Rugged, accurate, beautiful inexpensive timepiece
Written: Jun 13 '04 (Updated Jun 14 '04)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Beautiful, sporty, elegant, accurate timekeeping, rugged and durable.
Cons: Not even one.
The Bottom Line: A great buy even at twice the price. You'll love it, either for yourself or as gift.
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| gregfokker's Full Review: Swiss Army Pocket Watch |
In a blurb worthy of Mister Pederman's outdoor catalogue, Victorinox describes the pocket watch thus:
Here's when a traditional idea goes modern . . . and the result is a timeless accessory you'll enjoy for years. This polished steel 48mm pocket watch features bold, readable numerals and luminous hands and hour markers with date display at 6 and the Swiss Army Brand insignia at 12. The presentation is complete with its own genuine leather pouch embossed with the Swiss Army insignia, a sure sign that people will notice and suddenly need to know the time. With sweep second hand.
Its primary function
The Swiss Army Pocket Watch is, after all, a watch, and it does its job very well. The quartz movement is accurate and the watch is reliable. Expect to replace the battery change after approximately 5 years, and replacements are easily available anywhere watch batteries are sold. The face is much larger than a watch, and the dials and numbers are big and easy to read with a clear, white background. Victorinox was generous with its phosphorescent paint, and the pocket watch glows bright and clear in the dark. For those who dislike the sensation of wearing a wrist watch, the pocket watch offers a top rate alternative at a surprisingly low price.
Elegant and rugged
The pocket watch feels chunky and substantial, the stainless steel smooth and heavy. The workmanship both on the casing and beneath the crystal is flawless and attractive- it's a young person's pocket watch, sporty, but made with such obvious quality that it will grace anyone's pocket.
The pocket watch comes with a silver chain and jewellery hook on the end to permit you to clip it to a belt loop above your pocket. It would also work as beneath a suit jacket in a vest for those going for that too-elusive train station ticket-taker look.
The optional leather belt pouch is a beautiful accessory that allows you to fasten the watch (minus the chain) to a belt directly. The leather is very stiff and thick, and with the pocket watch clipped in it, you can be confident that it won't be going anywhere without you. The belt clip allows you to tilt the watch up to read it without detaching it.
Functional art
The appearance and design of the Swiss Army Pocket Watch is up there with other timeless classics such as the Zippo lighter or Andy Warhol's Campbell's soup can. The watch is both sporty and distinguished, young and timeless. Check it out in any sporting goods or jewellery story, and you'll find yourself staring at it for too long. It's that beautiful, the kind of eye-catching simplicity that never goes out of style. Most of the Victorinox timepieces share this characteristic, but of all of them, I find the pocket watch to be the best of the bunch.
Bottom Line
At $135, the Swiss Army Pocket Watch is a very inexpensive purchase for a unit so useful, beautiful and enduring. It makes a lavish gift for others, and will draw compliments for yourself. It also tells the time, well.
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID: gregfokker
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Location: Montreal
Reviews written: 40
Trusted by: 2 members
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