Watches that punch above their weight class… can you name a few?

Every Zelos.

Christopher Ward, their entire current catalog. 

I second the Q Timex.  I also love their M79 automatic inspired by the Qs and of course the Marlin's both 40mm and 34mm.  I also think Bulova, Citizen and Hamilton punch above their price range.

Among my watches - My Super Sea Wolf!  Historic company, COSC certified movement, 200m, it came with nice tropical band AND a gorgeous jubilee bracelet.    Oh - also a sticker and a patch!  I'm still looking for a use for those last 2 items...  all for 1k USD for my near new used one!!  A year ago when the exchange rate didn't suck as bad!!  Even new they were only about $1300 USD.  Running at +/- 1 second 😁

Thank you @KristianG !!!   CW is a brand that looks to be meeting and/or exceeding the criteria, not something I considered at all... 

Thank you @Jimmer ❤ the insider tips and heartfelt recommendations.  Looking forward to growing the collection and branching out so the roots not only go deep but wide...

Couple of brands come to mind, which I apologize if some are repeats and some get sick of hearing about:

• Many Seikos - There are some presages and prospex that are simply amazing for the money. 
• Monta - I know, I know...stop it Monta fan boy, but once you play with them in person, use the bracelet, etc, you will get it. You will then wonder why just about every bracelet on a sub $2000 cannot be as good.
• Farer - So many great watches at reasonable prices.
• Tudor - What? How can a $3k-$4k watch punch above their weight class? Ask Omega about what Tudor has done to their market share. 
• Tissots with the Powermatic 80 movement. 
• Select Grand Seikos - They have definitely caught up to their value, but there are still deals to be had. 
• Hamilton Intramatic Chrono 

Monta and Farer, I heard of just recently - definitely worthy of my consideration against the big brands @AllTheWatches .   I totally agree with Tudor although I still do not currently own any offerings from the brand.  My Seiko 5 SRPE51 grey dial is my Tudor BB Heritage 36 substitute w/ day & date. The demand is high on their popular models but I am patient. 

Love Tissots and I purchased and recommended the Powermatic 80 movements for family and friends.  Love my Hamilton 38mm KFA but found the Hamilton Intra-matic Chrono 40mm not to my liking from a lug to lug perspective for my wrist size.

Finally for Grand Seiko, I prefer the manual wind or quartz movements.  Not a big fan of the power reserve indicator on the dial.  Would consider models with the rear power reserve indicator, when going for the automatic spring drives but would largely depend on the price/value like you say... 

Liking the aquamarine colour way match with the pool backdrop @Fieldwalker .  Looks like a perfect perk me up watch for when the nights get longer...

The three that come to mind are:

• Tissot PRX
• Longines Conquest
• Citizen Collection NB1060-12L

Honestly I feel like while some watches might have excellent value, I think it's more because similar watches are overpriced than because the watches cost what they do. Since I don't know the general production cost of watches, it makes it hard to judge which are great value and which are not. 

I think you are absolutely correct, because "punching above ones weight class" is more or less a failure to price correctly. That could either mean that the competition is hyped, or that the brand is unpopular for whatever reason. I've found that if a brand has to price a product a certain way, aside from temporary market shifts, there is always a reason.

As with pricier watches being aspirational products, we're not talking about cost plus pricing, but the value created in the mind of the customer.

I have the first two and I must say you nailed it! 
 

As a quartz lover I'd say Casio and Citizen. Though I think a lot of Casios designs are pretty ugly they have a few nice ones.

This one is an absolute spec monster. For 160 bucks you get titanium (ultra light and comfy on the skin), solar, sapphire, radio controlled, excellent sizing and ultra wide/flat back for comfort. And digital timers and alarms which are super useful and missing on 99% of other nice watches. It even has a great orange LED light which isn't as harsh on the eyes as many other options.

Lume is only visible in pitch black rooms but then it does last all night.

Agreed, thank you! "Failure to price correctly" is an excellent way to put it.

For me it's odd, because I try to only buy watches that I think have great value. However, if the watches I own cost more than what I paid for them, I likely would have explored other options. Wouldn't that mean that the watches I own are spot on in their pricing, and not "offering more than what they cost"? To me that means that the watches I've bought personally are worth what I paid for them (subjectively), and that any watches that don't offer comparable features are simply overpriced. 

"Value created in the mind of the consumer" is also a good phrase that I wish I had thought of. 

These darn watches are expensive! It's hard for me to think I get amazing value out of any of them - - but that doesn't stop me from enjoying the ones I own, and ogling over ones that are even pricier. 

Yes @Santana718  forgot to consider the hand wind mechanical version that sits lower on the wrist for sure...  Did you get it in the metal or leather band ?  Light or Dark side ? Enjoy...

Definitely worth a mention: Seiko snxs79k

Fits lower on the wrist and the height is not as pronounced as the number suggest given that the height of the box sapphire crystal is higher than the automatic version.  I got the one on a leather band with the white/cream dial.  

Casio GM-2100. I dare you to find a better crafted, metal ana/digi watch below $200!!

Definitely fits lower on the wrist and the height isn’t as pronounced as the measurements suggest.  The boxes sapphire takes up a good chunk of the height.  I purchased the cream/white dial version on leather. 

Here's my three suggestions...

Orient Kamasu. Almost certainly the most consistently praised value diver on this forum and for good reason. 

Citizen Ray Mears. A 300m Titanium eco drive beater in a fashionably small case. Not on everyone's radar but it really should be?

Steinhart Ocean Vintage Military. Yes its a homage  to the super rare £100k Rolex Milspec but since almost all of us can never buy that watch I for one can enjoy a German overenginered watch with a decent Swiss movement for less than four hundred quid?

I own the first two and am about to buy the third. This time next year I will be enthusing about three entirely different watches!!

But that is the joy of this affliction!

Hamilton, Chris Ward, zelos, 

but it also depends what you’re comparing to what….

glashutte original and JLC punch above their weight IMHO.  They’re expensive but they are built to the same or even a higher level than some more expensive pieces.  

Nomos 

what you can get for 1000€ is simply amazing. Own Style, Inhouse Movements and great dials.

Seiko Snkl45 

Orient kamasu 

Keiko dresskx srpe51k1 

Casio gshock gwm5610-1 solar 200m

I find certain brands offer so many that it is better to just name the overall brands :

Orient

Christopher Ward

Seagull

Tissot

Edox

Ball

William Wood

Almost every seiko 5 out there

Got give a shout out to Islander Manhasset and a few other of their pieces thb.

Halios fantastic watch for under 1000.00 

The Club 38 Campus ref 735 and the Tangente ref 101 are pretty sweet 🤝

GM-2100B-3AER 👍🤪😁