There are a vast number of watches available that sport innovative features and different designs. One thing remains unchanged throughout all the changes in watch-making. The tough, ongoing debate between the quartz (more commonly known as battery powered) and the automatic mechanical watch (which is powered by movement). So which is better? That depends on the beholder. While both have their own pros and cons, we hereby state the case for the mechanical watch.

One of the more contentious arguments pertains to overall durability. Consider what a watch's quartz system is: some gears and a quartz crystal oscillator powered by a battery. As such, quartz watches are slightly more shock resistant but susceptible to full magnetization. Automatic movements have the opportunity to be demagnetized and are actually more reliable at lower temperatures. Quartz watches however can be more water resistant. Obviously with a mechanical watch, you don't have to worry about changing the battery - a timeless grievance for watch owners. While durability is largely associated with quality, provided that it is continuously cared for, a mechanical watch could last a lifetime or longer as it could be passed down from generation to generation. Not to say that a quartz watch couldn’t last as long, just that some of the quartz watches made in today's market are made to be disposable.

To many watch aficionados, automatic watches are works of art. Manufacturing of automatic movements takes a lot of skill, patience and most of all, passion. From the intricacy of design to the smooth sweeping seconds hand, owning a mechanical watch is often seen as a graduated level of style and sophistication. This is one of the reasons why mechanical watches are often passed down as family heirlooms. With the amount of detail associated with each internal mechanism and the technological advancements over the years, the mechanical movement has been developed to withstand the test of time. For instance, Orient Watch has been manufacturing and developing our mechanical movements for over 60 years. We are an in-house manufacturer, which means we put together the movements from start to finish in our own facilities (located in Northern Japan). This gives us the watchmaking ability to build movements specifically for a particular design, and not the other way around. And by creating these movements ourselves, we can proudly ensure the quality and reliability of each of our watches at the ground level.