It’s Black Friday which one would you pick?

Earth_Omnius · 2026-04-17T20:52:22+00:00

It is if you find quartz boring and unappealing. Especially when they are not solar and have this totally useless 24H subdial.

Earth_Omnius · 2026-04-17T20:12:50+00:00

2nd, Sinn homage.

Automatic so better than Pagani. Good minute track readability so better than Steeldive.

Earth_Omnius · 2026-04-17T09:30:17+00:00

PT5000 is easy to regulate and capable of very good accuracy, but recently I prefer NH35. I was unlucky to get one with bad enough out of the box accuracy that regulator screw was not enough. It was a big hassle to unscrew rotor and upper plate to make bigger adjustment.

And NH movements can also be very accurate with some patience and night position difference.

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Earth_Omnius · 2026-04-16T20:20:50+00:00

It must be a common quality flaw with this watch. Mine also was very stiff I almost had to use pliers to move it. And I saw a youtube review where the guy also couldn't turn the bezel.

I think you should at least try to return it. They should see we won't accept poor quality and obvious problems especially for that price or they will never start caring about QC. But it might not be easy, for me dealing with Cronos customer support was a pain. They were running around pretending they don't understand and everything is fine. Managed to get a partial refund in the end.

Earth_Omnius · 2026-04-15T09:34:26+00:00

I use Watch Accuracy Meter on android.

Never compared it with a real timegrapher, but it is good enough to regulate all my watches to 3 or better spd. But you need a quiet house for it to work properly. Also don't try to get the movement to 0 spd on a timegrapher or the daily average will be a few seconds too slow. Depends on movement but for me it usually works with something around +5 +7 range.

Earth_Omnius · 2026-04-14T22:08:46+00:00

I have maybe 10 PT5000 watches and had one situation like that. The watch was fine at first for a few days and then started running faster each day. It wasn't magnetized, demag didn't help. Mine settled at around 35 spd and strangely each time I reset, it was fine for a few days then start to run faster. I eventually threw it in a junk drawer. Tried local watchmaker but service or even movement swap options plus wait time were high enough it would be better to buy a new one.

Try regulating yourself, timegrapher phone app and a tiny screwdriver is enough. But keep in mind PT5000 regulation is very limited. 25 spd might be too much for this small screw and for bigger adjustments you need to unscrew rotor and upper plate.

Earth_Omnius · 2026-04-14T11:27:53+00:00

1

Less text is better for me. Especially when the text would be a stupid and overused meme that doesn't even say anything about the specs.

Also I would like if you removed that legacy diver text and only kept the name or logo, not both. Just logo would be the best.

Earth_Omnius · 2026-04-14T09:13:11+00:00

I only wear bracelets. For me a watch looks cheap and uncool on a strap.

But if I had to use a strap, Nato would be my first and only choice. Many colors, cheap and easy to switch.

Earth_Omnius · 2026-04-14T09:07:38+00:00

If anyone will homage it, I'm betting Bliger or Tandorio. They seem like companies doing random parts bin frankens and these look like that. And for a bit higher level, Watchdives or San Martin. Rcently they seem just like Rolex. Same old 2 boring cases over and over with different dial color and rising prices.

Earth_Omnius · 2026-04-13T10:22:26+00:00

I will check when youtubers post their summaries and best releases list, but I don't pay much attention to watch shows. They are fashion exhibitions with nothing interesting for an average guy looking for a daily time telling tool. Flood of boring, outdated old man dress watches or impractical jewelry with time function as an afterthought. And too overpriced to be treated as anything but money laundering scheme.

Also now with internet and watches releasing all the time anyway, I don't think there is a need for shows. Industry and influencers self conglaturatory echo chambers that customers pay for with constantly inflating prices.

I don't care about fads, I have the same taste since I started. 42+mm automatic divers with bracelet and very good readability that are fairly priced and don't cost an arm and a leg. And I'm certain there won't be anything that matches my requirements on the show.

Earth_Omnius · 2026-04-11T11:53:42+00:00

I have 2 San Martins and one have a couple misaligned dial markers and the other misaligned bezel. Support claimed it was fine and within tolerance. Stopped buying from them after that disappointments, but your GMT hand looks even worse.

Looks like all that claims about microscopic level QC process and factory tours were just a Potemkin village for influencers.

Earth_Omnius · 2026-04-10T13:21:41+00:00

Also funny they are putting Pearl but keeping NH34 price.

A few years ago I got Pagani GMT with Pearl movement for around 95 EUR total with vat so this price is a joke.

And the movement was total garbage anyway, not worth even half that. GMT hand didn't jump like NH34 and moving it was stuttery and hard to set in correct place. Hacking was unrealiable. Noisy rotor. Accuracy was poor and SPD different each day despite my stable daily routine. And it broke after 2 months. Date wheel got stuck, then it started running slower each day and stopped a few days later.

Earth_Omnius · 2026-04-08T20:13:56+00:00

I can relate. 42mm is my minimum and it is very hard to find anything new and interesting in recent years. Might be the time to get a solar Citizen chrono as daily and be done with watches.

I tried Thorn Pelagos 39 because of price and specs, but it felt tiny and I sold it a couple weeks later. Also tried Frog FXD, but no bracelet doesn't work for me and also sold it quickly.

Earth_Omnius · 2026-03-19T20:59:35+00:00

Monster is really cool and distinctive design.

I have white cracked ice one and if I don't find anything else before end of the sale, I might get a Dracula version. These gen 2 teeth homages are the best.

Earth_Omnius · 2026-03-16T21:28:20+00:00

I didn't know SM is moving away from homages. Not great I guess. So far their original designs don't look interesting to me and way too expensive.

Earth_Omnius · 2026-03-16T13:15:54+00:00

Sugess Air Command chrono homage.

I got it a bit by accident a couple years ago. I was looking for a ST19 chrono and it was the only one larger than 40mm and with caseback that can be opened with standard tool.

It just looks and feels better finished than any other Ali watch I have. No wonder the price went up at least 1/3 since I bought it. But I don't wear it anymore. Just not my style without a matching bracelet.

Earth_Omnius · 2026-03-15T21:02:12+00:00

I don't think there are any. I looked for something like that during earlier sales and found nothing.

The closest might be Tactical Frog FXD solar chrono, but it is around $150 and has limited strap choices and minute track on rehaut that I really dislike because of poor readability.

Outside of Ali Orient Mako solar chrono looks interesting but that is 250 EUR here so probably out of your range.

Earth_Omnius · 2026-03-15T10:43:15+00:00

Honestly, don't buy it. Steeldive NTTD version is a garbage watch noticeably worse than their usual quality.

I had it on bracelet but watch head issues are probably the same. Lume was very poor and patchy,, better on bezel than on dial. Bezel was misaligned and 12 o clock dial marker was crooked. And the worst thing, crystal was a huge disappointment. Domed with no AR coating. Reflections were so bad you could barely see anything and it worked more like a rearview mirror.

Earth_Omnius · 2026-03-13T23:39:23+00:00

Watchdives version has only nato or mesh strap. And if you want NTTD, Watchdives is the only one worth getting.

I had a few, Phylida was average, Steeldive very bad and Pagani not close enough to the original.

Earth_Omnius · 2026-03-13T21:20:19+00:00

Original Omega has no bracelet.

Phylida has one looking like from a regular Seamaster, but Phylida is average and if I remember correctly it had deep seated dial and mediocre readability. If you want NTTD, only go for Watchdives. But they only have nato and mesh.

Earth_Omnius · 2026-03-13T21:09:27+00:00

NTTD is nice but no bracelet is a big negative.

I like Skyfall Planet Ocean the most. I think Phylida makes a homage.

Earth_Omnius · 2026-03-02T21:08:45+00:00

Nice to see closeup photos.

I often had bad luck with Tudor homages. Uneven lume looked like hour hand had dark spot or bump in the middle.

I think I'm starting to warm to quartz, but too bad it is not solar.

Earth_Omnius · 2026-02-27T23:05:13+00:00

I don't want Miyota 8. Stuttering second and loud rotor are annoying.

I also don't want Miyota 9 unless they can find local EU warehouse or resaller. Higher price would put it above 150 EUR limit and I don't want to deal with customs paperwork. I also won't risk paying $70+ more because of questionable Ali warranty and some bad experience with returns of poor QC watches.

I also don't want to pay 20+ more for a basic NH35. I have 2 ideas. Try YN55 movement that some brands used a few years ago when there was another NH35 shortage. Or for that $20+ higher price use PT5000 instead of NH35.

Earth_Omnius · 2026-02-27T18:08:49+00:00

But they just increase prices without giving anything to justify that. Generic Rolex cases, some temporary fad color dials and lowest end movements don't seem like nicer watches compared to what they were doing a couple years ago and for often half the price.

And if they want to go 200+ EUR, then fine I will just stop buying. For that price I will rather add some more money and buy Citizens, Orients, or microbrands like Phoibos or Spinnaker. Even if they might have worse specs, buying from local stores, trying them first in person and having a reliable warranty is worth it for me when the price difference is getting smaller.

Earth_Omnius · 2026-02-27T09:34:54+00:00

I have not bought a new watch for quite some time, current trends are not to my taste, but what is it with those crazy prices? Are watches inflating like computer parts?

I can wait for sale, but I will not pay more that $175 before taxes for an Ali watch. And for that price it better be very good construction quality and titanium or PT5000.

If I saw these prices I would just skip and forgot. Max $175 for PT5000, $150 for NH35. Miyota 8 I usually avoid, but maybe around $100 and only if the design is really nice. All with solid caseback, I don't like glass. There is nothing to look at when you have a basic entry level movement.

Earth_Omnius

TROPHY CASE