Another basic item that should be part of our EDC essentials is the watch. Since their introduction in the 17th century (in the form of pocket watches), watches have played both a functional role (so people can tell the time at any moment) as well as a style one (people also wear them as a fashion statement or accessory).
Before starting your search for that perfect portable timepiece, there are a few things you need to know about them. Watches are built with different movements, displays, complications, and features. They also come in different styles, materials, and sizes. Not to mention the myriad of brands and manufacturers available in the market. So allow me to shed some light into all of these aspects for your consideration.
Important note: Smartwatches are not covered here, since they’re technically a completely different item. We’ll definitely cover them in a separate post, though, along with some related accessories.
Table of contents
- Watch brands
- Watch movements and displays
- Watch components and materials
- Watches by complication
- Watches by style
- Useful tips
- Key takeaways
Watch brands
There are literally hundreds of watch manufacturers all over the world. However, the most renowned companies (which possess a lot of history and tradition) are mainly located in three countries: Germany, Japan, and Switzerland.
The watch market is very specialized, with very fervent adopters and collectors. Like many other products, you’ll find a whole gamut of products in all shapes and sizes, and more importantly, price ranges. Some of the brands we’ll name here are considered luxury brands, whereas others may have different lines of products to accommodate different budget ranges.
Conglomerate groups
These are some of the major conglomerate groups worth mentioning, along with the brands that conform each of them. Chances are you’ve heard about more than one of these mainstream brands.
| Group | Brands |
|---|---|
| Swatch Group | Swatch, Tissot, Hamilton, Longines, Omega, Breguet, Harry Winston, Jaquet Droz, Blancpain, Flik Flak, Glashutte, Union, Certina, Rado, Mido, ETA |
| Richemont | Cartier, Vacheron Constantin, IWC, A. Lange & Sohne, Jaeger-LeCoultre, Mont Blanc, Van Cleef & Arpels, Baume & Mercier, Panerai, Piaget, Watchfinder & Co., Roger Dubuis |
| Seiko Group | Seiko, Orient, Credor, Grand Seiko |
| Citizen Group | Citizen, Bulova, Frederique Constant, Alpina, Miyota |
| LVMH | TAG Heuer, Zenith, Hublot, Bvlgari |
| Hans Wilsdorf | Rolex, Tudor |
| Kerring Group | Ulysse Nardin, Girard-Perregaux |
Independent brands
These are independent or privately owned brands such as Patek Philippe, Audemars Piguet, Breitling, Nomos, Sinn, Oris – just to mention a few.
Watch movements and displays
In general, watches can be first categorized by their movement (how they’re powered, i.e., mechanical or quartz), and their display (how they show the time, i.e., analog or digital). Let’s cover the basics for each of these two aspects.
Mechanical movement
Mechanical watch movements are divided into two types: manual and automatic. Both contain movement parts such as a mainspring and barrel, along with a gear train. Upon winding the spring tightly, it’ll use full mechanical energy to power the watch and allow it to keep the time. Hence, no battery is needed but they’re less accurate (+/- 20 seconds a day) than quartz movements.
Manual watches require periodical hand-winding to keep them functioning. Whereas automatic watches are self-winding thanks to a mast or a rotor mechanism, which will keep them going while you wear them. Bear in mind though that, when you stop wearing an automatic watch for a certain period of time, their power reserve will eventually run out. Thus, before wearing them again, you’ll need to wind them and set the actual time.
Quartz movement
Quartz watch movements, in contrast, are powered by an electric charge provided by a battery. It feeds energy to a quartz crystal that vibrates at a specific frequency, which in turn moves the hands to tell the time. These movements are actually more accurate (+/- seconds a month) and cheaper to produce than mechanical movements. Plus, you don’t need to worry about winding the watch or maintaining its power reserve. Having said that, you’ll need to replace the battery once it’s depleted (usually after two to five years).
A subtype of a quartz movement is the solar watch movement, which converts light energy received by a solar cell unit placed under the dial into electrical energy. As long as the watch is exposed to visible light (sunlight preferably though LED light also works), the rechargeable battery will keep being replenished. And voilà – no more battery replacements.
Analog watches
An analog watch features a typical clock dial and a three-hand mechanical or quartz movement. It tells time by pointing to indices of five-minutes increments, depicting roman or arabic numerals.
Digital watches
A digital watch features an electronic LED/LCD display with numerical digits to show you the time. It obviously uses electronic circuitry instead of moving parts in contrast to an analog watch.
Hybrid watches
As the name implies, a hybrid watch features both an analog dial and a digital display. It offers similar functionalities to a smartwatch, so it’s ideal for sports and fitness applications.
Watch components and materials
Now, let’s review the key components and materials found primarily in analogue watches, though of course a few may also apply to hybrid and digital watches (in some cases).
Case
Outermost main structure that shapes and protects the inner workings. Made of metal or plastic, its diameter and thickness are vital when sizing a watch.
Lugs
Protrusions coming out of the case, used to secure a strap or a bracelet to it. Lug to lug distance is also crucial when sizing a watch.
Crown
Knob on the outside of the case, usually positioned at 3 or 4 o’clock. Used to wind the watch or adjust time and complications.
Pushers
Buttons located on the outside of the case, around the crown. Used to control specific functions of a chronograph.
Crystal
Transparent component made of acrylic, glass, or sapphire (each with different scratch resistance). It protects the dial and inner components.
Case back
Removable plate on the reverse side of the case, provides access the movement mechanism.
Bezel
Usually made of metal, placed around the crystal to hold it in place on top of the case.
Dial
Plate base visible through the crystal with indications for hours, minutes, and seconds.
Hands
Indicators moving over the dial to point out the dial’s indications. Sometimes they have lume (or luminescence), to glow in the dark.
Aperture
Small openings on the dial that display information like date, day, month, or moon phase.
Indices
Markings on the dial used to represent time increments (hours and minutes). May also have lume material applied.
Subdials
Additional indicators for complications (e.g., chronograph) or other time measurements.
Strap or bracelet
Straps (made of plastic, fabric, or leather) and bracelets (made of metal), allow us to hold the case on the wrist.
Watches by complication
Another way you’ll find watches are classified by is in respect to the complications included in them. A complication is simply an additional feature, such as chronograph, moon-phase, or calendar. They’re usually present in mechanical watches, but you might find them in some quartz watches as well.
Chronograph
Equipped with a stopwatch function to measure elapsed times. Typically indicated by three subdials showing elapsed hours, minutes, and seconds separately.
Moon-phase
Originally developed for sailors predicting tides, nowadays is more of an astronomical flair. Displays full, half, quarter, or new phases of the moon.
Calendar
Capable of displaying the current day and date, or even the month in some cases, through specific apertures present in different locations within the dial.
Tourbillon
Meaning “whirlwind” in French, patented by Abraham-Louis Breguet. Designed to compensate for the ill effects of gravitational pull on the watch.
Travel
Designed to keep track of the time in two or more time zones simultaneously. Divided in GMT (for 2 or 3 time zones) and world-timers (for all 24 time zones in the world).
Skeleton
Also known as openworked, the dial or case back are either transparent or have apertures, which makes the movement construction visible.
Watches by style
And finally, the last way watches are categorized is by their style or application. Some watches may be built in a specific way to allow their use under more extreme conditions (e.g., underwater). Others will include features required for specific situations or occupations, where you might need to measure speed, distance, or orientation. Hence, chances are you’ve probably heard about aviator, racing, and diver watches at some point. Let me share a bit about the origin of such denominations and their purpose.
Sport watches
Intended for use while doing sports. Able to track heart rate, activity, sleep, pace, distance, and GPS in some cases.
Racing watches
Suitable for car or horse racing. Equipped with chronograph subdials to accurately track speed and distance.
Aviator watches
Originally developed for pilots. One of the most practical designs, including legibility, versatility, and durability.
Diver watches
Designed for diving and underwater activities, to track the time spent submerged. Usually offers water resistance to up to 200 meters.
Field watches
Introduced during WWII, intended for military use. They’re designed with ruggedness, reliability and easiness-to-read in mind.
Dress watches
Made with minimalism and elegance in mind, to be worn with formal wear for business or other dress up occasions.
Useful tips
Size properly
Here I’m not only talking about sizing the bracelet of your new watch to sit slightly loose, not too tightly, on your wrist. I’m also referring to the fact that you need to consider the watch size in comparison to your wrist measurements. Remember the case diameter/thickness and lug-to-lug distance I referred to earlier? This is where you need to take that data carefully into consideration.
For example, if your wrist has a circumference of 7 inches (roughly 17.8 cm), a watch with a diameter of 40 to 44 mm and a lug-to-lug distance of up to 51 mm will fit you perfectly. Anything smaller or larger than that, you might not pull it off. This is all very subjective and it’ll depend on your preference, of course. But a good rule of thumb is to always try a watch in person before buying to make sure it fits properly.
Choose for yourself
This might sound obvious but when choosing a watch, specially if you plan to spend some considerable money in it, you need to make sure you’re buying it for yourself. What I mean here is that you need to select it based on your personal taste and style.
You’re the one who’ll be wearing it. Avoid at all cost falling for trends or hype surrounding certain brands or models. Or buying a watch you don’t particularly like or can afford, simply because you want to impress someone or for false pretenses.
Know where to buy
First warning, and I can’t stress this enough, avoid the black market at all costs – unless you want to acquire a fake watch. Next we have what we call the grey market, these are basically unauthorized watch sellers that buy watches in bulk at a discount. Completely legal, but you may only obtain a limited warranty when buying a watch from this source. Online retailers or shops (other than jewelries) fall within this category.
Pre-owned sellers are a cheaper option, particularly if you’d like to buy a luxury or vintage watch. Nevertheless, here you’ll also have to exercise some caution to ensure you’re buying a legit item. Finally, buying from authorized dealers (i.e., jewelries) or directly from manufacturers would be your best option, if you care about obtaining a factory warranty and be covered for repairs. Major downside when buying from these sources, of course, is that you’ll probably pay retail prices.
Key takeaways
Here are the key points you should know about watches:
- There are many watch brands in the market, from luxury brands to more affordable ones offering quality products.
- Watches are categorized by their movement (mechanical or quartz) and display type (analog or digital).
- The two major components of a watch are the case (metal or plastic) and the strap/bracelet, usually made of leather, plastic, fabric, or metal.
- Within and outside the case you have other components such as dial, crown, crystal, indices, and hands.
- Common watch complications are chronograph, calendar, travel, moon-phase, tourbillon, and skeleton.
- Main watch styles are sport, aviator, field, racing, diver, and dress.
- Useful tips to help you find the perfect watch are to size properly, choose for yourself, and know where to buy.
I trust you’ll find this information helpful during your search for that perfect timepiece. Stay tuned for future posts (check out our recent posts here). Should you have any questions, please leave a comment below or reach out to us. Until next time!