Seven hundred dollars of good taste
By Rafael Ortiz, Mexico City ยท
Quartz, and I don't care. That was my reaction the first time I saw the Nero Sabbia in person, and I'm a mechanical guy.
The Seiko VK64 meca-quartz gives you a chronograph with a mechanical-style module, so the hands snap back to zero like they should. The black and sand dial looks like a 1940s chronograph, and the 38 mm case, 12 mm thick, on leather, is a sweet size. 50 meters, closed back.
It's not perfect. The pushers feel a little cheap and light, and the lume is minimal, so at night you're mostly guessing. But at 710 dollars it's one of the best-looking chronographs under 1,000, and it'll make a lot of expensive watches feel overdressed.