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Humanity has always held a fascination – an outright unbreakable connection with time, evidenced by the sun dial all the way to the ticking clock. Fast forward to the present day and we have smart phones and all manners of gadgets that can tell the time far more effectively than even the grandfather clocks of old. However, one particular device that has continued to be popular despite its age is none other than the wristwatch.
Starting out at first as just a passing fad, the wrist watch has since achieved cult status, becoming more of a symbol of the times rather than simply a device that tells time, and our website is more than happy to offer a modern buyer’s guide featuring the latest male watches and women alike.
Whether you are looking for the best men’s watches or perhaps the best watches for ladies, our buyer’s guide can help you narrow your search – from the most popular watches for men all the way to a Stuhrling watch review.
Watch buyers guide
Unfortunately, the full potential of a quality wristwatch is often lost on the casual observer due to the fact that the market has become over-saturated with watches of any and all kinds. The best deals on watches aren’t those that involve cheap knockoffs – it involves the very best in every aspect and not just the price.
For example, when compared to luxury timepieces purchasing a simple plastic watch is just that, a purchase. Whereas the former is a true investment because the best luxury watches are created using materials that only become more valuable as time goes on, and the fact that these watches tend to last indefinitely (alongside an incredibly long warranty) practically guarantees that with enough time, the best Swiss watches will easily be able to compete with any family heirloom. The top brands are not only about looks, which is why our buyer’s guide is here to show you exactly how and why a luxury timepiece completely overshadows any kind of knockoff no matter how closely they resemble the real thing.
The next thing to watch for is the weight of the watch. Remember that you are looking for a true quality timepiece – not a toy. With so many materials and components you can bet your bottom dollar that a quality watch will always be much heavier than any kind of knockoff. While this can sometimes be imitated by a knockoff, the heft of a watch almost always means quality.
Of course the name as well as the tradition are perhaps the most obvious clues to a quality made watch, as Swiss branding and Rolex will tell you. As a matter of fact, any simple watch review will show that the legend behind the tradition of a well-known wrist watch has outlived that of many others and will also likely outlive yours – definite proof of a good investment.
Hand-wound (mechanical), quartz or battery?
There are plenty of different luxury watch types available which is why it is common for people to be confused as to which would be considered the ultimate kind. But what are the general differences between the types of watches available?
The hand-wound mechanical watches are some of the most expensive and count among the highest quality watches for men. This is mainly due to the fact that hand-wound watches that are painstakingly made with an incredibly complex array of different springs and gears. This kind of craftsmanship cannot be overlooked, but a hand-wound watch will not be able to tell time as well as a battery or quartz watch can; requiring to be wound every year at least.
On the other hand, battery-powered watches seem far more common now. These digital watches are powered by a very small battery and are not only very accurate, but they also last quite a long time (though not as long as hand-wound watches). These watches are the most convenient of the three types, and plenty of men’s big watches are often digital watches.
Last but certainly not the least quartz watches, these are devices that use an electrified piece of quartz crystal which vibrates to manipulate its analog parts. The quartz watch is the most accurate timekeeper and count as some of the greatest quality watches available for men. Whereas the battery watch is the most casual and the hand-wound watches the most prestigious, the quartz-powered analog timepiece sits comfortably in the middle. As for which piece you should go for, it is all about whether or not you care about prestige or investment.
Analog or digital?
Wearing the right watch for the right occasion is often something that people stress over, but in reality it is actually quite simple. You don’t have to go for a popular men’s watch each and every time to look good. For example, a digital watch normally has either a liquid crystal display (LCD), or a light emitting diode (LED). They generally show the time in an easy-to-figure numeric form and are best used during casual occasions. Battery-powered watches almost always have a digital interface, but some have the option to switch to analog if you do so wish – we will count that as some of the more unusual watches for men in our buyer’s guide.
On the other hand, watches that are specifically analog are timepieces that have hour and number hands, typically revolving around a twelve-hour day. It is the classic look and way of telling time, and both quartz as well as the hand-wound type is strictly analog in nature. Because these kinds of watches generally carry a degree of prestige they are at their best when worn on formal occasions or during business meetings. However, both quartz and hand-wound watches will still be a welcome sight to see during casual outings because of the craftsmanship of their make. Many of the highest quality watches for women are analog rather than digital.
When it all boils down to it, your preference is truly what matters here. If you are uncomfortable wearing any kind of digital watch and would rather have the classic analog no matter where you go, that is perfectly reasonable. Whereas if you enjoy the utilitarian qualities of a digital watch and its ease of use, feel free to use it anywhere you wish.
What case (frame) and band type?
Now that we have gotten both the type of watch as well as the analog and digital face of the watch out of the way, we can start talking about the case or the band type for your watch. For the former, there is a vast amount of options to explore. For example, the shape of an analog or digital case can be square, it can be round or it can be anything in between (such as polygonal). The material of the analog case itself can be customized to create a look that is unique to you. For example, the finish of the case can be matte or it can be shiny. It can have a certain pattern such as those present in some of the most popular modern men’s watches, or it can even be inlaid with all kinds of jewels – which are prominent in the most popular large face men’s watches.
Even the material of the case itself can be changed to your liking. When it comes to prestigious analog watches, you will see on our Swiss Legend watch reviews, only the most precious materials are used. Watchmakers can mix and match these materials with less expensive ones to eventually end up with a watch that doesn’t immediately break the bank.
As for the band, if it is the kind that is present in quartz or hand-wound watches then it will most likely be made of leather. Otherwise, it will either be made from the same case material or it will be plastic (if the watch is digital). Many men’s watch reviews would say that the more expensive the better, but if it’s able to look the part without costing too pretty a penny, there’s no harm in it.
Sports and gadget watches
Last but not least we’ll be talking about some of the more unusual but awesome men’s watches – sports and gadget watches. For the former, sports watches usually are considered to be the upper echelons of digital watches; often made from only the best type of composite material available. This is why just about every single true-quality sporting watch available has features such as water-resistance, compasses, and altimeters while the best even sport GPS technology. Many of the men’s watches online are sporting watches, because these types of watches have bridged the rather large gap between watches of prestige and casual watches thanks to the popularity of these sporting timepieces.
However, those who are looking to buy men’s watches simply for the number of different features have a much better option in the form of gadget watches. These are the end-all be all of gadgetry in watches and are filled to the brim with just about any piece of convenient technology you can think to slap on a wristwatch (for example, calculators or the ability to check your e-mail). It is incredibly useful for engineers or those who happen to be very tech-savvy, but it is not normally the premier choice of people who are simply looking for a timepiece. After all, most smart phones are already more than capable of picking up the slack as far as applications and gadgets go. There are still some people who go for the gadget watch simply because of the novelty of it however.
This just goes to show how important watches are even in the modern world. Our buyer’s guide can most definitely help in choosing just the right watch for you. From Stuhrling and Seiko to Nixon watch reviews, we have everything covered.
