The watch DISCUSSION thread

[am55]

I have Garmin Fenix that I used for running and cycling but I find the small size off-putting. There are way too many features and too few buttons to make it useful. the endless layers of menus is tiresome and maps are hard to read on a watch. Also, getting older and need readers and the small dial is hard to see for me at least.

Have shifted back to exercising with a mechanical watch with an easy-to-read face and will grab a cycling computer/GPS for my bikes next. I also wear cycling glasses with readers on them now.

I agree that smartwatches will not hold up over time. Just upgraded my iPhone 7Plus for a 12 Pro and it's like night and day. The old tech is useless once superseded.

But you're not going to places without reception... Think back of your army days, would the phone have worked out when out in the mountains or marching through the country? The Fenix is what disconnected tech looks like. It is its independence from both chargers and phones that "makes" it...

 

[Kaplan]

A couple of questions regarding smartwatches

It is by now undeniable that the smartwatch is replacing G-Shocks and the like as the modern tool watch. It is what the military tends to use, etc. This sort of use first made the wristwatch popular, and then canonised icons like the various pilot watches, the Submariner, and so on. So, two related questions:

1. Are there any current or recent smartwatches (maybe by Garmin or Suunto?) that will achieve icon status in a few years' time, like the Submariner or the G-Shock did?

2. Does smartwatch technology move too fast for any of these watches to become a treasured keepsake that still remains usable twenty or thirty years after purchase? I know someone tried to produce a modular smartwatch with upgradeable parts but that failed. Perhaps the planned obsolescence that's so deep-rooted in the electronics market will spell the end of some traditional horological values.

I'd be grateful for your thoughts.

1: No
2: Yes

 

[smittycl]

But you're not going to places without reception... Think back of your army days, would the phone have worked out when out in the mountains or marching through the country? The Fenix is what disconnected tech looks like. It is its independence from both chargers and phones that "makes" it...

I'm tracking that. Yes, for city use around here I always have a signal. When hiking I use a hand held Garmin GPS. Bike computer serves as one as well.

 

[radicaldog]

I agree that smartwatches will not hold up over time. Just upgraded my iPhone 7Plus for a 12 Pro and it's like night and day. The old tech is useless once superseded.

So basically the old idea of a watch as a lifetime companion is dead in the water, as I feared. Yes, we can still use dumbwatches, but seriously, in twenty years' time they'll be as odd as bowties and pocket watches today.

 

[mhip]

the ability to upgrade given technological change would be nice and it might be something that may actually allow me to consider a smart watch.

My issue is I just don’t know what to do with it. I’m really not sure I want to stay that connected. I see it as useful when I go on a run as I don’t normally take my phone with (I don’t like to be weighed down by anything). In that sense it could be seen as a safety device.

The Apple Watch is cool. It looks cool and when it came out all the cool kids had one. But I’m not sure I’m in the mood to spend $500 for something cool on my wrist when I’ve got enough to deal with with my mechanical watches.

I'm an Apple fanboy, but I don't have an Apple Watch for many of the reasons you listed.
But my kid works in a hospital now, so I got her one for Christmas and she was so happy.
I guess in the medical field, it has functions that relate, because it seems they all wear them.
Fast forward to recently, and she began to get into surfing. She texted me that she wishes she could get notifications while she surfed ( she's on call a lot ). I had to educate her that the Apple Watch is more than equipped to go in the ocean, and that there's also a ton of surf apps that get rated very high.
So now she's using it for that too, and it's almost like it's a brand new gift all over again.

 

[DapperPhilly]

Just purchased this good looking watch

 

[smittycl]

So basically the old idea of a watch as a lifetime companion is dead in the water, as I feared. Yes, we can still use dumbwatches, but seriously, in twenty years' time they'll be as odd as bowties and pocket watches today.

Quite possibly. I'll be a holdout.

 

[K. Nights]

So basically the old idea of a watch as a lifetime companion is dead in the water, as I feared. Yes, we can still use dumbwatches, but seriously, in twenty years' time they'll be as odd as bowties and pocket watches today.

Maybe, but watches are primarily a piece of jewelry rather than a tool these days, so the fact that everyone has a more accurate way to tell the time might not be that relevant. There will probably continue to be people wearing watches, just like there are people wearing necklaces, rings, etc

 

[smittycl]

Maybe, but watches are primarily a piece of jewelry rather than a tool these days, so the fact that everyone has a more accurate way to tell the time might not be that relevant. There will probably continue to be people wearing watches, just like there are people wearing necklaces, rings, etc

Agreed. I’m firmly in the “watches and wedding rings” only camp regarding jewelry for men. Stuffy, surely, but that’s me.

 

[DapperPhilly]

Agreed. I’m firmly in the “watches and wedding rings” only camp regarding jewelry for men. Stuffy, surely, but that’s me.

I like a gold Cuban link chain, but I'm originally from Miami so.....

 

[smittycl]

I like a gold Cuban link chain, but I'm originally from Miami so.....

I can do the odd bracelet while in the Caribbean around the water.

 

[am55]

So basically the old idea of a watch as a lifetime companion is dead in the water, as I feared. Yes, we can still use dumbwatches, but seriously, in twenty years' time they'll be as odd as bowties and pocket watches today.

I don't know to what extent it ever existed outside marketing campaigns (hello Solvus and Titus) and anecdotal events.

 

[Phileas Fogg]

I like a gold Cuban link chain, but I'm originally from Miami so.....

please! Please, no one remake Scarface. It’s a perfect movie and a time capsule for that time and place. Is there anyone left in Hollywood that has any semblance of creative energy left?

 

[radicaldog]

Maybe, but watches are primarily a piece of jewelry rather than a tool these days, so the fact that everyone has a more accurate way to tell the time might not be that relevant. There will probably continue to be people wearing watches, just like there are people wearing necklaces, rings, etc

But the jewellery aspect becomes harder and harder to justify given the functionality of smartwatches. At the same time, increasing gender fluidity (or at least more relaxed gender norms) makes it easier for males to wear actual jewellery. I think these two facts are bad news for traditional watches, mechanical or quartz.

I don't know to what extent it ever existed outside marketing campaigns (hello Solvus and Titus) and anecdotal events.

I mean, sure, marketing exaggerates. But looking at the older watches I inherited from my father and grandfather (Eberhards and Omegas) I'd say that until the 1980s it was normal for a non-collector middle class person to only buy a new watch every couple of decades.

 

[Kevin24]

I am new to watches and I am seriously looking at getting one.

what is something in the 200-800 dollar range that would provide good value? Ideally looking for something reliable and made in the USA, Japan or Switzerland.

Would this be possible given my price range? Any recommendations?