Sekonda, cheap tat or amazing value?
Discussion
Saw some Sekonda's in HSamuels yesterday, and some looked really nice, sat on the wrist well, and straps etc all seemd decent quality. Not strange for a watch, but for a watch that's going for £25 I was very impressed!!
One I liked most had a stainless steel bracelet and case, and nice looking dial with date, and it had a nice large face, if Id have guessed just by holding/looking at it, Id have guessed at a price of at least £150.
It was £25, although half price, so normally £50, which still seems exceptional value, but I have to assume that they will break or lose time within a week, as if a watch that looks that nice can keep time for 6 months then it's worth the £25!!
Are these basically throw away watches, and the compromise is in materials that will damage/scratch/break, or mechanism that will give up (they said they have a 2 year warranty though), or how else can they produce them for so little money?
There were a lot of Sekonda that would make great value lookers, but Ive never had a Sekonda before.
One I liked most had a stainless steel bracelet and case, and nice looking dial with date, and it had a nice large face, if Id have guessed just by holding/looking at it, Id have guessed at a price of at least £150.
It was £25, although half price, so normally £50, which still seems exceptional value, but I have to assume that they will break or lose time within a week, as if a watch that looks that nice can keep time for 6 months then it's worth the £25!!
Are these basically throw away watches, and the compromise is in materials that will damage/scratch/break, or mechanism that will give up (they said they have a 2 year warranty though), or how else can they produce them for so little money?
There were a lot of Sekonda that would make great value lookers, but Ive never had a Sekonda before.
I suspect most will say "cheap tat", but they'll knock all the Chinese junk people rave about into a cocked hat.
If you want a cheap, reliable, no-nonsense watch I think they take a lot of beating at the price point they sell at.
You're getting Japanese quartz mechanisms and decent quality cases and straps for not much cash. Certainly less than Seiko or Citizen will charge you and I think you get more VFM from Sekonda if you can bear the brand snobbery.
I've had a few Sekondas over the years and never had any problems.
I tend to think of them as the SeKOnDA of watches
No frills, but solid and reliable at a cheap price.
M.
If you want a cheap, reliable, no-nonsense watch I think they take a lot of beating at the price point they sell at.
You're getting Japanese quartz mechanisms and decent quality cases and straps for not much cash. Certainly less than Seiko or Citizen will charge you and I think you get more VFM from Sekonda if you can bear the brand snobbery.
I've had a few Sekondas over the years and never had any problems.
I tend to think of them as the SeKOnDA of watches
No frills, but solid and reliable at a cheap price.
M.
Been out and bought: http://www.hsamuel.co.uk/webstore/d/9901353/sekond...
If the only draw back is that they are known as the Skoda of watches then it was too good to miss for £25 in store. I'm not a watch officianado, and no one I know would know whether a Sekonda is a good or bad make, so as far as Im concerned Ive got a great looking watch that will (hopefully) be accurate for £25!!
On the back it says the movement is Japanese, so that's an added bonus over a Chinese movement I assume.
If the only draw back is that they are known as the Skoda of watches then it was too good to miss for £25 in store. I'm not a watch officianado, and no one I know would know whether a Sekonda is a good or bad make, so as far as Im concerned Ive got a great looking watch that will (hopefully) be accurate for £25!!
On the back it says the movement is Japanese, so that's an added bonus over a Chinese movement I assume.
I remember a cheap Lorus that just went on and on and on. I think I lost it in the end!
A recent £8 (yes EIGHT quid!!) Casio Illuminator (30m waterproof) bought a month ago is also keeping amazingly good time.
Oh and the bargain of the century - my recent G Shock 8900 G-Lide was (I think) accidentally up on Amazon for £12. I bought it immediately - brand new, all legit, retails at £120...
I'm sure Sekonda work fine too.
So why has this damn forum got me checking out Breitlings, IWCs, etc...?!
A recent £8 (yes EIGHT quid!!) Casio Illuminator (30m waterproof) bought a month ago is also keeping amazingly good time.
Oh and the bargain of the century - my recent G Shock 8900 G-Lide was (I think) accidentally up on Amazon for £12. I bought it immediately - brand new, all legit, retails at £120...
I'm sure Sekonda work fine too.
So why has this damn forum got me checking out Breitlings, IWCs, etc...?!
NeMiSiS said:
During the Soviet era, Soviet watch brands including Poljot, but also Raketa watches, were marketed in the United Kingdom under the brand "Sekonda". Today's Sekonda company, a British distributor of ubiquitous fashion watches, has no connection to any Russian watches.
I would prefer an early Poljot one.
How about a Slava one? I would prefer an early Poljot one.
Twin barrel auto movement for £22.50 from the auction site of dreams.
OP: At one time (still not sure if true today) Sekonda were the biggest seller of watches in the UK. Not bad for a company who've never made a watch...
As mentioned above, they used to use Russian movements (mechanical) but went to Japanese when they started with Quartz.
I should imagine that they have considerable buying power, helping to keep the prices down.
Vladimir said:
I remember a cheap Lorus that just went on and on and on. I think I lost it in the end!
I had a Lorus in the £20 or so bracket, was a "kinetic" or something and never lost a second over the six months every time the clocks changed. Far more accurate than the Tag (admittedly auto) that I have now. However the less said about the quality of the case the better, it appeared to be made of soft cheese.
LikesBikes said:
I had a Lorus in the £20 or so bracket, was a "kinetic" or something and never lost a second over the six months every time the clocks changed. Far more accurate than the Tag (admittedly auto) that I have now.
However the less said about the quality of the case the better, it appeared to be made of soft cheese.
Aren't they Citizens cheap brand? To be honest most cheap quartz watches from a brand you've heard of will probably be fine.However the less said about the quality of the case the better, it appeared to be made of soft cheese.
My son has a Lorus. It's a rather smart watch I always think.
M
marcosgt said:
LikesBikes said:
I had a Lorus in the £20 or so bracket, was a "kinetic" or something and never lost a second over the six months every time the clocks changed. Far more accurate than the Tag (admittedly auto) that I have now.
However the less said about the quality of the case the better, it appeared to be made of soft cheese.
Aren't they Citizens cheap brand? To be honest most cheap quartz watches from a brand you've heard of will probably be fine.However the less said about the quality of the case the better, it appeared to be made of soft cheese.
My son has a Lorus. It's a rather smart watch I always think.
M
I'm hoping then this proves to be a cheap purchase that keeps on going, it does look great and doesnt give away it's value too obviously.
I'm going to start fishing around that popular auction site to see if there are any really cheap gems to be found, I like the diea of getting much betetr value than you expected.
I'm going to start fishing around that popular auction site to see if there are any really cheap gems to be found, I like the diea of getting much betetr value than you expected.
Hoofy said:
marcosgt said:
LikesBikes said:
I had a Lorus in the £20 or so bracket, was a "kinetic" or something and never lost a second over the six months every time the clocks changed. Far more accurate than the Tag (admittedly auto) that I have now.
However the less said about the quality of the case the better, it appeared to be made of soft cheese.
Aren't they Citizens cheap brand? To be honest most cheap quartz watches from a brand you've heard of will probably be fine.However the less said about the quality of the case the better, it appeared to be made of soft cheese.
My son has a Lorus. It's a rather smart watch I always think.
M
M.
marcosgt said:
Aren't they Citizens cheap brand? To be honest most cheap quartz watches from a brand you've heard of will probably be fine.
My son has a Lorus. It's a rather smart watch I always think.
M
I should add that it looked good when new and the cheese reference is probably a little unfair, it was more the finish that wore away by the time is been wearing it daily for about 7 years. But twenty odd quid well spent it has to be said. My son has a Lorus. It's a rather smart watch I always think.
M
BananaBok said:
I'm hoping then this proves to be a cheap purchase that keeps on going, it does look great and doesnt give away it's value too obviously.
I'm going to start fishing around that popular auction site to see if there are any really cheap gems to be found, I like the diea of getting much betetr value than you expected.
Wait for Argos to do their sales. You can often find good deals on out-of-season stock.I'm going to start fishing around that popular auction site to see if there are any really cheap gems to be found, I like the diea of getting much betetr value than you expected.
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