In the colorful and loud watch cavalcade that is called Basel World one finds it very hard to look at the watches in perspective. So many brands offer their timepieces from a few hundred to a few hundred thousand euros and more. Hearing all these otherwise astronomical prices day in day out change your perception and make you immune to reality.
What is quite challenging though, is to pick budget models from low prices that could compete with other major brands. In this piece we will look at some of the great models we saw during Basel World 2018. Every watch is under a thousand euros and all of them stand out for one reason or another.
Tissot Heritage Antimagnetique 2018
For years now one of the highlights of the show for the ones into affordable Swiss made watches with vintage touch is the release from Tissot. Their Heritage line is among the most popular selling lines within the brand. This year they released their tribute to early Tissot antimagnetic models; the Tissot Antimagnetique Heritage 2018. Its design is a clear derivate of the late 1940’s models with sub second at the 6 o’clock position, thin leaf hands and the old Tissot logo.
The size is updated to 42mm definitely a step up from the vintage. The size but also the silver dial makes the Antimagnetique Heritage clean and elegant. A perfect dress watch. The icing on the cake is the hand wound, beautifully decorated Unitas movement. You can admire it in its full glory through the display case back.
Certina DS PH200M
For those of you who prefer something a bit sportier, we can suggest to take a look at the new Certina DS PH200M. This watch is also taken inspiration from a bygone model. A trend that is stronger than ever in Basel World. Certina first released their iconic PH200M in 1967 and while this model is not a carbon copy of the old one the similarities are striking. But the brand did not only take inspiration from the design.
What I find fascinating is that they also reproduced the original DS (Double Security) system that Certina developed and used successfully for so many years. In this structure the movement has a bit of space to move in case on an impact. It is similar to the suspension of a car. So you have an amazingly timeless design with technology for less then €700.
Seiko Prospex 200m SPB079J1
No under-thousand article is complete without Seiko. When it comes to great price/value ratio watches the Japanese brand is clearly in the forefront. Just look at the Seiko Prospex 200m SPB079J1. We are talking about a Japanese diver with a great size (44mm) an amazing and proven automatic movement with 50 hours of power reserve and water resistance to 200m. Not that you will ever need that.
Still this Seiko packs a lot of punches for their circa €900 price tag. The watch is not only stylish but also pretty much indestructible. Needless to say that fact that Seikos are hotter these days than ever make it even more stylish.
