Everybody carries a device that tells the time more accurately than any watch. That was expected to end the category, and instead it changed what a watch is for.
The function collapsed and the object survived
The straightforward observation.
Once the timekeeping function became redundant, a watch became a discretionary object, worn for reasons other than utility.
Which is roughly what happened to mechanical watches when quartz movements arrived decades earlier — the traditional product became functionally obsolete and survived as something else.
That transition took about a decade and nearly destroyed the industry before it reoriented around craft, heritage and design.
The phone produced a second version of the same shift, and the response has been similar.
What the mechanical revival is actually about
Since it is the more interesting half of the market.
A mechanical movement is less accurate than a cheap quartz one and requires servicing. Nobody buys one for performance.
What it offers is the object itself — a small machine of several hundred parts, assembled by hand at the upper end, visible through a case back, running without a battery.
The appeal is closer to that of any other well-made mechanical thing, and the people who respond to it tend to respond to that quality generally.
It is also a rare consumer object that can be repaired indefinitely and passed on, which is unusual enough now to be part of the appeal.
The smartwatch took the function
And has largely absorbed the practical end of the category.
It does everything a watch did and a great deal more, and for anybody who wants a wrist device for utility it is straightforwardly the better object.
Its weakness is the same as any electronic device — it becomes unsupported, the battery degrades, and it is unrepairable in any long-term sense.
Which has produced a fairly clean split. Utility on one side, object on the other, with very little in between.
The category that has suffered most is the mid-priced quartz watch, which now has no clear proposition against either.
What determines value in the mechanical market
Worth knowing since it is opaque.
Movement finishing and whether it is made in-house, which is a genuine difference in labour and is also used as a marketing distinction beyond what it warrants.
Brand, which dominates resale value to an extent that has little relationship to the object.
Production volume, with restricted allocation producing the same premiums as elsewhere.
And condition and completeness, where original packaging and papers affect value substantially.
As with bags, the items that genuinely appreciate are a narrow set from a small number of makers, and the general category depreciates like any consumer good.
The servicing cost
The running cost nobody mentions at purchase.
Mechanical movements require periodic servicing, typically recommended every several years, at a cost that for higher-end pieces is substantial.
Manufacturer servicing is expensive and can involve parts replacement that some owners object to on originality grounds.
Independent watchmakers are cheaper and access to parts has been restricted by some manufacturers, which has been the subject of competition complaints.
Anybody buying should establish what servicing will cost, because over a decade it can approach the purchase price of a modest watch.
The second-hand argument
Which is stronger here than in most categories.
Watches are durable, repairable, and depreciate sharply on first sale.
Which means a used example of most models is substantially cheaper than new and functionally identical after a service.
The risks are counterfeits, which are sophisticated in this market, and undisclosed damage, both of which are addressed by buying from a dealer with a return policy rather than privately.
What I would tell somebody buying a first one
Decide whether you want a tool or an object, because they are different purchases.
If a tool, a smartwatch or an inexpensive quartz watch is the rational choice and everything else is a premium on appearance.
If an object, buy something you like looking at rather than something with a story attached, since the stories are marketing and the object is what you will actually have.
And budget for servicing before buying, which changes the calculation on anything mechanical and is routinely omitted from the decision.
What to check on a used purchase
Practical, since second-hand is the sensible route.
Service history, which reputable sellers provide and which determines the near-term cost.
Whether the movement runs within reasonable accuracy, which a seller should be able to state.
Whether the case has been polished, which removes material and reduces value on collectable pieces.
And whether the parts are original, which affects both value and serviceability.
None of this requires expertise to ask about, and a seller who cannot answer is telling you something.
The strap
A small point with a disproportionate effect.
Straps are consumable and inexpensive, and changing one alters the character of a watch more than most people expect.
It is also the easiest way to make an inexpensive watch look considerably better, since the strap supplied on cheaper watches is generally the component where cost was saved.
Quick-release fittings have become common and make changing straps a thirty second job without tools, which has turned it into a genuine part of how people use these objects.