What is the difference between swiss quartz and japanese quartz

One major difference between the two types of movements is that the Japanese movement is mostly assembled by an animated robotics line. The whole Japanese approach revolves around efficiency and functionality. These watches are built with precision and effectiveness at the forefront, with aesthetics as a more secondary thought. While the Japanese movements can offer lower prices, the Swiss-made watches have centuries of heritage to back them up.

Despite their relatively short time in the watchmaking space, the Japanese have found a solution for lower-priced luxury. However, Swiss-made watches are still considered to be the highest standard of quality. From the cut of the metal to the color of the mechanisms, every detail is considered by a Swiss watchmaker. Aesthetics are paramount throughout the design and construction processes, and for the most part, hand assembly is still a part of the watchmaking process — something that the Japanese almost always automate with robotics.

Of course, as they proved in the late s, the Japanese watchmakers do know how to create a working product that people will buy. Their watches are not as well-known for their reliability or quality as those of their Swiss counterparts, but they are usually precise and, typically, are significantly less expensive than watches with Swiss-made movements.

As mentioned above, Japanese movements are considered very practical, with more emphasis on precision and a cost-effective build, and less on looks. These movements are created on automated assembly lines, which helps keep costs down for manufacturers. On the other hand, Swiss movements are the original automatic movements, and they set the standard for both precision and quality. Swiss movements must adhere to certain laws that ensure excellence and accuracy, and are also most often hand-assembled — a detail which usually impacts the overall quality and price of the watch.

Both get the job done, and both are used by watchmakers all over the world. The Swiss do, for the most part, still use hand assembly for some calibre models, which can affect the price of the movements. Japanese movements are manufactured slightly differently, mostly in an automated robotics line, but this allows for a much lower degree of error than by eye alone.

Due to the nature of the assembly, the price of Japanese movements is often cheaper than Swiss, but this does in no way indicate lower quality. With some Swiss movements, there are multiple versions of the same calibre, for example the famous Swiss ETA Valjoux movement comes in several grades that increase in price for better parts and decoration.

Just as an example, if we compare two robust movements over the years- the Seiko 7S26 and the Valjoux , the latter is priced many times more. Which do you think is a better movement? What are your reasons for choosing a Swiss or Japanese movement? Let us know in the comments sections below. View all. Carl F. Your article is very clear and well informed. I would like your views of Mechanical watch trends, which are coming back.

What importance it holds in coming future. Also share your expertise of what kind of Mechanical movements will be ideal for an expensive watch. Swiss movements, of course because they are very accurate, very well polished, hi quality alloys and have a very good synchronism.

On the other hand , the Japanese Seiko 7s26, for instance, has balance wheel design issues, as well as synchronism issue. The same for other series, such as 4R36, 4R35, since they are based on 7S Also, the alloys in the Japanese movements are inferior to the Swiss ones.

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