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The Best Buy for Your First Luxury Watch: $1,000 and Under
There are two things we love more than anything else here at BeckerTime; watches and getting value for money.
If you’re new to the world of luxury watch collecting, you might be surprised how much those can go together. After all, as most of the headlines seem dedicated to timepieces costing five, six or even seven figures, getting your hands on something both realistically priced and also worth wearing might seem like a pipe dream.
However, there are parallels here with the automotive industry. Features and functions once only found on top-of-the-range cars will eventually filter down the line and pretty soon models at every price point come with Satnav, aircon and heated seats as standard. It’s the same with horology. As technology and engineering techniques progress and become more mainstream they also become more cost effective. After that, it just makes sense to include them on lower priced and entry level pieces.
Today you will find some fantastically accomplished watches for $1,000 and under. And below, we have picked out our top 3.
The Tissot Heritage 1938 COSC
Swiss brand Tissot falls under what is sometimes snootily referred to as ‘affordable luxury’. However, if you did not see your way past that description, it would be easy to overlook just what a significant manufacture they are.
Founded in the home of watchmaking, Le Locle, Switzerland in 1853, Tissot has over 170-years of history behind it—far more than some more famous marques. They were also responsible for the first mass-produced pocket watch, the first dual time zone pocket watch and one of the first anti-magnetic models as well. Not only that, they are the official timekeeper for the NBA, WNBA, the MotoGP and a host of cycling events. With that resume, you can rest assured they know what they’re doing.
Their Heritage 1938 COSC came out in 2022 and could easily qualify for the ‘only watch you’ll ever need’ category. Dripping with vintage charm, the 39mm pieces are essentially dress watches with a military flavor. The wide open dials have full Arabic numerals for ease of reading, and are finished off with a stylish minute track and a straight, no-nonsense handset.
Both models in the two watch collection come in steel, one with a lovely salmon dial, the other in matte black. Each has the retro Tissot signature and the ‘CHRONOMETRE’ script on the face and nothing else. But that text is important. For those who don’t know, a chronometer (not to be confused with a chronograph) is a watch that’s passed a number of tests for accuracy as performed by any of a number of independent official bodies; the most well-known of which is the Swiss Contrôle Officiel Suisse des Chronomètres or COSC.
As you might imagine, getting your watch to pass these tests is not easy and requires time-consuming adjustment procedures and generally higher grade and subsequently more expensive components—all of which usually adds to the final cost on the watch.
Tissot, though, in the 1938 with its Sellita-based movement, have created one of the most accessible chronometer-certified models out there, with the price for either example coming in at $925.
A superbly made and sophisticatedly handsome beast, the Tissot 1938 COSC is the perfect choice.
Unimatic Modello Uno UC1 Classic – Diver
Nothing anyone can say will kill my love for Unimatic watches. The brand has only been around since 2015, making it positively a fetus in horology terms, but has already carved a place for itself through a combination of passion, entrepreneurial spirit and a portfolio just dripping with Italian style.
Founded by two industrial designer friends, Giovanni Moro and Simone Nunziato, Unimatic’s aesthetics seem based on how much can be taken out of a watch rather than how much can be put in. To call their pieces minimalist is to severely understate matters.
My personal favorite from their annals is the super austere Modello Uno UC1 Classic, a dive watch with an almost malicious lack of detailing.
The 41.5mm model comes in all black, with big chunky handset, indexes made up of Submariner-esque dots and batons, a lollipop seconds hand and a bezel devoid of any numerals—not even the standard 0-15 hash marks. Instead it is completely bare save for a small pip at the 12 o’clock.
Inside is the self-winding caliber NH35A, a Seiko-made workhorse beating at 21,600vph, with hacking seconds and a 41-hour reserve. Not the most accurate at around -20/+40 seconds a day, but what you lose in precision you gain in robustness.
To be honest, though, you’re not buying a Unimatic for the timekeeping; you’re buying it for the statement. Being so anti-fashion, you’re setting yourself apart from the herd and doing so in the most subtle, underground way possible. And it will only cost you $750.
The Seiko 5 GMT
I mean, there’s value for money and then there’s value for money and those looking for the latter have long turned to Seiko for their watches.
Japan’s crowning glory, Seiko is recognized as offering more genuine watchmaking heritage pound for pound than almost any other brand. Established back in 1881, they are one of the few manufactures able to go toe to toe with the Swiss in terms of innovation, and their collection these days is simply vast.
Somewhere in among them all is the Seiko 5 GMT, a model stemming from 2019 which set out to corner the budget traveler market. A GMT watch is one able to track two time zones at once, typically thanks to a system invented by Rolex which uses the combination of a rotating bezel engraved with 24-hour numerals and an additional hour hand geared to run at half the speed of the main hand. Because that second hour hand goes round the dial once a day rather than twice, it can be used to point out a second time on the bezel’s scale.
As you can imagine, a GMT is extremely useful for those traveling great distances, whether for work or vacation, but the downside has traditionally been their expense. The extra engineering has always translated to a higher buy-in, but Seiko’s model is the cheapest of all the choices on our list with prices starting at just $450.
So what do you get for that extremely modest outlay?
Well, the collection of three models come in steel on five-link Jubilee-style bracelets and can be had with either a black, blue or vibrant orange dial. The all-important bezel is solid black on the orange and black examples and a Batman blue/black on the blue dial piece. Measuring 41.5mm, they’re not the smallest watches in the world but are highly legible thanks to wide-bladed hands and Maxi indexes. You also get a handy date display at the 3 o’clock and an unconventional 4:30 position for the crown.
Inside, the in-house Seiko 4R34 is a cleverly-built modular automatic movement providing the GMT function and granting a decent 41-hour reserve at 21,600vph. The 4R35 base on which the caliber is built is a tried and true engine although neither it nor the GMT version are chronometers as in the Tissot.
Then again, the Seiko 5 GMT does have the distinction of revolutionizing dual time zone watches with its incredible pricing and fetching looks and will provide exemplary service for years to come.
Featured Photo: Mixed art by Oriol Mendivil for BKT Archive.
