3 Loves and 1 Hate: The $600 Baltic MR01
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- Опубликовано: 7 июн 2024
- Baltic has been killing it lately, culminating in their new release of the MR01, a watch so popular that people are waiting almost a year for it. Today we look if the watch is worth the hype, and how Baltic was able to pack so much into such a budget piece. But I did find one thing that needs fixing!
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Join the discussion: www.watchcrunch.com/Max/posts/is-this-baltic-worth-a-9-months-wait-3113
I have an Ali Express watch, branded Lobinni, which uses the same movement, and costs about $US250. However it has a diameter of 39.5mm, and it's quite impressive that Baltic managed to squeeze the movement into a 36mm case. The Baltic watch does appear to be better finished. The Lobinni watch has a strange affectation: all the engravings on the movement are in German.
Quite fitting that, almost 200 years after Louis-Abraham Bréguet passed away, a French brand makes a name for itself on the international watch scene with Bréguet numerals. Thanks Max for reviewing this timepiece.
Great point, RIP LAB 🙏
Just ordered mine first thing this morning (salmon). I prefer a 34mm case size, so 36mm seems a bit large to me, unlike most people who see it as small. Since Baltic has a "retro-focus," a 34mm case would have been authentic, but I guess they had to find some balance to satisfy the larger population of watch collectors today. This is a beautiful watch and I have noticed several reviewers comment on their disdain for the crown. A small compromise I guess for a watch that is otherwise a true value. Thanks for the video.
Man I kinda love this watch! I've got a thing for Breguet numerals! I don't think I'd wait 9 months for it tho. That's a full gestation period. ;)
LOL. Yes if I'm gonna gestate a watch, it ain't gonna be a Baltic 😂
witty as always
This is a surprisingly nice watch. It's fairly simple, yet intricate in its own right.
Great vid!
Thanks Chris👍
I never would’ve have guessed this was a $600 watch. Nice choice Max!
They did a hell of a job with the budget ! Thanks Thomas👍
These definitely look awesome, but the wait time is unfortunate. Thank you for another great review!
Thanks Ty, I wouldn't wait 9 mo for it 😉
Yes, I change my watches three times a day; seriously…And, I just got the blue bronze Aquascaphe and just love the dimensions and the look 👌🏼! This brand is definitely going places
Nice Roberto! Baltic is kicking ass
Love the watch but I wish they slightly increase their pricing level and go with ETA or Selita movements.
It's not going to be cost effective to spend $200 to service a Hangzhou movement that probably no watchmaker has worked on. Safe to say no one is going to service these.
Yeah I agree, I think Baltic needs to go in that direction!
Thanks for the in-depth review and the macroshots! I was really close to getting this but I don't like the heavily raised crystal and the 1/4 second demarcations. It doesn't serve a purpose, doesn't add enough oomph to the dial, but it's enough to make it look cluttered. But again, thanks for the great review
Only just found your site and It's great. Thank you very much. I will be back. By the way, the Baltic MR01 is superb and well worth waiting for.
I agree with you about the crown, but I think I like it better than the "B" they have on their other models. I'm just not a fan of text on a crown. Would much rather have a symbol like the rose on a Tudor crown. Picking nits... Overall, it's a great looking watch.
Yes a symbol > text any day 👍
I like a crown on the crown. >;^)
I just ordered one! I can’t wait to get my hands on it!
Here's my take on this watch, as a previous owner of the silver dial (from the initial numbered edition). The watch is beautiful but you can feel why it's so affordable. It rattles, the polishing is subpar, and I had visible blemishes on the movement (in addition to the Vostok-level finishing). Overall, I liked the design and appreciate the movement choice, but I think the watch is overrated. Design doesn't make up for everything else.
I appreciate your comment. Do you have an opinion of the Lorier Safari?
@@a30yearoldspic I have never owned or handled one, so no opinion on this one! Good design though
@@lucioledizerot196 I'm trying to decide between a blue MR01 and salmon/copper Lorier Safari. I like the design of both but can only have one.
What it has is design. It doesn’t have anything else, nor is it priced to have anything else.
It’s $650 for design. A fair trade in the watch world.
@@erwind1257 thank you. In this price range, you can't really ask for much more. I do like the design of the MR01 but, I doubt it'll ever replace my current collection favorites. I decided to pick one up on the secondary market. I think Blue with silver markers is the easiest dial to read with my old eyes. Thanks for your input, Cheers!
I agree with the statement that they are like Oris and Zenith. Something about the will to be independent speaks to me. My next watch I am saving up for is a Nomos Tangente Neomatik 35. The watch and DUW3001 movement speaks to my nerdy soul. Nomos swing system is another step to more independence.
Love this watch. Beautiful design.
They did a great job on the design 👍
Just got my MR01 and maybe the waiting time is rolex-ish BUT what you get is far more fun and off mainstream and that's a good thing for me.
Im on the wait-list for July for a Salmon dial with navy strap. Not having hands on with the watch yet, I think I understand you points on the crown, although I think its very well executed to give that full vintage theme.. I'm pretty stoked about receiving mine! I'll definitely share some photos and my thought on Watch Crunch! I have the Bicompax gilt navy as well so I think the MR01 salmon will be a good contrast!
The salmon looks delicious too 🤤
Awesome video man. I heard of this watchmaker before but never took the time to research them. I wanted the GS sbgw231 as my next piece but I think the MR01 in the salmon dial might just scratch that itch. Love the content.
For the price, it's easily impulse buy territory 😉
Beautiful watch with perfect dimensions. Hopefully they release it with a sapphire crystal upgrade in the future.
Great video! You were spot on 💯…Recently got the MR01 salmon dial with blue strap. Definitely a lot of watch for the money. Though it’s 36mm it feels like you’re wearing a 38mm watch.
Love your reviews bro! This watch is a sweet, cheap gem!
max, love it with the leather strap. what is the strap's length should i look for if i have 6 1/2 inches wrist?
Hello, First look at your channel and really like what I saw.
Baltic (France), Christopher Ward (England) and Zelos (Singapore) are actually, in my opinion, the 3 micro brands that may one day become independent. These 3 ones are, step by step, creating complete catalogs with diver, chrono, dress watches, etc, etc.
I also like the work done by About Vintage (Denmark) and Dan Henry (USA), including the way they mix automatic and quartz watches in their collections. But it seems they are a step behind.
Another one! (Dj Khaled voice) killed it bro! Great video and perspective.
Haha 🤣. I hear it
How has the hesalite crystal putting up so far? I'd hate to put even a tiny scratch on it, not because I think its an expensive watch, but because its so pretty and shiny.
Waiting 9 months for this item helps defuse the anticipated expense and the agonizing torture that the "R" brand is doing! Micro brands must be careful with pending delays and delivering on time, a waiting disparity with potential clients interested in finding an opportunity to own a valued time piece, may likely be deal breaker to some but not all!
A Beautiful watch indeed...... Great subject for discussion and overview, nice work Max!
We are all so over R brand right now 🤣
You deserve more subs dude - keep it up ✊🏼
Thanks man, keep grinding 😅
Bought an Aquascaphe bronze last year & had several major QC issues. Inconsistent finishing on one side of the case, misaligned bezel & both silicone straps were falling apart along the molding lines right out the box. I returned it.
Yeah I wasn't impressed with the aquascaphe's fit and finish
I have the same. Mine has been totally perfect. TBH, I don't wear the original strap though. It looks great with a brown and orange stripe NATO. Good accuracy, and nice look now it's relaxed into my seaside lifestyle. Highly recommended.
Maybe I am alone but as someone who owns a lot of micr-brand watches I wish they were not manufactured in China. Lately I have been trying to avoid (I know this is unrealistic as most things are these days) sending money there, at least for luxury items. I would happily pay double if it was manufactured in France. I could go on a long rant but the government disgusts me and it amazes me that we support them from a humans rights stand point. On a less serious note the watch has a great design and I like the unique take. I usually only change my watches twice lol. Keep up the great content!
Yeah this movement really let the watch down. Looks pretty though 😉
I'd love it if it had a smaller centred small seconds so that it looks like loads of other watches, I think I'm too traditional in my tastes but still it's a classy looking watch and I'd love to get one on my wrist. That Aquascaphe GMT though, in the Zodiac colours that may be my favourite microbrand piece, great one again Max see you in the WC....that sounded weird, I mean WatchCrunch.
Struggling with the asymmetry Morgan? 😉. That GMT has some great colors! I'll have to get my hands on one! See you in the men's room🤣
@@WatchCrunchOfficial 😂😂
A fantastic buy. If I can get it
I get mine in September. Hope it is worth the wait.
It's definitely a looker 👌
Dude, the crown isn’t signed on purpose. Everything else you said, spot on.
I want one so bad. Such a cool watch
Hit me up on Instagram 😉
Mine is coming in September, so I hope its worth the wait :D Thanks for the video.
Can't beat it for the money 👍
Lagavulin 16, nice!
You said yours in number 43. I recieved mine a few days ago and wanted to know, where did Baltic locate the Number again?
I'd use the Peseux 7001 movement and shave off a couple of mm on the thickness, move the small seconds to 6, and replace the arabic numerals with dash indices.
I'll keep saving for my one "proper" watch for life. The OP 36mm. So these micro brands are a distraction in my mind and prevent me from reaching the goal. So I've given up on them all... but to be fair it's a gorgeous watch, just not one I would treasure past the initial honey moon period
Yeah it's hard to think this watch will last like the op
Good for you. Keep your eyes on the price…it will happen.
@@albundy3929 exactly what I'm thinking. Do you have any watches you're after?
I’m in the same boat. Been waiting 5 months for an op36. It’s the one for me
@@Czeron01 hope you get the call! They're great watches. I went with IWC Mark 16 for £3000. No regrets. Absolutely love that watch
Micrortors have been around for aaagggeesss. Like the Universal Geneve from the 1950s and then it wound up in a bunch of Hamilton modes. Definitely not limited to companies like AP and Journe.
👆
Chopard, Laurent Ferrier...
I saw video with Teddy Balthazar and Kevin Leary discussing micro brands. Baltic was one of the brands and he had this watch. Kevin Leary was blown away by it. I liked it so much I purchased two. Salmon and blue. I just got an email the salmon has been shipped...
So what do think now?
@@jeffreygoss8109 I find it a little too small for me...
@@richardglazer7813 thinking of selling the blue?
I just grabbed the silver at the wind up fair in NYC…
I have the salmon mr01.
The watch feels light and cheap and but looks amazing,I was very disappointed haven waited months for it to arrive,the rattling noise that comes from the rotor with any little movement was to much and I decided to send it back.
Yeah the movement let's it down
You could have flipped it for a profit, so it must quite a let down.
I have the blue Aquascape & love it. It's replaced my Explorer as my daily. I was really excited when this watch was going to drop, but it seems the design has been tweaked from their ads to the actual launch...and I'm not sure I like it anymore. Sorta bummed.
Interesting, what did they change?!
Thinking down the road, is this movement serviceable? Or is it a ‘throwaway’ like a seagul?
Will probably cost as much as the watch to service 😅
Yep.
love this watch
Hey Max, I would say Ming would fit the bill of a microbrand making the transition to a independent much better than baltic. Your thoughts?
I feel like Ming wants to be seen as an independent, but probably low end of that 🤔
For that cheap this could be a good investment down the road
Good stuff.
😁👍
Waitinglist? I had to preorder it... 😅
Have u ever reviewed seagull st17 movement?
People may be finally getting tired of Diving watches. Everybody was wearing them. I wear a Seiko green alpinst . It is very good-looking. The dress sports watch may be making a comeback.
a watch that you look at to tell time that you like to look at!
I bought the Salmon dial as I absolutely loved this design and proportions. But a word of caution to anyone wanting to purchase - the movement is really noisey. So much so I had to sell mine without ever wearing it as I knew it would annoy me when out and about. Such a shame
I'll buy it when they replace the movement with a Swiss or miyota movement
It that from aliexpress?
When it’s time to finally buy a good dress watch (just need about 6 or 17 more divers first), this is going to be near the top of the list for sure.
It's a beautiful choice 👍
Great video! I'm considering the Baltic bronze. May I ask what your wrist size is?
Thanks! It's 6.5 in
Lovely watch. But with 7.5 wrist I think is too small.
Not a patch on Helm wait times!!
I do not know how the crown feels, but from a design perspective is proportioned to the watch aesthetics and case design, a thicker one would not match the design.
It's as much the movement it's connected to as anything else
I like it, might buy it but to me, I might be wierd, it doesnt jump out as a 'must buy'... maybe thats just me being resistant to impulse buying???
Definitely a good impulse buy price 😉
@@WatchCrunchOfficial might impuls later😄, need a clean dressy watch for my new office internship that I can wear out of the office too!
You should do a longer term review too, heard people were hessitant because of the chinese novement! Tbh, a 3 hander cant go wrong
Gives me Philippe Duffour vibes but for $600
Love your videos :)
The Baltic is not for me, I don't think that this watch is worth the hype. It's nice but i still think that the case is rather boring and looks very cheap.
Unless having to give firstborn to the AD is also a prerequisite for Baltic, it’s not like Rolex
Nice watch but I despise the crown. It’s way too thin making it difficult to wind
Agreed!
05:23 The movement seems to have some kind of unclean dirt on their parts. Looks like oil drops.
This looks like an Omega.
A vintage one 👍
Waiting for the watch crunch app to come out. Don’t like the web ui experience
Coming soon 😅
Nice video Max, but for me it would be unthinkable to buy or even wear a watch with a Chinese movement. It just doesn’t do it for me. The negative thing on this watch it’s definitely the movement that disqualifies the watch for good.
Yeah the movement looks pretty but is not very refined.
🎧👍
😁👍
They need to decide if they want to be in the business or not. Much smaller micros are funding their manufacturing costs now. It’s ridiculous.
Where can I get a Rolex with 9 month waiting time?????
Nowhere.
Imagine this, green mr01 and with eastern arabic numerals..
I like the watch, but I’m shocked at how high some of these sell on the secondary market. Do people really pay that much for one of these? Do t get me wrong, beautiful watch. But I sometimes think we are all looking to be the first on the next big thing and micro is it.
Yeah the hype is real on this one 😅
That type of thing really surprises me too.
Approximately a year ago Time Factors / Smiths were having problems meeting demand.
Opening the store once a month and taking all the orders they could process in a single month within 3 or 4 minutes. During that time I’d see people who’d obviously bought extra pieces listing a $500 watch for $1K. And they were selling. Madness.
Beautiful looking watch, however, as soon as you mention a Chinese movement, you lost me.
Move the price up a little, and put an ETA movement in. (It’s as bad as that beautiful new King Seiko having that crap movement in it - just so disappointing.)
P.s. I wish more companies would manufacture automatics with 100-200m WR and a screw down crowns.
A good everyday watch, much like the Rolex OP recipe.
Meeeeh
Lovely watch, unfortunately 36mm is far too small for me. Looks like a child’s watch on my wrists.
Let the tiny wrist people have this one. Too many dinner plate sized 39-40mm dress watches in the market already. Haha!
Does Baltic manufacture any of the components? If not, comparing them to a brand like Sinn is unfair to Baltic and insulting to Sinn.
I think that they make all the parts apart from the movement
@@michele_ based on their web site it doesn't appear they have internal manufacturing capabilities, only assembly.
I really do not like the positioning of the sub dial. It gives me the heebeejeebees!
It's not for everybody 😅
…yeah. Not sold this piece Max. It’s a good watch, sure. But worthy of the hype? I think not.
Baltic has that slight whiff of style before substance that I get from the sort of watch buyers who pay $30K for an OP in sky, I mean Tiffany, blue.
1 - The sub-dial placement wasn’t a design choice. It’s a feature of the movt. If Baltic had rebuilt the movt to alter the crown position to enable the off set of the sub-dial, I’d get the praise.
2 - There’s been a heap of Calatrava’s with leaf hands and Breguet numerals produced over the years by a heap of brands, making this a simple homage watch. Yeah, the way the dial has been filled with enlarged elements is impressive, as is the dial graining, but it’s a stretch to consider it a piece of ‘design excellence’.
3 - The movt has been problematic for a number of buyers, at least anecdotally. To say that it’s been (to paraphrase) overhauled in France before casing is naive. It’s a $600 watch. Do we really buy that a small team or even a single watchmaker is disassembling / reassembling and regulating each and every movt before casing? Simply not possible unless those watchmakers are donating their time. More like a quick look over to ensure that the movt is adequately assembled and a few mins on the time-grapher (otherwise known as normal QC). The rest is a well worded marketing campaign.
In short, this is a very well produced budget homage watch marketed at people who simultaneously look down their noses at Chinese manufacturing whilst being naive of the capabilities and quality of Chinese manufacturing and its insanely low cost.
For context, I bought one of these for my daughter (she loves it) and have decades of previous experience working with Chinese manufacturers.
Probably sounds like a personal attack Max. Far from it. Rather this comment is the culmination of months of what I think is hyperbolic praise for what is nothing more than a good watch at an appropriate price.
Cheers mate. Despite this comment, loving the content…
No offense taken. I think it's definitely style over substance, but what do we expect for the price. Would've loved it if they'd upped the price a couple hundred and included a movement on par with the style...alas
@@WatchCrunchOfficial
Yeah. I’ve heard that a lot. I don’t mind that the movement is Chinese; I’m a massive fan of the ST19 and it’s vintage feel. Owning watches housing that movement is a joy as I get 80% of the vintage chrono feel in a daily wearer that I don’t need to worry about. That makes the occasions when I do wear vintage feel more special.
For me, Baltic have created an elegant office daily with the same benefits.
I don’t dislike the watch. I dislike the hype.
And even with that said, I take my hat off to Baltic who have entered the micro-brand sphere with a Rolex-esque marketing strategy. Creating hype, limiting supply and have ultimately created a product that functions not unlike a $600 Veblen good!
That’s impressive no matter how you cut it.
It’s an interesting conversation. I wish I’d posted it on Watch Crunch. I’m interested in others views.
Cheers again Max.
"rolex wait times"? More like 9 years lol
meh, the biggest downside is not the crown - is the chinese movement!
I highly doubt that "Baltic" are doing anything to those movements other than taking them out of their container, throw it on a time grapher for 5 seconds to see that it is within tolerance, then stick the dial on top together with the hands and finally case it. no pun intended but you guy are painting here a romantic story as if you are talking about an independent watchmaker from a village in Swiss /Germany that is making the case on a lathe in his workshop. all of those microbrand simply create a 3d model of their case, dial and hands, and order it from a 3rd party manufacturer, the movements in this case are coming completely assembled from china (only exception in this case was the added blued screws, which 100% came on the movements for a few extra cents per movement on demand), then everything is being assembled, and sold. quality watch? yes, anything else? not much.
btw those HZ5000A movements with the really nice decorations as standard cost about $40-50 a piece, probably a less when you buy a few hundreds of them
2small
lost me at acrylic glass
Acrylic glass is clear and doesnt smear. It gives the watch a vintage feel which some enthusiast really appreciate and love. Popular Rolex vintage watches like 1016 and even some version of the omega speedmaster uses acrylic and these watches cost thousands. Acrylic is also less shatter prone than saphire and the scratches can easily be wiped away while for sapphire, any scratches will be permanent.
Sapphire is more suitable for modern sports watches/jewellery.
Acrylic is perfect for a vintage style watch like the mr01. You should try it. I have the mr01 green perpetuel version and it looks beautiful. In fact, acrylic is not as vulnerable as its made out to be..
Paying a premium for a Chinese movement & microbrand? No thanks.
I’ll stick to ‘legacy brands’ for this money.
Lobinni watches are about $200
It's "commensurate" not "commiserate".
hmmm... $600 for chinese movements and case. Why bother when you can get Made in Japan Seiko for about $400?
This watch is kinda thin sauce.
$600 for a Chinese movement. 🤣
no. just nope. no more this waitlist nonsense. I love this watch, but we in the community should not play this game and reward this behaviour. Otherwise ALL other microbrands will start doing this. and then all other smaller brands started doing this.
Rolex wait time for 9 months?? What planet are you on? 2015 called, it wants its Rolex waitlist back.
Everyone I know are getting their watches, maybe you should try being better person 😅
@@WatchCrunchOfficial What exactly is that supposed to mean?
@@WatchCrunchOfficial No seriously- what is that supposed to mean? Is this your idea of “better watch discussions”? Implying I must be a bad person because I don’t own a Rolex? Seriously?
I know Seagull are pretty good, but $600 for a competitor Chinese movement ? hmm. not sure. also not sure about the oversized font, its ugly. I can get a Hamilton for the same money with a swiss movement.....
true … how costly to etch a B on a crown🤦🏼♂️
The founder looks like Jobs, and he definitely did it on purpose... That's embarrassing honestly
36? It’s a ladies watch.
Hangzhou movement with Geneva stripes, well that's essentially Swiss made! Plus Oris only has history dating back to 1904 and Sinn 1961 so I see how this watch brand is almost equal in quality and prestige...YUP. Sorry I like Baltic and they're beautiful, but you're making a preposterous leap which is just laughable.