Watch the Watches!

Christopher Ward Malvern, A Truly Affordable Luxury Watch

2009-05-25T00:09:00.000-07:00

Most times men need watches - particularly a good one because watches help them to dress up. However, not all people can spend their fortunes for Rolex, Breitling, or Omega.

Unfortunately, there's only a very short list (and I mean real short) for well-built watches with good movements, not to mention the design.

I find out Christopher Ward to be the most affordable watch with the same quality and beauty to those who priced several times higher. The good news is (and yeah I know it's hard to believe), this beautiful Swiss automatic movement watch only needs GBP 280 from your wallet to move in your wardrobe!

Well then check out this Malvern. The quality is almost unbelievable for the price. It is well made, well designed to its details, and powered up by either the famous ETA 2824-2 or Sellita SW200. It has sapphire crystal glass too, and it's 50 m waterproof. And screw in crown! Plus, since they have moved their production line to Jura Mountain in Switzerland, it is now Swiss Made in gorgeous British design!

How's so? Well, the founder apparently has learned that all good brand watches such as Rolex and Omega start out with the same production cost. What make them expensive are the middlemen, the salespeople, the abundant amount of advertising, and mark-up price to maintain exclusivity. You can imagine how much money Omega spent for being the official Beijing Olympic Games timekeeper, or for just appear in Daniel Craig's James Bond movie.

CW cut all those things, rely on word of mouth testimonials and they sell directly from their office online. Such strategy effectively reduce the price to only a few bucks.

And voila! Here comes the $400 watch that can match the $2000 ones!

Quartz vs. Automatic - Which is Which?

2009-05-14T10:17:00.001-07:00

Talking about clocks and watches these days we always come to two polars: the Quartz and the Mechanical / Automatic. Which one is the true timekeeper and which one is the true timepieces? Here's a brief description.

The Mechanical / Automatic Movements
At the beginning when the first time men built their own timepieces, they were always made of mechanical works. There were no other ways. From the shadow of the stick to the invention of mechanical wound spring, the architecture of clocks and watches reflects the technology of men.

A mechanical watch consists of many tiny parts which rotates, revolves, swings, triggers, and ticks. Today it could be manually wound or automatically wound, a.k.a. self-winding. Either way, they were a symbol of high civilization and accomplishment of physics.

Mechanical movements are subject to errors. This is natural and unavoidable. Precision is gained by close-tuning but it can never be truly precise. A standard mechanical movement is considered 'precise' enough if it is gaining or loosing less than 30 sec per day. A chronometer is a mechanical movement which is designed, tuned, and certified for a fine result of less than 10 sec errors per day.

The Quartz Movement
Quartz is some sort of crystals which has a unique characteristic: they emit an electrical energy if they are loaded with some mechanical stress. By changing the stress a certain frequency is gained and this is used as the base of measuring the time.

Although its precision is far better than a mechanical watch, this new technology was not welcomed very well in Switzerland - the lore of the fine watchmakers - at the first time. Most of them said that the quartz was not a part of the watchmaking art, and it was a disregard to the watchmaking tradition.

The quartz technology was then adapted very well by the Japanese and they could make a far more accurate watch at even less than 1/100 price of a mechanical Swiss-made watch. It happened in 1970's when the Japanese brands were sold everywhere worldwide and the big recession of the Swiss watchmakers started.

Today, you can easily find a wall-clock, driven by a very low-end quality Chinese movement with cheap and lousy plastic gears, and yet, still keeping the time precisely!

How do you like your watch?
People buy a watch because its design fits them (and its budget too). But people choose quartz watches over the mechanical ones because either they are relatively cheaper or they keep time accurately, or both reasons. All they need is just plug the battery and forget.

On the contrary, those who love and adore the sophisticated engineering will pick mechanical watches. Wearing one of it you'd feel like you have something more to say (and to brag) compared than wearing a quartz watch. For a quartz one, it feels like: "it's electronic, I don't know how it works but it keeps time. Period. There are nothing more to say."; rather than when someone looks through the back of a mechanical watch (which is usually made transparent) and get astonished by how plenty of tiny gears and rotors work together, wonder how on earth this device could tell the time and how genius the inventors!

There is one major drawback on mechanical watches - they are expensive! But again, the Japanese technology have succeeded to introduce their own movements which can match the famous Swiss ones with lesser cost. As for today, we can also see the Chinese, Thailand, and some other movements but only the time can tell their quality. They still have to walk a long way to prove themselves and build their reputations.

So in my humble opinion, the quartz is the true timekeeper, while the mechanical movement is the true masterpiece of a timepiece.

6 Affordable Watches to Top Your Look Without Squeezing Your Wallet

2009-05-13T07:16:00.000-07:00

Men buy watches and women buy purses. These days watches serve more as men's jewelery than time-keeping devices. Almost all of us carry cellular phones, so telling the time is not a big deal.

Either you're attending a business meeting with your client or going dinner with your date, people can tell who you are by looking what you wear on your wrist. For this purpose, not only your watch must match your attire, it must crown your overall character!

Now that you've decide to pick one, there are few things you might want to consider. First, you definitely want your watch to last forever, at least until you get bored with it. So avoid goldy tones, unless you have enough grands to afford a solid gold one. Gold plated and PVDs eventually will fade away no matter how good they are! It is true, though, that the more expensive the longer they last.

Second, you can pick a quartz or an automatic. Automatic watches are symbol of high craftsmanship and fascinating engineering, which can draw more attention. They are more expensive than quartz, and by supplying yourself with just a bit of knowledge about it people can see that you're a man with a taste.

So here's what I recommend, 6 subtle, elegant, and classic look which will dress you up to almost all occasions from time to time.

1. Tissot Ballade III T97.1.483.31
Tissot has been in the game of timekeeping since 1853. With over than 150 years here come the elegance of design that won't broke your finance. It costs only a few bucks.

Tissot Ballade III has all the details and quality that make your client envy you. It has nothing to do but telling the time clearly, though, but the details are unmistakably eye-catching.

Powered with ETA 2824-2, you can't be wrong selecting this one.

While this automatic version has date indicator at 4 o'clock, the quartz version which costs lower has it at 3 o'clock.

For you who fancy gold tone, this Ballade also comes in two-tone color. It looks irresistable, but bear the consequence once you decide to buy it - it only takes time before it lasts.

2. Oris Classic
This might be a watch which would stand all decades. It's simplicity is truly timeless, the design is not much but the more you wear it the more you love it.

This watch also costs a few bucks. The size is 37 mm. If you have larger wrists you can pick the 42 mm diameter version with full numbers around its dial. It has the same beauty nonetheless.

There's something about Oris - their collections could make all eyes fixed on them. The design is truly stunning.

Powered by the red rotor, which is the signatures of all Oris watches, this pick will surely give you the classy and subtle look.

3. Louis Erard Classic Moonphase

Perhaps you'd prefer a classic watch with some distinct function that would make your business partner couldn't help to ask? Try this one!

It has pointer date rather than usual date indicator and a moonphase indicator. This high quality watch won't make your look cheesy and complicated with many dials, though.

Louis Erard is a distinctive middle brand, but they are quite adorable. It is a bit expensive, yes, it worths a couple grand but you can buy it around $1300 - $1500 from a non-authorized dealer. Choose the dealer wisely, and you'll have this Swiss made adorable timepiece with no fuss.

4. Golana Advance AD.10.3

Ever heard of Golana? Well, yes, they are quite new in crafting timepieces. But hey, all journeys begin with a single step, right?

So, you have big postures, big wrists, and you decide to go classy with a bit of masculine attraction. This watch is a perfect choice for you. Sapphire glass - that means scratch resistance - Swiss made automatic watch, neat and carefully crafted, this 42mm diameter watch sells out only less than $500! It even sells out $350 at local dealers.

It won't rob you, really!

5. Movado Horwitt
Now we're talking about the legend. Movado's signature was designed few decades ago and it still lasts today! The simplest, the plainest one. The signature which people can tell the brand by just taking a quick glance. Empty dials with just hour and minute hands with small circle at 12. People say it's the sign of the high noon or moon.

It comes with plenty variations with the same trade-mark dial. Also comes in quartz (which means cheaper), you can easily find this Movado affordable at $400-$600.

Movado is now a group of Swatch International, and that means you can't go wrong with it.

6. Baume et Mercier Classic Executive Chronograph
Who says that a chronographs looks too much masculine and can't fit the classy style? Check out this one.

Baume et Mercier's design brings out maturity and surely will emphasize your look. See it by yourself and you'll running out of words describing it.

It is probably the most expensive one here, it goes around $2000, but once you have it you might want nothing else. For you who love sports and measure anything with time, or just want to look a bit complicated, then save your money for this investment.