication...one or two cause a bit too much bourbon.
Agreed on all fronts! I’ve gone from insisting that I need lume and 300m of water resistance (for the pool, really?) to loving dress watches and weird colours.
“It's amazing how this hobby evolves and create moments of enjoyment that comes in different forms.”
Love this sentence. Part of the joy indeed! It changes and so do we 😄
I see that you've indeed got some beautifully unique pieces in your lineup! Loving the colour of the Swatch and Studio Underdog!
Thanks for commenting and here's to enjoying this every evolving hobby together 🍻
Think some aspects of A are mixed with D.
Still voted D. For my uses a watch helps track the time. All else is gravy.
That being said, if I can't read it easily, or in low light, it's just a pretty bauble on my wrist. 🤏🏻😁
Excessive retailer price markups & manufacturer profit margins.
https://lonelywrist.com/decoding-the-margins-of-the-watch-industry-exploring-pricing-and-profitability/
Think some aspects of A are mixed with D.
Still voted D. For my uses a watch helps track the time. All else is gravy.
That being said, if I can't read it easily, or in low light, it's just a pretty bauble on my wrist. 🤏🏻😁
You've got a point, and you sure got range in your collection 👍🏼!
All of those things are important, but if I don’t like how the watch looks, the others don’t matter. I chose C.
You're journey is similar to mine, and many others in this hobby. I think many of us "search for specs" when early on in our journey. As time goes on, we start caring less and less about the specs, and more of the watch as a whole, and how it makes us feel. It's always strange to me when I see someone say something like "Man, I really love that watch but it's only 50M water resistance, so I can't buy it." Buy the watch if you like it! I can almost guarantee that same person that won't buy a 50M watch has many other watches with more than 50M that could be worn in the super rare instance they actually need more than 50M. I have quite a few watches that are only 30M that I absolutely love. I couldn't imagine not buying them simply because of the lack of WR. I have plenty of other watches I could wear in the rare instance that I need more WR.
One other important thing I've learned over the years is to not give too much weight to dimensions/specs on a piece of paper. They are just numbers, and it often times doesn't paint a good picture of how the watch will look and wear on the wrist. People will say but 39mm is my max case size, if only that 40mm watch was 1mm smaller I would buy it. The funny thing about this I've had many 40mm watches that wear smaller than my 39mm watches, so that person that won't buy simply because of dimensions is just really limiting themselves on what watches are out there that could be enjoyed. I think that collectively, we all need to do a better job of keeping an open mind about watches.
D B A C in that order for me (Omega fan )
E all of the above 😊
I think chasing specs and looking for the best specs at the lowest price is part of figuring out what you actually need, like, want, and will actually wear. I think that once you figure out those four points, buying watches becomes more of a "gut feeling" thing than a checklist.
I voted C, because none of the rest matters if I find the watch unappealing. I wear my watches primarily to tell the time, I just appreciate that a useful tool can also be a shiny bauble at the same time.
All the above!
I started out with C, I wanted a steel (or resin painted in the case of Casio 😅) digital then a black resin digital, a diver, a field watch, a titanium watch, a GADA, etc.
I have found though that the watches I enjoy the most (and therefore use the most) are those with a good story so it’s mostly B now. For example, a reissue of Casio’s first digital watch or the first G-Shock.
C over almost anything
With B, I am more keen into storytelling of the product itself rather than the brand overall
I use my watchs as the tools they are and I work with my hands and I’m fairly hard on them so specs are very important to me. However the history and heritage of a watch is also important to me especially when it comes to the watches worn and used by the military. I am a proud combat veteran and come from a long line of military service men and women so it matters a great deal to me but a lot of those watches are just not packed with specs or are very expensive so I have no problem buying a homage with twice the specs for half the or even less then half the money because I’m going to beat the hell out of it any way. I do however own one or two that have a lot of history and heritage and not as many specs. I enjoy them a great deal and I just go a little easier on them and they do have a little bit different feeling when I put them on! So I guess it’s A and B for me.
In answer to the question what you’re paying for is the the heritage and the brand IMO. However I personally buy for look and feel (sometimes even if it will go with particular attire and my motorbike 🙄)
All the above for me
You're journey is similar to mine, and many others in this hobby. I think many of us "search for specs" when early on in our journey. As time goes on, we start caring less and less about the specs, and more of the watch as a whole, and how it makes us feel. It's always strange to me when I see someone say something like "Man, I really love that watch but it's only 50M water resistance, so I can't buy it." Buy the watch if you like it! I can almost guarantee that same person that won't buy a 50M watch has many other watches with more than 50M that could be worn in the super rare instance they actually need more than 50M. I have quite a few watches that are only 30M that I absolutely love. I couldn't imagine not buying them simply because of the lack of WR. I have plenty of other watches I could wear in the rare instance that I need more WR.
One other important thing I've learned over the years is to not give too much weight to dimensions/specs on a piece of paper. They are just numbers, and it often times doesn't paint a good picture of how the watch will look and wear on the wrist. People will say but 39mm is my max case size, if only that 40mm watch was 1mm smaller I would buy it. The funny thing about this I've had many 40mm watches that wear smaller than my 39mm watches, so that person that won't buy simply because of dimensions is just really limiting themselves on what watches are out there that could be enjoyed. I think that collectively, we all need to do a better job of keeping an open mind about watches.
I couldn't agree more! And really the point of being more open minded about watches not being fully represented on paper.
I think chasing specs and looking for the best specs at the lowest price is part of figuring out what you actually need, like, want, and will actually wear. I think that once you figure out those four points, buying watches becomes more of a "gut feeling" thing than a checklist.
I voted C, because none of the rest matters if I find the watch unappealing. I wear my watches primarily to tell the time, I just appreciate that a useful tool can also be a shiny bauble at the same time.
Yes, that gut feeling! Though sometimes I find myself going through periods of emptiness when I don't find something that resonates. 🤭
I started out with C, I wanted a steel (or resin painted in the case of Casio 😅) digital then a black resin digital, a diver, a field watch, a titanium watch, a GADA, etc.
I have found though that the watches I enjoy the most (and therefore use the most) are those with a good story so it’s mostly B now. For example, a reissue of Casio’s first digital watch or the first G-Shock.
Always nice to have a watch with a nice backstory for that deeper appreciation ☺️
I use my watchs as the tools they are and I work with my hands and I’m fairly hard on them so specs are very important to me. However the history and heritage of a watch is also important to me especially when it comes to the watches worn and used by the military. I am a proud combat veteran and come from a long line of military service men and women so it matters a great deal to me but a lot of those watches are just not packed with specs or are very expensive so I have no problem buying a homage with twice the specs for half the or even less then half the money because I’m going to beat the hell out of it any way. I do however own one or two that have a lot of history and heritage and not as many specs. I enjoy them a great deal and I just go a little easier on them and they do have a little bit different feeling when I put them on! So I guess it’s A and B for me.
Thank you for sharing your perspective. Of late I'm getting a little more intrigued with watches with military history. Care to share some notable ones? 😊
Yes, that gut feeling! Though sometimes I find myself going through periods of emptiness when I don't find something that resonates. 🤭
I've come to realize that most watches aren't really my thing. I know what I like, and I know what I have already, so my interest in new releases is pretty limited.
I never really loved "the chase", particularly once I figured out my preferences.
All of the above for me, but increasingly C, B/D in that order. Timekeeping is extremely important to me as my watch is my main timekeeper, so maybe C/D, B? Then again I love the history and heritage of these things so C/D/B? I know what I like at this point (dressy tools) so C definitely gets the vote if I have to pick just one.
Thank you for sharing your perspective. Of late I'm getting a little more intrigued with watches with military history. Care to share some notable ones? 😊
My favorites are the Bulova Hack and A11. Hamilton also made watches for the military. Of course Timex did in the 80s and Rolex was a military issued watch in the beginning. Benrus was a big one. They had one of my favorite all time military watches the Benrus Type 1 which they recently re-released if you have that kind of money to spend. I’m not sure what they cost but an original in ok condition well set you back 8 or 10 big ones. It’s a rabbit hole like the rest of the watch hobby.