So there you are walking through a Macy’s or any one of your run of the mill department stores. You eat your pretzel and reflect on how much you spent when suddenly, by a whim, you just happen to stop by the part of the store that sells the watches. Maybe you are waiting for your husband, or your wife, or maybe you are single and have some time to kill and some cash to burn. Whatever the reason, here you are!

For all practical purposes you may think 100 dollars is too much for a Fossil and too much to spend on a watch altogether. You have that philistine thought, “Why buy a watch when my mobile phone keeps perfect time?” (You peasant you!) You look at yourself with a grimace and acknowledge that none of the rather pedestrian brands there really float your boat. You are about to leave when suddenly, in the corner of the display case, bathed with fancy lights and stood up with fancy watch stands, you see a brand of watches called MOVADO.

You may notice that the price tag is significantly higher, the watches presented there are fewer in number and greater in presence, and that when you ask to see one the salesperson is slightly reluctant to hand it over. It is indeed sad, but for many of us in these United States, this is our grail watch, the watch of which we may think, “Hmm… if I ever make some money in the world, this is what I’ll buy.”

Why is that you ask?

Because short of Rolex this is the only other luxury watch brand most of us know. The name Movado is pummeled into us as a prestige watch brand because out of almost every display case we see selling Seiko, Citizen, and various other “cheap” brands, Movado always stands out as being the Rolls Royce of the bunch.

I’ll lay it to you straight…

I do not like Movado watches. Most of them are just fashion accessories and they don’t represent anything I like about watchmaking. Most watch enthusiasts like me largely ignore them, but I will admit that despite their complete lack of practical things such as a seconds hand, date window, or even some simple hour markers, the Movado Museum Collection is a beautiful thing.

Movado Men’s Valor Tungsten Carbide Watch #0604773

Does this face look familiar? The answer is YES!

Most Movado watches have the EXACT same dial as this Movado Military. There may be several variations in color and case material, but few things have changed since the introduction of this famous face. Go near any middle to upper middle class area and you’ll see watches like these floating EVERYWHERE.

The name Movado, in the ever-pretentious language of Latin means “always in motion.” That may be true, but without a seconds hand it’s really hard to tell isn’t it? Personally, I like the Movado Museum Valor. You heard me, I LIKE the Movado Museum.  It kind of understands that in the modern world we don’t really need something as old school as the seconds hand.

It’s not as though anyone you know is going to tell you, “I need you down here in 2 minutes and 20 seconds,” and when was the last time you had someone ask you to time something so intricate that it even required a minute hand.  I also like the way it’s not afraid to be flashy.  This is truly a watch for the 20th century when just a general understanding of time is required, but if you need more, there’s always your Blackberry.