As it is with many watch enthusiasts around – including me – craftsmanship and history are integral to the value of a watch. It brings the quality non-enthusiasts might well-overlook. The details that are seen in the Rolex and in an Invicta probably indicate that value is just about the price. While it’s easier to be blinded by the charisma of a Rolex, the Invicta is simply a piece that gets better every day but does not get as expensive like the Rolex.
No; Invictas are not better than Rolexes; not in any way. But spending near about 100X price shall require you to truly value history and the craftsmanship that created the history. For an everyday watch, I don’t need to put that much of emphasize upon history and tradition as I would upon sturdiness and a decent reliability. Too much of tradition often becomes a confining factor causing covert anxiety about the well-being of the piece on your wrist. It’s distracting; unless you got your money ready for your next piece from Rolex.
To simple minds like mine, Rolex prices are baffling; with respect to the functionalities you receive. There are dozens of other options with similar outcomes at 1/10th or 1/20th of the price that are available and while many of them will fade out over the years, Invicta watches are less likely to be so.
There’s no doubt that Rolex is a tough brand with watches that are equally tough. There’s no denying that they’ve set the foundations for the dive watch genre to follow. Those who love dive watches continue to argue about always being a winner with a Rolex purchase, but for Invicta, while there is zero doubt regarding its entry-level stance in the Swiss watch-world, it doesn’t try to put up the façade of an excellent value under the name of Swiss. The value an Invicta holds is something different on your wrist; not related to the pop culture you see around these days. Their provenance or horological significance – though certainly not anywhere near Rolex’s – is not going to ruin your possibilities to become a respected watch fan in future as long as you do not pretend to be wearing something that you are not.
The closest in appearance among these two brands are the models Submariner and the Pro-Diver but the latter is certainly not even equal – much less better – than the former. But whoever would want a diver watch with an iconic design and decent capabilities compared to the price, the Invicta is clearly a more sensible option than the Rolex.
Other supportive points would be:
- The Design: Almost identical at first glance, the differences show when you start looking at them closely. It starts with the logo and then goes into other small details.
- The Functions: Both Submariner and Pro-Diver are mechanical watches with similar functions and unless you often dive deeper than 200 meters, there’s no point in getting a Rolex.
- The Quality: Certainly, the build and material quality of Rolex is way higher than the Invicta, but the latter isn’t a cheap watch either! Rolex uses Oystersteel (a class of steel belonging to the 904L family), 950 Platinum with Ruthenium and meteorite while Invicta uses the steel most well known brands use; namely, the 316L stainless steel and ceramics. Invicta carries solid-link stainless steel bracelets like any other reputed brand and the finishing you find on the Invicta is at par with watches costing maybe even several hundreds of dollars.
- The movements: This is the biggest difference between an Invicta and a Rolex. While the Rolex movement is light-years ahead of the movements used by Invicta, the movements used by Invicta are not bad either if you look at their performances. They are quite accurate, reliable and durable; staying within +40 seconds a week, which is close to Rolex.
Want to know the names of the movements Invicta uses? They are:
- Standard Seiko/TMI(NH25, 35, auto-chronos etc.)
- Miyota 8215 and STBL-005JS movements
- Ronda
- ETA
- Sellita
- Dubois Depraz
- Valjoux.
These movements don’t get you afraid of using them in the field and make you lock them up in a strongbox half of the time or even more! You can wear an Invicta all the time and not even care while wearing a Rolex like you don’t care will diminish its value pretty fast. That depreciation is a considerable load of money.
While you might own a Rolex but don’t drive around in a Mercedes, an Invicta would be a better choice, for you won’t be travelling within a safer environment. The Invicta might knock against a door handle and you might not even care; the same occurring with your Rolex won’t be easy to down with.
Get a Rolex Submariner if you truly respect a piece of history and very-high end craftsmanship; or, if you are to impress watch snobs around you, who will also appreciate your subtly-blatant show of wealth. In the first case, you don’t need a Mercedes or a Porsche to go along with. In the second case, you do.
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