Great video! I have just purchased the SLA057 from an authorised UK dealer today. RRP for a 600 unit limited edition watch being £4,100 and I paid £2,695. Over a year later, Seiko AD's still haven't been able to shift all of the watches which speaks volumes about Seiko's ambitious pricing! 😆
Hey Warren, thank you for the comment. This was exactly my point. I love seiko, I wear one nearly every day. A lot of commenters got bent out of shape that I would dare question seiko, when in fact, my argument was that this model was grossly overpriced. You paid even less than what I thought was a fair price for is so well done! The market decided I was right, not the seiko fans commenting here deciding I was wrong because their feelings are the facts.
@Casual Watch Reviews Many thanks for the reply! 😃 My biggest concern is that Seiko is pitching these watches to their loyal fans at prices that the market obviously won't stand for. One RUclipsr even claimed that they were a good investment because of their limited production which obviously isn't the case. Hurting your loyal customers by charging exorbitant prices and taking advantage of them may not be the best long term business plan. 👍
I think 4600 dollars is a fair price for sla055. It has a look of Lx line but with 8L35 . If as you said it should have 9s movement then it would be at the price of LX which is about 6000 dollars. By the way the 8L35 movement are more durable than the fancy hi beat 9s . Thanks everyone:)
Yeah, he seems to be comparing it to the Marinemasters, but, this "every-brilliant" super corrosion resistant steel that Seiko came out with recently to compete with Rolex's 904L steel is what this watch is made of and seems to really jack up the price, as it did on their sbex 009, which was their first and only other watch they made out of that steel, and it was over $6k dollars when it was released. He doesn't seem to understand this.
I think the uploader havent held 62mas reissue like sla017 or sla037 or sla043 ... Hahahahah a lot complaining about the price.. hihihi just buy it if u like it... I like the 62mas over rolex even if u give me rolex money... I will still buy seiko 62mas reissue... Because i dont want the money, i dont want rolex... I want seiko its simple as that hahahahha
Yep, for that money I think that’s spot on! That was my argument here. The watch is great but their RRP was an experiment. You pairs what I would say it was worth.
Everything about this watch was making me want to purchase it. It’s thinner than the mm300. They are finally addressing everyones criticism of it. The 8L35 movement is a fantastic movement. In house movement. Very much a better movement then the eta. The dial is excellent. Seiko finishing is better than all the other watches in their price range. This watch is not as nice as an Omega or grand seiko. But it’s definitely better than an Oris, or a tudor. I can easily see it selling for this price. Except…. There is no fucking bracelet!!! Why the fuck would I buy a 4600 dollar without a bracelet. That seiko has better dial, better movement, better finish and better hands than any of those watches that you listed. It’s also a seiko design and not just a copy of someone elses design like many swiss watches are. It does not just have an ETA slapped into it. The 8L35’s that i have are more accurate than any of the ETA’s or sellita movements that i have. I would take that 8L35 over any of those. The crown action is much nicer on the seiko. Seiko asking 1200 dollars for some of their SBDC line watches with shitty sloppy 6r35 movements and misaligned everything and jingling jangling bracelets is far more irritating to me than this watch. I actually think this watch us really nice. Not as nice as say an Omega planet ocean or a sub but definitely better than an aquis or a bb58. Too Bad they didn’t make a bracelet for it. I might have been interested.
That was a roller coaster of emotions, thanks for watching and commenting. I will just add that all seiko movements are in house? I would also say the examples I gave are solid competitors to this watch. I agree it should have a bracelet like I said in the upload. Its clearly an experiment for Seiko… how far that can push the price. A lot of Swiss brands are overpriced also and I call them out too on the podcast. If the 8L35 is the top tier of seiko movement making and a worthy competitor to ETA, why would they make the appearance of putting no effort into regulating. The tolerance they put on their website is a joke for a watch of that price.
I can only speak for the 8L35’s that i have experienced not for all 8L35’s. But the movement’s that i have experienced are all well regulated. I think they are trying to avoid getting watches shipped back to them because someone claims their watch is fast 8 seconds a day. It’s kind of a frivolous thing to spend time on especially since the watches won’t qualify to be cosc certified because theyre not made in Switzerland. I can’t speak for every 8L35 out there though. I just know that i have 6 ETA movements in my collection and none of them are working as well as the 2 8L35’s that i have and i have not heard someone say that they bought one and it kept horrible time. The 6R35 on the other hand is a joke. None of mine are within 15 seconds a day and i have heard several people buy watches that are more than a minute a day off. And Seiko is putting that in watches that are over 1000 dollars. Thats ridiculous to me. I can’t imagine there is a Swiss watch on the market that keeps time that poorly. To mw the biggest problem with this watch is that people want a fancy name for $4600. People don’t like it that an skx that costs $300 has the same name. But that isn’t a strike against the watch to me.
I have been enjoying the comments on this one so appreciate yours! I offered to the couple of other commenters who liked the watch that if they do buy it they are more then welcome on the channel!
I have the MM300 and a couple of ETA based watches plus a speedy and until last month a datejust. My 8L35 was keeping around +1.5 secs a day and I've had the watch for just over 2 years now. I agree they should have tighter regulations but it's a better movement (8L35B) than most ETA's. The watch featured is a £3k watch for me. Very nice but not up to what they want.
Great video. I agree with a lot of your points especially considering the value, and Seiko does need to be careful moving forwards. However I often don't buy watches based on value, but my own preferences, I don't buy to impress other but to enjoy them myself. I've recently picked up a SLA043 as my first higher end watch, no doubt I'll get some criticism off people for it, but I've always preferred the Seiko Design DNA to the Swiss watch designs and for me the SLA043 was everything I was looking for in a modern retro inspired Dive Watch. I happen to prefer it to the Tudors / Omegas / Breitlings in a similar price range. I suppose it depends on what elements of a watch you prefer, I'm all about Case Shape, Dial and Indices rather than accuracyof movement etc, I do agree that Seiko definitely need to improve their accuracy a lot more on these offerings to be taken more seriously. Keep up the great work. Regards Rosco
We are the same... I prefer the seiko reissue 62mas over swiss... The finish of that watch is so nice. Personally, i think its better than rolex and tudor
Total emotional video of watch preference. I owned few Tudors, Tags, Omegas and a Rolex, some of the Tudors couldn't continue 3 years and the Tag just stopped working after exactly 2 years! Believe it or not, the Seikos that I own are the watches with least problems yet they are the ones that I dive with! If you love Swiss watches try not to hate other brands. I own both Swiss and Seiko's.
Yep me to, I wear a seiko as my daily wear, I have owned many seikos and currently have a speedtimer and a Turtle. I put a lot of money into customizing the turtle also.
I have the sla043, with the 8l35 movement. It gains about 2 minutes a week. New price was £4080. I also have a tudor bb in steel and gold. New price is £4800. The tudor is more accurate, only 1 second a day , but the seiko is vastly superior in build quality. The date wheel on my tudor usually sticks on the 5th of every month , I've not had this issue with any seiko. The seiko I can wear doing anything and it still looks mint. The tudor seems to pick up scratches just wearing it around the house. There's pros and cons to any watch, but these seikos using the everbrilliant steel are basically grand seikos and are just as good in terms of build quality as omega or rolex. An omega seamaster 300, cost over 4k on a rubber strap too, but its not as good as the seiko overall. The 8L35 movement should be regulated by seiko at this price, but its still a great robust movement. I paid £2350 for my sla043 used, and for that money makes it exceptional value. Omega have inflated their prices more than seiko , for basically the same watches, but don't get the same criticism ? Rolex and tudor have done the same. Seiko are completely in house , building every component, unlike a lot of their Swiss rivals. Seiko sla models are not cheap, but they easily compete with the Swiss in terms of value for money .
Hey Martin, thanks for watching and commenting. The main point of this video was about the watch being grossly overpriced (for the MSRP seiko had it listed for). The market decided that was true in the end. This watch was limited edition and you can still find them readily available for a massive discount. Take a look on whatever your preferred site for buying watches is… that is not the seiko website of course. You can’t get an Omega for $1000 less than its MSRP. Also the coaxial technology Omega use is superior to the 8L35. People who actually bought this watch and later commented, not one paid the MSRP for it. Take a look.
@@CasualWatchReviews , a lot of it is due to snobbery though. Because it says omega on the dial, doesn't make it a better watch. The seikos slas are expensive for a seiko, but they are grand seiko level. I've had a lot of watches and these seikos are easily on a par with anything omega do and better. The 8L35 may not be as good in terms of accuracy of the omega, but thats not the whole story either. The sla017 is worth quite a bit more than its original price, and as people realise these high end seikos are really great, I believe in time they will be regarded as such. Omega make a ton of watches which have many variations of the model, they are hardly exclusive anymore. Its a fairly new thing for seiko to go to this level, without being a grand seiko , so it will take time before the sheep realise that seiko make a watch thats every bit as good as omega, in terms of fit and finish, at prices that are comparable, if not cheaper. I've got a tudor bb on the wrist right now, that now costs £4800 new, but its no where near as special as my sla043. The movement is more accurate, but I have issues with the date wheel getting stuck. The fit and finish of the seiko is way superior. I know my watches , and seiko is as good as any ive owned in my 40 years of collecting. Take the speedie now , costing over 6k that was about 2.5k only five years ago. Massively overpriced now, and that's the truth .
It’s not snobbery to say the coaxial technology is better than the 8L35. You only need a very basic knowledge of watch movements to understand that. I’m not arguing that this seiko is not good. The video was about it being grossly overpriced for what it was at MSRP. It may feel special but it was overpriced. The market later decided I was totally right. Check on whatever site you like, they are available at massive discounts. I saw one guy selling one on eBay for $3,200. He bought it for the MSRP. Thats a depreciation of nearly $1,500 in less than a year. Things are worth what people will pay for them, Omega are selling speedmaster at a record rate. So they are worth what people will pay for them. This video was not about Omega anyway, it was about this particular ‘pricing experiment’ from seiko totally failing. We don’t need to deflect on to Omega to prove this watch was grossly overpriced, the actual market and people buying this watch decided that with their wallets. No one stops buys an omega because they think it’s overpriced. Omega never have to fire sale a limited edition watch because they so egregiously misjudged the market on pricing.
@@CasualWatchReviews yes , but a lot of it , is because a lot of people say I'm not paying that for a seiko , without experiencing the product. Everyone expects omega to be expensive and nobody quibbles the fact .
Seiko have no problem selling their grand seiko watches because they have the seiko name on there. This watch was clearly a pricing experiment that failed. Look through the other comments on this video. Many are defending this watch like you, but the people that actually bought it… not a single one paid anywhere near to the MSRP. This watch was grossly overpriced, the market decided. Only Seiko fans (I am wearing one in the upload) knew this watch was even released anyway. They sell this movement in a $2.5k watch, Omega don’t do that. They don’t have a coaxial watch for $2.5k then a watch with the same movements for close to $5k. It’s grossly overpriced this watch, thats why they struggled to sell it. The market decided, not me… or you for that matter. Did you buy this watch at full MSRP? And if not… why? I would hazard a guess, even if you think it was too expensive.
If you don’t like it, don’t buy it. This is a very niche product. Seiko makes something for everyone. If you feel you’re too good for Seiko then waste 10k on another brand.
Hi Guys, and Girls, I as an old Watch enthusiast can say no more than to totally agree with this, THAT'S WHY invests more in a brand that has always been in the "Silent" advertising but always delivered the same good quality as Seiko and in the last 2-3 years even better quality: "Orient", buy an Orient Triton or Kamasu, you get more than you have paid for, with Seiko, unfortunately, it is the opposite. Bought mine Orient Kamasu for a little more than a year ago and still has deviation of 6sec. a day!, hacking movement, sapphire crystal , 200m waterproof, good lumen, Made In Japan, all this I got for $ 300. I also love Seiko Dive Watches especially Turtle Prospex and Samurai models but, Seriously?, $600? for these models. As long as an Orient Neptune costs $ 150 less than "Seiko Sumo" and additionally easily "knocks all screws out" of this Seiko?, Well, it is not a difficult decision where I should invest my money.
@@milaweitz First of all: Hello, I can't be more serious, not only that Orient Kamasu is not mentioned here New Triton too, but this does not mean that no one is allowed to mention, this is pure consumer right. You have a passion for Diver Watches, OK?, but you know what, you're not alone in that, so, I can only say: Welcome to the Club. I also like Seiko Diver Watches, BUT, after I have expanded my -$1100 on my last Seiko Diver Watch and then bought first an Orient Kamasu and then New Triton then I ask myself: for what I have given Seiko $500 extra?. Regarding your last statement that the Orient is not in the same Tim, Yes, true, but it depends on what you are comparing. I have a Doxa Sharkmaster and of course it can't be compared, but neither is Seiko, however Orient is definitely in the same Team as Seiko, hope you have a nice and successful day, Regards.
@@miki55fathoms19 Hello, I agree with you, Orient is successful and offers a lot for money. However it is still micro brand. If I use same logic here. Is the hype around Rolex Submariner adequate? Is the price adequate? And most likely answer would be yes, because of huge demand, marketing business etc. And not the specs. In my opinion this Seiko model is for Seiko die-hard fans. And not for people who compares specs.
@@milaweitz Hi, I got your point and I hear you, however, the question still remains: What does Seiko do with its prices and what we buyers-Watch enthusiasts get for the money, sufficient quality?,No. BUT, after all This,naive me, I did it again, I recently bought "Seiko Prospex Solar Diver SNE571P1"= $520. In the whole picture satisfied but the bracelet?, poor quality and hollow. This is what I mean, now I'm looking for an aftermarket Bracelet that is better quality than this Seiko original bracelet and more out of money.
I agree 100%. I have owned the SLA025 and SLA039. I love the design and on-wrist feel of the unique mono-bloc case. But, the accuracy (+7 and +10 s/d) was ultimately the reason I sold both. It is unacceptable that a 5k USD watch is not better regulated. I will not own another Seiko high-end diver. They represent the worse value for money of any watch brand in this price range.
I was beginning to think I was going crazy the amount of people calling me an asshole in the comments for making this! It is ridiculous not to regulate them
If Rolex makes people beg for their watches, why not charge insane prices for a simple Seiko diver...the whole watch market goes in a direction, which isn't great for the customer.
Do you ever not watch a movie or avoid a certain restaurant because you know your not going to like it? Or you know it can’t possibly be good value for price the restaurant charges? The market decided this Watch was grossly overpriced because you can still buy them new on certain sites for $1000 less than what the MSRP is. Look at the comments here, not a single person who claims to own this watch paid anywhere near what seiko listed this watch for.
First, Seiko's most expensive watch at the time, their grayish blue version of the 62MAS re-issue, was so priced because of the so-called "ever-brilliant" steel, a super-corrosion resistant steel comparable to what Rolex makes their Submariners out of; this SLA055/057 uses this same steel, so, It would be logical to think that is the reason for much of its price. Also, it is a very limited edition of 600 for the black one and 1,300 for the blue one. BTW, the 8L35 is used because it was specially made for dive watches, it's a lower frequency than the 9L55 for durability, but it's still much higher beat rate than, say, the 4R35/6R15 movements. So, considering past models and what you're getting, no, it's not too high a price. Is it worth it? Frankly, I don't find ANY so-called "luxury" watches to be worth their price. As a fanboy of Seiko Turtles, I prefer my SLA051 gray dial Uemara edition, but would have no problem paying for one of these if I had been a lover of the Marinemaster style line.
Hey, thanks for watching. The market did divide this was massively overpriced for what it was. If you look on eBay or or their sites, they can be had for massive discounts. In fact, the only people who have commented on here who actually bought one, got them at well below retail.
To be honest, I find all the Marinemaster-type watches a bit keenly priced, but this one is outrageous. Five grand for a Prospex? They're having our eyes out.
This is a grand seiko badged seiko. You have to consider it like a Ford gt. Ford makes affordable good cars but also the gt, that destroys many Ferraris
Hi Sam. Nicely done! I'm conflicted on this topic. I have a box of Seikos, but none newer than from 1985. So I get the ethos that led to them being what they are. What Swiss or German brand can claim they've done for horology what Seiko has done, with things like vertical integration and innovation? Exactly zero. So, if Seiko wants the same level of respect and honor that the Europeans get then why shouldn't they? People in the watch community accept it when a Rolex goes for thousands over MSRP, or Omega turns out yet another expensive version of the Speedmaster. Seiko deserves to be accorded this same acceptance. I also think it may be doing a disservice to dismiss people who buy these LE Seikos as FOMOs, as if their all a bunch of dimwits ready to be parted of their money? I suspect we are. So here's why I'm conflicted: their poor QC. IMO this is where Seiko fundamentally doesn't understand why, like Rodney Dangerfield, they get no respect from us. Until they figure this out and correct the problem they'll not get my dollars. But I do hope they do.
Yep, I agree. I didnt mean to imply anyone who buys this watch is a dimwit. Hopefully that didn't come across. It was more to do with the movement and the disparity in cost between this and the standard marine master.
So here's what Caliber Corner has to say about the movement: The Seiko caliber 8L35 is an automatic movement that is based on the Grand Seiko caliber 9S55. As with GS movements, the 8L family is said to be assembled by hand at Shizuku-ishi Watch Studio in Morioka. It thus seems to be a bespoke movement. Would be appropriate however to more accurately adjust them at the factory.
@@truebluemiata totally agree with you, this movement is legendary and compares well with Rolex movements before the 70 hours reserve change. It is the same as the grand seiko counterpart without the adjustment but I don’t like 5 thousand for 8L35 no value for me, if it was spring drive or the legendary hi beat 8L35 then I am all in but can’t deny the rest of quality like dial work, zaratsu polishing is way above its price and compares well with my blancpain 50 fathoms and this in my opinion speaks volumes about the high end seiko quality. In a nutshell great watch but wrong movement for that price.
Seiko fanboys will be angry lol I like the look of the Seiko 65 and 68 style divers, but it really seems like they are selling a name rather than a product now. It's almost as if they have bought into the internet hype along with the fanatics.
I agree, Seiko pricing is absolutely ludicrous for this watch without a high beat movement. The only Seiko I will likely purchase is a Grand Seiko with a spring drive movement, because it IS the best movement available. I predict that the Seiko in this quasi review will soon be available in a Pagani Design homage with a NH35A movement. I have numerous NH35A powered watches accurate to less than 2 seconds a day!
8L35 has zero deviation. If u get a plus 9 per day... It will stay that way... Having said that a simple adjustment at the movement which any competent watchmaker can do. You can hit COSC accuracy w zero deviation...
The price is listed on the website at $4,600 USD. This may seem steep for a Seiko but the watch case is fully Zaratsu finished and it is made from a new steel that Seiko produces which rivals the 904L steel used by Rolex. The bezel is ceramic and this watch is only 13mm thick which is a good size for a diver. The movement is the only thing holding this watch back from competing directly with watches twice the price but it’s still a solid movement that’s known to run much more accurately than Seiko states. I think a better price would be something like 3800 to 4200 dollars but it’s not a terrible value at 4600, especially since there are only 1300 pieces for the blue color.
@@phillippugh2161 I’m the type that tries to find hidden gems not over hyped flavours of the day. I love Seiko at $500 but at $1000 plus there are better options
@@phillippugh2161 I am fully aware of Seiko offerings from Seiko 5 to Grand Seiko. I purchased a Seiko baby Tuna for $450 and love it, but that is my limit on what I would spend on a Seiko. Actually did a review on it.
Totally agree with you! The problem is with Seiko you can buy very simular designs for £1000 from Seiko. You don't see Omega or Rolex gutting their brand with £1000 divers. Seiko is just doing it the other way around by gutting their brand with £4000-6000 watches and not fixing their QC issues (I have saw QC issuies on these watches already) and you hit the nail on the head with the movements!
@@watchroll3310 Yea it happens with Omega and Rolex as well, that said I have not saw it in person but it’s very common as we all know with Seiko. You could check ever Rolex or Omega in your city and not find a misaligned bezel and you could check every Seiko in the city and not fined an aligned bezel.
Not “6000 ltd edition of one 1300 of the other” as you mentioned. Rather 1300 of the 55 and 600 of the 57. You also say it’s highly unlikely you’ll get it at a discount if you’re lucky to find one at all. I found one in seconds and paid £2600 for my sla 57. They’re out there if you go digging.
Seiko made their international reputation with well made quartz timepieces for the everyman. That reputation was well deserved. These days however, Seiko is neither fish nor fowl. With a proliferation of price points, they are a marketing managers nightmare. Meanwhile, the average mall shopper can not tell the difference between what is cheap, and supposed to be expensive.
Seiko's pricing has gone off the chart, for unlimited releases of limited editions as simple or lazy as just by changing the colours. Look at the recent Thailand edition of monsters which are priced at over 3 times of actual market prices of normal monster. Ridiculous! Something is very wrong with Seiko, or somebody who doesn't know the market is in charge of the product pricing. I am a Seiko fan but sorry Seiko, I have been spending my money in other brands cos your pricing does not make sense at all.
The difference between some of those other watches you mentioned and this Seiko is those watches will drop in value significantly and won’t be worth much in a few years. If this watch performs anything like the SLA017, it will still be worth in 3-4 years at least what someone paid initially and possibly more. This is as close to Grand Seiko as you can get without paying $8-10k for a diver. I just picked one up new for $3300 and it’s worth it to me at that price.
Hi Ray! Thanks for watching. I don’t agree with you about the resale value of those watches. Most of those brands have good resale value if you look. But I think we do agree about the price of this Seiko. I also agree this watch is worth what you paid for it. Considering how limited it was I’m continually amazed about how many are on eBay for significantly under MSRP. My point in this upload was how grossly overpriced by seiko this watch was… and it looks like the market has decided that was true. I’m sure your decision would have been different if this watch was only available at MSRP of over $5k I’m guessing? I made an assumption there so interested to know your thoughts?
@@CasualWatchReviews yes, you’re probably right. I think this watch dropped in value immediately but since it is limited and one of seikos more high end models, my hope is the value will go back up over time like it did with the SLA017. I’m not buying the watch to sell it later but I do try to buy watches that I won’t lose money on if I ever do need to sell.
Yes I’m like you in that respect. My fellow RUclipsr Pete over at Not So Obvious Watches talks about watch collectors in categories, I would fit into his ‘accountant’ category. Looking for value and watches that maintain value. We did a livestream a while ago on the topic! Again… thanks for watching!
In my opinion this watch is for Seiko die-hard fans. I feel it is no meaning to compare some specs etc. Regarding the movement accuracy, Japanese are known for generous approach and they rather mention worst numbers than it actually is. Again, this might be pricey, but as a whole design, and level of detail - aka GS, it is absolutely fantastic piece.
Yep, I think what’s funny is after this upload the market kind of settled on what it was worth. They can be easily had for $3-3.5k mark, that’s probably about right.
They seem to really be trying to force the Seiko brand upmarket. Not sure how well it will work. Collectors have a set of assumptions on what you get with Seiko and when you are moving into Grand Seiko. A casual may not care much about the movement but at this price surely this is for collectors who do know and care, yes? I do not get it.
I haven't heard any 8L35 movements being -10 or +15. On your Breitling point, I needed to have my Avenger regulated because it suddenly slowed down to -10 a day after 1 year.
Yep, I was more making the point that giving a variance like that give the impression they don’t bother to regulate the movement. Unlike Breitling who have their movements measured to COSC for the most part.
This is old news now. The point of the upload was around the watch being grossly overpriced. Turns out I was 100% correct. You can still buy this watch for at least $1k less than RRP still today! All I got wrong… expecting all of them to sell. But they didn’t.
I think Seiko does this kind of thing with every tier they sell. Even for watches they only charge a couple hundred dollars for, they put Hardlex crystals on their watches when other companies charging the same price use sapphire.
I just made a video on this actually, a $99 Casio with sapphire. I get a lot of push back from other commenters about this upload, but this watch amazingly, is still readily available as a massive discount. Seikos experiment with this watch and price point clearly failed. Great watch for the 2-3k range but grossly overpriced for 4.5-5k range of their MSRP
my favorite brand watch~~Seiko😄 Of course grand seiko is great,but it is too expensive for us to buy it,any suggestions for Presage Ocean Traveler GMT Night Blue Ref. SARF013?I want to buy this watch,but not sure is it worth about $1200？is 6r64 movement good or bad?
I agree the price is high, but who payes retail? I have this one. It is a stunning watch. The finishing on the ever brilliant steel is amazing. The dial and indices are outstanding. Yes, the movement should be regulated. Very happy withthis one. I bought this instead of a GS spring drive diver. Too bulky, and look at me watch. Not interested. I have 3 SLA ever brilliant steel divers. The055, 043, and i am wearing a 039. Also have a 049 Naomi Uemura. He rocks! I think if you shop smart , the SLA series can be great value for some real nice watches
Hey Douglas. Yep it looks like a few people paid retail and thought they got a deal… they didn’t. Even though this was limited edition you can readily find them new online for at least a grand off their RRP. Some people did pay retail and got ripped off. Check the comment here.
I think it's not so hard to understand. There's playing the Rolex game! Greed is eternal, and it seems to be working. There are a lot of very, very good, and respected watches for that price. Don't get mad, just don't think that is a good investment. Except for Grand Seiko, value is going to drop quickly.
Very different companies I’ll be surprised if we ever see a day where almost all Seiko watches are trading at or even over retail. In my opinion seiko is the superior company when we’re talking cream of the crop from the movements to all the hand finishing makes rolex look ridiculously overpriced for little to no innovation over the years and rudimentary case and bracelet finishing.
@@gmshadowtraders I think more in the 1500$ range no more. Rolex hype is the proof that people buy stuff only to show off, I know people who have Rolex and they actually don't like them,true . it's absurd.
I share the same thoughts about seiko. Good entry level for beginners but as I am 4 years in this hobby, seiko disent do anything for me now. Swatch group watches are better now : QC, novelties, better movement (longer power reserve, antimagnetic etc)
You’re only saying that because it says Seiko and disregarding all the high quality materials and craftsmanship. Some of us will gladly pay these prices. We buy for ourselves not for others.
The thing is... the market decided I was 100% right, this watch was grossly overpriced. This watch can still be found new for at least $1,000 off the MSRP. If you paid full price for this, you massively overpaid. Don't take my word for it, just do a google search. For the record, I'm wearing a Seiko in this upload and also one today. From the last 10 reviews I have uploaded, three of those are Seikos.
Yep seems very expensive for an unregulated movement. Christopher Ward regulate their watches in the $1000 range. Detroit Mint regulate their $300 watches.
I remember back in the day, Vauxhall and Ford (i live in the UK) used to bring out all these limited editions of their cars, apart from different paint jobs, interior trim, and wheels the engines and running gear were exactly the same. Modern Seiko reminds me of this. They’ve been at it for a while. Charging premium prices for watches with mediocre innards just because they have a spangly dial???? Quality control issues also. Been saying it for a while, modern Seiko to me, is not even a patch of what it used to be and stand for
Yep good analogy with ford and seiko. We know you can build a Sierra Cosworth (spring drive in Seiko’s case) dont make me pay the same for the standard Ford!
I managed to get one half price (used - mint) can't wait for it to arrive. I have seen over the last few years you can normally get at least 30 percent off most of the expensive seikos new if you wait a while I just brought the alpanist reissue for 1350 uk pounds half price form a UK jewler. I love it and it's running 1.3 seconds fast per day. Thats about the same as my King Seiko with the same movement. So maybe I am lucky with these 2. I have had 2 CW chronometers and both were 5/6 seconds a day fast just about within C.O.S.C.. and a C9 (not a chronometer) blue wich is about 20 seconds a day fast
My only problem with Seiko is their refusal to regulate their fantastic 8L35 for accuracy when it leaves the factory. It’s a shame that buyers like me have to get it regulated for accuracy. Once regulated the movement is absolutely spot on . Get in with it Seiko. Rolex watches are all deadly accurate and a movement like the 8L deserves to be treated better by Seiko.
This one seriously has Sam cracked! This release is intended for those limited edition fanatics who can piss away the cash. I have found plenty of fun with Seiko in the $300-1000 range. Any more than that I see diminishing returns, unless its an LX or GS.
@@Patomelb Generally true but I can easily name 3 GS that are currently pulling far more than their original MSRP. Also, have you looked at the pre-owned prices of first, second, or third generation Seiko Monsters lately? 3rd gen are easily going for double their initial price.
No arguing here, I think you nailed it. The general public doesn't care and will buy buy buy but it messes with those of us who know enough about Seiko to know what they're doing. That is why I'm not buying any Seiko for the foreseeable future. I don't support companies that have zero regard for their customers (QC, prices & now this). It won't make any difference to them but it does to me.
I think this watch was a real turning point mentally for me. I do want to own a grand seiko one day, as for their standard mechanicals, I'm not interested any more at these prices.
Time is the most valuable commodity on the planet and you sir just overcharged me when you could literally could have made this video 2 minutes long. 😀
Interested to know where your getting those facts from? What about even anecdotal evidence? possibly a strong opinion from people that have seen both watches? Or is this one of those ‘my opinions are the facts’ kind of things?
I heard somewhere that for this watch and only one more, which was cost 6000 $ they use special very expensive aloy and only 2 watches have it and more than half of price is case price, thats should answer your questions and peoples in comments. I have Black Bay, Oris small second and in past Omega seamaster 300 ( stolen ) and I have Seiko sla021j1 and in my opinion Marinemaster is better watch than all 3 swiss watches I know personally, my old oris will stay with me but Tudor soon will go to make place for seiko LX, I fall in love with Seiko. And I do not care at all about few second this way or other, watches already 20 years ago looses time telling function when phones landed in our hands. I have almost 30 watches and I stop measure movements years ago. And 8l35 movement is a grand seiko hand made bullet proof thing, only for some reason they didnt regulate it, all watches with this movement do not more than 5 second a day even if Seiko says 20 or something like that.
We actually covered this watch again on a recent livestream. You can still buy them new for more than 1k off the RRP. Take a look in the livestreams tab, it was maybe two weeks ago.
4:25 limited edition because they will make an unlimited version a year later like the 62 MAS reissue, and then they will change the dial to be fugly a year after that so the old dial “unlimited” watches will be even more collectable
You completely missed the ball here, do your homework before. “The movement with 26 jewels is made by hand in the Shizuku-ishi Watch Studio in Morioka” It can’t be “hundreds of thousands” because movement is from GS and GS has limited production capacity of 35,000 per year…basic math. Nobody pays retail, but I paid retail…you are all over the place, no logic in what you are saying whatsoever. Handmade movement and case finishing and Red Dot Design Award… for less then 4k (because nobody pays retail) It has good and bad things about this watch but not this ones. This is basics, do your research
All the big companies, no exceptions, don’t care one bit about customers, all they care about is money. Anything they make or do, some things you may like or agree and some not, it’s all for the numbers, nothing is for you as a customer. I’m not talking about watch companies only, but all of them. Knowing this, I would assume Seiko knows what they are doing. I wouldn’t touch their overpriced stuff but at the same time I don’t feel they owe me something. I feel even worse about Rolex, 10k to 20k for an ordinary (admittedly very well made) mass produced steel watch ? Why would any horology enthusiast would buy that instead of a JLC ?
Right there with you. Especially when compared to swiss luxury brands. At the same time though, I'd rather have a high end Seiko than a Chritopher Ward though...not trying to be a hater. I just feel that Seiko brings more name cache than CW the way Omega does over Seiko.
Hey, thanks for commenting. The last two years I have grown a massive appreciation for Christopher Ward, I really never looked at them before. After owning one (and reviewing a few) I honestly think they are one of the best value swiss watch brands you can buy. The quality and value for money is hard to beat, there are a few microbrands getting close (like Vaer) but Christopher Ward I would recommend to any one. In my view they easily eclipse Seiko in in the $700-$3,000 price range.
@@canadianwatchmonkey3992 I really wanted one of their "new release" dive watches, a couple of years ago, when I emailed them about pre order, and delivery information, I got no response for nearly a week.. !! So, needless to say, I decided never to do business with a totally online watch company... ps, I'm now the very happy owner of a SMP300M...
@@John..18 Get on CW mailing list . Every year usually first or second week of January CW has a 50% off sale. The watches go fast as in a few hours. Check out my youtube channel, I sure could use your support.
@@canadianwatchmonkey3992 Like I said,, they had a perfect opportunity to sell me a 1000m titanium dive watch, but poor customer service is no use, if you're dealing online,,, (even if you get a cheap 50% off watch...). I'm not a collector, I just wanted one "grail" watch,, yes, after my first enquiry, I'm on their mailing list, but after they performed poorly with the enquiry, I'll never even contemplate doing business with them... Good luck, if you have any problems....
I agree completely Sam. I don't have a problem with Seiko charging more for a LE watch but is this watch LE, other than price gouging. There is some more you can buy that is better quality for less. Thank you for another great video 😊👍
Theres a shift in the playing field now. Players dominating a certain market segment have gone stale, while new brands entering the segment are taking their place Microbrands and niche boutique brands (ie halios chris ward etc) are killing seiko at the entry to mid level. With seiko floundering at higher price points On the other hand, funny enough, grand seiko and tudor (before thought to be ew and meh watches…. Because rolex jr and “why would you spend that much on a seiko)) are giving omega and rolex a run for their money at the luxury level And the nautilus watch company now Has rolex nipping at their heels, with rolex gunning to be the brand with most prestige clout and exclusivity (rolex used to be just good tool watches, while patek was the choice for bourgeoisie)
The strap is not unpar with the pricetag but It has a GS movement, is just not Hi-beat!! If you never had an 8L you have to know japnese ratings are understate and overdeliver all the way. In reality those movements do much better. Definetly a good price for this watch. That is basically a GS with all the hand finishing, quality, GS movement etc. Grand seiko automatic divers go for way higher price. This is practically a GS for half the price without the GS logo. The only thing you are not getting is the hi-beat but at half the price of a GS seems fair.
Hey, thanks for watching! It’s a good movement for a $2.5k to $3k watch for sure. Seiko just released a $2.5k watch with this movement. This watch I discussed here is still available new for easily $1000 off the RRP. The market ended up deciding this was grossly overpriced for what it was.
@@CasualWatchReviews is a limited edition and is an ever brilliant steel case Of course it can be more expensive than a 2.7K MM with the same movement. On top of that right now the Japanese yen fell so you can find Japanese watches much cheaper. I just bought a 3600$ chronomaster for 1900$ because of this reason. It was not because it was grossly priced at 3600$ MSRP. In fact the Omega seamster that used to be around 4000$ years ago is now around 5000$ and I don't see anybody complaining why is that extra 1000$ Zenith just released the caliber 135 observatorie for more than 100k and you know why they said is that price? Because of the history and how much that movement meant to them. I see Swiss watches with the same boring sellita SW -200 from 500$ to 3000$ Are those 2-3K$ Swiss watches horribly priced with a sellita SW-200? My point is that this pricing practices are very common in the whole industry but nobody ever complains when the Swiss do it. When citizen released the caliber 0200 there was people also criticizing citizen for having the price tag they had. 5k for just a citizen? Are you kidding me? Yea I'm sure citizen knows what they are doing.
Hey. Yep if I saw a watch over 2k with a selitta SW-200 I would call that over priced. As you said, this watch was limited edition, well over a year ago, and they are still readily available new and for a massive discount. I think that is all anyone needs to know to prove this watch was grossly overpriced at the RRP seiko wanted. It was built for a price to test the market. I have more seikos in my collection than Rolex or any other brand. For the record Christopher Ward at $1-$1.5k for a selitta sw-200 is about as good as it gets for a watch in that price range. Mechanical Seiko movements are mediocre in watches they pitch in that range, I’m thinking of the 4r and 6r. It’s like having a beautiful car with a crap engine… a de lorean for example.
....seiko with their piss-poor QC have totally jumped the shark. their misaligned bezels and chapter rings and mind blowing +- 15 seconds per day accuracy ratings were fine at the $300 price point.....but at $5K?? You'd have to be a total idiot to buy one. Oh, I looked up this movement as well. Seiko is recommending a 2-3 year service interval (yea, that's more frequent than your average ETA). While it will indeed barely outperform a 7S26 it's sure as hell not worth the asking (or discounted for that matter) price.
I have no issue with this release or the price. Mm300 is 3k. There titanium watches come at a higher price point. Everbrilliant is their premium steel and placed above titanium. Plus inflation of all goods in general. This seems inline woth the watch industry in general. I do have a question, why do you find the 8L movement inferior to Swiss counterparts?
I wouldn’t say inferior I just think it shocking for that price they don’t offer any indication they regulate these and quote such a ridiculous -/+ variance.
If you do get one and you really think it was worth the money, your more than welcome on the channel to discuss! Just email me over at thecasualwatchreviewer@gmail.com
It cannot be said any better than you have said it, I agree completely. This should have been a Grand Seiko with a Grand Seiko movement. Bad decision on the part of smart people over at Seiko. It is beautiful watch for the money. Limited addition does not justify the additional price.
Well a few years later there are still a few available, and I managed to get it for £2214 brand new from an ad which is imo a nuts deal. Funnily enough I also once owned the super ocean you mentioned and it’s silly to compare the two, the seiko is far superior in every way even at full price.
Hey Tariq! I think it was a fair comparison. But your right, at the time I didn’t fully appreciate how right I would be on this in the end. The watch was grossly overpriced. I have had at least three other comments recently off people who got great deals on these.
@@CasualWatchReviews I think at just above £2200 it was a crazy good price. The point is though, the Breitling is inferior to this watch and not by a little bit. And that’s coming from a guy that loved owning it. At £4100 it’s definitely not good enough to justify.
Would you feel the same if you paid full RRP and I guess the other interesting question is, why didn’t you? I guess you could have got it day one from seiko for full RRP? Could you be romanticizing it’s actual RRP I wonder? I felt (and still feel) it was grossly overpriced at its RRP.
@@CasualWatchReviews No, I never pay full retail for watches as they are all overpriced at rrp. That’s why I don’t own Rolex or Omega. A fair price is around the Brietlings rrp as it is a better watch, and a fair price for the brietling is £2380 which is what I got it at. If looking at resale prices, then overpriced becomes more tricky as technically a Rolex rrp is overpriced for what it is, but not overpriced for the fact resale is far more. But going back to what it is a submariner is not even better than a seiko sla055, I just knew it would not sell at retail and so could wait because it’s a seiko, and brand perception dictates prices more than materials, movement and design.
Yep its an interesting thought experiment. For me this was Seiko testing the waters with a crazy RRP that failed. They haven’t tried it again as far as I’m aware. And you can get the same movement in much cheaper watches from them. Rolex is it’s own thing, I own one and honestly I have never seen a seiko that comes close to the fit and finish, not to mention their bracelets. I have handled a lot of grand seiko, they are amazing but not in the same category. I’m actually looking forward to owning a spring drive and another Rolex at some point. A Rolex will also maintain its value, you can’t wait out a ‘deal’ on one.
Seiko is a good brand, but those prices how you say, are not justified, i was looking after a movemnet fora seiko ,the price was abot 900 euros, and the movement was at discount for 25 dollars , i was only thinking how crazy is this, selling a watch for that amount of money ant putting in such a caliber. I have to say the calibers cost normaly 250 to 300 dollars on that site they where about 25 dollars, its crazy now with watches, The same thing with rolex, those are also overpriced
I no longer buy Seikos. Their QC has gone to the dogs. Their prices like this sample on your video for example, have gone to the moon. Buying Citizens and Tissos and Longines.
They are my favorite watch brand but If you pay retail for any Seiko you’re a sucker. This watch can be had for around $3k which is exactly on par with the mm300
Ful transparency there is one seller has them for $3,350, everyone else selling them for 5k? I wonder if I can post the link… www.ebay.com/itm/SEIKO-Prospex-SBDX049-SLA055J1-Limited-mechanical-watch-/373849584193?mkcid=16&mkevt=1&_trksid=p2349624.m46890.l49286&mkrid=711-127632-2357-0
Your entire argument as to why this watch isn't worth the money is based entirely on the movement and the fact that the dial says Seiko on it. I do agree that it is somewhat overpriced, but not by an absurd amount. You came across as a movement snob who had his sensibilities offended. The movement is basically an unregulated Grand Seikop movement. Every other aspect of the SLA055 is Grand Seiko quality, so I'd say that it's pretty safe to assume that Seiko held back on the movement so that they woudn't step on Grand Seiko's toes. From Seiko's point of view, the price is justified due to the fact that in every other way, it is basically a Seiko badged Grand Seiko. So, it's no coincidence that most of the people offended by this watch are either brand snobs, or movement snobs. All in all, a stunning watch who's only shortcoming is that Seiko held back a bit by putting an unregulated Grand Seiko movement in it. I'd happily pay $4,200 for a non limited edition version with a bracelet.
A movement snob? Where did you come up with that as an insult? I have heard some pretty silly things in the comments section over the years but ‘movement snob’ is up there for sure. Nearly every person who has no obvious argument always results to calling someone a snob, just look on any watch forum. Its not being a snob to want a brand to do better or calling them out when they fall short. I gave reference in the upload of that same movement in a watch nearly 2k less…. that seiko still sell. Thats the point, even in Seiko’s own catalogs this is an obvious cash grab, I shared that in my opinion here. Seiko will gladly take your money, so just buy the thing if you think it’s that good a deal. I wear a Seiko everyday, I’m even wearing one in that upload? Did you notice that or just got offended in the first 30 seconds of the upload?
@@CasualWatchReviews I didn't say that you are a movement snob, I said that you came across as one in this video. There is a difference. It seemed that your only justification for taking offense at the price was the movement used. It's an 8L35 which is a very close cousin to the Grand Seiko 9S55. It's true that it is an unregulated version, but it is very consistent, and regularly performs much better than the minimum specs Seiko puts on their website. Like you said, it is the same movement found in the standard MM300, but in almost every other way, the SLA055 is a nicer watch. Sure, you have to take a close look to notice all of the differences, but aren't the fine details also the justification for the incredibly high prices of many Swiss timepieces? I find it hypocritical that people are making a sport of bashing Seiko for charging more than what they used to when most of those same people wouldn't bat an eye at a Swiss watch with equal build quality but for substantially more money. That being said, I do apologize if you took offense at my use of the term movement snob. That was the initial impression that the video left me with, but I probably could've found a better way to express myself.
I think I gave some good examples of comparable Swiss watches that are cheaper, there are countless others I missed like Oris for example. If you watch my channel I have called out other brands including Omega for doing what Seiko are doing here. The issue I have with this movement is Seiko give such a ridiculous time variance, it gives the impression they care little about regulating the movement or its timekeeping accuracy. Even the $1,200 Christopher Ward I showed is measured to COSC. Its a lack of care that Seiko recently have shown to their fans (like me) like their QC issues. Now they take a watch that should be 2-3k and whack on an extra 2k, I don't imagine for a second that this watch is finished better or wears better than the MM300. As a few commenters have pointed out these watches are selling on ebay for $3,350 so either Seiko are struggling to shift them or the watch is overpriced to the tune of at least 1-2k
Yes, this is the FOMO watch from the island of misfit toys. Seiko has lost their mind and perspective on their own heritage with this watch. I agree if this had a proper bracelet and a Spring Drive or the 36000 movement then this makes some sense. But not this compilation. Very disappointing.
Well that is very telling then considering they were in such limited edition numbers. The market also decided these were not worth any where near the MSRP
First time tuning in to your channel! I agree with you. I have the Tudor GMT and it does have the same movement as the Norqains, which I would consider if I did not have the Tudor. Now regarding Seiko, I believe that any Seiko that lists for over $1,000 US should have the 8L35 (4HZ) movement. An example is the SBDC101, instead you get misaligned bezels and non-regulated 6R15 movements. I also question how long the electrical regulator will last in the Spring Drives. I would rather have a full mechanical, knowing that service intervals will keep the mechanicals in good shape. Seiko needs to remain competitive, by starting to put the 4HZ movements into sub 1,000 dollars U.S. watches. They are already getting eaten alive by China micro brands, and I feel they are trying to recoup their losses by going after us.
@@CasualWatchReviews I think most including Seiko knew this wasn't going to sell well at their MSRP of $4,600. It's just marketing. I was never going to pay $4,600 but when I found it for $3,100 I pulled the trigger as I think it easily merits that price. The ebay seller has since raised the price to $3,350. I can't give full thoughts on the watch as it's still in transit/customs.
Seiko are having a laugh. I love my Seikos but lately they seem to think slapping a high price on a watch instantly makes it a luxury piece. You didn't even touch on the continuing QC nonsense. You didn't have to, it's so common it's become a meme at this point.
Great video! I have just purchased the SLA057 from an authorised UK dealer today. RRP for a 600 unit limited edition watch being £4,100 and I paid £2,695. Over a year later, Seiko AD's still haven't been able to shift all of the watches which speaks volumes about Seiko's ambitious pricing! 😆
Hey Warren, thank you for the comment. This was exactly my point. I love seiko, I wear one nearly every day. A lot of commenters got bent out of shape that I would dare question seiko, when in fact, my argument was that this model was grossly overpriced. You paid even less than what I thought was a fair price for is so well done! The market decided I was right, not the seiko fans commenting here deciding I was wrong because their feelings are the facts.
@Casual Watch Reviews Many thanks for the reply! 😃 My biggest concern is that Seiko is pitching these watches to their loyal fans at prices that the market obviously won't stand for. One RUclipsr even claimed that they were a good investment because of their limited production which obviously isn't the case. Hurting your loyal customers by charging exorbitant prices and taking advantage of them may not be the best long term business plan. 👍
Couldn’t agree more!
@@warrensnook I think I must have bought from the same retailer as ive just got one over the weekend for exactly the same price!
I think 4600 dollars is a fair price for sla055. It has a look of Lx line but with 8L35 . If as you said it should have 9s movement then it would be at the price of LX which is about 6000 dollars. By the way the 8L35 movement are more durable than the fancy hi beat 9s . Thanks everyone:)
Yeah, he seems to be comparing it to the Marinemasters, but, this "every-brilliant" super corrosion resistant steel that Seiko came out with recently to compete with Rolex's 904L steel is what this watch is made of and seems to really jack up the price, as it did on their sbex 009, which was their first and only other watch they made out of that steel, and it was over $6k dollars when it was released. He doesn't seem to understand this.
I think the uploader havent held 62mas reissue like sla017 or sla037 or sla043 ... Hahahahah a lot complaining about the price.. hihihi just buy it if u like it... I like the 62mas over rolex even if u give me rolex money... I will still buy seiko 62mas reissue... Because i dont want the money, i dont want rolex... I want seiko its simple as that hahahahha
Seiko (not GS) spring drive are almost 16mm thick. No thanks. I would rather lose 15 seconds.
@@ridewith7480exactly.
If I want a Seiko why would I buy a breitling or CW? These 8l movements can be regulated very cheap and will run as well any.
I got a sla057 at 3k, and for that kind of money I think it was a great buy.
Yep, for that money I think that’s spot on! That was my argument here. The watch is great but their RRP was an experiment. You pairs what I would say it was worth.
Everything about this watch was making me want to purchase it. It’s thinner than the mm300. They are finally addressing everyones criticism of it. The 8L35 movement is a fantastic movement. In house movement. Very much a better movement then the eta. The dial is excellent. Seiko finishing is better than all the other watches in their price range. This watch is not as nice as an Omega or grand seiko. But it’s definitely better than an Oris, or a tudor. I can easily see it selling for this price. Except…. There is no fucking bracelet!!! Why the fuck would I buy a 4600 dollar without a bracelet.
That seiko has better dial, better movement, better finish and better hands than any of those watches that you listed. It’s also a seiko design and not just a copy of someone elses design like many swiss watches are. It does not just have an ETA slapped into it. The 8L35’s that i have are more accurate than any of the ETA’s or sellita movements that i have. I would take that 8L35 over any of those. The crown action is much nicer on the seiko. Seiko asking 1200 dollars for some of their SBDC line watches with shitty sloppy 6r35 movements and misaligned everything and jingling jangling bracelets is far more irritating to me than this watch. I actually think this watch us really nice. Not as nice as say an Omega planet ocean or a sub but definitely better than an aquis or a bb58. Too Bad they didn’t make a bracelet for it. I might have been interested.
That was a roller coaster of emotions, thanks for watching and commenting. I will just add that all seiko movements are in house?
I would also say the examples I gave are solid competitors to this watch. I agree it should have a bracelet like I said in the upload. Its clearly an experiment for Seiko… how far that can push the price. A lot of Swiss brands are overpriced also and I call them out too on the podcast.
If the 8L35 is the top tier of seiko movement making and a worthy competitor to ETA, why would they make the appearance of putting no effort into regulating. The tolerance they put on their website is a joke for a watch of that price.
I can only speak for the 8L35’s that i have experienced not for all 8L35’s. But the movement’s that i have experienced are all well regulated. I think they are trying to avoid getting watches shipped back to them because someone claims their watch is fast 8 seconds a day. It’s kind of a frivolous thing to spend time on especially since the watches won’t qualify to be cosc certified because theyre not made in Switzerland. I can’t speak for every 8L35 out there though. I just know that i have 6 ETA movements in my collection and none of them are working as well as the 2 8L35’s that i have and i have not heard someone say that they bought one and it kept horrible time. The 6R35 on the other hand is a joke. None of mine are within 15 seconds a day and i have heard several people buy watches that are more than a minute a day off. And Seiko is putting that in watches that are over 1000 dollars. Thats ridiculous to me. I can’t imagine there is a Swiss watch on the market that keeps time that poorly.
To mw the biggest problem with this watch is that people want a fancy name for $4600. People don’t like it that an skx that costs $300 has the same name. But that isn’t a strike against the watch to me.
I still really like your video and think that you made a lot of good points.
I have been enjoying the comments on this one so appreciate yours! I offered to the couple of other commenters who liked the watch that if they do buy it they are more then welcome on the channel!
I have the MM300 and a couple of ETA based watches plus a speedy and until last month a datejust. My 8L35 was keeping around +1.5 secs a day and I've had the watch for just over 2 years now. I agree they should have tighter regulations but it's a better movement (8L35B) than most ETA's. The watch featured is a £3k watch for me. Very nice but not up to what they want.
Great video. I agree with a lot of your points especially considering the value, and Seiko does need to be careful moving forwards. However I often don't buy watches based on value, but my own preferences, I don't buy to impress other but to enjoy them myself. I've recently picked up a SLA043 as my first higher end watch, no doubt I'll get some criticism off people for it, but I've always preferred the Seiko Design DNA to the Swiss watch designs and for me the SLA043 was everything I was looking for in a modern retro inspired Dive Watch. I happen to prefer it to the Tudors / Omegas / Breitlings in a similar price range. I suppose it depends on what elements of a watch you prefer, I'm all about Case Shape, Dial and Indices rather than accuracyof movement etc, I do agree that Seiko definitely need to improve their accuracy a lot more on these offerings to be taken more seriously. Keep up the great work. Regards Rosco
We are the same... I prefer the seiko reissue 62mas over swiss... The finish of that watch is so nice. Personally, i think its better than rolex and tudor
Total emotional video of watch preference. I owned few Tudors, Tags, Omegas and a Rolex, some of the Tudors couldn't continue 3 years and the Tag just stopped working after exactly 2 years! Believe it or not, the Seikos that I own are the watches with least problems yet they are the ones that I dive with! If you love Swiss watches try not to hate other brands. I own both Swiss and Seiko's.
Yep me to, I wear a seiko as my daily wear, I have owned many seikos and currently have a speedtimer and a Turtle. I put a lot of money into customizing the turtle also.
I have the sla043, with the 8l35 movement. It gains about 2 minutes a week. New price was £4080. I also have a tudor bb in steel and gold. New price is £4800. The tudor is more accurate, only 1 second a day , but the seiko is vastly superior in build quality. The date wheel on my tudor usually sticks on the 5th of every month , I've not had this issue with any seiko. The seiko I can wear doing anything and it still looks mint. The tudor seems to pick up scratches just wearing it around the house. There's pros and cons to any watch, but these seikos using the everbrilliant steel are basically grand seikos and are just as good in terms of build quality as omega or rolex. An omega seamaster 300, cost over 4k on a rubber strap too, but its not as good as the seiko overall. The 8L35 movement should be regulated by seiko at this price, but its still a great robust movement. I paid £2350 for my sla043 used, and for that money makes it exceptional value. Omega have inflated their prices more than seiko , for basically the same watches, but don't get the same criticism ? Rolex and tudor have done the same. Seiko are completely in house , building every component, unlike a lot of their Swiss rivals. Seiko sla models are not cheap, but they easily compete with the Swiss in terms of value for money .
Hey Martin, thanks for watching and commenting. The main point of this video was about the watch being grossly overpriced (for the MSRP seiko had it listed for). The market decided that was true in the end.
This watch was limited edition and you can still find them readily available for a massive discount. Take a look on whatever your preferred site for buying watches is… that is not the seiko website of course. You can’t get an Omega for $1000 less than its MSRP. Also the coaxial technology Omega use is superior to the 8L35.
People who actually bought this watch and later commented, not one paid the MSRP for it. Take a look.
@@CasualWatchReviews , a lot of it is due to snobbery though. Because it says omega on the dial, doesn't make it a better watch. The seikos slas are expensive for a seiko, but they are grand seiko level. I've had a lot of watches and these seikos are easily on a par with anything omega do and better. The 8L35 may not be as good in terms of accuracy of the omega, but thats not the whole story either. The sla017 is worth quite a bit more than its original price, and as people realise these high end seikos are really great, I believe in time they will be regarded as such. Omega make a ton of watches which have many variations of the model, they are hardly exclusive anymore. Its a fairly new thing for seiko to go to this level, without being a grand seiko , so it will take time before the sheep realise that seiko make a watch thats every bit as good as omega, in terms of fit and finish, at prices that are comparable, if not cheaper. I've got a tudor bb on the wrist right now, that now costs £4800 new, but its no where near as special as my sla043. The movement is more accurate, but I have issues with the date wheel getting stuck. The fit and finish of the seiko is way superior. I know my watches , and seiko is as good as any ive owned in my 40 years of collecting. Take the speedie now , costing over 6k that was about 2.5k only five years ago. Massively overpriced now, and that's the truth .
It’s not snobbery to say the coaxial technology is better than the 8L35. You only need a very basic knowledge of watch movements to understand that.
I’m not arguing that this seiko is not good. The video was about it being grossly overpriced for what it was at MSRP. It may feel special but it was overpriced. The market later decided I was totally right. Check on whatever site you like, they are available at massive discounts. I saw one guy selling one on eBay for $3,200. He bought it for the MSRP. Thats a depreciation of nearly $1,500 in less than a year. Things are worth what people will pay for them, Omega are selling speedmaster at a record rate. So they are worth what people will pay for them.
This video was not about Omega anyway, it was about this particular ‘pricing experiment’ from seiko totally failing. We don’t need to deflect on to Omega to prove this watch was grossly overpriced, the actual market and people buying this watch decided that with their wallets. No one stops buys an omega because they think it’s overpriced. Omega never have to fire sale a limited edition watch because they so egregiously misjudged the market on pricing.
@@CasualWatchReviews yes , but a lot of it , is because a lot of people say I'm not paying that for a seiko , without experiencing the product. Everyone expects omega to be expensive and nobody quibbles the fact .
Seiko have no problem selling their grand seiko watches because they have the seiko name on there.
This watch was clearly a pricing experiment that failed. Look through the other comments on this video. Many are defending this watch like you, but the people that actually bought it… not a single one paid anywhere near to the MSRP.
This watch was grossly overpriced, the market decided. Only Seiko fans (I am wearing one in the upload) knew this watch was even released anyway. They sell this movement in a $2.5k watch, Omega don’t do that. They don’t have a coaxial watch for $2.5k then a watch with the same movements for close to $5k.
It’s grossly overpriced this watch, thats why they struggled to sell it. The market decided, not me… or you for that matter. Did you buy this watch at full MSRP? And if not… why? I would hazard a guess, even if you think it was too expensive.
If you don’t like it, don’t buy it. This is a very niche product. Seiko makes something for everyone. If you feel you’re too good for Seiko then waste 10k on another brand.
I was wearing a seiko in the video or did you only watch the first 30 seconds?
You're the type of reviewers TGV and Mark constantly warn us about. The type of biased reviewers who review watches they've never had their hands on.
If TGV is your moral compass for watch reviewers you should really do a lot more research.
got your point
Hi Guys, and Girls, I as an old Watch enthusiast can say no more than to totally agree with this, THAT'S WHY invests more in a brand that has always been in the "Silent" advertising but always delivered the same good quality as Seiko and in the last 2-3 years even better quality: "Orient", buy an Orient Triton or Kamasu, you get more than you have paid for, with Seiko, unfortunately, it is the opposite. Bought mine Orient Kamasu for a little more than a year ago and still has deviation of 6sec. a day!, hacking movement, sapphire crystal , 200m waterproof, good lumen, Made In Japan, all this I got for $ 300. I also love Seiko Dive Watches especially Turtle Prospex and Samurai models but, Seriously?, $600? for these models. As long as an Orient Neptune costs $ 150 less than "Seiko Sumo" and additionally
easily "knocks all screws out" of this Seiko?, Well, it is not a difficult decision where I should invest my money.
We recently did a story on the podcast about Orient! I totally agree!
seriously? Orient Kamasu mentioned here? :-) I have a passion for affordable divers, but this is whole different level.
@@milaweitz First of all: Hello, I can't be more serious, not only that Orient Kamasu is not mentioned here New Triton too, but this does not mean that no one is allowed to mention, this is pure consumer right. You have a passion for Diver Watches, OK?, but you know what, you're not alone in that, so, I can only say: Welcome to the Club. I also like Seiko Diver Watches, BUT, after I have expanded my -$1100 on my last Seiko Diver Watch and then bought first an Orient Kamasu and then New Triton then I ask myself: for what I have given Seiko $500 extra?. Regarding your last statement that the Orient is not in the same Tim, Yes, true, but it depends on what you are comparing. I have a Doxa Sharkmaster and of course it can't be compared, but neither is Seiko, however Orient is definitely in the same Team as Seiko, hope you have a nice and successful day, Regards.
@@miki55fathoms19 Hello, I agree with you, Orient is successful and offers a lot for money. However it is still micro brand.
If I use same logic here. Is the hype around Rolex Submariner adequate? Is the price adequate?
And most likely answer would be yes, because of huge demand, marketing business etc.
And not the specs.
In my opinion this Seiko model is for Seiko die-hard fans. And not for people who compares specs.
@@milaweitz Hi, I got your point and I hear you, however, the question still remains: What does Seiko do with its prices and what we buyers-Watch enthusiasts get for the money, sufficient quality?,No. BUT, after all This,naive me, I did it again, I recently bought "Seiko Prospex Solar Diver SNE571P1"= $520. In the whole picture satisfied but the bracelet?, poor quality and hollow. This is what I mean, now I'm looking for an aftermarket Bracelet that is better quality than this Seiko original bracelet and more out of money.
I agree 100%. I have owned the SLA025 and SLA039. I love the design and on-wrist feel of the unique mono-bloc case. But, the accuracy (+7 and +10 s/d) was ultimately the reason I sold both. It is unacceptable that a 5k USD watch is not better regulated. I will not own another Seiko high-end diver. They represent the worse value for money of any watch brand in this price range.
I was beginning to think I was going crazy the amount of people calling me an asshole in the comments for making this! It is ridiculous not to regulate them
If Rolex makes people beg for their watches, why not charge insane prices for a simple Seiko diver...the whole watch market goes in a direction, which isn't great for the customer.
Totally agree!
You have to have them on your hand to compare not just by looking at pictures at specs online
Do you ever not watch a movie or avoid a certain restaurant because you know your not going to like it? Or you know it can’t possibly be good value for price the restaurant charges?
The market decided this Watch was grossly overpriced because you can still buy them new on certain sites for $1000 less than what the MSRP is. Look at the comments here, not a single person who claims to own this watch paid anywhere near what seiko listed this watch for.
First, Seiko's most expensive watch at the time, their grayish blue version of the 62MAS re-issue, was so priced because of the so-called "ever-brilliant" steel, a super-corrosion resistant steel comparable to what Rolex makes their Submariners out of; this SLA055/057 uses this same steel, so, It would be logical to think that is the reason for much of its price. Also, it is a very limited edition of 600 for the black one and 1,300 for the blue one. BTW, the 8L35 is used because it was specially made for dive watches, it's a lower frequency than the 9L55 for durability, but it's still much higher beat rate than, say, the 4R35/6R15 movements. So, considering past models and what you're getting, no, it's not too high a price. Is it worth it? Frankly, I don't find ANY so-called "luxury" watches to be worth their price. As a fanboy of Seiko Turtles, I prefer my SLA051 gray dial Uemara edition, but would have no problem paying for one of these if I had been a lover of the Marinemaster style line.
Hey, thanks for watching. The market did divide this was massively overpriced for what it was. If you look on eBay or or their sites, they can be had for massive discounts. In fact, the only people who have commented on here who actually bought one, got them at well below retail.
To be honest, I find all the Marinemaster-type watches a bit keenly priced, but this one is outrageous. Five grand for a Prospex? They're having our eyes out.
yep!
Can get a Grand Seiko with spring drive for that price
This is a grand seiko badged seiko. You have to consider it like a Ford gt. Ford makes affordable good cars but also the gt, that destroys many Ferraris
@@robinmarples5198 I like that. That's an interesting way of putting it. Thanks Robin.
Hi Sam. Nicely done! I'm conflicted on this topic. I have a box of Seikos, but none newer than from 1985. So I get the ethos that led to them being what they are. What Swiss or German brand can claim they've done for horology what Seiko has done, with things like vertical integration and innovation? Exactly zero. So, if Seiko wants the same level of respect and honor that the Europeans get then why shouldn't they? People in the watch community accept it when a Rolex goes for thousands over MSRP, or Omega turns out yet another expensive version of the Speedmaster. Seiko deserves to be accorded this same acceptance. I also think it may be doing a disservice to dismiss people who buy these LE Seikos as FOMOs, as if their all a bunch of dimwits ready to be parted of their money? I suspect we are.
So here's why I'm conflicted: their poor QC. IMO this is where Seiko fundamentally doesn't understand why, like Rodney Dangerfield, they get no respect from us. Until they figure this out and correct the problem they'll not get my dollars. But I do hope they do.
Yep, I agree. I didnt mean to imply anyone who buys this watch is a dimwit. Hopefully that didn't come across. It was more to do with the movement and the disparity in cost between this and the standard marine master.
@@CasualWatchReviews Not you, but some of the other comments.
So here's what Caliber Corner has to say about the movement: The Seiko caliber 8L35 is an automatic movement that is based on the Grand Seiko caliber 9S55. As with GS movements, the 8L family is said to be assembled by hand at Shizuku-ishi Watch Studio in Morioka.
It thus seems to be a bespoke movement. Would be appropriate however to more accurately adjust them at the factory.
@@truebluemiata totally agree with you, this movement is legendary and compares well with Rolex movements before the 70 hours reserve change. It is the same as the grand seiko counterpart without the adjustment but I don’t like 5 thousand for 8L35 no value for me, if it was spring drive or the legendary hi beat 8L35 then I am all in but can’t deny the rest of quality like dial work, zaratsu polishing is way above its price and compares well with my blancpain 50 fathoms and this in my opinion speaks volumes about the high end seiko quality. In a nutshell great watch but wrong movement for that price.
Can’t get my knickers in a twist. The whole watch world takes the piss. Don’t see why Seiko shouldn’t join in.
You may very well be right and I'm here to call them out on it!
Seiko fanboys will be angry lol
I like the look of the Seiko 65 and 68 style divers, but it really seems like they are selling a name rather than a product now. It's almost as if they have bought into the internet hype along with the fanatics.
I really like Seiko and I like a lot of there divers. However, this is extremely overpriced for what you are getting.
totally agree!
I agree, Seiko pricing is absolutely ludicrous for this watch without a high beat movement. The only Seiko I will likely purchase is a Grand Seiko with a spring drive movement, because it IS the best movement available. I predict that the Seiko in this quasi review will soon be available in a Pagani Design homage with a NH35A movement. I have numerous NH35A powered watches accurate to less than 2 seconds a day!
8L35 has zero deviation. If u get a plus 9 per day... It will stay that way... Having said that a simple adjustment at the movement which any competent watchmaker can do. You can hit COSC accuracy w zero deviation...
For reference, S-eiko's P-ricing B-lows and S-eiko B-oys D-on't C-are
The price is listed on the website at $4,600 USD. This may seem steep for a Seiko but the watch case is fully Zaratsu finished and it is made from a new steel that Seiko produces which rivals the 904L steel used by Rolex. The bezel is ceramic and this watch is only 13mm thick which is a good size for a diver. The movement is the only thing holding this watch back from competing directly with watches twice the price but it’s still a solid movement that’s known to run much more accurately than Seiko states. I think a better price would be something like 3800 to 4200 dollars but it’s not a terrible value at 4600, especially since there are only 1300 pieces for the blue color.
I just don’t agree that this represents any type of value even at those lower prices you mention here
7:00 seiko presage bracelets may be pins and pipes but they are beautifully finished
Totally agree Seiko has lost their mind. Why would anyone buy a seiko over $1000 when you can get a very nice Swiss or German made watch.
Totally agree!
@@phillippugh2161 I’m the type that tries to find hidden gems not over hyped flavours of the day. I love Seiko at $500 but at $1000 plus there are better options
@@phillippugh2161 I guess I miss the good old SKX days, I own 2 and love them I paid $250 each
@@phillippugh2161 I am fully aware of Seiko offerings from Seiko 5 to Grand Seiko. I purchased a Seiko baby Tuna for $450 and love it, but that is my limit on what I would spend on a Seiko. Actually did a review on it.
Totally agree with you! The problem is with Seiko you can buy very simular designs for £1000 from Seiko. You don't see Omega or Rolex gutting their brand with £1000 divers. Seiko is just doing it the other way around by gutting their brand with £4000-6000 watches and not fixing their QC issues (I have saw QC issuies on these watches already) and you hit the nail on the head with the movements!
I seen QC problems on a rolex submariner and an omega seamaster
@@watchroll3310 Yea it happens with Omega and Rolex as well, that said I have not saw it in person but it’s very common as we all know with Seiko. You could check ever Rolex or Omega in your city and not find a misaligned bezel and you could check every Seiko in the city and not fined an aligned bezel.
Not “6000 ltd edition of one 1300 of the other” as you mentioned. Rather 1300 of the 55 and 600 of the 57.
You also say it’s highly unlikely you’ll get it at a discount if you’re lucky to find one at all.
I found one in seconds and paid £2600 for my sla 57.
They’re out there if you go digging.
Yep I was wrong about that part, the market did decide (like I speculated) that this watch was grossly overpriced. You paid a good price for it.
It's too expensive , but as some comments says around 2.5k its a bargain. I can live with that but its a beautiful watch 😊
Off topic but what do you think of Seiko’s 38.5 solar diver? Sapphire and starts at $299 for the sne573
I like it, seems to be some good pricing on ebay
£4100 RRP discounted to £2.5k..or Pre-owned £2k. At these prices it make more sense to
Seiko made their international reputation with well made quartz timepieces for the everyman. That reputation was well deserved. These days however, Seiko is neither fish nor fowl. With a proliferation of price points, they are a marketing managers nightmare. Meanwhile, the average mall shopper can not tell the difference between what is cheap, and supposed to be expensive.
I agree it’s confusing to the casual watch shopper. Why is one seiko $4k and another $250
@@CasualWatchReviews On a modest budget, Tissot is hard to beat.
I’m holding out for the Super-Fanboy Ultimate Collector’s Edition with the misaligned bezel.
I bet you wont have long to wait 🤣
Love a good 👍 rant-keep them coming!
I think i will do!
Seiko's pricing has gone off the chart, for unlimited releases of limited editions as simple or lazy as just by changing the colours. Look at the recent Thailand edition of monsters which are priced at over 3 times of actual market prices of normal monster. Ridiculous! Something is very wrong with Seiko, or somebody who doesn't know the market is in charge of the product pricing. I am a Seiko fan but sorry Seiko, I have been spending my money in other brands cos your pricing does not make sense at all.
The difference between some of those other watches you mentioned and this Seiko is those watches will drop in value significantly and won’t be worth much in a few years. If this watch performs anything like the SLA017, it will still be worth in 3-4 years at least what someone paid initially and possibly more. This is as close to Grand Seiko as you can get without paying $8-10k for a diver. I just picked one up new for $3300 and it’s worth it to me at that price.
Hi Ray! Thanks for watching. I don’t agree with you about the resale value of those watches. Most of those brands have good resale value if you look. But I think we do agree about the price of this Seiko. I also agree this watch is worth what you paid for it. Considering how limited it was I’m continually amazed about how many are on eBay for significantly under MSRP. My point in this upload was how grossly overpriced by seiko this watch was… and it looks like the market has decided that was true. I’m sure your decision would have been different if this watch was only available at MSRP of over $5k I’m guessing? I made an assumption there so interested to know your thoughts?
@@CasualWatchReviews yes, you’re probably right. I think this watch dropped in value immediately but since it is limited and one of seikos more high end models, my hope is the value will go back up over time like it did with the SLA017. I’m not buying the watch to sell it later but I do try to buy watches that I won’t lose money on if I ever do need to sell.
Yes I’m like you in that respect. My fellow RUclipsr Pete over at Not So Obvious Watches talks about watch collectors in categories, I would fit into his ‘accountant’ category. Looking for value and watches that maintain value. We did a livestream a while ago on the topic! Again… thanks for watching!
In my opinion this watch is for Seiko die-hard fans. I feel it is no meaning to compare some specs etc. Regarding the movement accuracy, Japanese are known for generous approach and they rather mention worst numbers than it actually is. Again, this might be pricey, but as a whole design, and level of detail - aka GS, it is absolutely fantastic piece.
Yep, I think what’s funny is after this upload the market kind of settled on what it was worth. They can be easily had for $3-3.5k mark, that’s probably about right.
Great review.
I’m over Seiko. I’ll keep my Spring Drive Tuna, but that’s it.
it seems to have been forgotten that Seiko once almost destroyed the Swiss watch industry so don't underestimate, swiss made arrogant hypocrites...
Hi Emir, I read that a few times but I’m struggling to understand what you mean?
They seem to really be trying to force the Seiko brand upmarket. Not sure how well it will work. Collectors have a set of assumptions on what you get with Seiko and when you are moving into Grand Seiko. A casual may not care much about the movement but at this price surely this is for collectors who do know and care, yes? I do not get it.
I agree, its a nod to the fans then milking them for it
You do rants dont lie and its always against Seiko. Change the name from Seiko to Omega and no-one would bat an eye.
Not true, you know I have given Omega a hard time on the channel. Its not a lie at all.
I haven't heard any 8L35 movements being -10 or +15. On your Breitling point, I needed to have my Avenger regulated because it suddenly slowed down to -10 a day after 1 year.
Yep, I was more making the point that giving a variance like that give the impression they don’t bother to regulate the movement. Unlike Breitling who have their movements measured to COSC for the most part.
£4100 RRP discounted to £2.5k..or Pre-owned £2k. At these prices it make more sense
Yep, I spotted a 'like new' one on Exquisite timepieces site the other day for $2,300.
"To put a movement in it that you can get in a much cheaper watch" the Rolex YM 42 uses the same movment as the DJ36.. many brands do this
This is old news now. The point of the upload was around the watch being grossly overpriced. Turns out I was 100% correct. You can still buy this watch for at least $1k less than RRP still today! All I got wrong… expecting all of them to sell. But they didn’t.
@@CasualWatchReviews wow, ok
Yep! I encourage you to take a look online. If you like the watch you can get it for much less than RRP. Thanks for watching!
I think Seiko does this kind of thing with every tier they sell. Even for watches they only charge a couple hundred dollars for, they put Hardlex crystals on their watches when other companies charging the same price use sapphire.
I just made a video on this actually, a $99 Casio with sapphire. I get a lot of push back from other commenters about this upload, but this watch amazingly, is still readily available as a massive discount. Seikos experiment with this watch and price point clearly failed. Great watch for the 2-3k range but grossly overpriced for 4.5-5k range of their MSRP
my favorite brand watch~~Seiko😄
Of course grand seiko is great,but it is too expensive for us to buy it,any suggestions for Presage Ocean Traveler GMT Night Blue Ref. SARF013?I want to buy this watch,but not sure is it worth about $1200？is 6r64 movement good or bad?
seiko usually over states their inaccuracy-- They under-promise and over-deliver. Now on that alignment QC issue... save that for another video... :)
I agree the price is high, but who payes retail? I have this one. It is a stunning watch. The finishing on the ever brilliant steel is amazing. The dial and indices are outstanding. Yes, the movement should be regulated. Very happy withthis one.
I bought this instead of a GS spring drive diver. Too bulky, and look at me watch.
Not interested.
I have 3 SLA ever brilliant steel divers. The055, 043, and i am wearing a 039. Also have a 049 Naomi Uemura. He rocks!
I think if you shop smart , the SLA series can be great value for some real nice watches
Hey Douglas. Yep it looks like a few people paid retail and thought they got a deal… they didn’t. Even though this was limited edition you can readily find them new online for at least a grand off their RRP. Some people did pay retail and got ripped off. Check the comment here.
6k for a Seiko? Yeah right...
Is it including diashock function?
This would be an interesting watch if it had springdrive in it. As it is it's not very interesting.
100% agree!
I appreciate you sharing your frustration Sam. Seiko needs to hear the harsh truth. I hope Seiko gets the message.
I think this maybe a test, see what they can get away with maybe?
I think it's not so hard to understand. There's playing the Rolex game! Greed is eternal, and it seems to be working. There are a lot of very, very good, and respected watches for that price. Don't get mad, just don't think that is a good investment. Except for Grand Seiko, value is going to drop quickly.
I agree, in the defence of Rolex here that at least spend a year making a movement and regulate to 2-/+ a day.
@@CasualWatchReviews a Rolex movement doesn’t take a year to make, it takes hours from CNC to assembly
@@yunlongwu8071 A year to make, lol. Rolex is the real hype. A $500 watch at best. Machine-made junk.
Very different companies I’ll be surprised if we ever see a day where almost all Seiko watches are trading at or even over retail. In my opinion seiko is the superior company when we’re talking cream of the crop from the movements to all the hand finishing makes rolex look ridiculously overpriced for little to no innovation over the years and rudimentary case and bracelet finishing.
@@gmshadowtraders I think more in the 1500$ range no more. Rolex hype is the proof that people buy stuff only to show off, I know people who have Rolex and they actually don't like them,true . it's absurd.
I share the same thoughts about seiko. Good entry level for beginners but as I am 4 years in this hobby, seiko disent do anything for me now. Swatch group watches are better now : QC, novelties, better movement (longer power reserve, antimagnetic etc)
Yep Hamilton really shine here, i should have added a Khaki as another example
62mas reissue of seiko is a thing of beauty. Personally i think the finish of those watches are better than tudor or rolex
You’re only saying that because it says Seiko and disregarding all the high quality materials and craftsmanship. Some of us will gladly pay these prices. We buy for ourselves not for others.
The thing is... the market decided I was 100% right, this watch was grossly overpriced. This watch can still be found new for at least $1,000 off the MSRP. If you paid full price for this, you massively overpaid. Don't take my word for it, just do a google search. For the record, I'm wearing a Seiko in this upload and also one today. From the last 10 reviews I have uploaded, three of those are Seikos.
8L35 is an unregulated GS movement finished at micro artist studio
Yep seems very expensive for an unregulated movement. Christopher Ward regulate their watches in the $1000 range. Detroit Mint regulate their $300 watches.
I remember back in the day, Vauxhall and Ford (i live in the UK) used to bring out all these limited editions of their cars, apart from different paint jobs, interior trim, and wheels the engines and running gear were exactly the same. Modern Seiko reminds me of this. They’ve been at it for a while. Charging premium prices for watches with mediocre innards just because they have a spangly dial???? Quality control issues also. Been saying it for a while, modern Seiko to me, is not even a patch of what it used to be and stand for
Yep good analogy with ford and seiko. We know you can build a Sierra Cosworth (spring drive in Seiko’s case) dont make me pay the same for the standard Ford!
I managed to get one half price (used - mint) can't wait for it to arrive. I have seen over the last few years you can normally get at least 30 percent off most of the expensive seikos new if you wait a while I just brought the alpanist reissue for 1350 uk pounds half price form a UK jewler. I love it and it's running 1.3 seconds fast per day. Thats about the same as my King Seiko with the same movement. So maybe I am lucky with these 2.
I have had 2 CW chronometers and both were 5/6 seconds a day fast just about within C.O.S.C.. and a C9 (not a chronometer) blue wich is about 20 seconds a day fast
Half price I think that was a good deal for this! Interested to know what you think when you get it!
@@CasualWatchReviews Not keen on first impression, looked a bit weird, but am getting used to it and starting to like it more
My only problem with Seiko is their refusal to regulate their fantastic 8L35 for accuracy when it leaves the factory.
It’s a shame that buyers like me have to get it regulated for accuracy. Once regulated the movement is absolutely spot on .
Get in with it Seiko. Rolex watches are all deadly accurate and a movement like the 8L deserves to be treated better by Seiko.
I actually couldn’t agree more Frank!
This one seriously has Sam cracked! This release is intended for those limited edition fanatics who can piss away the cash. I have found plenty of fun with Seiko in the $300-1000 range. Any more than that I see diminishing returns, unless its an LX or GS.
Totally agree Chris
Unless you buy Rolex you will always get your arse handed to you when selling
@@Patomelb Generally true but I can easily name 3 GS that are currently pulling far more than their original MSRP. Also, have you looked at the pre-owned prices of first, second, or third generation Seiko Monsters lately? 3rd gen are easily going for double their initial price.
No arguing here, I think you nailed it. The general public doesn't care and will buy buy buy but it messes with those of us who know enough about Seiko to know what they're doing. That is why I'm not buying any Seiko for the foreseeable future. I don't support companies that have zero regard for their customers (QC, prices & now this). It won't make any difference to them but it does to me.
I think this watch was a real turning point mentally for me. I do want to own a grand seiko one day, as for their standard mechanicals, I'm not interested any more at these prices.
Time is the most valuable commodity on the planet and you sir just overcharged me when you could literally could have made this video 2 minutes long. 😀
But where would the fun in that be! I have to push it at least 10 mins to fit in two ad breaks… blame RUclips 😂😂😂
True that Seiko is missing the mark in many people eyes from what i've been seeing online, yet their sales only seem to go up?
I wonder if we could work out if that’s the case. That would be interesting to know if they are selling more or earning more from what they do sell?
Nice rant ... but this SLA is in fact better built than a Submariner.
Interested to know where your getting those facts from? What about even anecdotal evidence? possibly a strong opinion from people that have seen both watches?
Or is this one of those ‘my opinions are the facts’ kind of things?
I heard somewhere that for this watch and only one more, which was cost 6000 $ they use special very expensive aloy and only 2 watches have it and more than half of price is case price, thats should answer your questions and peoples in comments. I have Black Bay, Oris small second and in past Omega seamaster 300 ( stolen ) and I have Seiko sla021j1 and in my opinion Marinemaster is better watch than all 3 swiss watches I know personally, my old oris will stay with me but Tudor soon will go to make place for seiko LX, I fall in love with Seiko. And I do not care at all about few second this way or other, watches already 20 years ago looses time telling function when phones landed in our hands. I have almost 30 watches and I stop measure movements years ago. And 8l35 movement is a grand seiko hand made bullet proof thing, only for some reason they didnt regulate it, all watches with this movement do not more than 5 second a day even if Seiko says 20 or something like that.
We actually covered this watch again on a recent livestream. You can still buy them new for more than 1k off the RRP. Take a look in the livestreams tab, it was maybe two weeks ago.
I'll take Tudor over this all day long!
Totally agree!
I'd take my MM300 over both 😏
4:25 limited edition because they will make an unlimited version a year later like the 62 MAS reissue, and then they will change the dial to be fugly a year after that so the old dial “unlimited” watches will be even more collectable
I bet your not wrong
You completely missed the ball here, do your homework before.
“The movement with 26 jewels is made by hand in the Shizuku-ishi Watch Studio in Morioka”
It can’t be “hundreds of thousands” because movement is from GS and GS has limited production capacity of 35,000 per year…basic math.
Nobody pays retail, but I paid retail…you are all over the place, no logic in what you are saying whatsoever.
Handmade movement and case finishing and Red Dot Design Award… for less then 4k (because nobody pays retail)
It has good and bad things about this watch but not this ones.
This is basics, do your research
It’s hard to love Seiko kind of like loving an alcoholic parent or spouse.
All the big companies, no exceptions, don’t care one bit about customers, all they care about is money. Anything they make or do, some things you may like or agree and some not, it’s all for the numbers, nothing is for you as a customer. I’m not talking about watch companies only, but all of them. Knowing this, I would assume Seiko knows what they are doing. I wouldn’t touch their overpriced stuff but at the same time I don’t feel they owe me something. I feel even worse about Rolex, 10k to 20k for an ordinary (admittedly very well made) mass produced steel watch ? Why would any horology enthusiast would buy that instead of a JLC ?
I would say JLC is a great pick also!
This watch is hand made in Grand Seiko factory,nuff said!!
Nuff said? I was 100% right here, this watch was grossly overpriced, look online, you can find them brand new for at least $1,000 off retail.
I think you must have the watch with you to review it
It was not released when I made this opinion piece. No one had it
Right there with you. Especially when compared to swiss luxury brands. At the same time though, I'd rather have a high end Seiko than a Chritopher Ward though...not trying to be a hater. I just feel that Seiko brings more name cache than CW the way Omega does over Seiko.
Hey, thanks for commenting. The last two years I have grown a massive appreciation for Christopher Ward, I really never looked at them before. After owning one (and reviewing a few) I honestly think they are one of the best value swiss watch brands you can buy. The quality and value for money is hard to beat, there are a few microbrands getting close (like Vaer) but Christopher Ward I would recommend to any one. In my view they easily eclipse Seiko in in the $700-$3,000 price range.
Get a COSC certified Christopher Ward C60 for about $1000 . That is so funny I put this comment before you mentioned it!
Good luck with CW customer service, !!!! 😢
@@John..18 why would you say that? I have 4 Christopher Wards and non have had any issues. What was your experience?
@@canadianwatchmonkey3992
I really wanted one of their "new release" dive watches, a couple of years ago, when I emailed them about pre order, and delivery information, I got no response for nearly a week.. !! So, needless to say, I decided never to do business with a totally online watch company...
ps, I'm now the very happy owner of a SMP300M...
@@John..18 Get on CW mailing list . Every year usually first or second week of January CW has a 50% off sale. The watches go fast as in a few hours. Check out my youtube channel, I sure could use your support.
@@canadianwatchmonkey3992
Like I said,, they had a perfect opportunity to sell me a 1000m titanium dive watch, but poor customer service is no use, if you're dealing online,,, (even if you get a cheap 50% off watch...).
I'm not a collector, I just wanted one "grail" watch,, yes, after my first enquiry, I'm on their mailing list, but after they performed poorly with the enquiry, I'll never even contemplate doing business with them...
Good luck, if you have any problems....
Spot on!!
Seiko has lost their mind. I have not and will not buy another seiko, period.
Never say never, but I am where you are.
I agree completely Sam. I don't have a problem with Seiko charging more for a LE watch but is this watch LE, other than price gouging. There is some more you can buy that is better quality for less. Thank you for another great video 😊👍
Yep totally agree!
Theres a shift in the playing field now. Players dominating a certain market segment have gone stale, while new brands entering the segment are taking their place
Microbrands and niche boutique brands (ie halios chris ward etc) are killing seiko at the entry to mid level. With seiko floundering at higher price points
On the other hand, funny enough, grand seiko and tudor (before thought to be ew and meh watches…. Because rolex jr and “why would you spend that much on a seiko)) are giving omega and rolex a run for their money at the luxury level
And the nautilus watch company now
Has rolex nipping at their heels, with rolex gunning to be the brand with most prestige clout and exclusivity (rolex used to be just good tool watches, while patek was the choice for bourgeoisie)
Hey Carlos, I agree with all you said here, great points
The strap is not unpar with the pricetag but It has a GS movement, is just not Hi-beat!! If you never had an 8L you have to know japnese ratings are understate and overdeliver all the way. In reality those movements do much better. Definetly a good price for this watch. That is basically a GS with all the hand finishing, quality, GS movement etc. Grand seiko automatic divers go for way higher price. This is practically a GS for half the price without the GS logo. The only thing you are not getting is the hi-beat but at half the price of a GS seems fair.
Hey, thanks for watching! It’s a good movement for a $2.5k to $3k watch for sure. Seiko just released a $2.5k watch with this movement. This watch I discussed here is still available new for easily $1000 off the RRP. The market ended up deciding this was grossly overpriced for what it was.
@@CasualWatchReviews is a limited edition and is an ever brilliant steel case Of course it can be more expensive than a 2.7K MM with the same movement.
On top of that right now the Japanese yen fell so you can find Japanese watches much cheaper. I just bought a 3600$ chronomaster for 1900$ because of this reason. It was not because it was grossly priced at 3600$ MSRP.
In fact the Omega seamster that used to be around 4000$ years ago is now around 5000$ and I don't see anybody complaining why is that extra 1000$
Zenith just released the caliber 135 observatorie for more than 100k and you know why they said is that price? Because of the history and how much that movement meant to them.
I see Swiss watches with the same boring sellita SW -200 from 500$ to 3000$
Are those 2-3K$ Swiss watches horribly priced with a sellita SW-200?
My point is that this pricing practices are very common in the whole industry but nobody ever complains when the Swiss do it.
When citizen released the caliber 0200 there was people also criticizing citizen for having the price tag they had. 5k for just a citizen? Are you kidding me? Yea I'm sure citizen knows what they are doing.
Hey. Yep if I saw a watch over 2k with a selitta SW-200 I would call that over priced. As you said, this watch was limited edition, well over a year ago, and they are still readily available new and for a massive discount. I think that is all anyone needs to know to prove this watch was grossly overpriced at the RRP seiko wanted.
It was built for a price to test the market. I have more seikos in my collection than Rolex or any other brand. For the record Christopher Ward at $1-$1.5k for a selitta sw-200 is about as good as it gets for a watch in that price range. Mechanical Seiko movements are mediocre in watches they pitch in that range, I’m thinking of the 4r and 6r. It’s like having a beautiful car with a crap engine… a de lorean for example.
....seiko with their piss-poor QC have totally jumped the shark. their misaligned bezels and chapter rings and mind blowing +- 15 seconds per day accuracy ratings were fine at the $300 price point.....but at $5K?? You'd have to be a total idiot to buy one. Oh, I looked up this movement as well. Seiko is recommending a 2-3 year service interval (yea, that's more frequent than your average ETA). While it will indeed barely outperform a 7S26 it's sure as hell not worth the asking (or discounted for that matter) price.
That Uncle Seiko bracelet is a treat to size is it not? 🤣🤣
Its like a puzzle for sure!! I have got the hang of it now but the first time it takes a while 😂
I have no issue with this release or the price. Mm300 is 3k. There titanium watches come at a higher price point. Everbrilliant is their premium steel and placed above titanium. Plus inflation of all goods in general. This seems inline woth the watch industry in general. I do have a question, why do you find the 8L movement inferior to Swiss counterparts?
I wouldn’t say inferior I just think it shocking for that price they don’t offer any indication they regulate these and quote such a ridiculous -/+ variance.
Ever brilliant steel + 8L35b movement for less than 5000EUR, take my money!
If you do get one and you really think it was worth the money, your more than welcome on the channel to discuss! Just email me over at thecasualwatchreviewer@gmail.com
I would never spend more than 1.5k in a seiko I rather buy Swiss watch at that price point 👍🏼
I struggle with the pricing of seikos midrange mechanicals I have to admit!
It cannot be said any better than you have said it, I agree completely. This should have been a Grand Seiko with a Grand Seiko movement. Bad decision on the part of smart people over at Seiko. It is beautiful watch for the money. Limited addition does not justify the additional price.
Totally agree!
Well a few years later there are still a few available, and I managed to get it for £2214 brand new from an ad which is imo a nuts deal. Funnily enough I also once owned the super ocean you mentioned and it’s silly to compare the two, the seiko is far superior in every way even at full price.
Hey Tariq! I think it was a fair comparison. But your right, at the time I didn’t fully appreciate how right I would be on this in the end. The watch was grossly overpriced. I have had at least three other comments recently off people who got great deals on these.
@@CasualWatchReviews I think at just above £2200 it was a crazy good price. The point is though, the Breitling is inferior to this watch and not by a little bit. And that’s coming from a guy that loved owning it. At £4100 it’s definitely not good enough to justify.
Would you feel the same if you paid full RRP and I guess the other interesting question is, why didn’t you? I guess you could have got it day one from seiko for full RRP? Could you be romanticizing it’s actual RRP I wonder? I felt (and still feel) it was grossly overpriced at its RRP.
@@CasualWatchReviews No, I never pay full retail for watches as they are all overpriced at rrp. That’s why I don’t own Rolex or Omega. A fair price is around the Brietlings rrp as it is a better watch, and a fair price for the brietling is £2380 which is what I got it at. If looking at resale prices, then overpriced becomes more tricky as technically a Rolex rrp is overpriced for what it is, but not overpriced for the fact resale is far more. But going back to what it is a submariner is not even better than a seiko sla055, I just knew it would not sell at retail and so could wait because it’s a seiko, and brand perception dictates prices more than materials, movement and design.
Yep its an interesting thought experiment. For me this was Seiko testing the waters with a crazy RRP that failed. They haven’t tried it again as far as I’m aware. And you can get the same movement in much cheaper watches from them.
Rolex is it’s own thing, I own one and honestly I have never seen a seiko that comes close to the fit and finish, not to mention their bracelets. I have handled a lot of grand seiko, they are amazing but not in the same category. I’m actually looking forward to owning a spring drive and another Rolex at some point. A Rolex will also maintain its value, you can’t wait out a ‘deal’ on one.
Seiko is a good brand, but those prices how you say, are not justified, i was looking after a movemnet fora seiko ,the price was abot 900 euros, and the movement was at discount for 25 dollars , i was only thinking how crazy is this, selling a watch for that amount of money ant putting in such a caliber. I have to say the calibers cost normaly 250 to 300 dollars on that site they where about 25 dollars, its crazy now with watches, The same thing with rolex, those are also overpriced
I no longer buy Seikos. Their QC has gone to the dogs. Their prices like this sample on your video for example, have gone to the moon.
Buying Citizens and Tissos and Longines.
I totally agree, I think Citizens, Tissot and Longines are all doing some very interesting things lately
This Seiko SLA055 purchased through Seiko Sydney their asking $7,250.00... Take a look 😮 Au
Wow that’s crazy, their Weill available in the US vastly before their RRP
With this price, Im taking omega anytime and at least it’s well made and regulated
They’re cool And all, but the prices seem extortionate, I can’t tell if it’s an upgraded mm200, or a slimmed down mm300
They are my favorite watch brand but If you pay retail for any Seiko you’re a sucker. This watch can be had for around $3k which is exactly on par with the mm300
3k usd? If you can show me a link to it I call you daddy, if you can’t provide a link then you are my son
Can you share the link?
@@CasualWatchReviews I’ve posted it twice not sure why it keeps getting taken down probably some BS YT policy 🤔
@@yunlongwu8071 all you have to do is get on e Bay and type in the model number not rocket science
Ful transparency there is one seller has them for $3,350, everyone else selling them for 5k? I wonder if I can post the link… www.ebay.com/itm/SEIKO-Prospex-SBDX049-SLA055J1-Limited-mechanical-watch-/373849584193?mkcid=16&mkevt=1&_trksid=p2349624.m46890.l49286&mkrid=711-127632-2357-0
I will see if I can get my hands on a serious grail ⌚
JLC
You guys are living in the past. This is the new normal. Deal with it. Or keep complaining for the views....
Being an apologist for Seiko will only result in more of these overpriced watches, you may be happy to over pay but I won’t stop pointing it out.
@@CasualWatchReviews calm down
Your entire argument as to why this watch isn't worth the money is based entirely on the movement and the fact that the dial says Seiko on it. I do agree that it is somewhat overpriced, but not by an absurd amount. You came across as a movement snob who had his sensibilities offended. The movement is basically an unregulated Grand Seikop movement. Every other aspect of the SLA055 is Grand Seiko quality, so I'd say that it's pretty safe to assume that Seiko held back on the movement so that they woudn't step on Grand Seiko's toes.
From Seiko's point of view, the price is justified due to the fact that in every other way, it is basically a Seiko badged Grand Seiko. So, it's no coincidence that most of the people offended by this watch are either brand snobs, or movement snobs. All in all, a stunning watch who's only shortcoming is that Seiko held back a bit by putting an unregulated Grand Seiko movement in it. I'd happily pay $4,200 for a non limited edition version with a bracelet.
A movement snob? Where did you come up with that as an insult? I have heard some pretty silly things in the comments section over the years but ‘movement snob’ is up there for sure.
Nearly every person who has no obvious argument always results to calling someone a snob, just look on any watch forum. Its not being a snob to want a brand to do better or calling them out when they fall short. I gave reference in the upload of that same movement in a watch nearly 2k less…. that seiko still sell. Thats the point, even in Seiko’s own catalogs this is an obvious cash grab, I shared that in my opinion here.
Seiko will gladly take your money, so just buy the thing if you think it’s that good a deal. I wear a Seiko everyday, I’m even wearing one in that upload? Did you notice that or just got offended in the first 30 seconds of the upload?
@@CasualWatchReviews I didn't say that you are a movement snob, I said that you came across as one in this video. There is a difference.
It seemed that your only justification for taking offense at the price was the movement used. It's an 8L35 which is a very close cousin to the Grand Seiko 9S55. It's true that it is an unregulated version, but it is very consistent, and regularly performs much better than the minimum specs Seiko puts on their website.
Like you said, it is the same movement found in the standard MM300, but in almost every other way, the SLA055 is a nicer watch. Sure, you have to take a close look to notice all of the differences, but aren't the fine details also the justification for the incredibly high prices of many Swiss timepieces?
I find it hypocritical that people are making a sport of bashing Seiko for charging more than what they used to when most of those same people wouldn't bat an eye at a Swiss watch with equal build quality but for substantially more money. That being said, I do apologize if you took offense at my use of the term movement snob. That was the initial impression that the video left me with, but I probably could've found a better way to express myself.
I think I gave some good examples of comparable Swiss watches that are cheaper, there are countless others I missed like Oris for example. If you watch my channel I have called out other brands including Omega for doing what Seiko are doing here.
The issue I have with this movement is Seiko give such a ridiculous time variance, it gives the impression they care little about regulating the movement or its timekeeping accuracy. Even the $1,200 Christopher Ward I showed is measured to COSC. Its a lack of care that Seiko recently have shown to their fans (like me) like their QC issues. Now they take a watch that should be 2-3k and whack on an extra 2k, I don't imagine for a second that this watch is finished better or wears better than the MM300.
As a few commenters have pointed out these watches are selling on ebay for $3,350 so either Seiko are struggling to shift them or the watch is overpriced to the tune of at least 1-2k
Yes, this is the FOMO watch from the island of misfit toys. Seiko has lost their mind and perspective on their own heritage with this watch. I agree if this had a proper bracelet and a Spring Drive or the 36000 movement then this makes some sense. But not this compilation. Very disappointing.
Totally agree Todd
It's crazy that you have to spend over 4000$ to get a Seiko that has decent alignment LOL
I actually bought a seiko the other day for around $1k, great alignment, wonderful timekeeping, no QC issues…. Made in 1968 😂😂😂
@@CasualWatchReviews 🤣🤣🤣
Cant agree more. Shouldve been 2k at most. Id buy so many other brands for 5k than a seiko with 8L mvmnt
Totally agree!
These watches are selling for 3100-3400. The MSRP isn’t being paid.
Well that is very telling then considering they were in such limited edition numbers. The market also decided these were not worth any where near the MSRP
First time tuning in to your channel! I agree with you. I have the Tudor GMT and it does have the same movement as the Norqains, which I would consider if I did not have the Tudor. Now regarding Seiko, I believe that any Seiko that lists for over $1,000 US should have the 8L35 (4HZ) movement. An example is the SBDC101, instead you get misaligned bezels and non-regulated 6R15 movements. I also question how long the electrical regulator will last in the Spring Drives. I would rather have a full mechanical, knowing that service intervals will keep the mechanicals in good shape. Seiko needs to remain competitive, by starting to put the 4HZ movements into sub 1,000 dollars U.S. watches. They are already getting eaten alive by China micro brands, and I feel they are trying to recoup their losses by going after us.
That’s an interesting question about how long a spring drive would last. I bet only seiko can maintain them.
That’s nuts. I just bought my Doxa 600t Pacific LE Titanium for $2950 AUD that’s like $2100 USD 🤷🏻
Yep, if only it had the date 😂
@@CasualWatchReviews 😂 like Kris I couldn’t read it anyway.
Street price is already in the low $3k's. I picked up the 55 for $3,100 last week on ebay.
Wow, it came down nearly 2k? I would be very interested to know what you think of it
@@CasualWatchReviews I think most including Seiko knew this wasn't going to sell well at their MSRP of $4,600. It's just marketing. I was never going to pay $4,600 but when I found it for $3,100 I pulled the trigger as I think it easily merits that price. The ebay seller has since raised the price to $3,350. I can't give full thoughts on the watch as it's still in transit/customs.
I think 3,350 is more reasonable. I will be interested to know your thoughts
Seiko are having a laugh. I love my Seikos but lately they seem to think slapping a high price on a watch instantly makes it a luxury piece. You didn't even touch on the continuing QC nonsense. You didn't have to, it's so common it's become a meme at this point.
That is a great point, its not the price that makes it luxury... unless your Hublot 😂
@@CasualWatchReviews 😂❤️
Profit. Seiko has shareholders. They are not and have never been watchmakers.
Yep!
What does having shareholders have to do with anything. They are a watchmaker because they actually make the watch parts and don't just assemble them.