Watch Review: Caribbean Joe Men's Degrade Green Sunburst Dial Strap Watch

When it comes to inexpensive fashion watches, one name has intrigued me for quite a long time:  Caribbean Joe.  As the logo on the dial shows, the brand evokes sunny beaches, swaying palm trees, and an idyllic life in a beach hut.  Who doesn't want that?

With my own summer ruined by a bit of job and career  uncertainty, I had no chance to escape to any tropical places this year.  But, the moment I gazed into the emerald green of this watch face at Kohl's, I was hooked.  You could get a virtual vacation just by checking the time.

Watch Style

Online, Kohl's calls this one the "Caribbean Joe Men's Degrade Green Sunburst Dial Strap Watch."  It's an apt description as you can see from the full picture that the watch does have a sunburst effect with the inner dial in lighter green and the outer portion darkening to a deeper green.

The watch has a gold-tone case and a leather strap.  The hour markers are in white outlined with a thin golden line.  The watch hands are similar outlined with a metallic gold tone.

Watch Construction

Of course, all the glitters is not gold.  I'm sure that a watch that retails for less than $30 won't contain any gold at all.  But, it is a little shiny.  The case is a base metal alloy and the caseback is stainless steel. The strap is made in China from a nice vegan leather. (I don't think China should treat vegans this way, but as long as no part of the vegan goes to waste, I guess it is o.k.)  They make a nice strap that looks like leather.  The crystal is glass.

As a rather dressy casual watch, there is no water resistance promised on the watch or in the online copy.  It's simply a watch for sitting by the beach and not swimming and that's o.k.  The watch uses a Made in Singapore movement powered by a common SR626 battery.

Watch Dimensions

This watch does look good on the wrist.  The watch diameter is 40 mm which is a wonderful proportion that combines readability and manly size without become a heavy hunk of metal on the wrist.  The case is not too thick.  The band width is 17 mm and the watch circumference was listed at 145 mm to 200 mm.  It fit my wrist fairly well.

Overall Impression

The watch comes in a nicely designed and executed box that includes a pillow and makes a nice impression. Overall, I was pleased by this purchase and the looks of this watch.  It's a good value for just about $30.

Watch Selection in Kohl's Stores Shrinking

 Over the past year or two, I've noticed the selection of men's watches continuing to shrink at Kohl's.

In one of my local stores, the selection is down to just two shelves of fashion watches.  The fanciest brands of men's watches in this Georgia location are Timex, Armitron, and Casio.  Many of brands are fashion labels like Caribbean Joe or Geoffrey Beane.

Unfortunately, the watches on display were very simple with few, if any complications.  It works out ok since my eyes don't pick up the small print of the extra complications on my watches.

Here is a typical Armitron watch that can be found at Kohl's now.  It's a pretty masculine-looking timepiece.  I didn't pick it up since I have plenty of simple watches in my collection right now.

A dwindling watch supply leaves me with one major question:  what are dudes supposed to shop for at Kohl's nowadays?  It has long been a traditional favorite store for my wife and me, but I don't need but one air fryer. 

Watch this blog though. I'll soon have a review for an nice Caribbean Joe watch that I did find in the ruins.

Wristwatch Review : Citizen Weekender Men's Eco-Drive Sport Watch

For everyday wear, I often choose this Citizen Weekender Eco-Drive Men's sport watch (Model AW1585-55L).  It has a sophisticated look and is supremely  easy to read.  The perforations around the bezel subtly evoke thoughts of motorsports.  The watch is marketed in a sports watch line called Citizen AR for "Action Required."

Watch Dimensions:  This watch comes in at a sensibly pleasing size with a 45mm diameter case that is 12mm thick.  The lugs measure 22mm.  The band measures 222 mm.

Construction:  The watch is constructed of black ion-plated stainless steel with a mineral crystal.  It is rated for 100 meters of water resistance.  It's certainly rugged enough for day-to-day adventures.  The bezel does not rotate so it isn't useful for timing scuba dives or pizzas in the oven.

Technical Features:  The watch has a small date window, but no other complications.  That's probably good since my eyes are hard-pressed to pick up the nuances of complications sometimes.  Eco-Drive is the watches main technical selling point.  The watch continuously charges and, once fully charged, this watch will keep time for months in the darkness of a sock drawer.

Overall, this Citizen Weekender watch is a satisfying watch for daily wear.  I enjoy it as a no nonsense practical timepiece with great looks.

Everyday Wear Watch: The Casio MRW-210H in Khaki

 Everyday Carry (EDC) is a popular topic for men.  It generates lots of lists of things men carry everyday as they go about their business.  You'll find great suggestions for wallets, pocket knives, multi-tools, field notebooks, and even handguns.  But, what kind of watch do you wear everyday?

Casio MRW-210H in Tan

It's an interesting question because it touches on the watches we wear when we don't necessarily have to go into the office and when a late night run to the convenience store might be more likely than fine dining in the best of local restaurants.  The answers may also vary based on our professions and our hobbies.  Someone who works outdoors or in agriculture or construction may well want to choose a different watch than someone who has an office or work from home (WFH) job.

I find that I often wear a solar-powered Citizen Eco-drive watch or a quintessential bang around like the Casio MRW-210H.  It's easy to read, has a comfortable nylon strap for all day wear, and has a tough resin case.  I've reviewed this model of watch on this blog before here.  However, now, I also have one in an attractive desert tan and black design.  Of course, if you ask me what I'm wearing, I can always say, "Khakis."  

This model of the MRW-210H has numerals that are printed flush on the dial rather than raised a little like on my original watch.  Otherwise, it still has the always useful rotating bezel and 100 meters of water resistance.

For all day wear and for use at a keyboard, this Casio is hard to beat for comfort due to its light weight and a lack of sharp edges or corners on the case or strap.

While this watch looks cool, it's not mugger bait.  It retails for less than $40 in most locations.  If it's not about prestige and just about looking rugged and telling time, this Casio is simply a great choice.

I was able to find a similar watch for a great deal on Amazon.

Watch Review: Bulova Men's Precisionist Stainless Steel Calendar Watch

It's been awhile since my last post or review, but I still buy interesting watches from time to time.  I'm really excited about my most recent purchase. It's my first Bulova Precisionist. The Precisionist line has a 26 kHz quartz movement that three times more accurate than a typical quartz movement. Precisionist watches also feature a continuously sweeping second hand that is very cool to see.  The watch I bought is a Bulova Men's Precisionist 3-Hand Calendar Watch in Stainless Steel with a black leather strap.  It's Bulova watch model number 96B158.

The Bulova Men's Precisionist 3-Hand Calendar Watch (Model 96B158)

Watch Design and Construction

This Bulova Precisionist has a simple, modern, design with a charcoal or gun metal grey watch face with a sophisticated swirl pattern.  The date is at the traditional 3 o'clock position and is large enough for my mid-50s eyes to read without magnification.  The Bulova Tuning fork logo is subtly featured on the crown and buckle.  The case is 42 millimeters in diameter and 10 millimeters thick.  These are nice proportions for most wrists.

The strap is marked with the Bulova brand and labeled as "Genuine Leather" and is 22 millimeters wide.  The exterior is stamped with some sort of alligator or crocodile texture.  For my large wrist circumference, the strap could be a little longer for maximum comfort.

The watch hands and the hour markers in the minute track have a bit of luminous material to help with night time visibility.  In keeping with the smooth sweep of the second hand the extra timekeeping precision of this watch, the minute track is broken down into minutes and fifths of a minute.

The base of the second hand features at an infinity logo that is fun to watch as the hand sweeps around the dial.  Since water resistance is only 30 meters for this dressy watch, the dial trumpets the "Precisionist" movement that vibrates at 262kHz which is eight times faster than most quartz watch movements.

This Bulova Precisionist watch has a stainless steel case with a shiny silver tone to it.  It features a flat mineral crystal and a black leather strap. 

The country of origin is Japan.

Watch Review

It's not often that you can get a relatively affordable luxury watch with a storied pedigree, interesting movement, and cool design.  I love the smoothly sweeping second hand and the subtle design features.  I'm less enthused about the leather watch strap which is of average quality and a little small.  Fortunately, that is the most easily replaced part of this watch package.  Overall, I love this watch and it'll definitely be one I keep for a long time.

Watch Review: Citizen Men's Quartz Stainless Steel Watch with Day/Date

As the Covid crisis stretches on and on, my opportunity to wear watches to work and other locations has declined. Yet, a few nice watches have still come my way.  For example, I chose this Citizen Stainless Steel watch to commemorate my fifth anniversary with my employer.  It has a cool silver-on-silver look that I've always found appealing.

 

The watch is nicely proportioned for a dress watch.  It has a case this just 8mm thick and a 38mm dial. It makes for an attractive watch that fits nicely under the cuffs of a dress shirt.  The silver-on-silver just looks competent and professional.  The watch is rated as water resistant to 50 meters or 165 feet.  So, it can bang around with most casual watches.

One aspect of this watch that isn't apparent from the Amazon description is that the bracelet achieves a two-tone affect by alternating flat brushed metal tone on the outside and an inner strip of highly polished metal.

This Citizen watch features a small but readable day and date window.

The etched clasp (shown above) is a nice touch and gives this watch a nicely finished look.  The 38mm dial diameter looks a little small on the wrist compared to some more casual watches.

 Overall, it's nice to have a decent classic watch or two in your collection.  This Citizen Stainless Steel Watch with Day & Date is perfect for almost any occasion.

Affordable Automatic Watches: Reef Tiger Men's Tourbillon with Convex Lens

Reef Tiger Men's Tourbillon Automatic with Convex Lens

Reef Tiger has a very special looking men's watch with mechanical movement.  They call it a casual watch, but it's a beauty.  Built around the Seiko NH39 automatic movement with windows revealing the movement and a transparent caseback, the Reef Tiger has what they bill as a convex lens, but which looks a domed crystal to me.

 Check out the profile pictures on Amazon to see the side view.  The watch is a sensible 40 millimeters in diameter and has a steel case, a sapphire crystal, and calfskin leather strap.  It offers water resistance of 50 meters.  A subdial shows the 24 hour time.  

As luxurious as this watch looks, the price point seems quite reasonable for a quality automatic watch.  Reef Tiger is a brand I've been following for awhile.  They have some great looking watches.  This one looks like a great Christmas gift for any man who appreciates a fine watch.