Battery Operated or Self-Winding: Which Watch Is Better?

But is there really a superior type of watch? Let’s take a look at two of the most popular types that you will come across – battery operated and self-winding –  and see if there really is a superior watch type!

Battery Operated Watches 

There are many watches on the market today which operate through the use of a battery. These watches are extremely popular with the masses mainly for their availability and ease of maintenance.

A battery operated watch is extremely easy to look after, and more often than not, you can get around five to six years out of a battery operated watch before it’s time to change the battery. There are even some watches which can be charged by solar power!

What’s more, battery operated watches only ever lose a few seconds a month, with around five seconds being lost per year – which isn’t actually that much! They are also relatively affordable to buy, and don’t require much in the way of set up.

However, being powered by battery also has it’s downsides; mainly due to the hazards that batteries can cause. If the battery within your watch leaks, there is a chance that your watch could become permanently damaged. Because of this, you may want to change your battery on a more regular basis to reduce the chance of it leaking.

Self Winding Watches 

Self winding watches are watches which don’t necessarily need to be physically wound by the wearer; instead, they can work by using their motion while being worn to essentially “wind” them up.

They are much easier to maintain than battery operated watches, as they won’t need to have their battery changed in order to be able to function. They are often seen as luxury watches, mainly because of the intricate craftsmanship that has gone into creating them, which is why they are extremely popular with watch collectors.

They are also incredibly accurate at telling the time and are generally quite quiet while they are operating  – perfect for those people who can’t stand the ticking of a watch!

The only maintenance that you will need to put your watch through will be servicing to ensure that all the parts are working correctly, but you aren’t running the risk of a leaking battery damaging your watch permanently!

However, timekeeping wise, you may notice that a self-winding watch looses up to around 8 seconds a day. If this happens and losing a few seconds matters to you, you can wind the watch yourself or use an automatic watch winder and adjust the time more accurately.

Although a self-winding watch doesn’t have to be worn daily in order to function, it does need to have some form of motion going on to keep the mechanism working – so if you aren’t planning on wearing it for more than a day or two, you may have to hand wind it yourself – but that’s not a hard thing to do!

Both types have their advantages and disadvantages, but it really does boil down to personal preference. If you’re looking for an affordable, maintainable watch, choose a battery powered model. If you’re looking for a watch which oozes style and sophistication that doesn’t tick and can last a life time, choose a self-winding watch!

Here at Martins of Glasgow, we specialise in watches and watch repairs. If you’d like to pick our brains about what watch you should choose, or have a watch that’s in need of a little TLC, please don’t hesitate to get in touch with us today – we’d be more than happy to help you out.