ISO durable long-lasting watch

[SAMbike]

Hi everyone,

I've been wearing Timex Ironman 50 lap (not because I do laps...) watch for years. About every year or so I buy a new one because the old one is dirty (not because I don't wash it, but it just discolors the resin/plastic) and worn (color chipping/peeling off). Plus, my latest one now has the sides loosening up and actually pulling away from the main body of the watch. So it works, they all continue to work, I just don't like wearing them anymore.

So I'd like to buy a watch and actually keep it for more than 2 years. This watch is $60. I really don't want to pay hundreds like I see I can. Anyone have a watch that is durable for sports use, decent enough for everyday wearing, and lasts - cosmetically - for years?

Thanks,
SAM

[madscot13]

I feel your pain. I have gone through 2 Timex ironman's. my plastic is not discolored too bad but the face is scratched up real bad. I am interested to hear what watches people prefer.

[Zen]

I'm wearing a Timex Explorer Illuminite that's so old I don't know how old it is. Maybe 15 years.
As long as it works I don't care what it looks like and I doubt anyone else notices.

How closely do you look at another persons watch?

Timex=Takes a licking and keeps on ticking.

[Veronica]

I wear an Omega Seamaster. I've had it for nine years. It was not cheap. It was not made in China and has no plastic bits. I wear it every day. It has an artificial sapphire face, so it is scratch proof. It's water resistant to 100 meters. My cost per day so far is.37 cents. That will continue to diminish, since I doubt I will ever need to buy another watch, unless this one gets stolen.

Oh and I often look at other people's watches. There are some really exquisite ones out there.

Veronica

[SAMbike]

Thank you all for your replies!

[OakLeaf]

What sports features do you need? I'd start there, and eliminate watches that don't have the features you're looking for.

HRM, altimeter, lap counter (you already said you didn't use that), stopwatch, foot pod, GPS?

Other than its sports features, a watch is just jewelry - date and time come more accurately from your phone and/or GPS. If that's what you're looking for, then spend as much as you would for a nice bracelet.

[SAMbike]

Good points OakLeaf. I use the:
- alarm clock every morning
- timer when I'm cooking/baking
- stopwatch/chrono when I'm running
- the watch itself when I'm riding my bike to keep me on track with eating/drinking
- during the day for date/time (I don't have my cell phone always right next to me - sometimes misplace it!)

If there was a watch that did just those things I'd be happy - oh and if it looks good and doesn't get shabby over the course of a year with me mountain biking with it and working in the garden - two places where it gets contact with a lot of dirt.

So for me it's very much about function, but I'm not able (yet?) to get over being shallow about its shabby looks... because I wear it everywhere for work and play.

[VeloVT]

My Timex sports watches have held up better than my Nike sports watches, for the most part. My solution is to have a nice dress watch that I don't wear for play -- and then I don't really care how my sports watches look (although mine really haven't gotten discolored or scratched from riding and running and casual wear (I don't wear them swimming though). I have one Timex Ironman (it's a triathlon sleek model) that's probably three years old and really doesn't show any age. I'm not helping here :), I'm partial to Timex for sports because the placement of the lap/split button is so intuitive and they have a lot of features for the $$$.

[woohoo]

For exercise and on the bike I use a relatively cheap polar HRM that has stopwatch/laps etc and then I just wear my regular watch (another Omega Seamaster - good choice Veronica!) when I'm not training. That way I don't have to worry how beat up the training watch gets as I mostly don't wear it out and about. I think that some of the more modern polar watches have slightly better styling than mine, though, and you could probably wear them all the time. For durability, mine isn't too scratched or anything, and it's 4 years old. One note on the Nike Triax ones though is that if you wear your watch on your right hand the angle of the display can work against you...

L ; )