Brand Question

[OSGrooves]

I am looking at getting a new watch. I have looked at a few and quite fancy one of these two:

Omega

Tag Heuer

I would like to know why the Omega is more? Generally, what do you get for the extra money?

What do you get with one of these watches that you don't get with an Automatic Seiko?

I understand that there is a lot of difference between an Impreza and a Cayman even though they have similar stats but my knowledge of watches isn't good enough. So please enlighten me.

Also, why are automatic watches more expensive than Quartz watches even though they are less precise? Is it pure snobbery driving up the price?

[Don1]

OK, starting at the bottom.

Quartz - battery driven, the closest thing to shrinking a kitchen clock and putting it on your wrist. Automatic - purely mechanical, amazing piece of workmansship. Some are better than others.

Quartz - Ford. Great, works every time, does exactly what it's supposed to do.
Mechanical watch - Aston. Sculpture, expensive, so much 'more'.

But (used to be) the same thing.

Helpful?

[hutchingsp]

I think with watches you're paying for several things:

The movement i.e. the engineering.
The casework i.e. design, style, fit and finish
The brand i.e. cachet, pedigree, reputation.

Broadly speaking, up to a couple of grand you're going to be buying a pretty cheap movement (ETA or Unitas etc.) and the bulk of what you are paying for is the casework and brand.

Beyond that you tend to get customized or in-house movements which aren't spewed out by a machine hence the price goes up.

I've always thought it's one of the ultimate ironies that in terms of accuracy a £5 Casio will beat most things on the planet.

I don't know much about Tag and Omega because IMO they're a little too mass produced and are a bit too much of a fashion item vs. a "real" watch (sorry if that sounds snobby but hopefully you know what I'm driving at).

I would say look many of the smaller and more obscure brands such as Sinn, O&W etc. You'll find you can get a very, very nice watch for maybe 1/2 as much as an Omega/Tag that uses a similar movement and with equal fit and finish, the difference being that lots of people recognize the Tag or Omega brand whilst most people wouldn't know a Sinn or O&W if they saw one.

[Wadeski]

As said above, most "prestige brand" watches under 2.5k use the same ETA and Valjoux movements as the lesser known O&W, Sinns etc.

So you are paying for brand, and styling. Although of course that is subjective (many Omegas are hideous, many Sinns are gorgeous!).

One exception is Seiko, since ALL their movements are made in-house. We just dont get many of the best movements in the UK as they are japanese market only, marketed as Grand Seikos (1k-3k range). But you dont get a prestige brand with a Seiko.

Because their technology is in-house, you get some interesting ideas e.g. the Seiko divers that is pressureproof to a kilometre, the Spring Drive technology that does away with the escapement (mainspring is braked by a quartz regulator). Their latest automatic movements (found in the 300m MarineMaster diver are regarded as really VERY impressive for a watch under a grand.

[Murph7355]

OSGrooves said:

...I would like to know why the Omega is more? Generally, what do you get for the extra money?

What do you get with one of these watches that you don't get with an Automatic Seiko?...

If you're not sure it's probably not worth spending large on one.

Seiko make some lovely watches. Nowt wrong with them if you can find a design that floats your boat.

Of the Tag and the Omega, I prefer the latter - but I'm biased as I own one!

The attention to detail on the Omega is superb. Simple but extremely well executed.

I tend to find modern Tags like the one in the link a little over contrived.