Watches

Got my first Swatch watch today. Nothing fanciful. Basically I just need something functional to replace my dying Baby-G, but I guess this is just the beginning. I can see myself getting tempted to buy more Swatch watches for the next few years. Was really tempted to buy those metal or funky ones, but my wrist is too small to do justice to the straps so I opted for something functional but boring. Anyway for the time being, I just want a watch that can last me at least 5-6 years.

Actually, I've been eyeing Swatch watches for quite sometime. In the past I would not have bothered looking at them cos I had always worn Casio watches. However, I have lost confidence in Casio watches after the last Casio watch I bought in 2005. In less than 6 months' time the watch became dysfunctional. We were unable to determine what caused the watch to stop functioning as the battery was still in good condition. Anyway, I threw it away after it stopped for the 3rd time in a span of a week.

Right about the same time I bought the dysfunctional watch, my sports series Casio watch stalled on me. Granted I bought it in early 2003, but according to the manual, this watch runs on a special battery that is suppose to have about 10 years battery life. Apparently one of the mechanism in the watch was not assembled properly therefore there is difficulty for the current to flow from the batt to the watch. Anyway I have decided to stop buying Casio watches because I realise that the dysfunctional watch is made in China and all the Casio watches in Singapore are made in China. You can no longer find any that is made in Jap or Korea. I am not trying to be biased, but my beloved Baby-G which is made in Korea has been with me since 1998. The sports watch after some repairs is still alive and kicking; it is made in Thailand.

It is therefore my belief that despite the expected reliability that comes with a name such as Casio, you still have to look at the country of manufacture. If it says "Made in China" don't even bother. With the same amount of or a little more money I can get a Swatch (Swiss made) or a Hugen (Germany made) watch. And what's better, both Swatch and Hugen have longer warranties than Casio, and theirs are international warranties compared to Casio's which is limited to Singapore.