Hodinkee
Editors' Picks: Our Favorite Budget Watches Of 2024
With prices seemingly ever on the rise, can you still get a great watch for under $1,500?
20,857 articles · 5,911 videos found · page 466 of 893
Hodinkee
With prices seemingly ever on the rise, can you still get a great watch for under $1,500?
Worn & Wound
Over time, I’ve come to realize that my favorite emotion to experience in this hobby is surprise. That could be because I work in the watch industry and am therefore exposed to so many watches that are the opposite of surprising. Predictability, in any job, leads to a certain amount of drudgery. But those moments of surprise, seeing or reading about a watch that you didn’t expect or couldn’t have conceived of, more than make up for it. By the same token, I understand that for some in our community, surprise or any rocking of the boat is less desirable. If you view watches from a strictly classicist perspective, you might roll your eyes at purely adventurous designs in the same way I do at watches that seem to just be repeating what has come before. Part of me, I have to admit, envies the watch enthusiasts who can see a vintage inspired, black dialed dive watch and be ready to throw the rest of it away. There’s an idea that I keep turning around in my head, that watches were never really intended to be “collected,” that one good one is all anyone really needs, so there’s something correct about seeing a watch like a Tudor Black Bay (a watch I own and love, and even won a Thunderdome with) and feeling like you’ve just a met a watch that will be with you forever. At this point, that’s just not me, and I find myself seeking out watches that feel obscure, strange, or neglected somehow. I want to discover new, under the radar, and risky designs made by crea...
Fratello
Roughly six months ago, I penned my first article on a Venezianico watch. It was impressive considering I hadn’t heard of the brand. Since then, I’ve covered several of the company’s watches from a distance. I finally met the team and saw the watches in person at the WatchPro Salon 2024. Among the pieces we […] Visit Hands-On With The New Venezianico Arsenale Ultrablack And Blue to read the full article.
Time+Tide
Rado's signing of Green reflects how the Swiss watch industry is finally taking cricket seriously... And that they've got a soft spot for Aussies.The post A dinner with Rado and their new ambassador, top Australian cricketer Cameron Green appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.
Fratello
Among all watches, the Cartier Santos de Cartier is my muse. My Santos Galbée XL is my favorite watch in my collection, so I’m always curious to see what new variations will debut among the novelties at Watches and Wonders. This year was particularly exciting because Cartier announced the new Santos de Cartier Dual Time […] Visit Hands-On: The Cartier Santos De Cartier Dual Time Is Great In Numerous Ways to read the full article.
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SJX Watches
The Voutilainen Tourbillon 20th Anniversary is the most complicated serial-production watch in the Voutilainen catalogue. Modelled on Kari Voutilainen’s first-ever watch, a pocket watch made in 1994, the anniversary tourbillon is a wristwatch that is typical Voutilainen in style and substance. The design is classical while the quality of execution is exceptionally high. Initial thoughts The anniversary tourbillon is predictable in a good way – it looks, feels, and functions as you would expect from a Voutilainen. Even at arm’s length the quality of the watch is apparent. The guilloche on the dial is refined and tidy, while the movement decoration is impeccable. Zoom in and the movement decoration gets even better, which is unsurprising since Voutilainen likely offers the best movement decoration that’s done in an artisanal manner yet at scale (the brand makes perhaps 100 watches a year). The overall quality of the watch is outstanding, and the movement especially so. The details of the bridges are perfectly executed, while the steel parts are elegantly shaped and flawlessly polished. As impressive as the decoration itself is the fact that Voutilainen can do this consistently across all its watches for a reasonable-ish price – a testament to the company that Mr Voutilainen has built. As a wristwatch, however, the movement lacks the scale of the pocket watch. As such, the wristwatch movement feels a little constricted compared to the pocket watch.Everything is clos...
Worn & Wound
This year marks the 100th anniversary of Citizen’s very first watch. Over the past several years, Citizen has expanded its reach into the enthusiast watch market with a series of releases that deliver exceptional value in materials, technology, and aesthetics-while retaining broad mass-market appeal. A forward-thinking approach to innovation has always been a cornerstone of Citizen’s identity, making their watches ideal gifts for tech enthusiasts. You know the type-those who always have the latest and greatest gadgets. With groundbreaking advancements like Eco-Drive light-powered functionality, custom materials like Super Titanium, and superior accuracy through Satellite Wave GPS and Atomic Timekeeping, Citizen offers something truly special for the gadget lover in your life. The post Holiday Gift Guide: Watches for the Tech Enthusiast in Your Life Featuring Citizen appeared first on Worn & Wound.
Fratello
During last month’s WatchPro Salon 2024 in London, we met with Horage and saw several pieces from the brand’s upcoming Omnium K2 collection. Due to a faceted crystal, these watches are a notably different take on a dress watch. I came away impressed with the creative approach. Horage has been in business for 15 years, […] Visit Introducing: The Horage Omnium K2 Collection to read the full article.
Monochrome
Following a drastic change of strategy in recent years, Louis Vuitton‘s watchmaking division is being primed to become a serious player. As part of the new strategy, Arnault has taken the flagship Tambour watch, launched in 2002, and revisited it as a luxury sports watch, while the Louis Vuitton Escale was reintroduced as a time-only […]
Quill & Pad
This is the story of GaryG's pursuit, and eventual capture, of a classic vintage watch: a Type 20 “big eye” flyback chronograph manufactured by Mathey-Tissot.
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Time+Tide
Whether you're a ring or no-ring kind of person, getting hitched is as good of an excuse as you could get to gift or be gifted a new watch.The post 6 of the best engagement watches appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.
Fratello
Yes, you read that correctly. I think the new Omega Seamaster Diver 300M, with its steel dial, titanium bezel, and mesh bracelet, is wrong. Allow me to explain myself. Historically, combining the 1990s case design with a mesh bracelet that originated a couple of decades before that doesn’t make sense. As a dive watch, it […] Visit Hands-On: The New Omega Seamaster Diver 300M With A Steel Dial And Titanium Bezel to read the full article.
Fratello
Hi there, and welcome to Fratello Talks. Would you rather buy a watch from a microbrand or an entry-level legacy brand? That’s the question Nacho, Thomas, and Lex ask themselves today. As we’ve begun to see microbrands develop and offer better quality and undeniable value while entry-level big-name brands stand relatively still, this has certainly become […] Visit Fratello Talks: Microbrands Vs. Entry-Level Legacy Brands to read the full article.
SJX Watches
The Submersible Elux LAB-ID PAM01800 is Panerai’s fourth LAB-ID “concept” watch, but probably the most interesting watch in its current catalogue from a technical standpoint. It’s a big, complex watch – inside the 49 mm ceramised titanium case is a movement with six mainsprings. More accurately, it has a conventional movement with twin barrels, plus an illumination module with four of its own mainsprings that generate enough to light up the dial, hands, and bezel for a lengthy 30 minutes. Initial thoughts For the most part I prefer traditionally-styled Panerai watches, either the vintage remakes or the 1990s-type 44 mm models (though I admit the brand’s recent calendar complications are done well). The Submersible Elux hardly resembles a vintage Panerai, but is one of the rare modern creations that is appealing, both in terms of concept and execution, but not so much price-wise. The Submersible Elux is both ridiculous and cool. It’s enormous at 49 mm and also costs just under US$100,000. But it’s arguably the greatest evolution of the historical Panerai speciality of glow-in-the-dark dive watches. And the price is explained in part by the small scale of production in Switzerland. Granted, at this price the PAM01800 isn’t a practical diving instrument, but the technology inside is interesting and notably sophisticated compared to past attempts at light-up watches, all of which suffered from impractically short illumination or power reserve. In time, the te...
Worn & Wound
There are niche watches, and then there are niche watches. A dive watch on its own, if you think about, is a very specific kind of thing, and in spite of their incredible popularity, we shouldn’t forget that they’re built for a highly specific purpose that almost nobody wearing one will ever participate in. A vintage inspired dive watch with an alarm that can be heard underwater is even more specific, and a dive watch with an alarm that can be heard underwater and has been designed to imagine what an example of this watch might have looked like if it existed ten years before the actual watch it’s inspired by – well, that’s about as far down the rabbit hole as most will care to go. But that’s what Massena LAB and Vulcain have cooked up for their new collaboration, and it’s one of the strangest and most charming watches of the year. The Vulcain Nautical Legacy Massena LAB can perhaps be most easily understood as a new spin on the Vulcain Nautical Cricket, which was revived last year. The watch we covered last summer was Vulcain’s attempt at bringing back a truly strange diver that takes a genuinely different approach to the very idea of “timing” a dive. The Nautical effectively brings the no-decompression table to the dial itself, and through the setting of the alarm and matching it with the dive’s depth, the diver can calculate the length of their decompression stops as they make their way to the surface. Again, truly niche, and an early example of t...
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Worn & Wound
In this video, we take a look at some of the best field watches on the market priced under $1,000. We look at 21 different watches in both a modern and traditional format from brands like Timex, Seiko, Citizen, and Formex, just to name a few. While the definition of field watch can be a little bit murky, we tried to pick a bit of a variety of watches to fit any personal preference while staying true to the core values of legibility, durability, and a sense of simplicity. Deep rooted in military tradition, the field watch tends to fit a certain bill though I am sure a few on this list will surprise you. We will be creating more content like this in the future, so be sure to follow along on our Windup Watch Shop YouTube channel for more! The post 21 Of The Best Field Watches For Under $1,000 appeared first on Worn & Wound.
Monochrome
For its latest collaboration watch, NYC-based design studio Massena LAB is teaming up with venerable, alarm-specialist watchmaker Vulcain, bringing its own take on an emblematic model, the Cricket Nautical. This watch, which relied on the brand’s signature chiming complication, was one of the first of its kind, merging diving credentials with the alarm feature that […]
Fratello
If you compare horology and science, Urwerk must be fundamental science. The house does not ask what people need. Instead, it asks what is possible on the fringes. The Urwerk UR-230 is a prime example. Its dual-turbine system allows the user to regulate the watch’s winding. Does anyone need that? No. But who cares? It […] Visit Introducing A Tougher Shade Of White: The Urwerk UR-230 Ceramique to read the full article.
Teddy Baldassarre
Germany’s Nomos Glashütte has built its avid following on an adherence to minimalist, Bauhaus-style simplicity in its watch designs, and it has the Red Dot awards to prove it. In all of its similar but subtly distinct product families — particularly the Tangente, the brand’s acknowledged flagship — Nomos has approached complications with great care, mostly focusing on the understated and utilitarian. Sometimes, however, even the most restrained watchmaker wants to have some fun, to make a watch with an added function that isn’t really necessary or even practical but adds an indisputable cool factor. Such is the case with the Tangente 2Date, unveiled earlier this year, which, as its cheeky name implies, is the first Nomos watch that displays the date in two different ways. And even though that sounds like an idea from the Department of Redundancy Department, don’t knock it until you’re tried it — as I had the opportunity to do recently, with Nomos sending me a review model of the Tangente 2Date with a sunray-brushed blue dial. Case: Like all Nomos watches, particularly those in the flagship Tangente collection, the 2Date is recognizably Bauhaus in its aesthetic. The 37.5mm case is practically bezel-free, with just the narrowest hint of one framing the wide dial opening. At just 6.75mm high (6.65 on the version without a sapphire caseback), the case weighs lightly on the wrist and slips easily under a shirt cuff. The lugs are thin and angular, from the front...
Time+Tide
The perfect watch to wear with your high-powered convertible... Or keep it strapped on while it's too wet to drop the roof.The post We drop the top on the Porsche Design Chronograph 718 Spyder RS appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.
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Fratello
This story all started with Daniel Craig…again! Indeed, many Omega stories do nowadays. The former on-screen secret agent wasn’t that secretive about wearing a new Omega Seamaster Diver 300M during the Paris Olympics earlier this year. As always, watch enthusiasts took notice, and that’s when the internet went crazy. It started the rumor mill that […] Visit Hands-On With The New Black Omega Seamaster Diver 300M to read the full article.
Monochrome
Fifteen years of Armin Strom… witnessing how far they have come in one-and-a-half decade is more than impressive. Claude Greisler and Serge Michel took over the watch business from Mr. Armin Strom, who had made a name for himself as a specialist in hand-skeletonizing. Claude and Serge had a different ambition: to put their own […]
Worn & Wound
One of the cool things about the Omega Speedmaster is that it can truly be just about any watch it needs to be. It’s the Moonwatch, of course, but it’s also a racing chronograph, a dressy chronograph, a chronograph inspired by WWII era military watches, and it can even be a plastic toy. That, I think, is what makes it “iconic,” an overused word if there ever was one in our trade, but one that nonetheless applies perfectly to the Speedmaster. It’s also, from time to time, a pilot’s watch, and Omega’s newest release, part of a late-in-the-year drip of new product that has the brand positioned as one of the big winners of 2024, is a Speedmaster that is purpose built for the skies in a way we rarely see the Speedy outside of Omega’s quartz offerings. The new Speedmaster Pilot, as it is known, has been the subject of speculation for much of this year. Leaked images of the watch on the wrist of US military pilots generated a great deal of discussion on the forums and Instagram, and our friends at Fratello provided a great overview of everything that was known about the Speedmaster “Flight Qualified” back in September. That watch (the one seen in the leaked images) appears to be made for military personnel only. The one seen here can be thought of as the civilian version. It differs somewhat in aesthetic details, but in terms of specs and features it appears to be identical, and offers its own unique Speedy experience. This is a two register Speedmaster wi...
Monochrome
While the Speedmaster started its life as a racing chronograph destined to measure average speeds (hence its name), it quickly changed vocation when, during the 1960s, it became the watch of choice for US Air Force pilots and, of course, NASA astronauts. From there, the Speedmaster became one of the most famous pilot’s chronographs and […]
Deployant
We had the Rudis Sylva RS14 Titane on hand for the best part of the month, and here is our in-depth comprehensive review of this amazing watch.
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