I often see watch enthusiasts here and on YouTube forgetting some essencial things:
-
Watches are an object in which “The beauty is in the eye of the beholder”. It’s not brand name or bragging credentials that make a watch good or even the design. It’s the personal taste of each of us
-
The price doesn’t make a watch better. The variety and styles of watches can appeal to everyone regardless of their budget. Despite this, people buying fashion watches or less expensive brands, still face backlash
-
Mechanical watches are not always better than quartz and quartz isn’t always better than mechanical. They cater to different types of audience. Usually the community acts like mechanical is always inherently better.
All things considered, it’s wonderful that there’s a brand of watches out there that provides finish and quality that matches a Longines or JLC for a quarter of the price and it makes its own movements for mechanical watches: Seiko.
Seiko, is what the entire Swatch group no longer is. It’s a independent watchmaker. Their Grand Seiko models, rival and even surpass Rolex watches in finish, quality, dial textures and more.
If Seiko was a Swiss brand, it would be the world’s biggest and most valued watchmaker
Having said that, why is it then that there’s so so many complaints about: the glass type they use, the Quality control which fails slightly in like 1/1000 watches? Why does anyone think Citizen can beat Seiko when Citizen’s movements are now a long way from those of Seiko?
Why aren’t more people grateful that a brand like this even exists?
Brings me to the final point: - Watches don’t have to say “Swiss made” to be good. Something that despite true the community also acts like isn’t true.
Both Seiko and Grand Seiko have a enormous amount of fans and apologists so I’m not sure why you’re getting upset about some other peoples opinions on the brand.
I’m always slightly baffled how many people still think Seiko is good value with their current prices and the rise of microbrands. The Seiko group overall is just a confused mess of different brands, model lines, pricing and limited editions.
It’s not so much their opinions but a really weird perception that they’re not a good value anymore.
Where else exactly are you going to find a watch that can take on some more expensive Swiss brands head on for the price a Seiko 5 costs? Tell me. And excluding microbrands because those aren’t for everyone
Look if you enjoy your Seikos then good for you don’t let the opinions of others upset you.
If you truly believe that a Seiko 5 is comparable to say a brand like Longines in terms of build quality, case finishing or quality control there is really nothing further to discuss.
I don’t have a single Seiko. All my watches at the moment except one are Swiss. This isn’t your typical post. I don’t look for validation. I’m just testing stereotypes of the watch community