Modern Japan has many faces. There’s the scowl of the businessman, working 15-hour days and looking to avoid karoshi, or “death by overworking.” The reason this word exists is the phenomenon is not uncommon in Japanese corporate culture. Those who work 100 hours or more per week are most at risk.

One of the most frequently […]

The Seiko 8F32 quartz perpetual calendar movement has many hidden talents. Aside from it being a highly accurate movement, at 20 seconds per year when worn (running at 196khz instead of the usual 32khz), it also has the ability to show not only today’s date, but the number of years since the last leap year, […]

Being a collector and admirer of Seiko kinetics for years, it’s probably strange to hear me say that I think the technology is redundant and perhaps even obsolete. It’s not that I don’t admire kinetics, I just think longer lasting batteries and solar recharging (dial limitations not withstanding) methods are becoming more practical solutions […]

Dr. Wayne Lee, Founder/Owner
Seiko and Citizen Watch Forum
Editor’s note:
Several years ago as my interest in Swiss/European timepieces was starting to wane, I stumbled onto the Seiko/Citizen Watch Forum which was “owned and operated by Wayne Lee” as the banner then proclaimed. As I read through the numerous educational and entertaining posts, my interest in Seikos […]

For those intrigued by the mysterious principles of design that separate inspired watches from the pedestrian kind, Seiko’s Prospex Kinetic Chronograph presents a fascinating and challenging puzzle.

How in the world did its creator, Akihiko Yamamoto of the Seiko Watch Design Center in Tokyo, ever arrive at this brilliant, unlikely, and perplexing arrangement of forms? With […]

I have a 300M “Tuna Can” shrouded diver that is one of the best engineered watches that Seiko makes. Like many others in the watch collecting world, I love sturdy watches, built like tanks, with multi-hundred meter dive capabilities.

But where does the desire for such a watch (and “gear” generally) come from? After all, I […]

Photo: Copyright ©2006 Casio Computer Co., LTD
Michael Jordan jammed. When MJ wore red and black the colors became cool forever. Tiger Woods wears red and black today when the tournament is on the line. Both know red and black is a dramatic color combination. In summer 2006, Casio Japan released a series it calls Jam’in […]

Those who collect G-Shocks know that the number of individual models produced is mind boggling. As a collector, it seems that I am constantly uncovering new models in my daily searches. Most of the time when I see something new, I check out the model for distinctive features. Obviously you can’t buy them all so […]