What's an underrated watch brand in your opinion? (One answer each for watchaholics & Normal people))
I think compared to most of y'all I'm relatively new to this "hobby" (honestly I think it to be more of an interest, but I digress).
In that time, I've obviously found some brands stick out more than others. Rolex, obviously, is the most famous, Richard Mille (and to a lesser extent, Hublot) are known for being hideous, etc.
At the same time, brands change. Christopher Ward was (and on a larger scale) an unknown brand but has gained quite a bit of traction, which makes me wonder...
What brand is the most underrated? Two answers to this I feel, one for watchaholics like us, and one for normal, everyday people.
High school student atm - Anything over $100 is a lot - Dials > Movements (after all the dial is what u see) - Would like to learn how to make watch straps & dials on my own Open to talk about most th...
Certina and Swatch.
Lundis Bleus
Maybe zenith
Minase
https://minasewatches.com
There are so many out there... It drives me nuts when I see another brand I don't know but recently, Formex has piqued my interest the most.
DuFrane. Insane value for money with stellar customer service.
Nomos
Nomos
I think the watch community is big with this one but less so people out of our loupe (😉
Of the big brands, I'd say #citizen. Reliable movements, good build quality, attractive pieces, and competitively priced.
For enthusiasts, #xeric Very unique and interesting designs.
Up until recently, Longines. Were not in most conversations, now they are the Belle of the Ball, and deservedly so.
Nothing particularly special, but Geckota was a pleasant surprise for me.
Citizen
Rolex
DuFrane. Insane value for money with stellar customer service.
True that
Longines
I think Festina is under rated. They are their own brand. They are original and their models don't appear copied off of anyone. They have been around for a long time also.
I’ll go deeper and say the SLA series in Seiko is very underrated. 8l35 movement (Grand Seiko) and zaratsu polishing.
I think Maurice Lacroix
Resco and Marathon
Formex- every release punches above its weight; great design and the ‘top tier’ brands can’t meet the value they offer
Raketa.
Ball. #ball
High quality watches with American heritage and Swiss made.
For the affordable catagory: Pagani Design., great specs and solid finishes.
Zenith to the normal folks
Tough to limit the answer to one + one, but...
For watchaholics: definitely Breguet.
For "normal people": Casio's Oceanus.
Minase
https://minasewatches.com
Great choice! I wish they came up on the secondary market more often, cause I'd definitely pick one up at a discount.
Fredrique Constant for watch folks, and Seiko for general population.
FC offers an aging range for entry level luxury dress watches, to sporty options like the Highlife range, to its innovative tech like it's Monolithic movement and "affordable" tourbillion.
Seiko seems considered equal to Timex and big box/mall offerings by most folks. Even Citizen and Bulova I bet are seen as more name brand to the general population with Seiko being this other brand sometimes seen in the case. I think this is because most big box/mall ADs sell lower end models - Tissot seems to escape this due to the Gentleman, Visodate, and/or PRX being pushed by most dealers and is probably considered high end luxury - which is a matter of perspective and not wrong in terms of the hierachy of needs.
Gshock
Mido is hugely underrated in my opinion.
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Certina/Grand Seiko