Customer Reviews

Seiko 5 Men's SNK793 Automatic Stainless Steel Blue Dial Watch

5 star:		(39)
4 star:		(14)
3 star:		(7)
2 star:		(8)
1 star:		(7)

 

 

Owned for 2 months, received as a gift.

Stainless steel band and midnight blue face are a combination of tough and formal. Good for work if you have a clean job. My job isn't so clean, so I wear it after work and weekends.

Since I'm not wearing it continuously, the movement runs out of gas occasionally. So I get lots of practice setting the time (and day and date), which requires a half dozen more steps than a simple quartz watch.

For instance, the stem has three positions: retracted, middle, and pulled out all the way. And, the instructions say NOT to set the watch between 9 PM and 4 AM, which is to avoid some ambiguities as the mechanical day/date changes around midnight.

Making a long story short, you play with the stem a few times and learn how it behaves. You realize setting the time between 9 PM and 4 AM is not prohibited, but is instead easily done. All in all, a small learning curve that you should be aware exists, but shouldn't stop you from purchasing this pretty thing.

An interesting function is that, while adjusting the minute hand, if the stem is turned slightly backwards, the second hand stops moving. (Turn it backwards more, and the minute hand adjusts backwards, as usual.) That provides for a way to set the second hand exactly.

When my watch runs continuously, it picks up about five seconds per day. It would be best if it kept time perfectly, but running a bit fast is 2nd best. Using the afore-mentioned function, you can stop the second hand as required without disturbing the minute hand. Pretty easy, if you care about second-accuracy.

In this rare instance, Amazon's images of this watch are pretty good. The styling of the band is continuous with the case of the watch, so it all looks like one smooth, silver piece. The watch and band is a little heavy, which satisfies the hardware-like feeling that makes you feel like a man. Works for me.

I walked around a shopping mall until I found a jeweler who claimed to have experience removing links from this band. Recommend removing links evenly, i.e., one from the top of the watch, and one from the bottom of the watch, one more from the top of the watch, etc. That way, when the watch is centered at the top of your wrist, the latch will remain centered at the bottom of your wrist. He charged $10 to perform the adjustment, but he wouldn't accept a tip.

To release the latch, don't just try to pull it open. Instead, squeeze the two tiny tabs on either side of the latch to release it : |

Let me start off by saying I researched for about five months before buying this watch. I looked at many automatic watches, ranging from the cheapest to the most expensive I could afford in a couple of years. I was torn between saving up for an Omega Speedmaster Chronometer with Day&Date which would cost somewhere around $3,500.00 or getting a low end Fossil automatic with Day,Date,&Month.

I actually ended up getting the Fossil ME1030 (For those of you who were thinking about this watch). It was heavy (making my hand numb) and could not keep time. I had it for a month and a half. The more I wore it the more seconds it gained a day. It would range from gaining 15 to 45 seconds a day. I ended up returning it, realizing how important precise time keeping was to me. And don't listen to people who say, "Automatics can't really be precise or accurate." Do your research and you'll find out that there are some automatics that can keep quit accurate and precise time.

Which brought me back to either saving up for an Omega Speedmaster Chronometer (which should gain or loose 6 seconds a day) or another alternative. Well, since I didn't have the money for an Omega at the moment and I wanted to see how I would I like having a "More Precise" automatic watch, I kept searching for a more affordable alternative. My search ended here, with the Seiko 5 Automatic SNK793K1.

I must say I love this watch. It's much lighter than my Fossil, you barely notice it's on. Yet, as it's made of stainless steel it feels very sturdy. The dial is a handsome deep blue, allowing it to go well with casual or formal attire. The dial itself is very easy to read, as well. The day and date are also very easy to see and adjust. Since this watch is not perpetual, all you have to do to change the date when it's off is pull the crown out to the first position, and rotate up to correct the date or down to correct the day. It is also very simple to set this watch accurate to the second. All you have to do is pull the crown out to the second position and turn it back slightly, causing the second hand to stop. And most importantly, after having this watch for a month, it appears to gain only about 8-10 seconds every 24 hours. This is within acceptable parameters for a modern day non-certified automatic watch. This watch is very accurate and precise for the money you pay.
I can't say how much I love this watch. I don't wear it to work, but I wear it for 4-5 hours after I get home and all day on my days off, which keeps the mainspring charged. If you were wondering if this watch is worth it, there's no need to hesitate. The other reviews on this watch are right on! I don't even think I'm gonna bother saving up for that Omega anymore.

Here is a final list of the Pro's and cons on this watch:

Pro's:
-Automatic
-Day & Date
-Stainless Steel Construction
-Links that are adjustable by yourself with tools in your tool box
(it's on google or just watch a repairman do it once and you'll see
how easy it is)
-Light weight construction
-Precise time keeping

Con's --> Why I gave this watch 4 stars
-Mineral Crystal (Whish it were Sapphire)
-Watch cannot be manually wound

i am writing this through the mrs account but what the heck. ordered this automatic seiko to replace the invicta pro diver which seemed to have gone kaput on me. well i was in greece and notice that the invicta was like 1/2 late. the watch has stopped somewhere along the way- so the invicta which i loved which i owned for pretty much exactly 2 years. the invicta stopped and started every now and again - the movement on the invicta is a citizen watch company miyota 8162 - but i digress...

anywho - i was looking for another watch - something i didn't have to replace batteries for (actually i ended up buying 2 watches from amazon - the seiko and a casio g-shock watch) and decided against solar, kinetic, eco-drive watches. they have an internal rechargeable battery which as anyone knows rechargeable batteries at some point would no longer hold a charge.

so i was looking for another automatic - i thought about getting another invicta but decided against it - invicta didn't make their own movements - so i was perusing amazon.com and came upon this Seiko - Seiko makes their own movements - albeit cheap movements not unlike the invicta miyota movement- so i thought they would have better QC if their name was on it and Seiko make fine quality watches and instruments. The movement on this watch is the 7s26b 21 jewels non-hacking (cannot stop the seconds hand when the crown is pulled) - there are a few discussion sites concerning this movement - its predecessor was teh 7s26a... the replacement is purportedly more accurate. the miyota movement in the invicta actually gained like 5 minutes every week.

the watch itself i thought was simple yet elegant. can be worn on casual or formal i think. The blue face makes it all the more attractive. the face is smaller than what i'm used to with the invicta dive watch - that was 40mm.. this one is around 38mm. it displays the day and date... the day comes in spanish too. depending on what you want it to read... it can be a little tricky setting it to how you want it to read but i had no trouble setting it to english. what happens is it will inevitably go to spanish in the wee hours (when you are probably asleep anyway) and quickly switch back to english of the NEXT day. you'll have to fiddle with the time to see when exactly it changes the day so you can set the dominant language you want to see the day on.

when it arrived i was very happy with the watches appearance. it came in a light blue handsome box - inside the watch had protective plastic around the center links. the Seiko tag was there - turn the back and you can see the heart of the watch - it is a see-through skeletonized back where you can see the movement and the heartbeat. what makes the watch automatic is the rotor - your wearing the watch and your bodily movement moves the rotor which winds the watch. the watch is also "resting" on a pillow and on the bottom instructions.

The crystal is Seiko's "Hardlex" - not mineral not sapphire but their own proprietary(?) Harlex crystal.

while the watch is on the small size from a dive watch - seiko certainly put enuff links on their for the big man! i have a small wrist so i had to take off 5 links all together. these links confused me a bit because it is not the usual pins... but these links were actually easier to take out than the usual pins. there are holes in which (i used a bulletin board push pin) if you push it at an angle you can push the pins out and using a needle nose plier quickly take out the pins and links.

i have had this watch for two days and it seems to be keeping time pretty well with the casio - i will compare it for a week to see how well this goes up against a battery driven quartz movement.

so far i'm satisfied with this watch - this was sold on the amazon site by an affiliate - K.G. Company that does not have it's own website - but it had good store reviews so i went with it. Although i think the marketing people at K.G. or amazon thought of a "call to action" device by declaring the "limited" quantities they had - "only 2 in stock -- order soon" -meanwhile i'm sure they had plenty -just to create some sense of urgency on the customers part. I also did see this watch at different pricing with the same affiliate company. $83.99 and at $99.00 - so maybe they are wanting to see which pricing makes a difference or perhaps no difference at all.

so if you're looking for basically a simple watch which tells time accurately (so far) and with the day (in english and spanish)and date display at a good price - this watch is what you're looking for.

m

I am now a retired engineer and in 1976 purchased one of the early Seiko quartz analogue watches. The watch required a new battery every 5 years and is still an every-day watch for me. My experience with this watch prompted me in the direction of Seiko as the manufacturer of my new watch.

I ordered the Seiko model SNK793K1 watch on 23 July 2009 and it was delivered to my home in Spain 4 days later, not only in good condition but actually working, as it had wound itself up during transit. I found the watch to be almost exactly as depicted in the Amazon web site. The actual colour of the dial is a very dark blue and the description of the crystal given as 'mineral' is described by Seiko as 'Hardlex' which I believe to be man made. Other than these two points I find the product to be of fine quality and I am very satisfied with my purchase especially when you read my findings on accuracy.

I have delayed my feedback on this product so that I can say how the watch is performing. After all why do we need a watch other than to tell what the time is! The watch was delivered on the 27th of July, it is now the 15th of August (19 days later) and the watch has lost a total of 25 seconds, that is 1.3 sec. per day. I think that this level of performance is more than one should expect from a watch costing less than $80 and this is why I think that this product is excellent 'value for money'.

I was elated to find that someone actually still made a 21 jewel mechanical movement watch for a reasonable price. No, it isn't something you will find at Wal-Mart for $10.00. But, as they say, you get what you pay for and this Seiko is very reasonable at around $70.00 for the high quality of this watch. I wear one of them night and day. This poor thing has been drowned, banged, and in general not had a kind life (I am a major klutz). It takes quite a beating and actually still ticks and tells time.(for going on two years now) It is easy to set and as long as you don't let it sit on the dresser for more then a day, it never stops. But, the fantastic thing is that I never have to jerk around trying to find and install batteries anymore. I love that. It is also cool to see the micro movements of the second hand as compared to what you see with quartz type watches. With the analog style face, it is really easy to tell the time with just a glance. Sometimes retro is better. If you are sick of watch batteries, poor quality, and hard to set digital watches, this is your ticket to watch freedom. Even the least expensive versions of this watch look elegant. Also, it is a hoot to see people's reactions when they realize it is a self winding mechanical watch. Younger people marvel at seeing the mechanics via the clear back. Thank you Seiko for keeping this jewel on the market!

I was truly surprised when the watch arrived. The quality of the steel case and chrome bezel is excellent. Its got a glass smooth shiny finish and the case back is transparent showing the working machinery.
I just love the fact that its self winding and you don't have to bother about replacing batteries.

It looks really nice and Self-Winding is accurate. I can buy this watch at least 5x more than this price in my country. If someone is looking for Seiko Automatic, so buy this one because of low price and quality ... STRONG recommened!.
One thing i want to mention here is the strap that is very large but no problem to fix. As amateur like me it takes about 15 minutes for a first time. If you do not know how to do it, so just use Mr. Google to search and find the solution. Would like to give this item 10 stars instead of max 5.

From what I can tell, this is the same seiko automatic I wore for a quarter of a century, with a very minor difference in the wrist band latch. I loved it. About the only time I didn't wear it was in the shower each morning. It kept very accurate time, and wound itself with flawless reliability. I received mine as a Christmas present when I was a sophmore in high school. Young men being what they are, I sent it through the washer more than once in my jeans pocket. I also wore it caving through a number of exceptionally muddy passages. I whacked the crystal innumerable times on door jambs and had to replace them twice. I wore it with confidence on dates to elegant restaurants, weddings, business meetings and hikes in the Mountains. We got rained on, snowed on and broiled in the summer sun from Christmas of '76 until sometime after 2001.
I've since tried a string of battery operated quartz watches. Every time the battery dies I am reminded that I never had to experience that inconvenience with my seiko automatic. None of the quartz watches have proven to be as durable.
Unless you are just trying to impress others with your ability to spend ridiculous sums, this is what I would buy. It is the maximum bang for your buck: rugged, good-looking, insanely reliable and very reasonably priced. It is what I plan to buy if my current Christmas present ever wears out.

I have had two Seiko 5 watches, and I liked them, especially for their status as a nice budget watch. They are lightweight yet relatively sturdy, and they look pretty good, but not great. They are perfect watches for students or people coming out of school who want an acceptably serious-looking watch for their everyday activities, that they don't have to worry about scuffing up.

The biggest downside of the Seiko 5 in my experience is accuracy. I had one that was off by a couple of minutes a day. And it was running slow, not fast, so I had to adjust it frequently and was constantly worried about being late. It got to where I'd set it five minutes fast and hope that I remembered to adjust it before it went behind again. I think that watch may have been the exception rather than the rule, as my other Seiko 5 was reasonably accurate. I had to adjust it every week or so. I took the inaccurate one in to a jeweler's for adjustment, and he said he could adjust it, but it wouldn't do much good in the long term, it would just get out of sync again.

Still, Seiko 5s were my primary watch for a good few years. It is a reliable basic automatic watch and has decent enough water resistance. A good choice for a budget automatic.

I purchased this about a month ago. My dad and grandfather both had self winding watches decades ago. I was putting about my fourth battery in another (nice) Seiko when I decided to look on Amazon. I targeted Seiko since I had received one 25 years ago for a gift. It has been fantastic for a quarter of a century. It is quartz and has about a five year battery cycle, but I digress. This one came in and after reading the reviews I decided to take it to a jeweler to have the band adjusted. This is a relatively heavy watch, so if you don't want it flopping around on your wrist and pulling out hair I suggest a decent fit. After wearing it one full day it was wound significantly and has kept excellent time since. The only adjustment I've made is the date setting when we flipped from September to October. The time has not needed set in the three weeks I've worn it. It is keeping pace with my quartz models and is within a few seconds of the time tag on my cell phone (usually pretty close). I have not tested it with the standards board radio broadcasts on shortwave radio, but it has been close enough I haven't felt the need to do so. If you want a stylish watch that never needs a battery and keeps good time, consider this model. I give it five stars as I've had some compliments on it. If you think going to have it fitted is a hassle, then knock off half a star, but not for the watch itself.