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Shop our Watches
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For many people, choosing a timepiece means finding the right
mix of form and function. In terms of function, you will want
quality construction and reliable performance built to suit your
lifestyle. A watch built to meet the needs of an adventurer will
be very different from a watch built for a businessperson.
Once you find a watch that suits your lifestyle, you'll want to
find one that suits your tastes. Do you like the feel of metal or
leather on your wrist? Do you prefer the look of gold or silver?
Do you want a traditional round face, a modern square face or some
futuristic new shape?
We have assembled this information to help you understand the
different descriptions used when talking about watches. You can
use the glossary to find definitions or read the comparisons of
different types of metals used in watches, from steel to gold
plate to titanium. There also are sections that compare the
different types of movements, crystals and water resistance, as
well as descriptions of the different manufacturers we carry.
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Glossary |
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Ana-Dig: A watch with both an analog and
digital display. The analog display has a traditional dial with hour,
minute and, sometimes, second hands. The digital display shows the time
numerically with a liquid-crystal display.
Bezel: The upper portion of the watch that encircles the face and
holds the crystal. In some cases it contains an extra ring to beautify the
case or a rotating ring with a special function.
Bracelet: Also known as the watchband, it is the part of the watch
that goes around the wrist. Can be made of metal, leather or other
material.
Cabochon: Used to indicate a smooth round or oval convex shaped
polished gemstone. In watch terminology, it describes a decorative stone
set in the watch crown.
Case: The outside shell that houses the moving parts of the watch.
It is always made of a durable material and often sealed to some degree to
provide water protection.
Chronograph: A stopwatch function sometimes built into a
wristwatch.
Crown: Small round serrated knob usually located at the 3 o'clock
position. Some people refer to it as a winder, as it once was used to wind
the spring in clockwork watches. Today it is normally used to set the time
when pulled outward and rotated.
Crystal: The transparent protective covering fitted tightly over
the face of the watch. It is held in place by the bezel. May be made from
plastic, glass or synthetic sapphire. See the "Crystal"
section of this page for more details.
Dial: The face of an analog watch, where the numbers are usually
displayed.
Gasket: A rubber or plastic ring that seals the internal works of
the watch against dust, moisture and water.
Gold Plating: An application of gold over the surface of an item.
Gold plating is used to manufacture watches that have the look of gold at
a fraction of the price.
Jewels: Small hard gemstones used in certain moving parts of some
mechanical watches. They are used in sensitive parts of the machinery
because they are smooth and very durable, helping the watch stay accurate
and last longer.
Liquid-crystal Display (LCD): A digital display where the numbers
are formed in a liquid layer sandwiched between a pair of clear crystals.
Movement: The means by which a watch keeps time, often including
the power source. For example, a watch with mechanical movement uses a
spinning balance wheel powered by a tightly wound spring, whereas a watch
with quartz movement measures the vibrations in a piece of quartz and
often is powered by a battery. For details, see the "Movements"
section of this page.
Stainless Steel: The metal of choice used to make high quality
watchcases and bracelets because it is durable and can withstand more wear
and tear than a similar watch in brass or gold. It is also hypoallergenic
because it doesn't contain nickel.
Solar Tech: Solar powered quartz watch. This technology provides
the accuracy of quartz, without the inconvenience and cost of regular
battery changes.
Titanium: Titanium is one of the lightest and strongest metals on
earth and is used to make top-end watchcases and bracelets. It is
extremely durable and is hypoallergenic.
Water Resistance: Describes the level of protection a watch has
from water damage. See the "Water Resistance" section of this
page for a description of the different levels.
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Movements |
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The majority of the watches sold today have
quartz movements. The best way to explain the differences between watch
movements is to compare them to mechanical watches which were first
introduced in 1910.
Mechanical: Watches use a balance wheel for time measurement and
a mainspring for power. They require manual winding.
Automatic: Watches are self-winding mechanical watches. They
have a rotor which includes an oscillating weight that swings backwards
and forwards with every movement of the wrist. The oscillations are
converted by means of a gearing into a rotary motion that winds the
mainspring.
Quartz: Watches use a quartz crystal for time measurement and a
battery for power. They require no winding.
Kinetic Quartz: Kinetic quartz is exclusive technology to Seiko.
It is a quartz watch without a battery. The Kinetic quartz generates
electrical energy to power itself from the natural movement of the
wearer's arm and wrist. It stores the energy in a capacitor. The reserve
energy lasts 3 to 14 days in a motionless watch.
Solar Quartz: Watches use a quartz crystal for time measurement.
Any light source is absorbed through the crystal and dial. A solar cell
converts the light into energy to power the watch.
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Crystal |
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The crystal is the transparent protective covering
fitted tightly over the face of the watch. Since it is exposed to all
sorts of shocks and blows, the crystal should be as hard as possible.
Softer materials will scratch and break easily, which will make the watch
less attractive and possibly unreadable, or if shattered, can damage the
watch beyond repair. The crystal is held in place by the bezel.
A crystal can be made from any clear material, from plastic to synthetic
sapphire, which is the hardest and most expensive crystal available. The
following chart lists popular crystal types and their relative hardness.
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Water Resistance |
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Water resistance is a measure of the
degree to which a watch will resist the intrusion of moisture. The
following chart describes the amount of water measured in feet or meters
that each watch can resist.
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MANUFACTURERS
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Bulova |
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View all Bulova Watches
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Founded in 1875, The Bulova Corporation is headquartered in New
York and is part of the American owned and operated Loews
Corporation. Bulova is one of the world’s strongest brand names.
Bulova timepieces use only the finest material, precision
craftsmanship and state-of-the-art technology for enduring quality
and performance. All Bulova 14 karat gold watches are
"moisture resistant". These watches are capable of
withstanding ordinary moisture involved in daily use. All Bulova
watches are backed by a 2-year warranty and a solid company, in
business for over 125 years.
Bulova 14 karat gold watches are heirloom quality timepieces.
All styles have Swiss movements and either European or American
bracelets. These sophisticated watches offer breathtaking styling
and outstanding value in 14 karat gold and stainless steel.
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Citizen |
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View all Citizen Watches
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Founded in 1930, the company has grown to become one of the
world's largest watch manufacturers. It offers stainless steel,
titanium and gold-tone designs.
The technologies used in their timepieces include all the
functions the modern consumer needs with features such as
chronographs, solar power, and world timers. Citizen watches have
a mineral crystal, a tempered glass that is designed to resist
scratches.
Each watch features a Japanese quartz battery movement, which
lasts approximately two years. Watches with second hands have an
end-of-power indicator that makes the hand jump in two-second
increments when the battery is low. All Citizen watches are
resistant to rain and small amounts of water.
Citizen watches come with water-resistant ratings of either 100
to 150 meters (330 to 500 feet) or 200 meters (660 feet).
A five-year limited warranty is included on all Citizen watch
movements.
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ESQ |
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View all ESQ Watches
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The ESQ line, first introduced in 1993, is the brainchild of
The Movado Group, Inc., and is positioned as a sport luxury watch
brand.
ESQ watches feature water-resistant design to 30 meters (99
feet), 100 meters (330 feet) and 300 meters (660 feet).
ESQ watches offer analog/digital movements with features such
as alarm, chronograph and dual time zone functions for the
traveler.
The watch crystals are either mineral or sapphire, while the
cases and bracelets are either stainless steel for durability or
gold- or silver-tone. The gold watches feature 23K gold plating.
All ESQ watches come with a two-year limited warranty on the
movement.
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Movado |
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View all Movado Watches
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Known as the museum watch, Movado has over a century of design
innovation in time technology. Some of Movado's designs are art
pieces unto themselves and appear in museums all over the world.
One collection includes watches by pop artist Andy Warhol.
The Esperanto word "Movado" means "always in
motion" and has proven to be a prophetic name for the
company. The company was founded in 1881 and adopted the Movado
name in 1905.
Movado watches are water-resistant to 30 meters (100 feet). The
company's line of dive watches is rated to 200 meters (660 feet).
They feature a precision Swiss quartz with a two to three year
battery life. Crystals come in either mineral or sapphire models.
The case and bracelet on these watches are either stainless
steel or gold tone with a plating of 10 microns of 18K gold. All
stones used in a Movado watch are diamonds set in 18K gold.
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Seiko |
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View all Seiko Watches
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In 1881, twenty-one-year old Kintaro Hattori opened a small
clock shop in the Ginza area of Tokyo. Today that little clock
shop has grown into the Seiko Corporation, one of the world's
largest watch and clock companies. Seiko watches are still
manufactured and assembled in Japan. Seiko manufactures a wide
range of watches for all uses. Some of the most popular types are
the Kinetic® (no battery), alarm chronograph, flight computer,
Lumbrite® (luminous dials), dive watches, and Braille watches.
Differing lines of Seiko watches are manufactured with specific
movements. These movements are listed below:
 | Japanese quartz movement, with a battery life of two to five
years.
| Kinetic movement, a technology unique to Seiko. It is a
quartz movement powered by the natural movement of your wrist
and requires no battery. It will stay charged motionless for
three to fourteen days depending on the model.
| Automatic movement, a rotor-driven mechanical movement wound
by natural wrist movements. |
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Seiko employs a variety of crystals for its watches, ranging
from acrylic crystals on lower priced watches, to Hardlex/Mineral,
a crystal constructed of silicon and barium and heated to create
hardness to withstand scratches and marring. From time to time
Seiko also uses Sapphlex, a glass crystal protected with a
sapphire coating to be scratch resistant or sapphire crystal.
Watches are available with the following water resistance:
| Moisture resistant, which withstands splashes of water or
rain
| 50 meters or 166 feet, suitable for showering or swimming in
shallow water
| 100 meters or 330 feet, suitable for snorkeling
| 150 meters or 500 feet, suitable for snorkeling
| 200 meters or 660 feet, suitable for skin diving
| Divers' watches, water resistant to 150 or 300 meters and
suitable for scuba diving |
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The case and bracelet material for Seiko watches is primarily
stainless steel for increased durability, but some watches,
according to price point, come with base metal, titanium or solid
14K gold bracelets.
Seiko watches come with a three-year limited warranty on the
movement. The warranty does not cover the crystal, battery,
bracelet, strap or other accessories.
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Wittnauer |
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View all Wittnauer Watches
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Wittnauer watches have long been associated with New World
watch-making. Their watches were first sold in 1880 in North
America with imported Swiss movements. The idea was to blend
quality Western styling with an Old World tradition of excellence.
Crafted with enduring luxury, Wittnauer watches include:
| Precision Swiss quartz movements
| Superior, scratch resistant sapphire crystals
| Water resistance to a depth of 30 meters(100 feet)
| Durable, hypoallergenic stainless steel cases and bracelets
| Comfortable and secure spring-loaded deployment buckles
| A comprehensive two-year buckle-to-buckle warranty |
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And, as America's own luxury Swiss watch, each Wittnauer is
backed by the extraordinary legacy of nearly 125 years of watch
making expertise.
The quality is obvious...the value, exceptional - Wittnauer
presents elegance and precision with an unmistakably American
accent.
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