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Sekonda Ladies Quartz
by milmol7
I spotted this watch in the Argos catalogue when I was looking for a metal bracelet watch to replace my smelly old 'leather' strap one. I was getting through a strap about every 3 months, because I wear the same watch day and night, including sports, unless I'm dressing up for a night out.
The first thing that drew me to this ... watch was the fact that it was a Sekonda at a price much lower than I would have expected for that make. In fact at £14.99 I couldn't actually believe it - I thought it was a misprint! The other things I liked were the look of the watch - subtle shade of pink face - and the strap/bracelet looked just what I was looking for. Decision made.
I think I really should have asked to look at it "in the flesh" before ordering, or at least should have voiced my immediate doubts when I was handed it upon going through the usual Argos process ... As soon as it was out of the box, I realised that actually, it wasn't entirely to my taste.
Firstly, it was a lot "chunkier" than it appears on the picture, the actual body of the watch is between 0.5 and 1cm, not by any means slim - although to be fair, nowhere in the description did it claim to be slim, that was just my impression. As a result, it was also heavier than I had anticipated. Again, in the picture, it looks quite dainty really, so I was expecting it to be quite light in weight. The other thing not visible in the picture was that over the date square on the face, there is a sort of magnifying raised area, slightly bigger than the date square - that too was quite unattractive. It's not only unsightly but I'm sure it actually makes the date more difficult to read, as you have to be looking at the watch face perfectly square-on, or it gets distorted. That's a strange element of the design I must say.
Writing this review down now, and reading it back it's actually quite amusing that I was too timid to say anything having just listed off three things which struck me the minute I saw the watch! Oh well, that's me I guess - and I'd like to think if it was a much more expensive watch, that would have made a difference.
Putting the watch on, it has a secure clasp, the watch strap does not come open as such, you just snap back the clasp and it opens the bracelet into a much bigger loop to get over your hand. There is also an extra little security clasp which doubly secures the fastening, although its a nice firm 'click' when you snap the fastening closed, you don't feel in any danger of losing it.
Wearing the watch - it did take a bit of getting used to in terms of it being much chunkier and heavier than the usual leather strap ones I was used to. It feels like a piece of serious "bling" on my wrist! Of course, the flip-side of it feeling chunky and being heavy is that it feels sturdy and robust, which is a positive thing as I'm wearing every single day. Apart from that, though, I think it does look quite nice on the wrist, the pink of the face has a gorgeous sheen to it, and the strap is a shiny silver in the centre with a brushed finish at the sides - I think that looks quite classy.
Other features of the watch include inserts in the hands and hour markers which I presume are meant to glow-in-the-dark. I've never noticed or needed this feature. It is also water resistant to 50 metres - ditto. I like a watch with a second hand, which this one does, and the seconds are marked in tiny figures around the face of the watch as well as around the outer casing.
In writing this review I now feel like I have pulled this watch apart! I didn't set out to do that at all. As I mentioned, I've had this watch 6 months + , and it's been reliable and kept excellent time, and I think looks good on my wrist. It looks smart at work with suit/blouse, and looks good with casual wear or for sports. All that for £14.99 for the Sekonda brand, in truth, there should be (and is) nothing to complain about! No-one forced me to take it from the shop after all. For all it sets out to do, it's a very good watch and after a long think, for look, reliability and value, my initial thought of 3 stars is too harsh, it's a 4 from me.
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Breo B-TI-PLS7M
by MoleyGoldpaws
I wanted an additional watch that I could wear at the gym and after wearing my usual watch with fabric strap I soon realised why I needed a watch like the Breo! Sweaty arms and damp shower room afterwards do not bode well for a fabric strap :( This type is a lot more hygienic for this type of activity or maybe if you worked in a ... profession involving being around water/washing your hands often. It is also water resistant so really the perfect inexpensive watch for swimmers. I can't swim so not had the chance to try this out yet.
The range of colours will suit teenagers and the watch is available in different sizes (medium is 170mm, large is 190mm) since there is no adjustment on the strap. The colours available are white, black, bright pink and sky blue.
I like quirky watches and this seemed a little different and minimal. This would also be suitable for people with a nickel allergy as there will be no metal irritating the skin. I liked the range of colours available but went for the black one as it's more slimming (lol)
The digital display is quite small and neat and the silicon strap is in one piece, that is, there's no fastening or buckle - again, handy if wearing at the gym. The watch is easy to set and there are concealed buttons underneath the LCD display you simply press in to access the time/date option. It will also count seconds but I feel the display is a little small to be used as a stopwatch, I much prefer a larger digital display when watching my time. The battery life is 2 years and to change the battery you have to sort of squeeze the display unit from inside the rubber case to access this. Not had to change it yet but I imagine that's how you would do that.
The strap is nice and soft and comfortable and does feel like more of a sporty material (not sure what I mean by that). The product info states that it is tourmanline and soft touch rubber. Feels nice to the touch. It is also lightweight and the rubber material has no scent, which I am glad about as I become hot when wearing this at the gym. Being flexible also means that it's not as restrictive as a plastic or metal face and the focus is very much on minimal.
I got mine for £7.99 and it is used exclusively for the gym. Although the build quality isn't fine swiss craftmanship, it does the job of displaying the time while I can use my other timer/HRM for my workout.
The watch itself comes in a case which is where I keep it when not in use and Breo guarantee the watch for 12 months so you can't really go wrong at this price. I do like the rest of their range and their watches are inexpensive but nicely designed.
My verdict? Cheap and cheerful, it does what I need it to do and if it failed, I wouldn't be upset at having to buy another one.
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Traser T4102.240.A2.01
by ErdeFB
This watch at first glance looks simple. It has no tachometers or anything one
might be used to from all the stuff they show you on stores. It shows the date, tho.
Don't let it fool ya. This is a quality Swiss watch.
Adjusting time and date is simple enough. Like in any watch
like this, just turn the knob, pull ... it a away from the clock one
notch and turn, etc.
Once I held it the first time, not only was it light even though it is made of steel,
I was able to see the time even in direct sunlight.
It also has fluorescent on the pointers and under the number
which makes it easy to see in dark.
I love the big numbers on the dial, because I have an vision impairment
so this is a big plus to me. Sadly I had to shorten the bracelet,
but then again, I have very slim fists. The bracelet is one
of those flex types by the way.
The clock uses battery powered quarts oscillator.
There are also other variants of this clock available.
The same color, with black leather strap and two white dialed
ones with either a metal flex bracelet or a white leather strap
Usually it takes for a watch to "stick" to it's place and it wobbles
around before that, but since it's so light I barely noticed it.
According the box this game in, it says it can be taken down up
to 50 meters underwater, whereas my old wristwatch at similar
price range held only till 5. Hah. It also comes with 3 year
limited warranty.
Even though it is an good looking clock, the pricing for it kinda steep
considering the lack of features besides the basic date and water
pressure tolerance, there is nothing more to go with it, but
then again it would just take away from the idea of building
something simple and stylish and en up just being another
mainstream gargantua sitting on your wrist.
Now for the bad part.
During my normal daily routines ad some point I had managed to create
a huuuuge scratch on the watch and honestly have no idea what caused it.
I don't recall of what material it is made out but something that cost
this much makes it kinda inexcusable . Changing those glasses
ain't a very cheap process of even plausible .
Of course, this could have been a faulty part, but if the manufacturer
likes to market itself as quality Swiss wristwatch maker, maybe
they should consider little better quality control practices.
Hopefully my warranty will cover that, but I have my doubts.
These are not cellphones, they are supposed to last little bangs and
smacks, so keep that in mind when considering purchasing this watch.
But if you are willing to risk breaking your new, somewhat expensive toy
or can afford to break them, it's still a sleek looking watch build
by the Swiss so you at least rest assured the internals should be working
for generations. Just mind the glass.
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