Hi people, I don't own "luxury watches" (by watchmakers' standards, not mine, though everything's relative. I do own a Longines, a CYMA and a Movado, they are inexpensive (to me) wristwatches for everyday use and different occasions) but I had been to watch exhibitions, auctions, workshop you name it, with a humble attitude to learn.

Trust me, if you ask 10 collectors and aficionados to list their top 10 brands, you get 10 different opinions.

Jingyong, a nice watch you've got there, what matters is that you're happy with your timepiece, never mind what others tell you

Just a note: Tissot, like Oris, Rado and Raymond Weil, are entry-level timepieces. At most by many collectors' standards they are mid-level. Yes they're reliable timepieces but you don't compare them with Kings and Queens like Patek Philippe, Rolex and Breguet.

I guess the brandnames you listed are copied and pasted from some website, or your personal favourites? Apparently you missed the big names

Some brands that are worth our time looking at:
A. Lange & Sohne
Audemars Piguet
Bell & Ross
Blancpain
Breguet
Breitling
Bulgari
Cartier
Chopard
Citizen
Corum
Daniel Roth
Eberhard
Eterna
Franck Muller
Gerald Genta
Girard-Perregaux
Glashutte
Hamilton
Harry Winston
IWC
Jaeger-LeCoultre
Movado
Officine Panerai
Omega
Patek Philippe
Piaget
Richard Mille
Roger Dubuis
Rolex
Seiko
TAG Heuer
Ulysse Nardin
Universal Geneve
Vacheron Constantin
Zenith

Others:
Baume & Mercier, Bulova, Chronoswiss, Dunhill, Elgin, F.P.Journe, Gruen, Hublot, Jaquet Droz, Martin Braun, Nomos, Parmigiani Fleurier, Paul Picot, Philippe Dufour, Sinn, Swatch, Ventura

The list is not exhaustive! Of course, the tops of the line have to be Patek Philippe, Vacheron Constantin, Jaeger-LeCoultre, Rolex and Breguet.

BTW, just because your peers and relatives love to talk about and show off their TAG Heuers doesn't make it more exceptional and grandiose than others.

Here are the ten models whose names you should know:
1. Royal Oak (Audemars Piguet)
2. Portuguese (IWC)
3. Reverso (Jaeger-LeCoultre)
4. Speedmaster (Omega)
5. Calatrava (Patek Philippe)
6. Monaco (TAG-Heuer)
7. Tri-Compax (Universal Geneve)
8. Santos (Cartier)
9. Museum Watch (Movado)
10. Oyster (Rolex)
(The list is in Gene Stone's book "The Watch" ISBN 978-0810930933)

My personal favourite has always been IWC! And I disdain TAG-Heuer (clarification: just a personal prejudice, of course it's an important factor that affects what you like about a brand) because it seems some friends of mine whom I loathe are wearing this brand just to show off. Hehe..

At the end of the day, don't be a snob. It's the same be it for watch-collecting/buying or wine-drinking (you know you always bump into folks who always want a chateau). You don't have to necessarily go for the big names to talk about timepieces, or become an expert.

This post has been edited by p_los7: Oct 24 2008, 05:03 PM

Nah I'm just an amateur, more like a jack of all trades anyway, nobody--even an expert or horologist--knows everything that needs to be known about timepieces.

I just find it hard to believe how some people can be so bigoted that they can't keep an open mind when talking about watches, you know, those who take so much pride in owning a Rolex and would look down their nose at you if you wear a Swatch or Casio.

Anyways, was at a watch talk once and the speaker juxtaposed two brands--one being Rolex the other i forgot, could be Gerald Genta i don't remember--and emphasised that both cost about the same to buy, but that particular Rolex model was mass-produced like 100,000 pieces a year, whereas the other only fewer than 1,000. I'm sure we all know which would sell better LOL...

hey who's that in your avatar?

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Added on October 26, 2008, 3:57 amhaha if a young man like me wears a Rolex most ah peks will dismiss my Rolex as a replica or fake. Anyway those are the same folks who can't tell authentic Rolex from counterfeit one, that's why the replica watchmakers can steal some market share from the authentic

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Added on October 26, 2008, 4:03 amPetaling Street sucks big time, when i was younger i bought some LV cufflinks and a Hugo Boss sling bag there, gf bought Adidas sneakers and LV handbags, dirt cheap (hard bargaining work paid off LOL) but quality sucks, what grade A korean-made good stuff i think locally made goods sold at Pasar Malam have better quality.

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Added on October 26, 2008, 4:17 amJust curious, which brand/model you're going to buy and how much you're prepared to fork out for it? hehe

BTW, my CYMA is this model, http://store.pchome.com.tw/ewatch/M00679577.htm
Longines http://www.classybrand.com/watches/watch_f....720.4.11.2.asp
(This design is the same as 1982 Longine's milestone watch except that one was gold and without date at 3.)

Next watch I'll buy is IWC, problem is I don't save!

This post has been edited by p_los7: Oct 26 2008, 04:17 AM

I'll wear any wristwatch as long as i like it, don't really care if it's vintage or the most recent, uncle-look, kiddy or otherwise. I suppose one can wear anything with character when it's coupled with the right attire. I have a Mickey Mouse wristwatch (HK Disneyland la not Gerald Genta) for the casual clothes and it's so cool! (btw how to insert image here?)

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Added on October 26, 2008, 11:09 pm9 watch brands that are less expensive than they look:
1. Oris
2. Limes
3. Longines
4. Nomos
5. Tissot (especially the replica Chronos)
6. Rado
7. Davoso
8. Epos
9. Stowa

5 watches that are more expensive than they look:
1. Philippe Dufour Simplicity
2. Vacheron Constantin Simple Repeater
3. Patek Philippe 5029 P Repeater
4. Audemars Piguet Dynamograph
5. Paul Picot Atelier 818 Minute Repeater

Copyright: Gene Stone

This post has been edited by p_los7: Oct 26 2008, 11:09 PM

Nice, seems to me that Bell & Ross only makes watches with black dials and black straps or beige dials and beige straps. I like the fact that their watches are simple in design with highly readable large dials and numerals, like some of the Sinn's models.