Den japanske ur industri

[willy]

Rating Japanese watches against the Swiss and German products is really very easy . The fact is that if we are talking about technical know how and quality , then the Japanese are the equal and maybe better than the Swiss or Germans . Nothing made by the Swiss under 50000dkr cannot be compaired to the Grand Seiko . The Japanese are much more advanced than the Swiss or Germans in making mass produced watches . And please do not forget that Rolex - IWC - Omega etc etc , are all mass products with about 99% of what they sell . Brands like Lange or Patek can build great complications with fantastic finishing . But so can Seiko , you just have to Google their Credor models to see that in many ways they are much more advanced than Lange or Patek . The biggest problem for Japanese watches in our part of the world is quite simply lack of knowledge about their products and a certain degree of snob value for Swiss or German watches . We only tend to think about Japanese watches as cheap and mass produced without any lasting value .
We watch nerds should be a little bit ashamed about our limited know how , concerning Japanese watches . This is of course because many of us believe so much of the Swiss and German branding bullshit we are constantly bombarded with . In our minds prestige means just as much as the quality of a watch . And who can blame people for that . Branding is just so important today . One of the best examples of this is compairing a Toyoto to a VW . The Japanese cars are more reliable and better made . Do not believe me in this , just get busy googling . The Japanese and Korean cars are at the top of most surveys . But because of branding a car like the VW UP can sell more than the Hyundi 110 in Denmark . The Hyundi is by far the better car with a 5 year guarantee . But seeing that many car buyers never compair products before buying , it is irrelevant because branding and image is on the side of the UP .

Let us not forget that the Japanese have a tradition for fine art that is unmatched by the western world . These traditions do not go a couple of hundred years back like the Germans or Swiss industry . They go over a thousand years back ! If people think the Germans are perfectionists , then they really should visit Japan .

So i conclude that the biggest difference between Japanese - German - Swiss watches is only in the branding . And like it or not , that is very important to people who buy watches . So i would rate them in this order .

In terms of quality in any price range .

1. Japanese
2. German
3. Swiss

In terms of branding and resale value.

1. Swiss
2. German
3. Japanese