I write this to challenge Gonzo: Despite your high-flown explorations and voyages within the horological galaxy, we haven’t heard you speaking for them who really don’t care about wearing watches. I’m talking ‘bout him who stopped at one watch; the ‘tells time,looks okay, no such maintenance – that’s enough’ kinda guys.
Gonzo has advices galore for them enamoured with high-end technology, suaveness and interesting complications. What about the other side of the world? This is where sapphire crystals are ignored as much as flyback chronographs; watch collecting is frowned upon as a bizarre, nonsensical wastage of money. This is the society where buying a watch simply translates to :
Go to a mall or a department store > See watches in showcase > Buy the one that you think looks best > Wear it for eternity (or atleast, till it breaks or develops oily deposits under the crystal and rendered nearly unreadable) > Repeat.
Ever cared what would go into this market segment? Mr. Gonzo, if they are just buying one watch for the next 10 years, let’s give them something that shall not fetch any complaint for the next 12 to 15 years. Certainly you could recommend them a white dial Stiletto from Citizen, but imagine it becoming a badge! Nobody likes getting pigeonholed; nor does them.
In my not-so-humble opinion, them needs something that’s fairly sturdy, reliable, with water resistance and without the inconvenience of hand winding. It must also be of a decent size with clean looks for a versatile usage and of course, less than $100. 
What qualifies? A search in earnest brought up no better contender than the ultra-plain Seiko 5; the zing here is: these are tad different Seiko 5-s with the 7s26 movement, a workhorse automatic with a long and accurate, trouble-free life. These are quality, inexpensive watches in durable cases with the right looks.
I don’t intend to be an expert and hence, do not want to bore the readers with endless grumblings on the physics and chemistry that went into it; all I can say is: no-watch guys shall love this watch. It’s built to sustain through the ruffling times and motions and still remain shiny and unshaken over the years. It’s a daily wear with your business suits and doubles-up as a weekend-wear that goes equally well with the jeans.
All in all, it is a solid and versatile watch at a throwaway price. These, certainly doesn’t qualify as divers, but a quick dip in the pool or a running faucet above for a few minutes is fine. But beware, it’s a drug to draw you deep into the – what you once considered – dweeby world of horological nerdery.
Watch(es) mentioned in this post are listed below. Click to see details and buy them:
i. https://www.creationwatches.com/products/seiko-automatic-sports-89/
