The type of e-mail I most frequently come across as WatchTime’s Office Manager goes something like this: ?I love your work but I can?t afford any of the watches or brands you cover. Why don’t you ever write about watches a regular guy who loves watches can buy"? I always think to myself ?But we cover all price points and lots of affordable models.? So today, after receiving another such e-mail, I challenged myself to build a well-rounded watch collection for under $5,000 using only existing WatchTime reviews as my guide. Below you’ll find my five choices and reasons for picking each model, along with slightly modified versions of the original reviews.
The foundation of any watch collection is one’s daily go-to watch, and ideally mine has to be full of useful functions. Also, it must be able to withstand being beat it up during my daily commute, weekend hikes, and the random abuse life throws at it. For these reasons, my pick in this category is the Casio Pro Trek PRG-650Y-1.
Casio is a popular choice for people who want extreme functionality without compromising on good looks. Last September, the Japanese brand expanded its Pro Trek collection with the addition of the PRG650Y-1, a new timepiece that includes a magnetic sensor for compass readings, a pressure sensor that functions as an altimeter, and a thermosensor for temperature. This analog-digital watch also has stopwatch capabilities, up to five daily alarms, water resistance up to 100 met...